Inline-4 conversion: What VW engine?

[nealcapener]

I am contemplating an inline 4 for my Syncro.
What engine to use? From what I have read, Jetta 2.0L is preferred?
What years of Jetta's?
Are other VW cars like Passator Golf candidates? What years?
Links to sites please.

I am looking for a few more hp and better milage.

Thanks,
Neal
Sequim, WA

[Captain Pike]

Search this big time. Adapter plates verses Diesel swap parts, ABA Digfant 2 is the way to go.
Get ready for the Viagra_Subaru input
_________________
LEARN TO SELF RESCUE
59 Panel bus, 1966 Single cab. 73' 181. 73 Westy. 91' H6 Vanagon 3.3L.
....Bad Sneakers....

[BadBeetle]

I am also looking for an Engine swap for my 86 Syncro but its just such a hard decision. (Diesel, VR6, ABA/2.0, EJ22, EG33, EJ25)
Maybe I'll start camping at the local junkyards waiting for a wreaked Diesel Subaru. lol
_________________
Current:
2000 Honda Insight
1991 BMW M5
1997 BMW 740i
Past:
99 Jetta TDI
01 Jetta Wagon
00 Jetta 1.8t
86 Vanagon Syncro GL

[nealcapener]

[Captain Pike]

Guessing here 90-99? More tomorrow.
_________________
LEARN TO SELF RESCUE
59 Panel bus, 1966 Single cab. 73' 181. 73 Westy. 91' H6 Vanagon 3.3L.
....Bad Sneakers....

[tristessa]

Not sure how much clearance there is between the valve cover & engine bay on a diesel Vanagon, but the ABA 2.0L is about 5/8" taller than the older I-4 VW engines (1.5 to 1.8L gas and stock Vanagon diesel) .. wonder if that might be an issue?

If it is, maybe look for a 3A 2.0L from an '88-'90 Audi 80. Same bore & stroke as the ABA but because the rods are shorter than the ABA, the block isn't any taller than the earlier gas and diesel I-4 engines..

[anthonywesty]

You can use this engine with diesel engine mounts and bell housing. Passat 90 - 93.
And my best mileage is 24.5 MPG , is not too bad for a westfalia with rims
_________________
82' Westfalia 2.0 16V with Digifant.
86' Vanagon GL
http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd147/WestyBOYPR/westfaliaCY.jpg

[Robw_z]

I4 8v motors first went 2.0L with the introduction of the ABA in the '93 MK3 Jetta. This same block and head was used through '98. Somewhere around '96 VW went from a forged crank to cast, in conjunction with the switch from OBDI to OBDII diagnostics. The forged is obviously preferred, but I haven't heard of problems with the cast. The ABA block is 17mm taller than previous VW block castings, which had retained the same height based on an Audi design from '74-'92. The increased deck height is due to longer rods which correlate to more low end torque and less vibration. 1.8 and lower displacement are non-interference motors, meaning the timing belt can break without popping a valve. 2.0's are interference. 16V motors went 2.0l in 1990-92. 16V has more HP and torque(2.0 16v = 133hp, 2.0 ABA 8v= 115hp), but they aren't achieved until higher RPM.

In addition to being taller than previous motors, the 2.0L ABA has a crossflow head, all previous heads being counterflow. This from what I've read interferes with the Vanagon engine lid since the intake is on the "upside" of the motor when installed. An earlier 1.8 head can be bolted on the ABA motor to solve the problem with no loss in compression ratio(approx 10:1). 1.8 heads used solid lifters thru '84 or '85, and hydraulic thereon; and all have fuel injector bosses cast into them for use with a range of injection systems(all bosses are the same though).

As mentioned above the Audi 80 uses a 2.0 8V with the shorter block height, it is rarer to find, and the head has the fuel injectors in the intake manifold rather than into the head. This is the same head or very similar to what a TIICO kit has.

I have an old TIICO kit I'm about to install myself, if I didn't already have the 2.0 Tiico 8v, which is essentially an Audi 80 motor, I'd probably go with the ABA block/1.8 head combo. It is a thoroughly tried and true swap among the Golf/Jetta/Rabbit crowd. The ABA motor can be had in any Golf or Jetta from '93-'98. After that the motor is similar but isn't as compatible with earlier parts as the ABA.

The injection system can be removed from an ABA Golf or Jetta and be made to operate with only +12V supplied to it. This injection uses a MAF sensor and works well on Rabbits, Golfs and the like, but I do not know how it would do with a Vanagon. Regardless it is what I plan to use.

I've been in the watercooled 8V crowd for 8 years now, and only just got a Vanagon, hope my info is helpful.

-Rob

[kayakwesty]

I have 1984 Westy with the following:

K.E.P Adapter for an automatic transmission.
GoWesty Gear Reduction starter.
93 ABA 2.0 block with piston oil squirters. (The Tiico I don’t think has this)
1991 1.8 eight valve head and intake, 3 angle valve job.
MKIII Upper Jetta radiator –You twist and flip it and you won’t need the diesel hoses.
Vanagon diesel oil pan.
Jetta Digifant II engine management, with Darrell Bohler’s Digitool hardwired in to the ECU.
1991 Jetta A/C compressor mounted to a Vanagon A/C compressor head, with RED-TEK refrigerant. It blows cold.
K&N Air filter-944 intake boot.
J.C. Whitney after-market oil cooler, with the factory oil cooler, ABA’s use oil until you cool the oil.
I have a link on www.kayakwesty.com on the cooler mod.
MANN Vanagon Diesel Oil Filter.
New BEHR front radiator-Something most don’t think about when going with a new engine.

Steve at the www.theautobahnsociety.com, performed the install, I would contact him for parts or the install, before even thinking of an install. In my 2 cents here, SmallCar is torchbearer for the Subie conversion guys, Steve at TheAutobahnSociety , is the torchbearer for the In-line 4 conversion. It’s simple, reliable and gives me more room in the engine bay. No more anti-freeze questions, AMC head scratching etc.

He has custom carrier bars that lower the engine, below the deck, a custom simple exhaust, that is quieter than the Wasserboxer set-up.

He also has custom hydraulic motor mounts, I have NO vibration issues, or howling and it runs like a sewing machine.

He is selling parts to where it’s almost a kit, and if persuaded, he can crate you a rebuild with all the parts and ship it. I see a lot of guys looking for straight up Vanagon Diesel parts, that’s old school, the conversion can be made better, and has been.

Steve doesn’t pay me to post here; I’m not stuck with a motor and want everyone as miserable as me. I still get support here on the Samba because it’s a Digifant. Over on VW VORTEX site the guys have hack and modded the motors to where they kill the rice rockets. There is plenty of on-line support for the D.I.Y. guys out there, if that is your cup of tea.

I looked at the Tiico and the support issues at the time turned me off, it might have changed, but the on-line community was pretty brutal at the time, and I was scared of letting my money go. By now the conversion has matured. That said, I still believe the Autobahn set-up is light years ahead. It's simple and ellegant.

When you see it, it the engine bay, it’s the motor VW should have had in there, they were basically available at the time, the Rabbit just got more of the resources.

Mark
_________________
1984 Westy 2.0 Jetta ABA Motor/1.8 head converted to auto tranny, with 180,000 on body, 55K on engine and transmission

B.5.5 Passat Wagen with 30v V6-67000 Miles

DAS AUTO

CHANGE YOUR FUEL LINES!

A post without pictures is useless

http://www.kayakwesty.com

http://www.waldensridgewhitewater.com/

[danno]

Hey Mark

Did you notice a difference in your fuel millage after the conversion?

Dan
_________________
Dan
Comox BC
86 Wolfsburg Weekender
92 Golf 4dr
93 Beta Synt Trials Bike.

[kayakwesty]

My mileage went up by 2-3 mpg when in was a stick, but it went back down when it was converted to an automatic.

So overall about 2-3 mpg improvement
_________________
1984 Westy 2.0 Jetta ABA Motor/1.8 head converted to auto tranny, with 180,000 on body, 55K on engine and transmission

B.5.5 Passat Wagen with 30v V6-67000 Miles

DAS AUTO

CHANGE YOUR FUEL LINES!

A post without pictures is useless

http://www.kayakwesty.com

http://www.waldensridgewhitewater.com/

[Captain Pike]

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3261748

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3070507

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/vwtuning/vwtuning1.html

http://home.comcast.net/~vwmikelvw/Tech/cise/cise.htm
Links provided by ebennett
_________________
LEARN TO SELF RESCUE
59 Panel bus, 1966 Single cab. 73' 181. 73 Westy. 91' H6 Vanagon 3.3L.
....Bad Sneakers....

[nealcapener]

Great info, THANKS!!!!

Neal

[psych-illogical]

For I4 engines I've always been a little partial to the 948cc from Morris Garages (early Mini Coopers, Austin Healey Sprites). Great little motors but the carbs were kinda funky. Anyone ever tried that in a Vanagon?

I know, nobody likes a smartass.
_________________
83 1/2 Westy waterboxer
'57 Beetle-sold
Coupla '81 BMW motorcycles (R80G/S; R100RS)
'96 BMW R1100GS

[ebennett]

I am coming down the home stretch here with my Vanagon conversion. I'm using a 2.0L bottom end with a 1.8L head and digifant FI

A special thanks to Bill W!

I've used all VW parts. Here is a list of diesel vanagon parts that I used;
trans bell housing
trans input shaft
clutch, pressure plate, throw out bearing
flywheel
starter motor * hard to find
motor mounts
engine carrier bars
diesel coolant hoses * hard to find, check ebay
diesel coolant bottles
diesel oil pan and fill tube
diesel oil pump pick up tube

1992 Jetta A2 parts
Complete Cylinder Head
wire harness
intake manifold with throttle body
toilet bowl exhaust manifold & down pipe
all sensors, air, temp,

1996 Jetta (early OBD1 blocks are the best!)
Bottom end of engine 2.0L ABA
distributor
alternator
timing belt and tensioner
AC compressor
water pump
all belts and pulleys

So far the only custom mod I have needed is an exhaust.

I hope to have the electrical finished this weekend and be up and running by the end of this month.

i can't afford to have autobahn society to do the work for me so I have to do it myself
_________________
GDTRFB

[Camp51]

I thought it was pretty impressive

http://www.stephansautohaus.com/vanagon-division/conversion-pricing/enhancements/18t-benefits/

[Camp51]

i believe they have new engines at germanautoparts.com/
at reasonable prices.

[magician]

[Terry Kay]

Think Zetec.

In my opinion this is the sweetest, biggest bang for your buck, engine swap you can buy.

The engine upgrades are almost endless, and what sweetens the pie here is the possible 750 horses that the engine will put out with a turbo & innercooler.

Talk about some go-tain----
_________________
T.K.

[r39o]

I have 5 things that concern me about coversions:

-cost
-weight
-complexity
-fuel economy
-smog (I am in California.)

(Not in any particular order.)

The main concern I have of the I4 conversion (vs say the Suby) is weight. The butt of my Westy always sags even though I have lifting springs and helper springs (see saggy butt post.) So the big cast iron block back there "seems" like it may make the ride and handling worse.

What say you all?
_________________
"Use the SEARCH, Luke" But first visit the Vanagon FAQ!

1990 Multivan EJ 22, Rancho trans 0.82 4th, Small Car front AC, CLKs w/ 215/65-16, homemade big brakes 303mm, Konis, Recaros, etc....

Click to see my ads for Cup holders, Subaru clutch fix and CLK wheels (no wheels currently)