[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index] [New Search]

Re: [T3] Some T3 Questions to Post


On 11 Aug 98, at 17:54, mfuhriman@fugro.com wrote:

> 

> Recently I acquired my first T3, a '70 Fastback.  
> compression tested to 148 to 150 psi all around (good, I think?), 

Might even be a little high for todays gas.

> 1)  Does anyone know anything about the exhaust system that I have on   
> there (see above)?  Do I need to find a stock system, or can I wait until   
> I get holes in the muffler?  

It will be fine.

> 2)  Before the PO put the 009 on, he said there was a combination   > vacuum/centrifugal advance unit on there, which he took off because the   
> diaphragm leaked.  I still have the old combo unit in a box.  Should I   
> get the combo-advance unit repaired, or am I better off with the 009?

The 009 is probably your best bet since the OE dist vac advance curve 
was matched to the FI intake air distributor.  It probably wouldn't 
work right with your carbs, although it is still a very good 
distributor.

> 4)  Is it essential that I get the automatic chokes re-wired?  (I know   
> Muir says no, but what does everybody else do?) It only takes a few   
> minutes to warm the engine up with the chokes disconnected.  Once warm,   
> the engine runs quite smoothly.

If this is always driven in a warm climate then the choles are 
probably unimportant.

> 5)  I do not have the stock air cleaner.  I have the little round EMPI   
> paper filters over each carb, which are joined by a "T" to the crankcase   
> breather.  Is this arrangement harmful?  If I could get the stock air   
> cleaner that draws in air from the right side louvre, am I much better   
> off? I can see how the stock cleaner might deliver cooler air to the   
> manifolds, but it seems that the paper filters will supply air more   
> efficiently, particularly to the left side.  Any opinions?

The stock oil bath air cleaner is amasingly effective.  There is 
seldom justification for replacing it other than the fact that it 
doesn't fit the new system just installed.

> 6)  I feed the engine about a quart of oil every 350 miles, but I can't   
> tell where it's going.  There are NO drips on my driveway, I do not see   
> any blue smoke out the exhaust, and the compression looks good.  The   
> plugs are also staying pretty clean.  #3 is a little darker (which I am   
> told is normal), but not oily.  I cleaned up the case pretty well, and I   
> really don't see any obvious leaks through the seams.  There IS some   
> extra oil mess around where the oil cooler bolts on, but no puddles on   
> the ground--ever.  If all of this oil is leaking around the cooler, would   
> it tend to leak only while I am driving?  Any ideas?

Sounds like you're burning the oil.  Even if the cooler leaked only 
while driving, it would leak out onto the case and the case would 
continue to drip after the car was parked.

> 7)  I do not have a thermostat, and I think the heat control flaps have   
> been stuck somehow in the open position.  Is there a problem with this??   
>  Is the extra cooling necessarily bad?  Or should I hurry up and put a   
> thermostat on and get the heat control flaps operating?  I have not   
> noticed any overheating problems (no smells, no smoke...).  Maybe I   
> should add that I am in Houston, TX, USA where the average temperature   
> range this time of year is about 75-80F (low) to 95+F (high).

This continues to be a large source of misunderstanding.  Your engine 
NEEDS the thermostat and all its associated hardware in order to warm 
up properly.  Your engine only runs properly when the exhaust air is 
at 165F (or whatever the right # is).  It is very hard to convince 
some people that the engine suffers any time it is forced to run 
either hotter or cooler than this.

In your climate, the engine will probably warm up without the 
thermostat, the question is: How long will it take?  It may well take 
20-30 minutes, which means that on most trips it will never warm up.  
Remember, the best thing for your engine is for it to get to get 
through the warmup period as quickly as possible.

Jim
-
*******************************
Jim Adney, jadney@vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
*******************************

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Search old messages on the Web!  Visit http://www.vwtype3.org/list/


[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index] [New Search]