2.6L NA vanagon transplant build

[nmerrill]

Well, here's a brief run down of my 2.6L NA AAN build to be installed in my Syncro westy
It started with this engine, picked up from a member- at least I think he's a pad member.


2.6L eurospec bottom end built up as a 20v NA engine.
I also had this on the shelf - left over from my days as a 200 20V avant owner; a rebuilt 20V head, also picked up from a member a few years back.



I pulled the 20v apart




Checked a few things out. Everything looked good, and since the engine was supposed to have about 30K miles on it, I was hoping for no surprises.



Since I was there, I spent a little time converting from rusty cast iron, to NEW cast aluminum block!



Then I started going the other way...

Swaintec coated VW 9A (16V NA) pistons


Yup, that should do...


tried a few things out..




I had a few iterations of accessories on there, originally thinking I could go with the 3b/7A style rigging...
Soon found that there were issues with the PS pump and the AAN intake. After trying several different things, including mounting the PS pump on the other side of the block, and making brackets to mount the pump lower to clear the AAN intake, I finally caved, and went full AAN serp belt...
... but the 2.6L South African block did not have one of the mounting points for the AAN accessory mount...



Also needed to deal with this issue


A little bracketing work took care of both...





I also needed to drill the block to mount the timing belt tensioner. One hole attempt apparently was a little off... resulting in a small heart attack as the drill punched out the other side!
I looked in the hole, and didn't see any pistons, so figured I was OK... Plugged it up, and tried again!





Hope it holds! Seems sketchy with just the 6mm bolts...


Next issue was this:


After some head scratching, etc, I came up with a solution:




Also seen:
the nipple for the self bleed line to the coolant reservoir.
The drilled and tapped multi-fuction temp sender body, to hold a regular temp sender

Guess that's all for now.
If you see anything I F'd up, please don't tell me!

Nat

[audifreakjim]

Cool! So that's not a tall deck block right? You just need to make sure the coolant passages are sealed up on the 20v head if it is a tall deck.

[nmerrill]

It's a block that VW used in the Vanagons produced in South Africa. It is a 95.5 mm stroke, and supposed to be a block height of 221.35 mm - just 1.35 mm taller than the standard 7A etc. blocks, but not the tall "eurovan" block.

However, I could not accurately measure the block. When I installed the pistons, they were 0.5mm below deck, which was not what the maths I did said they should do.

In the end, I left it alone and moved ahead.

The head gasket, block, and head holes all agreed - if I recall correctly!

[Afterthought]

Nice , this is going to be an badass ride. Syncro too!!! Awesome.

[nmerrill]

Got some time to bring this further up to date:

Looking like something now - mounted to NOS South African syncro trans (with epoxy primer, and custom oil cooling and circulation mods)


A little test fit:


Think that could work: Fits under the deck lid nicely.


Needed to make some mods to get the bag-o-snakes heat shield since I didn't have the 7A intake mani to hang it from:




Then it was time to start fitting it all into the body. I basically made it all new - new hard, and soft fuel lines, multiple brackets for Air filter, coolant, etc. etc.
in no particular order:














In the mean time, I had acquired a 7A harness to use as a VEMS harness.
Some of you know this process:



The wanted, and the unwanted:


Found a nice unit at the junk yard, from an old SAAB 900


Since the main (70mm2) battery line comes to the engine room in the Vanagon, and then splits off to the Alt, and starter, all un-fused, I decided to grab one of these to incorporate:

took a little modifying to fit the large cable, but it works...


The 7A harness ended up fitting in there really well - I had to flip it, and exit the opposite side of the engine room I was expecting (old harness went out left side), but in the end, I only need to extend the coolant temp sensor wires to reach.




Things are looking up! Beginning to think I might actually see this van running again!

[pkw]

I would totally take a syncro. nice project.

[dana]

looking excellent nat!

[pilihp2]

Legitimately thought you had a cast aluminum block.



I am really gullible.



This is awesome!

[PRY4SNO]

Super cool project, looking forward to future updates!

[nmerrill]

Thanks ya'll
It's been a long adventure. I've left all the "while the engine and trans are out" resto work that was done.... pulled the tank and re-did all the fuel lines/vent lines above the tank, new coolant pipes, new nicop rear brake lines, new powers steering lines, blasted, expoy primered and monstalinered the entire rear end of the underbody/engine room...blah blah

Anyway, I wonder if anyone here has a thought about the block vent line to the TB. As can be seen in one of the pics above, I put a copper line to the TB, and under that ugly cluster of clamps and rubber, is a flame arrester, as was stock.
I can't decide if I should put a restrictor in that line.
I know that some cars (7a?) had a 1 mm restrictor in one of the lines, but also had a second line to the intake pre- TB.
Can't recall what the AAN had off hand

Thoughts?

[nmerrill]

Legitimately thought you had a cast aluminum block.

PS. wait, what? I don't? That's totally what the can said!

[PLANETARY4]

Cool! What do you think the compression ratio is?

[nmerrill]

Compression about 9.7:1

[nmerrill]

Folks,
Hope someone here might have thoughts about an issue I'm having with this build.

I got it all together back in the spring and it started right up! It was running rather rich though.

However, right away, after the first time I let it run long enough to warm up, it started making a bad noise - loud squeal like noise.
I posted a video here about it, and someone mentioned it sounded like a vac leak.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3R5KC ... sp=sharing

The sound starts after a little bit of warm up - always quiet on cold starts.

I finally tracked the sound down to an odd place - the Bell housing.
The sound is not altered by clutch action at all.

Here is a new vid where the sound is clear, and my evidence for the location is as well...

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3R5KC ... sp=sharing

I'm stumped what could be making this noise - the pilot bearing was new, and well greased, and the clutch has no affect on the sound.

Could the rear crank seal be leaking vacuum, or pressure?
Thoughts?

Nat

[nmerrill]

Happy new Year!
crap, 2019?
Anyone still here??

That means this project has been sidelined for...
never mind.

Good news is that I'm back on it! After taking a year remodeling a big 1850 house into a duplex, and then riding motorcycles the length of South America for 7 months, I finally have time to get this rig on the road!

After taking a few hours to figure out that this place seems to have gone quiet, and the other place is in again, (maybe?), and then spending hours re-learning what I did, and what seemed so obvious back then, I've finally made some progress!

So, to recap, this project stalled with a weird noise produced by the engine after it warmed up a bit.
I eventually determined that it appeared to be emanating from the bell housing - see video posted above.

A few years go by, and I was bummed to find out that it was still making the same noise! While contemplating pulling the trans to take a look, but really unclear what could be the issue in there, I still had the comment someone made at some point that it sounded like a vacuum leak...
In a stroke of genius, I cracked the oil filler cap, and guess what? Massive vacuum, and the noise went away!

It seems that the crank vac is so high that... What? It must be pulling air past the rear main seal?

And that brings me back to the question I had a few posts back related to the restrictor that is in the breather lines on the 7A (etc.) engines - Is that there to limit the vac pulled on the crankcase at idle?

Progress!

[nmerrill]

Well, seems to be the case - started it up till warm, and sure enough, it started squealing.
So I pulled the breather line off the throttle body, and it went silent. Kind of surprised how much vacuum at the throttle body- a real suck!

Anyway, time for a restrictor.
But, from the diagrams I've seen for the 7A, I can't quite determine if the N80 charcoal line is before or after the restriction - Does the canister get "full" vacuum, or reduced vacuum?

The AAN system does not appear to include a restrictor, at least not by name. However, I suspect the one way valve is called a "Bleeder valve", because it actually is a restrictor as well as a one way valve?
In that case, the N80 system is before the restrictor, meaning it gets full vacuum.

[Afterthought]

Check this out, it may help. From the Urs4 but similar system
https://forums.quattroworld.com/s4s6/msgs/21014.phtml
I’ve always had swapped engines not stock cars and run VEMS . I simplified the breather system and also ditched the n80 and ISV.
However in the stock configuration the Motronic ECU would control that n80 valve which has full vacuum (or pressure) on one side.
However , I didn’t read all the way back through your thread but looked at some of the pics . On the bottom of the AAN intake manifold there should be like a 3 way split with a check valve hidden within it . The check valve , should keep you from boosting the crank case , but I wonder if it regulates flow at the same time going toward the TB. You appear to have a “tee” from 034 but I don’t see a check , if you don’t have a check valve in that line you’d be pulling Vacuum on the crank case at all time regardless of n80 output.

The red is the direction of flow you’re thinking you have , right ?.

There is also a valve that I’ve heard referred to as the pancake valve , located right off the crank case 4-Way split but I don’t think that’s your issue because it is on other side ( flow heading toward intake)



I’m wondering if this thing somehow regulates flow .



If you need it . I have that piece somewhere . I dug it out for some guy who needed it and sent him pics and never heard back, just a matter of finding it again .

[nmerrill]

Hey, thanks for the work!
Correct, on the AAN there is a three way split at the crank, and the "one-way" "bleeder valve".

I don't have a three way split, nor the one-way valve, because I don't have a turbo.
The one way valve is there to keep boost in the Intake from pressurizing the crankcase.
The pancake valve part of the system that allows crankcase breathing through another route when under boost.

Also, I don't have a breather connection on my valve cover - SO, only one line from crank to throttle body, with tee to feed N80.

So, I have the 034 tee, but no check valve. I do suspect that the one way is indeed called a "bleeder" because it too is a restictor like the NA cars have, so that full intake Vac is not fed to the crankcase.
But the N80 gets full intake vac, at least on the AAN- not sure about the 7A yet

I made a restrictor plug for my copper line last night, and it will limit vac to the crankcase, but leave full vac to the N80.


However, now that I look closer, appears that the 7A (and maybe the NF?) has two lines to the intake, one small line at that TB (like AAN) and another large pipe from the intake boot before AFM direct to the crankcase.

Not sure why that is just yet...
Perhaps this is there to provide crankcase breathing under low vacuum conditions -i.e. open throttle?
So a larger pipe for flow under low vac...

[nmerrill]

Which, now that I understand it better, is what the AAN has as well- it just includes the pancake valve to control the flow.
Guess I need to re-work my crank vent system a little to include a low vac vent line to the intake pre-TB.


Would there be a problem teeing off the line that feeds the ISV? OE systems both pull from same areas of the intake boot I think.

At idle - TB closed, ISV open, CC fumes would be pulled through ISV into intake mani. I suppose the flow is mostly through the restrictor line to the TB (high vac) but if not, It might cause clogging of the ISV.
Cruise - TB open, ISV closed, crankcase venting through line by it self into intake pre- TB, as in OE system.

I guess the possibility of gunking the ISV is a bad idea.

[Afterthought]

I’ve suspected that the pancake valve isn’t totally necessary , at least not in a system that’s been “simplified” because I run the INA breather puck on my block with AN -12 line and I’ve never had any issue with excess oil showing up anywhere including the catch can .
You could start by adding that bleeder .
Depending on where you got your VEMS The N80 might not be doing anything as I don’t think the VEMS ECU is setup to control it.

[Afterthought]

you got me thinking about this piece , I think I was wrong and your suspicions are correct . I found it on the shop floor , realize I’ve been stepping over this for probably months now .


A friend of mine who is an Audi tech was at my shop and I asked him about this valve. He says it is not a flow regulator of any sort just a one way valve .
That means , The intake manifold is drawing on the crank case full vacuum at idle regardless , so you're right, I don’t think you’d need a check valve. Since it wouldn’t make any difference at idle and since your NA engine doesn’t see positive intake manifold pressure .

So You are only using the small line but maybe you need a larger line going to the intake somewhere on the pre-throttle body side. Like the one that the stock car has going through the valve cover to intake
In this diagram look at the line in pink. I think that line goes through the valve cover and also back to the intake. I just can’t remeber if it goes in to the intake only or just the valve cover and that’s it

[nmerrill]

Exactly! See my previous two posts - so we came to the same conclusion.
I already made the required mods - added a tee off at the crankcase outlet, using the same size hose I used for the ISV, and ran it to my intake boot before TB.
Also added a restrictor with a 1/16 hole (smallest I had) at the end of the copper line to the TB.
No more squeal!
Now to get some tuning done!
Ill get some pics up soon to prove it.
Thanks again btw.

[Afterthought]

Same conclusion you just got there quicker
My catch can is vented to atoms. But I think I’m going to route it to the intake soon. As it has no “draw” on it right now to pull anything out . Also it smells