question about head gaskets for early 1.5D

[posscakes]

can anybody tell me about the difference in head gaskets for these engines (ie 2,3,4,5 notch)????? im wanting to know what is the most appropriate for 1980 passat gld with 1.5D (same engine as a golf)cheers.

[imported_brackie]

The notches tell you the thickness of the gasket. It's VERY IMPORTANT to fit the right one. Usually if you replace the one you remove with a new one having the same number of notches all is sweet, but if you want to be really sure turn the crank so that the pistons protrude from the block, clean the piston face to the metal and use feeler gauges and a straight edge to measure the piston protrusion.

2 notch, 1.3mm thick, piston protrusion 0.43-0.63mm
3 notch, 1.4mm thick, piston protrusion 0.63-0.82mm
4 notch, 1.5mm thick, piston protrusion 0.82-0.92mm
5 notch, 1.6mm thick, piston protrusion 0.92-1.02mm

I assume you locked the injection pump and camshaft. Make sure that the new cambelt that you install is nice and tight on the "drive" side and that the tensioner is set right. Your motor has the 6 point non-stretch bolts. Be certain to follow the correct tightening sequence and torque.

I might be teaching my grandmother how to suck eggs but diesels are very unforgiving when it comes to tolerances, timing and torques (always remember the "3 Ts").

Anyway, are you happy with the car apart form the cyl. head? If it has a 2 or a 5 notch gasket I have a couple.

[posscakes]

thanks for the info brackie, will happily take as much of it on board as i can as i no mechanic and relitively new to the world of diesels.

as for the passat i reckon it was a bargain for the money i paid. motor starts easy and runs without any knocks doesn't blow smoke. however seems to be a bit of oil leaking into the coolant which says something amiss perhaps h.g? i wont be driving it until i get the stuff under the bonnet sorted.

brakes need an overhaul. tiny bit of surface rust to clean up. came with a pile of spares and the bentley. otherwise apart from the loud idle and rattle and feeling like a legoman when i drive it its pretty good. its certainly a whole world apart from my 300D, but i guess for me passat is a crash course in volkswagen! a sort of welcome. oh yeah its not that slow, well its not fast but its not gonna hold up the traffic...

what attracts me to diesels? i think better technology, less components to crap out, better fuel economy, and more fuel options - if you can get around on an cleaner environmentally friendly fuel you should. in sa we are lucky we can buy biodiesel b200 at the bouser!!!

what attracts me to vw diesel? it baffles me how these 25 year old + cars seem to be light years ahead of modern equivelents in terms of economy! so its sorta a trade off of comfort and speed for better fuel economy, & less pollution. if only i had a spare whatever it is to buy a new one??

any one know about the elsbett kits? see www.elsbett.com does anyone know of people getting hold of these kits in australia?

[imported_brackie]

Classic problem and definitely the head gasket. The oil gets in at the front (in your case the passenger side) of the head around the large port between the crankcase and the head. A new gasket will fix it as this is a "low pressure" zone in the head.
Good that the rest of the car is OK.
My mrs and I both had 300Ds when we lived in WA. I had an auto and she a rare manual imported from S Africa. Brilliant cars.

[imported_brackie]

any one know about the elsbett kits? see www.elsbett.com does anyone know of people getting hold of these kits in australia?

The 1 tank kit is expensive. The 2 tank kit is cheaper. You can do your own 2 tank kit for a fraction of the cost if you're handy. If you use the 1 tank your engine needs to be in really good condition.

[Edison]

as for the passat i reckon it was a bargain for the money i paid.

Yes, indeed, I was after that car, but wanted to sniper it at the end as I am a pensioner with limited resources, but my friend ( I wasn't near a computer at the time ) got to the computer and got the page up when there was one second left to go... ARGH!!! well I'm over it.

I got a Golf Diesel for $300 in brisbane and got $900 in fines driving it back to Sydney. BAH!!!! if i convert it to bio it'll still be good value. but even if it is good value I'll still hate the pigs!!!

I also got a Red Golf petrol for $500 which I'm driving at the moment.

[posscakes]

yep the trusty 300D is a goer, take a fair bit to kill that tank. theres a reason they use them as taxis in africa...

the diy 2 tank system i know all about as mates have done it, that is a duel fuel set up utilising the water from radiator to heat the chip oil etc. thats great if you're doing a lot of long distance driving etc if you live somewhere in the sticks. problem is utilising the chip oil in the city. that i think is the advantage of the elsbett one tank system. but yeah it cost about 900 euros + freight if they'll even frieght it. i've emailed them twice but no reply as yet...

back to the passat. brackie is there a way to work out which gasket i need without pulling it apart first?

ed - sorry ya missed out on the passat. sounds though you went for the golfs off trading post i was thinking the same for a bit. damn diesels rare as hens teeth, if i didn't have a munchkin on the way i'd just buy a ute...,

[hiho]

I must be very lucky then

A friend and I bought 3 GLD's with the intention of registering one each and wrecking the other. Then a stranger gave me another GLD! I paid him out of the rego and had a roadworthy this week. The fix list is as follows:

Reverse lights
LHS brake light
Clutch pedal rubber pad
handbrake warning light
Passenger side external door handle is stiff
bumpers missing end caps
inner left CV joint boot split

I cannot believe my good fortune

(I am considering purchasing a 2 door petrol Golf with gofast bits and putting the spare diesel motor and gearbox into it, then Ill have three GLD's)

My wife loves them and so do I, they are fantastic cars. I have fitted an additional fuel filter and I am about to fill the tank with bio.

If anyone needs spares of the car im wrecking, let me know and I will share my good fortune. (ill give you the parts you want!!)

Regards
Matt

[imported_brackie]

back to the passat. brackie is there a way to work out which gasket i need without pulling it apart first?

Yep.
1. Clean down the front (in your case passenger side) of the motor especially where the head meets the block.
2. Look down between the number 2 and 3 injectors. You'll see a tab sticking out from the join. Its part of the head gasket.
3. Get a long, thin screwdriver and run it along the tab (it's a bit crowded because of the injector pipes). Count the notches.

The reason I advise the screwdriver trick is that the notches are difficult to see and you can't get your fingers in there to feel for them without taking the injector pipes off.
You obviously haven't started to pull the head off yet so one thing I forgot to mention is the need for absolute cleanliness when the injector pipes are off. I advise you to go to a diesel fuel injection shop and get some plastic caps so that you can cover up all orifices in the pump and injectors to prevent the ingress of dirt. Dirts wrecks diesels.

[posscakes]

thanks brackie located the tab no worries could've almost read the part number if it were printed the the same way as the picture in the bentley.
got a 3 notch head gasket, a gasket kit, head bolt, and timing belt on order. will get some some cups to keep dirt out. got to get gasket sealant.

are there any specific tools required for the job ie to lock the ip and cam shaft, tension the timing belt etc ive read a few conflicting articles...