Well, I'm the very proud owner of a 1986 VW Jetta 1.6n/a - which I assume stands for naturally aspirated. If there's a turbo in there, I haven't found it yet, but this is my very first diesel car, so I'm still allowed to claim ignorance on all things VW.

As you'll see in the pics, there is a little body damage to the passenger side fender due to a deer strike. And there is a hose missing from the air filter to the passenger side front fender also, but I don't really see where that hose would be necesary???

I drove the car about 3 hours today, and it drives fine. It started immediately and didn't smoke at all. The block was ice cold before we cranked it. The first 4 gears work fine and reverse, but the 5th OD gear doesn't engage at all.

The brakes need some work, not really sure what is going on there, but they are very weak and you have to push the pedal all the way to the floor to get them to activate at all. I had to make sure I kept plenty of distance in front for stopping.

I cruised home at about 57mph in 4th gear. I could've gone a little faster in 4th, but I didn't want to rag it out.

There is a little oil in the "valley," or whatever its called on these cars, but I checked the oil level three times today and it didn't seem to change. The timing belt was changed in September, so that's good.

The A/C works, it's hard to tell how well since it is about 50 degrees today, but I could tell that it was colder than with just the fan on.

All-in-all, I feel like I got a great deal for $1000. Hopefully I will get it up on the rack soon and see what the underbelly looks like, get the oil changed, flush the radiator, and get that OD gear working

I do have one question for the guys that know these cars. The eng temp gauge is right in the middle of the cluster at the bottom. There are no colored indications, like red, yellow, green. There is a red light that flashes when I start the car and I am assuming is an idiot light for when the eng starts getting hot. Well, it started flashing at me at one point today, but the needle was pointing to the left side of the gauge. Now, to me, the left side would be cold and the right side would be hot, but this is a german car after-all, so maybe it's backwards. I shut the car off when the light started flashing, checked the engine for signs of overheating and didn't see any. Started it back up and drove the rest of the way home with no problems. My question is, does that light also flash when the engine is cold? I have never seen one that did, but heck if I know.

Thanks for all the help everyone!

 

Hey if the shifter is sloppy it will have trouble catching 5th....Its not to bad of a job to put bushings in the linkage....The ones in the shifter tunnel are the ones that cause most of the problems....It can be a real pain in the butt on the ground ,,on a lift isnt too bad.. Its worth it to do all of them while you are in there....As for the temp gauge it reads normal..left to right..Im not sure about the blinking red light....

 

Thanks for the input. The shifter isn't really sloppy in the other gears, so I'm not sure that's the problem. I'm glad to know that the temp gauge reads left to right like I thought it would.

 

The blinking lite on my vw diesel means the level of coolant is down in the plastic expantion tank. On the early MK1's it meant the oil pressure or level was down.

 

that car is so ugly the dog's won't even pee on the tires,I thought this was a Ford website? just kidding I think they are good little commuter's,Gigger

 

Those things are cool. They run on grease really well and get 40+ mpg. I've thought of getting one a few times.

 

Well, theres plenty of fluid in the expansion tank. It's pretty dirty though, so its possible it is clogged. That doesn't really explain what the gauge showed though. It did move throughout the day, and when the light blinked it was showing a little on the cold side if anything.

 

My 96 Passat TDI is the same in regards to the blinking light - low coolant level. VW's are VERY SPECIFIC in regards to their coolant. Make sure you get the right stuff from the dealership! I bought a gallon jug to make my own 50/50 mix. It is NOT CHEAP - 2yrs ago it was ~$30 for the gallon.

You'll want to do LOTS of reading on Fred's TDI Page. TDIClub.com. VW TDI Enthusiast Community - kinda like reading up here when you buy a new-to-you 7.3 PSD.

 

Brenda, will the TDI pages have info for a non-turbo VW diesel also? I have been told about 10 different websites now that I need to spend a lot of time on, and unfortunately I just don't think i can do that many.

 

Nice little putter. My mom has a 2009 TDI and loves it. I thought the clock was a tach at first!

 

The temp guages, oil pressure guage, oh, excuse me...lights...lol...are very specific...if they get even 3 oz. low, the dang lights come on, flash, what not...my VR6 is ok, but i had an 87 Golf, same car you have there...believe it or not, i will recommend the dealership for this one, or find a VW specialist for your 5th gear issue...just have the syncros swapped and realigned, and you'll be good...i had to do it on my golf...and it was really cheap...a good parts source is Import Parts Specialists (IPS) in Winston-Salem, NC...they have reasonably priced OEM parts...not sure if they have a website though, but the old school yellow pages work...lol...good luck wit your Jetta...

 

Thanks David, I was looking for a good parts source on the web. Now I have somewhere to focus.

 

No, the TDI pages wont help you much unless you're planning on putting a 1.9L TDI engine in place of your 1.6L IDI engine.
Here's the link that i sent you before: GTD forum- IDI Engine
VW Vortex Diesel forum- VWvortex Forums: TDI and Diesel Forum
During my VW diesel ownership, i've found the GTD forum to be the best for useful info on 'improvements'. The Vortex is more general, as the TDI and IDI engines are grouped together on the same discussion board. Hope this helps sort though the information pile...

 

Thanks Caleb, I have already spent a good bit of time on the VWVortex page and gotten really good feedback. I really appreciate the help y'all have given me, I felt pretty confident when I went to look at it today and even with the small problems I feel pretty good about the motor. I think it's in good shape. Just wish that passenger side fender wasn't dinged up because the rest of the body is in really good condition.

 

Yeah, there's so much helpful information on the net, it never ceases to amaze me. I've gleaned volumes from the Vortex and GTD forums.

Glad to help, and it sounds like you got a good one as far as the motor goes. If not, they are one of the world's easiest engine platforms to work on once you understand the basics of their operation. I would rather work on an IDI VW than just about anything... Including my PSD

That was a really popular color for those years, it's not uncommon to find them in the salvage yards, or you could pick up a fender aftermarket for cheap, and paint it to match. The factory paint code is usually found on the upper rad support, where some manufacturers put emissions info.
BTW, love the 2 door! A fairly rare car, but i always liked em...