2.1 WBX Victor Reinz gasket kit concern

[ragnarhairybreeks]

Hi,

I'm not sure if this is a known issue or even an important one, but I discovered something about the oil pump cover gasket in the Victor Reinz full gasket kit.

I've just finished a head replacement in my old 2.1 engine. I replaced the oil pump cover gasket during the process. I measured the clearance of the pump gears to be between 0.002" and 0.003" so I elected to use the gasket instead of going commando as Tencentlife has recommended. I did use the correct gasket, I did not mix up the front and rear gaskets.

So when I finally started the engine I had very low oil pressure. Cold idle was 25 psi, cold max pressure was 60 psi.
When hot, oil pressure was close to zero, max was 25 psi. With oil temp >80C, and at 2000 rpm, oil pressure was 25 psi.

You can imagine my concern.

I pulled the engine carrier, muffler, and damn skid plate (its a syncro) to get at the oil pressure relief valve. I was grasping at straws you understand, and I pulled the spring and piston (no, the piston was not stuck). The spring was 59.3mm long. There are threads here that gave me the hope that perhaps shimming (in lieu of a new spring) the spring would boost pressure a little.
I made a shim from brass which added 3mm to spring length.

I re-connected muffler (supported on jack stands) and started engine. I got 30 psi cold at idle, max 75 psi. Hot pressures were 7-10 psi idle, 45 psi max, and just shy of 20 psi at 2000 rpm.

Improved but still not right. A new filter added maybe 2 psi to all values.

Oh, I should mention I was using 15w-40 oil, my winter oil.

Then I pulled the cover from the oil pump. I was *this* close to putting it back on sans gasket, but I decided to use a 0.004" gasket I got from local mechanic. I did not have this gasket before.

Ok, added a little grease to pump gears (to help in priming), all the other things all put back on, coolant replaced, oil replaced.

Engine start... cold pressures: idle 70 psi, max 90 psi. Hot pressures, idle 20 psi, max 60 psi, a solid 30 psi at 2000 rpm.

(engine is old, only the heads were replaced, case not split)

I'm happy with these pressures.

So back, finally, to the gasket. I measured the gasket I removed and it was 0.011" thick. The back of the pump gasket (unused) was 0.012" thick.

It looks like, at least in the kit I got, the thicknesses of the rear and front gaskets for the oil pump were the same.

I don't know if this is a mistake on the part of Victor Reinz, but in my case the thick gasket resulted in very poor oil pressure.

I hope this helps someone,

cheers

alistair
_________________
'86 7 passenger syncro, converted to westy pop top, project still in progress
'82 westy, diesel converted to gas in '94, now gone...
https://shufti.blog/
Old address still works...
http://shufti.wordpress.com

[Type17]

i had the exact same problem as you! went through the same steps, i ended up running the pump with only the rear gasket and just a little sealing compound on the cover being very careful to not let any work its way into the pump. i'd try a dry run just to see how much compound squeezes out.

[T3 Pilot]

Some more information to add to your baseline findings regarding how much the oil pump gasket affects oil pressure.

I measured my new oil pressure relief/control spring when I replaced it last year at 63 mm. Sounds like your shim did about the same job..... Thanks for the detailed post.
_________________
1988 Vanagon

The most important part in every vehicle is the nut behind the wheel......

[Snort]

I recently found a similarly sized gasket on my oil pump after struggling with low pressure. I replaced the pump and used sealant with no gasket measuring ~2 thousandths gears to cover (is this going commando?) and I now have pressure in the neo normal range.

[ragnarhairybreeks]

Well, it is interesting to see others have found the same gasket in the kit. Hindsight is great, I should have noticed the gasket was thick when I picked it up. The 0.004" gasket is almost gossamer thin, no mistaking that.

Snort and Type17: I don't know why I was reluctant to go with no gasket. If I had then there would have been no oil pressure issues.

The oil pressure relief valve spring hack was easy to do, and it was en route, so to speak, to pulling the oil pump cover plate.

Syncro Pilot, thanks for the confirmation on the spring length, I think I got it pretty close to that with the shim. Now, if the spring has just taken a set, but the actual spring rate has not changed, then I am good with the shim. But if the spring rate has changed then the shim would have been for naught.

The relief and joy I got when I finally got good oil pressure felt so good. The night before, I had that awful feeling in my stomach, imagining the worst reasons for the low pressure.

cheers

alistair
_________________
'86 7 passenger syncro, converted to westy pop top, project still in progress
'82 westy, diesel converted to gas in '94, now gone...
https://shufti.blog/
Old address still works...
http://shufti.wordpress.com

[insyncro]

Commando + Loctite 518 and forgetaboutit.

[Snort]

My extremely thick gasket was from a previous owner installation which I replaced with a new CB Maxi. The new CB gasket was the correct thin one but I opted out of it in order to maximize my results after checking the clearances. I'm guessing that my motor has been oil deprived for a good long time before I got it, but at least now I've done what I can from the outside and with luck I can get some miles out of it before the next step, whatever that turns out to be.

[bluebus86]

the correct gasket for under the oil pump cover is .002 to .004 with the thinner ones being the best.

if you do use sealant, use the minimal amount you can.

use of an .011 inch gasket on the cover will give low oil pressure.

use care not to fill the ring groove with any sealant around the pump when you instal the cover. This groove is designed to help prevent leaks, it directs any leaking oil from the high pressure side of the pump back to the suction side. If the groove is filled with sealant, this feature wont work.

New nylock nuts are recommended to secure the cover.