T4 1998 diesel van

[DOUBLECAB]

Hi Guys.............me again with more questions.

Mate of mine is going to look at a T4 1998 2.4D diesel van this weekend with 160ks up and is asking what he should be aware of/looking out for/concerned about?

Thanks again Guys...................

[DOUBLECAB]

Ok Guys.................no replies........ nobody had a 2.4 diesel??????

Anyway checked it out and it appears fine with the exception of an intermitent rattle coming from inside the rocker cover at idle,that goes away totally when driving but comes back intermitently under idle.

Vehicle has service books and drives fine.

Owner says the mechanic at the dealer says its nothing to worry about....... has seen/heard similar rattles on other VW 2.4D's.

Anybody have any comment regarding this 'rattle' ?????

[Seano]

I'm not much of a diesel tech but it should be a relatively simple valve/rocker adjustment.....but....that depends on the service history especially with respect to timing belts and the like.

[jets]

I'm not much of a diesel tech but it should be a relatively simple valve/rocker adjustment

No rockers on that engine & valves have hydraulic lifters so no adjustment possible.
One item it could be is the vacuum pump. When the rod wears it can make a tap tap noise. A test for that is while at idle, pump the brake pedal a few times & see if the noise goes away temporarily.

[DOUBLECAB]

Hi Techs.........if its the vacum pump, is it a major job both in work and cost to fix?

Thanks...............

[Sunny43.5]

Up until a couple months ago my sons T4 was a 2.4 diesel [its now a 2.5 petrol did a complete transplant] We had the vacumm brake problem as described but when i did the transplant I did fit the new pump while the engine was out , it only has two bolts and the brake vacumm hose . As a matter of interest the engine had according to speedo 340,000 kays and it was still a good solid engine , if there was one complaint of the motor was that if you were out on the open road there was not a lot of grunt left after 100 kmh .
The best example I can recall was my son and I were returning from a moto cross event north west of Brisbane he was driving and on learners , because of the lack of overtaking power every time we did get the need to pass another vehicle it was a major logistic event as to do it we had to wait for a clear long open stretch with a downhill slope . Economy wise it was terrific seemed to go forever on a tank of diesel , i might add to change the vacumm pump you can make access easier by unbolting the front end of the van as they are designed to tilt forward to get access to the front of the engine . What you do is to remove the grille then remove the bolt on each end of the radiator mount the whole thing then lifts up and forward and gives you lots more room to work in . I cant remeber how much the pump was but I think it was around $280 Howard

[jets]

Hi Techs.........if its the vacum pump, is it a major job both in work and cost to fix?

Thanks...............

Mine is still quiet but from what I have read on UK forums, the end of the rod wears & becomes shorter. Just the rod is available over there but there are two different lengths available, 71 & 67.5mm.[I have no idea which one would suit yours] One guy paid 27 pounds for one at the dealers. Some have done a dodgey, ground the end down a bit & put a dob of weld on to bring it back to the original length.
From memory the complete pump on EbayUK is under 100 pounds.

[DOUBLECAB]

Ok Guys...........thanks for all the input/possibilities.............mate has booked it in for a RWC and full engine inspection this week and I will keep you posted of the findings.

[irsa76]

Only issue I've seen with the 2.4D while working at the dealer was one had a couple of burnt out glow plugs. And I don't belive that's a common fault, the fact that VGA had none in the country due to lack of orders says something.