Any T4 tips?

[ntj]

G'day,

This is my first post, I've just become a very happy owner of a 1997 T4 2.5 auto. I'm hoping this will see me through lots of great mountain biking and surfing trips.

The car I got is in very nice condition, it has never been used for work purposes and had a fanatical owner for the first 80,000ks, and a good one for the rest. It has just ticked over 100,000ks.

The car will need a major service with the timing belt soon, I was wondering if there was anything I should keep in mind or anything else others would recommend doing to keep the car driving like new.

Cheers,
N.

[Silver Caravelle]

Hi N,

An Auto transmission service would be wise (and probably every 30K to 40K) -ensuring VW specified auto transmission fluid, filter and pan seal.

When getting the timing belt done, it is also very wise to replace the water pump and timing belt tensioner roller and crankshaft seal. Outside of that normal servicing should take care of the rest, such as oil changes, brake fluid changes, brake pads/disks, Multi rib belt etc.

At about 100K, I also had both right and left engine mounts replaced, as I was experiencing an annoying vibration through the accelerator pedal. It took quite a while to specifically diagnose, before taking the quantum leap of having these done, but made a world of difference. But this is not a 'normal' service item, just some background information.

Regards,

Scott

[DVR68U]

hey mate take it easy on the auto box as they have a tendency to fail, like above have the auto serviced and when you do the belt do the water pump at the same time .
cheers brenton

[ntj]

Thanks for the info. The log books just have dealer stamps so far, so I don't know how the auto has been treated so far, service-wise. If they are serviced well, is there any kind of average life expectancy?

No buzzing through the pedal so far. And I can't believe how well it drives for a van - I've just been driving an older (cab-forward) Mitsubishi Delica, and the difference is night and day.

So, I'll be getting the cam belt/tensioner roller, pump, and crankshaft seal done along with all the other fluids.

[jets]

Silver is spot on, take notice of what he has said. Re. the auto, it's life is also dependant on how it is treated & the type of work it is expected to do. eg if you try towing heavy loads & heat up the oil to very high temps then as expected it won't last a long time. I consider, from what I have read, that these trans are fragile so I won't tow anything with mine.
t4tradie told me recently that he was talking to someone in a company in Melbourne that repairs all trans. for VW & his comment was that the auto could last 400k if serviced regularly & treated properly. My guess is not too many would last that long.
If you are not aware , these are another couple of forums that have lots of good stuff on them that will help you learn about T4s.

http://vwt4forum.co.uk/index.php?

http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=25584

[Silver Caravelle]

A & B Automotive Remanufacturing Pty Ltd
12-14 Cahill St , DANDENONG SOUTH, VIC 3175

http://www.abautomatics.com.au/index.htm

For future reference

A & B do all the VW Warranty work for VW autos along with a number of other car makes. A extremely professional organisation at reasonable prices...probably one of most professional organisations I have experienced.

It is worth a drive to their premises just to view their set up- autos being remanufactured in a vey clean and 'laboratory like' environment.

Cheers,

Scott

[t4tradie]

Thanks for eveyone's advice over the past couple of weeks, re my trans service. Jmac sums it up, fairly straight forward, just basic common sense. Re the auto's A&B Reconditioners are the people i was talking about Jets. I will vouch for what Silver Caravelle says about them. They have a 50,000 sq feet premises and are extremely knowledgable. My van has 190k on it, upon removal of the pan there was no material in the base of it and the filter media was extremely clean, with only a very light coating on the magnet. Overall it was extremely clean. Like anything components can fail, through either abuse or neglect, so servicing is cheap insurance. I also did the line pressure increase ( approx 25 clicks ). Well worth doing as it has taken some of the hesitation out of the shift points, making them slightly firmer, but at the same time still very smooth. Another upside ( possibly due to new fluid ) is that the lock up in the converter appers to be smoother. Basically if you carry out your servicing religiously you should have very few problems.

[ntj]

Thanks again for more advice.

I've been in contact with VW Repairers in Artarmon, and the guy there seems to know what he is talking about with what everyone here has mentioned. The ATF replacement price seems pretty reasonable there too. Anyone had any experience with those guys?

Is the "line pressure increase" common knowlege to most specialists?

[irsa76]

I can vouch for A&B's work. I've done probably a couple of dozen auto swaps on TDI Ambulances, including installation of the special severe duty transmissions and ECUs, when I worked for a dealer. NOT a fun job.