HERMAN THE GERMAN! '91 Scala 20vt

[treefingers]

Hi great build project and some nice work just been looking at the top pictures of your new coil overs i also have a similar set fitted to mine and the springs are fitted opposite to yours with the small one fitted at the bottom do you know if there is a right way to fit em or does it not matter which way round they go keep up the good work

thanks mate :) I don't know which way is correct in regards to the springs, I just fitted them as they came (with the small on the top). However if you google images of the coilovers there are manufacturer photos with springs in both arrangements so I don't think it makes a lot of difference :)

[jond]

Yeah just had a quick look Think they are called helper springs designed to stop the springs falling out there stops when you jack the car up or the wheel leaves the ground when driving , Think this could be an mot fail Have found some info saying they go at the bottom , Plus googled the manufacturer of mine and the pictures also show them fitted at the bottom. just going to leave mine as they are Cars done 40,000mls like that so should be ok And cant face stripping them down again

[treefingers]

Devised a tool to try and bend my backplate into place.. I still can't get it right though :( Gotta get a new one methinks.


Fitted new Febi ball joints today.. drilled them out to 8mm and fitted M8 bolts with nylocks and spring washers.


I'm having some issues with the Vauxhall 256 discs fitting on the hubs.. there's a tiny lip inside the disc that means it won't go flush onto the hub.. I'm going to have to chamfer the hub or lathe out the discs I think, not sure if anyone else has had this problem?

Made a lower strut brace today... Hopefully this design will give the car some good strength! I was going to wait until the engine and gearbox were in so I could make it around them but I was in the mood for a bit of fun making something! The only issue with fitment will be how low the gearbox sits.





Reassembled the lights with the newly painted backs and gave Herman his face back!

[mark1gls]

Any use with regards to brake discs?
http://vwgolfmk1.org.uk/forum/index.php ... vx-brake_2

[treefingers]

Any use with regards to brake discs?
http://vwgolfmk1.org.uk/forum/index.php ... vx-brake_2

cheers :)

some presents came for Herman :) mk1 cabrio tank, rear axle bolts, some gaskets and a cambelt

[Roccoaster]

Awesome thread, best one I've seen on here for a rebuild job.

Like everyone else I'm looking forward to seeing the finished job. Real pity it's not a black car but still, great job.

[treefingers]

Thanks man, that's a great compliment! :) I wanted it black for ages but I think red is a lot better now, for me there's more definition as the colour gets broken up by door handles, seals, bumpers etc.

Last night I got to work on the tank.. 3 coats of etch primer..


and two coats of chip resistant paint.


thought I'd give the rocker cover a nice shiny coat of hi temp lacquer.. bad move! The clear coat hasn't settled properly, it looks so crappy! This means I've gotta strip all the paint off and start again. Doh!


Got a 1998 VW Passat cable actuated throttle body so I can use an accelerator cable (the original 1.8t throttle was electronically controlled). Ebay bargain! It's got pipes for coolant to pass through though! No idea why they're needed. There's also a raised part inside the chamber that I might port and polish for better throttle response. :)

[dozzum]

My 205 has coolant lines in the throttle body. I think its to stop icing but most people get rid of it as its unnecessary.

[treefingers]

My 205 has coolant lines in the throttle body. I think its to stop icing but most people get rid of it as its unnecessary.

cool cheers. I've deleted it now :) which 204 do you have? I've always had a soft spot for a nice 1.9 gti..

[dozzum]

Its a 205 cti. Convertible version of the gti.
Much much much cheaper than the gti's and still just as fun.
Last owner had the 1.9 engine fitted too.
And in the best colour of course.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy11 ... 3145-1.jpg

[treefingers]

nice man! i meant 205 not 204 ha. quite a different car!

Picked up the transmission yesterday from a chap in Ringwood.. it's an 02A AFF diesel box from a B3 Passat! Spent a good amount of time with the steam cleaner this morning, it was oily as hell! Not any more :) From the gear calculator I'll get the following speeds at 7000rpm:
1st - 37mph
2nd - 66mph
3rd - 106mph
4th - 143mph
5th - 198mph (!!)
But the best thing is that 70mph will be just under 2500rpm :) Cruise happy! On my MK3 Golf I'm hitting 3000rpm at 60mph!!
I was going to buy a lighter G60 flywheel for the tranny, but on checking the part number of the flywheel I have that came with the engine I've found out it's a MK3 Golf ABF flywheel, which is the same as a G60. Result!!


I'm going for hydraulic actuated clutch as opposed to cable.. Apparently cables and 02A's aren't a great match.. So I think I've got my head round the conversion.. a feed from the brakes to a master cylinder on the clutch pedal, this feeds to a slave cylinder on the gearbox which feeds back to the brakes..? Need to work out routing of pipes but I got started on it today..

Bought a MK4 Golf clutch pedal with master cylinder


This is all I needed, scrapped the rest!


And.. cut off the end of the arm where the cable would normally join and welded on the piece from the MK4 pedal. Welded a bracket on the steering column for holding the master cylinder. It took me absolutely ages to decide on the correct angles. To begin with I was going to cut off the end of the push rod and weld some sort of threaded bar type adjuster, but it was going to look like pure arse so I thought f-k it I'll just make it right! Took me long enough though! It was worth it, it has the exact amount of travel (160mm) and the correct angles so the pushrod doesn't come into contact with the master cylinder housing. On the plus side if I need to replace the cylinder it'll be a straight swap :)


And painted. The steering column can go back in tomorrow. I just need to get a new steering rack boot, can't believe they're about £40 though! Was expecting to pay a tenner! :(


And the most exciting photo ever posted on a forum.. Genuine VW washers, all the way from Greece. Oh yes.

[treefingers]

Had some fun today pottering about, I'm in a good mood! I was on fuel duty today.. I refurbished the original filler neck, ground down the rust then sprayed with etch primer and a coat of stone chip. Also fitted the fuel pump and accumulator which I had to make new brackets/mounting points for as the old ones had crusted up! All pipes are connected around the fuel tank now, just waiting for the engine to be in and I'll run some new metal lines underneath the car.


Clutch master cylinder fitted :)


Started work on the engine mounting. I've cut up the original Scala mounts and I'm using the circular pieces for my new mounts. There's a bit of working out I need to do at this stage as I have to make up 3 mounts from scratch. It would be ok if I didn't have to make up the first mount because I'd at least have the height and angle of the engine.. I just need to figure out where abouts to weld the 'patina' circular piece to the new 5mm steel backplate. I the plan is to drop the engine in the car, slide in the gearbox from underneath, bolt them together, fit the driveshafts then somehow suspend the engine in place to weld the first one. From there on it should be easier!



My mechanic friend came round to help me time the engine.. turns out I'd put it 45 degrees out! We've run into a problem though that we can't work out. We found TDC on cylinder one by dropping a screwdriver in the spark plug hole, then brought the cam pulley to TDC with the mark on the pulley lining up with the mark on the rocker cover. So with the cam and the crank aligned with the marks on the engine, we cranked the engine over one full rotation by hand to find every time that when the cam realigned the crank was out by about half a tooth!? We've got no idea why this could be. It's like the cam belt is the wrong length or the water pump is a different diameter or something. Not sure if there's something I need to be doing..

[dozzum]

Looking good. Some skillfull fabrication going on there. I think I'll go take the clutch master cylinder out of the mk4 im stripping for future use.

Are there not locking points on the engine for the cambelt?

[treefingers]

what are locking points?

[dozzum]

Holes where you stick pins in that stop the crankshaft and camshaft from turning while you slide the belt on.

Used them on 106 engines before and was so much easier than fannying around like on my scirocco engine.

I thought all modern engines had them but maybe the 20v doesn't.

I cant imagine 1/2 a tooth is anything to worry about but please dont take my word for it I'm sure some more experienced guys on here will know.