If it makes you feel any better I just RE-spent $800 on parts after an aftermarket motor mount failed and took out my fan, shroud and radiator on my '98 M3.
With the mileage your GTI had, that follower should've been replaced multiple times already, just bad luck on your part it'd been neglected.
Prepping to fix my GTI
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Progress. Lock carrier removed.
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Sometimes the GTI pwns you...good luck!
Curious what method you're planning to use for the valve cleaning. I had mine cleaned ~ 5k miles ago by an independent shop, and they use baking soda blast. Sounds messy. Next one might be via my labor, so looking to learn what you learn during your endeavor.
I've got a can of that CRC Industries intake valve cleaner, and I'm going to get a brass brush and go to town on them. I've heard there are shops that will use a walnut shell blast but I'm doing this myself so good old elbow grease is in my future.
einy wrote: Curious what method you're planning to use for the valve cleaning. I had mine cleaned ~ 5k miles ago by an independent shop, and they use baking soda blast. Sounds messy. Next one might be via my labor, so looking to learn what you learn during your endeavor.
Handful of zip ties, tightly zip tied into one bunch pointed ends down make a good extended reach "brush" with stiff bristles to chip away carbon with some cleaner applied. With this you simply spray the closed intake valve then use the zip tie brush like a plunger to loosen all the crud. the flexibility of the Zip tie allows it to go around the valve stem.
Steam clean them.
Got my teeth cleaned today, and couldn't stop thinking about how a spare set of dental tools would probably be useful for the next time I have to clean my GTI's intake valves. I tell my wife this, and she looks at me like I am crazy.
In reply to einy:
Parker makes a set of brass o-ring tool for aviation. They're like 8 bucks a set but I use them to scrape stuff like that when I don't want to risk marring the surface.
I think I've had my set for better than 10 years now. They probably get used once a week despite not doing aircraft work anymore.
Oooo ... as low as $8.50 for the set online, I'm seeing. Thank you for that tip!
I don't know if you were getting codes related to fuel or not, but I was getting a fuel regulator performance code which led to me replacing the fuel filter, fuel pressure sensor on the HPFP, and finally the LPFP in the tank. No codes after replacing the LPFP. Seeing as your cam follower was completely destroyed we probably aren't having the same issues, but I just thought I'd throw it out there. My Audi has 184k miles and I guess it was just time for the LPFP to be changed. Yours might need the same along with the follower.
Photobucket can suck a FFOG! I'm not paying $6/month to those asshats.
Working on this car pisses me off. I'm like your old man who was always in a state of pissed off bliss. He must have also had a VW or other German car to work on.
Spent two hours this morning working on the car. Took off 4 parts - that was it - throttle body, aftercooler to throttle body hose, sound hose that pipe noise up to the firewall.
The rest of the time was spent figuring out creative ways to use sockets, swivels and electrical tape. And removing electrical connectors. And coolant hoses. The idiocy of the design is astounding. VW techs - whatever they get paid per hour - it ain't enough.
The hose clamp pliers I bought off Amazon broke on the first hose clamp I tried to remove. So I've been using Channel lock pliers which work great as long as you can get to the hose clamp spring ends. Now I've got a couple clamps at the thermostat that I can't get to with pliers. Going to NAPA to buy a set.
$6 a month?! More like $36 a month! Photobucket wants $400 A YEAR to do 3rd party hosting.
Right now ALL of my forum pics are gone....
Aaaaand now I'm having back spasms. This car may be destroyed in a tragic garage fire and replaced by one of those sweet lease deal Alfa Romeo Giulias.
Can u pull the new shocks / struts and send them to me right before the completely surprising to everyone tragic accident hits your car, please ?!?
So yeah, I'm just gonna say that VAG products apparently make my Saab look like a Toyota when it comes to repair complexity, so sympathies and sincere wishes for a happy ending of some sort to your GTI. Much respect.
Got the alternator, thermostat and intake manifold removed. Working on the intake cam next. Then timing belt and water pump. Then reassembly can start.
Guys, Photobucket has screwed my thread. I am keeping it limping along over at Corner-Carvers with just a few pictures. All the old Photobucket hosted pictures are gone.
If I was a forum owner I'd be really pissed at Photobucket.
Here's the link to the thread if you want to keep up with what's going on:
Quick update - the GTI is running fine and is up to 149,xxx miles. The only thing on the to do list is to replace the injector seals where they go into the head - since this is a direct injection engine there are some fancy, one time use seals on the injectors. I bought some spares when I had the fuel rail off but didn't get the special tool (didn't know I needed it at the time). Since the special tool is $250 I'm going to let the dealer handle this.
In reply to smokindav :
I've always had a fascination with GTIs. But I've never pulled the trigger on one. After your ownership experience would you recommend one?
In reply to smokindav :
You can post pictures directly here now and there’s a GRM alternative photo server called photoberkit. So at least you could probably go back and fix the posts Photobucket photo-berkeleyed. Glad you updated this thread.
I've had lots of different cars because I like to try different things. My first car back in the late 80's during high school was a 1984 Honda CRX with the bigger 1.5L engine. That car weighed around 1900 pounds and was a blast! A good friend of mine had an '83 GTI and the fun factor of those two cars always sticks with me.
When I sold my '14 Mustang GT I wanted to go back to something a little smaller and more connected - the Mustang was great but they are a big car. The GTI is no lightweight as it weighs around 3100 pounds, but for a modern car that's about as good as it gets unless you go to a Fiesta or Fiat 500 sized car.
When I was car shopping I looked at a number of different cars. I really wanted an early Focus SVT but those cars do not age well. I also tried to go look at a Civic Si but the guy sold it right before we were supposed to meet. I drove a couple NB Miatas but I've already had 2 NA's and wanted something different.
The GTI has been great - fun to drive, enough power in stock form, which is easily remedied with more power via the usual turbo car bolt-ons like a cold air intake, exhaust and tune (I have the exhuast and intake but don't have the tune yet). The MkV (2006.5 model year) and newer cars are very Audi-like, but in a good way. Nice, nice, nice interiors, an engine that can stand up to track days, good cooling and good brakes. They don't get great gas mileage, though, but we don't care about that.
Hatchbacks are very handy - you can fit a ton of stuff in the back, but what is really unique about GTI's is that a full grown man can fit in the back seat, comfortably. I'm 6'1" and if I leave the driver's seat set where I like it I can easily ride behind my self. This means the kids have a ton of room and never complain.
For a small car that can do most everything I highly recommend it.
Nick Comstock said:In reply to smokindav :
I've always had a fascination with GTIs. But I've never pulled the trigger on one. After your ownership experience would you recommend one?
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