[Vwdiesel] TDI weekend work-rear wiper

[Travis Gottschalk]

Well, I finally got around to installing the rear wiper fix for the rear wiper spray. My spray was following the wiper blade meaning it was on its way out. I bought the kit to fix which keeps your OEM motor. At first the things I had read stated it wasn't going to wipe the full 180 degrees. It does. They may have changed kits at one time so it does. Hardest part was getting the rear plastic off the hatch as they have some strong clips. It is two screws and then you pull away from the hatch and they start poping. I don't think I would want to do when cold for fear of breaking the tabs. Putting the motor together was a little harder since you have more parts to assemble then you do taking apart since some of the parts are froze together on the old ones but all told not too hard. The gearing was a little tight and I was worried it may strip the plastic drive gear but it didn't. I had to re-aim the nozzle so to get higher on the window as well. Next oil change I am putting the passat oil cooler in. larger so when I am towing it should help with things better. I don't have an oil temp gauge and don't know how I could get one to work well but I figure it can't hurt. That and it will warm the oil up better as well. 

Also added a CAT fuel filter to the rabbit car. I figured best to have a common filter and it filters better then OEM. The place that made the kit stopped making the filter head which was the only one that took the thermo T. Nicktane has a kit still that would work. I bought two used kits on tdiclub. One was someones spare and another I bought a nicktane kit in exchange. When I get the trucks injection pump sealed again (kind of getting sick of that as it will be my 4th-both parts place ones went bad in under 40K miles). Thats all the updates on the VW's. 

Doing a lot of work on the JD 332 diesels this weekend as well. Electrically. Which reminds me for a question: I would like to add a spare alternator that I have for the rabbits that is in good shape on the 332 driven from the rear PTO. The tractor has a 20 amp OEM and it can't be enlarged unless you remove the muffler and manifold so I am stuck there. I was thinking for winter use when I get a cab and lights and possibly a cab heater. The front PTO drives the blower and the rear pto could drive the alternator. The pto clutches are electromagnetic so the light on the tractor (3 fronts 2 rears), the PTO's and the charging would be as much as the tractor alt could handle. So how would I hook the alt up. I don't want to burn anything up. I know the VW alt requires 12 volts to excite it. So do I hook the exciter wire to the battery (or even the PTO wire) and then the power wires can they be hooked up straight to the lights? And does it just ground through the tractor with both alternators and will they compete? Or would I have to hook the alt up to the battery on the power cables and run the lights from a switch through the battery power. I have seen one other person run an alternator on the rear pto but I am just making sure I don't fry something. No rush as I still need a cab and that won't happen for a while. There-that question still involved a VW part on a diesel. 
Travis G