[T3]

["rjdiaz" <rjdiaz@gruenewald.de>]

First of all, Merry Christmas to everyone.

I was again reading the remarks concerning other folk's oil
and fuel problems and I'd like to ask the group something
related.  I've mentioned my problem to a few persons on this
site and one mentioned that I should address the group.

I've got my car up on jacks now.  I've removed the muffler
and heat exchangers for replacement/refurbishing and access
for cleaning around the engine and transmission. I am also
doing a full tune up and checking the valve clearance. I was
going to drop the engine for an overhaul but now I'm
thinking of delaying this.

Background information:

I acquired the car earlier this year.  It had been sitting
for a few years in a barn.  We drove the car to my home
where it sat for several months in my garage while
semi-disassembled for small corrosion repairs, a new brake
system, and a full inspection/cleaning.  The engine sat
drained during this time.  The fuel tank had been removed
for access to the front end and was cleaned out.  Castrol
20w50 GTX was added, the plugs and points were changed, and
the car has been used around town three or four times a week
at speeds normally in the 60-80 kph range since July.  A few
Autobahn runs, but I would say 5-6 times in the 100 kph
range for only a few kilometers at a time.

The car seems to be running great and the oil light goes out
at idle.

I did not see the test but I had a German air-cooled VW
mechanic look it over carefully, perform a compression
check, and he said at the time that there was low
compression in number 3 cylinder and he had to "adjust the
valve clearance to compensate".  Both he and a second (this
time a Mercedes restorer) German mechanic both said the
engine was fine and it was not time for an overhaul.  The
first mechanic says number 3 cylinder is 15% lower than the
rest.

Remember, this is a 1969 Euro spec 1600L Notch with an
automatic, dual Solex carbs, and no pollution control
devices.  It currently has 70,000 km on the odometer and it
does not look like the engine has ever been apart.

I changed the oil two weeks ago (again the group thought
here was to continue using the heavier oil) and sent a
sample to Blackstone Labs for analysis.  Last week I
received the results. I can't attach the Lab report to the
e-mail.  The file's too large.  It came back with a high
lead reading and the Lab suggests that it might be bearing
failure.

The current group thought here in Stuttgart is to check the
compression myself (I'm waiting for the tool), check the
valve clearance, replace the engine oil, and drive it one
more oil cycle (about 3000km without additives being
introduced into the fuel system this time) and re-sample
(sending it to Blackstone lab for analysis).

Why are we suspecting the oil analysis?

1.  Before I found out differently I put at lease two
bottles of "Lead Substitute" into the gas tank thinking that
this old engine would require it.  I found out later this
was not so and stopped the practice.

2.  I have added at least three or four bottles of fuel
system/carburetor cleaner (various brands such as STP and
Gunk).

3.  This is the first oil change since we have been
operating the car regularly.

4.  I read somewhere that the mechanical fuel pump is
capable of leaking fuel into the engine if the
seals/diaphrams is leaking.

5.  We use "Super Plus" gas which is the highest grade
available here in Germany.

Note:  The car is garaged so after starting (we pump it once
and then hold down the gas peddle part way while starting).
According to the German VW mechanic, it is starting normally
during both warm and cold periods.  It will start right up
in the cold but may die a couple of times if left to idle
before it finally warms up down the road.) By the time we
close the garage and start out it has been over 30 seconds.
The car is always driven "lightly".

Questions:

a.  Should I use a thinner oil?  Castrol is easy to get at
the base but not in a wide range.  The price of oil out in
town is prohibitive.

b.  I'd like to get a re-build kit for the fuel pump in case
it's leaking but I'm having trouble finding it.  Does anyone
know who sells quality kits?

c. Any thoughts from the group on the high lead in the oil
analysis?  What is the make up of the bearings on these
original engines?

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