Wildcat - The 1.9TD Syncro

[I am Wildcat]

Wildcat has been getting lots of love and attention lately. Over the last month or so, we had continued to experience issues with the engine not shutting off after turning the van off and removing the key from the ignition. Replaced the fuel shut off solenoid and that fixed it for a few days, then same problem again. We thought it was a bad part so we replaced it again and the same problem came back again after a few days. I tried running some diesel engine cleaner through it because my mechanic thought the pin inside the solenoid might be gunked up and this would help clean it out. In the mean time, the van wouldn't stop for the next week or so, and I had to stall it to turn it off.

One night as I'm about 20 feet from my driveway, pulling up to my house, the van just dies! It kind of sputtered a bit than just died. I noticed the fuel gauge was kind of low.....but typically the van goes another 50+ miles when the gauge looks low. So my wife ran to grab some diesel and I put it in the van, still it wouldn't start up. In the mean time, since the van is in the middle of the street of my neighborhood, I had to have to wife use her Toyota Highlander Hybrid to literally push the van into the driveway! Luckily, we happened to be throwing out some old pillows, so I grabbed them from the garage and sandwiched them between the vehicles. Both vehicles came away unharmed! And I was pretty impressed the Hybrid could push the Syncro up the driveway with no problem......being a man, I obviously just rolled up my sleeves and tried to push the van up the driveway. Yeah...that wasn't gonna happen.

Next morning I call AAA for a tow and when they showed up, I explained to the AAA guy what had happened. Then he asked where my fuel tank was. I showed him and he told me to go start the van when he yelled for me to do so. I agreed. I'm sitting in the driver's seat and then I start hearing him banging on the fuel tank with his fist while yelling for me to start the van. It turned over once, then it starts right up like magic! I was stunned to say the least. He said something about how that works a lot of times on older vehicles that won't start, but obviously it didn't fix whatever the underlying problem was. Because of that, I had him go ahead and tow it to the mechanic.

After determining it was the fuel injector pump, the van went to a Bosch fuel injection shop and it was determined that the pump needed to be rebuilt. Apparently the LSD and ULSD type diesel fuels makes these parts wear prematurely and metal shavings are what locked the shut off solenoid in place. So Bosch is rebuilding my pump and hopefully I should be good to go for another 100,000 or so.

In addition to that, in the next few weeks I'm going to be taking care of the rust behind the front bumper of the van as well as add air conditioning before the Texas summer is in full swing. There are also some camping plans mixed in there too.

After the rust and a/c is taken care of, I think the next items to get addressed will be upgrading the car stereo, adding power locks (and maybe power windows, still debating), lower bed mattress topper and upgrading the front and rear bumpers to more solid, one piece bumpers.

Future upgrades on my mind are an intercooler, upgraded exhaust, diesel Syncro snorkel air intake and filter, fuel can holder on driver's side of rear bumper, window unit a/c and generator for summer camping, and a fishing rod holder for the roof rack made from scrap PVC pipe.
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No more van. Wildcat has a new home.
1997 Land Rover Defender 90
2005 MB SL55 AMG
2014 Tesla Model S P85+

[bpwhistler]

As someone that was also bidding on this van...I can honestly say I have a strong feeling for it too. Since I didn't gain possession I'll limit my "love affair" to friendship! One way or another, I'm looking forward to watching how things progress with Wildcat!

I'm embarrassed to admit that I've been a forum member for 6 years...and this is my first post. I've owned multiple VW's and Audi's including a Syncro in that time. Does that define lurking?

[I am Wildcat]

[ianstone]

So awesome

So which ph shows will you take it to this summer?

[I am Wildcat]

[carterzest]

[I am Wildcat]

[carterzest]

[ianstone]

[I am Wildcat]

You don't have to tell me twice Ian. I love the Hollywood Bowl, for pretty much the exact same reasons you do. But back to my love affair with Wildcat...

I just picked Wildcat up from the shop yesterday, where the fuel injection pump was rebuilt. They had to order parts from Germany and Israel, so it took a loooooong time to complete the job (3 weeks!), but it's in great shape and Bosch has a great reputation around these parts. I wanted it done right, not quick and I also wanted a local shop to do the work in case I run into any issues with it in the future.

First impressions on the rebuilt pump...WOW! Now I'm starting to understand how bad the old one was. There is a lot more power and acceleration overall. The greatest difference I could notice was when driving up large hills. In the past, in 4th gear I would be cruising around 3200 rpm and when going up hill it could drop down to as much as 1800-2000 rpm depending how big the hill was. So generally, 3rd gear would be a better option. Not anymore though! Those same hills saw the rpms go from 3200 rpm to 2900-3000 rpm. Still very usable and probably saw a drop of about 5-7 mph in overall speed depending on how big the hill was.

On flat areas, I found a new whole new appreciation for the van when I realized I now had to release the accelerator which is usually smashed to the floor, because I was actually going TOO fast for a change! According to my GPS it used to want to top out around 66-68 mph on a flat area, now it tops out around 74-75 mph on a flat area. So I am very excited about that! Here are some pictures of the new fuel pump installed:

The one thing I'm not totally certain how I feel about is when my mechanic told me the fuel injection shop "was able to get the governor working perfect again." The reason I say that I'm not certain about this is that every time I've ever heard or read anything about a vehicle governor it was in reference to people removing or disabling them. Diesel experts out there....are there any benefits to having the governor on the fuel pump versus not having it?

So far, the major noticeable difference between driving it with the old fuel pump with no governor and the rebuilt fuel pump with a governor is the power cuts off almost immediately at 3,000 - 3,200 rpm. It is very noticeable at launch and when shifting from 1st to 2nd, because I would probably generally run up to 3,500 - 4,000 in 1st before shifting to 2nd. There really aren't any other gears I'm running past 3,200 rpm so it doesn't really effect me outside of that 1st to 2nd. It makes me feel like I shifting into second almost immediately after launching the van from a stand still. Since I don't have experience driving any other vans similar to mine, I'm not sure if this is just how it is supposed to be or if it just makes sense to tell them to remove the governor. Please let me know your thoughts if you have an opinion.

The other bad news is just how bad a shape the old pump was in. There were multiple parts that had been worn in a manner that they were shaved or pitted. This would explain the metal shavings that had seized up the fuel shut-off solenoid. The inside of the pump body had oxidation and pitted areas in parts that should be machined smooth. In addition to that, the long pin that runs through the middle of the pump (excuse the ignorance for lack of it's proper name) was not an original factory part. It was obviously "hand-machined" to fit into this pump, as you can see on the top of the pin where somebody had ground in the crescent moon shaped indentations in order to make that pin work with this pump. I asked my mechanic if there was any advantage to having made a custom piece like this and he said they were probably stuck in a pinch somewhere and just adapted another piece to make it work. I don't have photos of these worn parts with me at work, but here are two photos of the inside of the previous fuel pump body:

Since I am the 4th owner of the van, I have no idea what PO would have done this, but I would bet none of them did. I don't care either way. I mean I care, but obviously when you are dealing with a vehicle with multiple previous owners, you can't expect that all of them were babying the vehicle as well as you would have. I'm just happy knowing that it is now running that much better and I will continue to work out any other little kinks as they come up. It's crazy, but the van is also more quiet on the interior since the fuel pump has been rebuilt. Not sure why, but my wife agreed with my assessment last night too.
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No more van. Wildcat has a new home.
1997 Land Rover Defender 90
2005 MB SL55 AMG
2014 Tesla Model S P85+

[I am Wildcat]

Nobody has any thoughts on the governor?

Also, I still love Wildcat, but I changed the name of the thread today to something that would make more sense for search purposes on this site.
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No more van. Wildcat has a new home.
1997 Land Rover Defender 90
2005 MB SL55 AMG
2014 Tesla Model S P85+

[?Waldo?]

The pump should be governed 4,500-5,000 rpms.

Make sure when the pedal is mashed that the lever is contacting that stop screw there. If it isn't, then adjust the cable so it does. If it is, then adjust that screw so the lever gets more travel. If that results in too much max fuel (smoke with the pedal mashed), then turn the max fuel screw (collared screw above the stop solenoid) out a little.

FWIW, maxing out at 75 MPH in a 1.9TD is not right. I've had my 2wd 1.6TD camper over 85 MPH on the flat with pedal left over.

[I am Wildcat]

[?Waldo?]

[jbnova]

What size wheels and tires are you running on Wildcat? Thanks!!

[BlackDogVan]

You have a EGT gauge, right? (too lazy to read the entire thread for that tidbit)
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Gone but not forgotten - 1991 Carat - AAZ transmogriffied to mTDi.
Still addicted, looking for Doka...

[I am Wildcat]

[I am Wildcat]

It was a long and hot summer in Texas this last year! With over 75+ days of 100+ degree weather, the lack of air conditioning was pretty brutal. So the only logical thing to do, was get custom a/c installed so we could turn the van from a sauna into an ice box.

Some of the other things I wanted to add this summer were some GoWesty front and rear bumpers (with hitch), Hella off-road lights and fog lights, an iPhone holder and some type of cupholder.

When it comes to the insanely hot Texas summers, sometime the heat melts your brain to the point of temporary insanity....otherwise known as I will pay anything to feel cold in my van (and not have to take 5 showers a day). Some of the important features for the a/c I wanted were: 1) must have front and rear a/c, 2) it must be COLD, 3) factory defroster must still work, 4) I don't want to relocate the stereo and 5) we have to keep the fold out tray on the passenger side of the existing dash cover.

If you look back in the Wildcat thread, you can see a mockup a did with a GPS stereo unit inside a second cluster cover on the center of the dash. I really like the idea of this (especially with backup camera)...but my iPhone already has my GPS and Sirius XM radio on it, and by utilizing the phone more I could save some money. After some thought and discussion with the a/c installer, I decided to use the second cluster cover for the new air vents and front and rear a/c controls, as well as old gauges. I found a RAM mount for iPhone 4 that is adjustable and fit perfectly in the spot I wanted it in. I also found a iPod adapter that allows charging and 1/8" audio out, but is only a few inches long so it fits perfectly in the spot I use it in. The only downside to this setup is that I would be losing the two "cupholders" from the existing dash cover....but since they weren't really good for anything except a small coffee from Starbucks, I wasn't too bummed about this. I also found a cheap seat console to sit on the ground between the front seats. I planned to fasten it down with some heavy duty velcro, but it really doesn't slide much on it's own, so I haven't done so yet. Here is a pic of it:

Back to the custom a/c. I knew this was going to be expensive because I'm not an a/c expert and I wouldn't be installing it. However, with the kind of heat the sun puts out in Texas, it was an absolute necessity if you plan on using the van year round. I did a lot of research and found out all the info the samba had to offer. My options were used units from old vans, Behr or factory rear units, both of which would be expensive to adapt and wouldn't work great compared to a/c in a brand new car.

In fact, one well known company (who shall remain nameless) told me it would cost $5k to install it in the rear only...and that it would work "pretty-good, unless you're headed directly into the sunset). I didn't really know what that meant, other than it would be expensive and the outcome wouldn't be as favorable as I was hoping. Much like senior prom.

I decided against that van company, and spoke with an a/c specialist in the DFW metroplex (also nameless) and he had a lot of great information. Claims to have invented the in-dash systems for the Vanagon, back-in-the-day. Anyhow, he spoke a great game, but the install took ONE MONTH after I was told it would take a week....and this was after he had almost two months to get the parts together before the install. When the big day finally comes, I pick up the van and find out what a "pretty-good, unless you're headed directly into the sunset" system was like. Because that's exactly how it felt. Not really cold, but cool. And once I was driving into the sunset, not really cool, but warm.

I drove it out for a week or two, until I started hearing a rattling noise in the front of the van. It would happen anytime the a/c was turned on and the van was accelerating. If the a/c was on and the van was idling, not rattling. When I got underneath the van and found some loose lines, so I tightened them up, but it didn't stop the sound. I called to ask the installer about this, he told me this was normal and that he wouldn't be performing any warranty work on it.

So, I took it to Tim's German Auto in Fort Worth where I had been getting pretty good service up to this point. After almost two weeks, I was told that nobody there was willing to work on the a/c setup since it was custom. This would have been nice to know BEFORE my van sat at their shop for two weeks.

Just as I was selecting the wood paneling to truly convert Wildcat to an off-road sauna machine, I spoke with Gordy at Dallas Precision Imports in Frisco, Texas. He is a real, honest mechanic and one hell of a good guy. He's been a lifelong friend of a guy I worked with for many years, so after explaining my situation he agreed to take a look. He let me know that the van would be his side project and that only he would work on it. I told him that was fine. One major problem was a brand new compressor that had failed in less than two weeks. Gordy got it warrantied through one of his suppliers so I wouldn't have to deal with the original installer. (Thanks Gordy!) In less than a week, he returned to me a fully functioning, ICE COLD, a/c unit. And I don't mean, "pretty-good" either. After we picked it up, about five minutes later my wife asked if I could please turn the a/c DOWN! Despite the 100 degree plus temps out.

Ever since then, Gordy has been my go to guy in the Dallas / Fort Worth area. I highly recommend looking him up if you ever need assistance in that region. Here is their web site.

All said and done, the a/c works so damn good, I almost forgot the weeks and weeks Wildcat and I had to spend apart during the whole ordeal. Here are a few pics. Sorry for the bad quality on some of them.

So now that Wildcat has a rocking cold a/c to tackle the challenges any Texas summer can throw at it....I've moved to the SF Bay area! And now I need to figure out how to get some heat sorted out in the van!

We've got the Truma propane heater for camping, but the van had no rear heater stock, so I'm probably going to have to add one back there. I think it's going to be the quickest and easiest way to heat the van, without setting up the Truma, or trying to complicate my front setup much more. Technically the defroster and leg area heat vents in front still function properly, but I need to get my front heater replaced as it currently doesn't work. Maybe some seat heaters in the front seats?

I still have a bit of time to figure it out, because the van won't be here for another week or two. We had it shipped out so the wife and I could drive a U-Haul together.
_________________
No more van. Wildcat has a new home.
1997 Land Rover Defender 90
2005 MB SL55 AMG
2014 Tesla Model S P85+

[gary1998]

love your van really cool
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loud pipes save lives

[4x4BNB]