On or about March 15, joan jetta sang her last.
My GF & I were tooling back from seattle in Joan. I was ever so optimistic, having just gotten her back from the mechanic. I did hear something suspicious. and when we pulled into a suburban Lynnwood strip mall in search of a latte, i put in the clutch & joan stopped. Forever. Despite my GF suggesting i check the oil & try it again (sigh), there was nothing to be done. After an eventful day with a cast of colorful characters in Lynnwood & Edmunds (tow truck drivers, mechanics, greyhound bus drivers, pawn shop proprietors), we took the greyhound bus home.
Diagnosis: snapped camshaft due to overworn timing belt. Estimated cost to repair $2000-$4000. Sigh.
I will admit to a round of blamestorming: the previous owner for not replacing belt frequently enough. My mechanic for not advising to replace when replacing injection pump. Myself for not reading forums & taking a closer look...
Joan is now at a wrecker's in lynnwood. I still hope to get the custom injectors out of her & sell the conversion kit on ebay...
The only happy part of this story is the star, a lovely mechanic at the VW dealership who took pity on me... his daughter also has a 91 jetta & he could imagine, what if it were her trapped in another country with a dead jetta! He gave me $20 for 2 snowtires, and on his lunch break, pulled the rebuilt injection pump out. I paid $1000 to get the frigging pump rebuilt, and have since sold it for $500, so all was not lost. Lessons learned all around. The smartass service manager at the VW dealership said "do you feel like buying a new one today?" if i thought i could arrange financing in the US that day, i would have.
I came home & totalled up the $$ spent on used cars & major repairz in the last 10 years. ?$20,000. Sheesh. Next day i bought a 2006 diesel golf with 10000kms. I love it more than is right for a granolacruncher like myself to love a car. it cost lots of money. and i don't care.
driving to kelowna for the first time in my life, with no worries about 'what's that sound?" coming from under the hood. just smooth cruising. and once it's paid for & the 4 year warranty expires, i figure i can run this one on grease, too. sigh.
until next time...
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Basement-based oil filtering
Just about to get Joan Jetta back from the hospital. We had a greivous setback: the fuel injection pump that i bought on ebay to replace my leaky one did not work.
Thus, had to have mine rebuilt at great cost. ah well. all in the name of science. The dudes at the Bosch shop say my warranty is void if i run biodiesel through it. No problem! no biodiesel will run through Joan Jetta.
This weekend, i construct the home filtration system in my basement. I better get a squeegee for scraping canola off the floor. i remember some messy moments on fryer-cleaning day at the Dairy Queen Braizer that was my first job. Too bad they only let pimply faced boyz cook at the Brazier, so i never got the chance to handle much fryer oil early in life & i'll have to learn now.
Thus, had to have mine rebuilt at great cost. ah well. all in the name of science. The dudes at the Bosch shop say my warranty is void if i run biodiesel through it. No problem! no biodiesel will run through Joan Jetta.
This weekend, i construct the home filtration system in my basement. I better get a squeegee for scraping canola off the floor. i remember some messy moments on fryer-cleaning day at the Dairy Queen Braizer that was my first job. Too bad they only let pimply faced boyz cook at the Brazier, so i never got the chance to handle much fryer oil early in life & i'll have to learn now.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Fuel system mods underway
Much to the delight of the UPS driver, i jumped for joy to receive a box of german-labeled automotive parts last monday. I sure hope Campbell the Vietnamese mechanic can read german better than i can....
Phase 1: Modified fuel system
Given that I have no idea what a fuel injector or glow plug looks like, I have my favorite backyard mechanic installing the custom injector guts, longer glow plugs, and replacing the leaking fuel injection pump all at once. He's promised it will all come back to me with no leaks. It's his first greasy-rider too, but he approaches it with a scientific mind...
Tech background: Injectors are modified to accomodate a wider range of fuels & still acheive the required pressure. This is the Top Secret German Engineering Method that cost me many Euros. Glow plugs are longer to heat up the veg oil in there before starting.
Near setback #1: 2 of the longer glow plugs stick out and bang into the injection pump. Damn. Did the Deutschelanders send me the wrong kit? Is the engine head a different size than expected? Did i order the wrong kit? Double damn. Campbell offers to saw off the plugs. Hmm. Hacksaw + modified fuel system..sounds dodgy to me. Instead we agree he'll put 2 long ones & 2 new ones that fit.
The good news is, i live in van-city & the Deutschlanders say i only need to worry about the fuel turning to margarine in my system near temps of -15'Celsius. Hooray! With a block heater & the inline fuel heating system, should be no problemo to run straight veg oil all year.
In the meantime, i have to get my ass to the autoparts shop to start putting togethe a filter system. That i'll rig in my basement. Need to have all that in order because phase 2 is installing the inline fuel heating system and a 2nd fuel filter.
Campbell thinks I could do that myself. Yikes. Time to get a coach! Also time to formalize the deal with the cafeteria boss at work to find out when fryer-cleaning day is...
Phase 1: Modified fuel system
Given that I have no idea what a fuel injector or glow plug looks like, I have my favorite backyard mechanic installing the custom injector guts, longer glow plugs, and replacing the leaking fuel injection pump all at once. He's promised it will all come back to me with no leaks. It's his first greasy-rider too, but he approaches it with a scientific mind...
Tech background: Injectors are modified to accomodate a wider range of fuels & still acheive the required pressure. This is the Top Secret German Engineering Method that cost me many Euros. Glow plugs are longer to heat up the veg oil in there before starting.
Near setback #1: 2 of the longer glow plugs stick out and bang into the injection pump. Damn. Did the Deutschelanders send me the wrong kit? Is the engine head a different size than expected? Did i order the wrong kit? Double damn. Campbell offers to saw off the plugs. Hmm. Hacksaw + modified fuel system..sounds dodgy to me. Instead we agree he'll put 2 long ones & 2 new ones that fit.
The good news is, i live in van-city & the Deutschlanders say i only need to worry about the fuel turning to margarine in my system near temps of -15'Celsius. Hooray! With a block heater & the inline fuel heating system, should be no problemo to run straight veg oil all year.
In the meantime, i have to get my ass to the autoparts shop to start putting togethe a filter system. That i'll rig in my basement. Need to have all that in order because phase 2 is installing the inline fuel heating system and a 2nd fuel filter.
Campbell thinks I could do that myself. Yikes. Time to get a coach! Also time to formalize the deal with the cafeteria boss at work to find out when fryer-cleaning day is...
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
The latest adventures of greasy rider
Jan 7/08
Welcome to greasy rider, a public service to those who may be interested in how a feminist adventurer converts her first diesel vehicle to run on straight vegetable oil (SVO). Today I was notified that the new fuel injectors, glow plugs and fuel filtering system were shipped to me.- i ordered the kit from www.elsbett.com. I ordered this kit as my xmas present to myself.
Hooray! Phase 1 is underway.
About me:
30 something feminist activist and corporate hack, living in Vancouver BC.
I am a bit of a weirdo - i really wish i could live (in the city) off the grid. I am an anarchist in my heart, very cheap, and like to be known as an eccentric. I do lots of home-making. I have a motorcycle license & have done lots of repairs on my own bike. I am the type of woman that gets described as 'gutsy', 'ballsy', 'abrasive', 'type a'.
I am handy like this: when i was 16 & driving a 1977 Datsun 1200, my dad would say to me "Get that thing up on blocks in the carport and get the wheels off it. When that's done come get me & we'll go to the parts shop for the brakes". My dad is a workingclass guy who is quite handy, mostly due to necesssity - 'shade tree mechanic who despite his own crippling arthritis, kept five 15+yr old/$400 vehicles operational at the same time so each of us in our family could independently run around the Okanagan valley.
Since I have a brother, my own mechanical skill development was somewhat curtailed. My brother had the 'opportunity' to be hauled out of the stalling car at the side of many highways to hold the light, or press on the gas, or pump the breaks, or put his finger on some dangerous moving part under the engine. I think I have mechanical aptitude, but am missing lots of background skills
About my car:
Joan Jetta is a 1991 1.6D turbo diesel jetta. picture to follow.
She has 450,000 kms, about 2,000 now on a rebuilt engine. However, research showed that the engine may not have been rebuilt & the guy who sold it to me, while a charming christian man with a smiling family, may have lied.
About my driving habits & overall plan.
I drive only 5-10 kms on each trip, and usually ride my bicycle around town. Or I drive on long trips.
In either case, the 2 tank conversion doesn't seem like the right choice: I'll be at work before the car is hot enough to switch to grease, and will be too far away from home with a trunk full of camping equipment to carry 1500kms worth of grease.
SO, watch here to learn how i do it.
xoxo jax
Welcome to greasy rider, a public service to those who may be interested in how a feminist adventurer converts her first diesel vehicle to run on straight vegetable oil (SVO). Today I was notified that the new fuel injectors, glow plugs and fuel filtering system were shipped to me.- i ordered the kit from www.elsbett.com. I ordered this kit as my xmas present to myself.
Hooray! Phase 1 is underway.
About me:
30 something feminist activist and corporate hack, living in Vancouver BC.
I am a bit of a weirdo - i really wish i could live (in the city) off the grid. I am an anarchist in my heart, very cheap, and like to be known as an eccentric. I do lots of home-making. I have a motorcycle license & have done lots of repairs on my own bike. I am the type of woman that gets described as 'gutsy', 'ballsy', 'abrasive', 'type a'.
I am handy like this: when i was 16 & driving a 1977 Datsun 1200, my dad would say to me "Get that thing up on blocks in the carport and get the wheels off it. When that's done come get me & we'll go to the parts shop for the brakes". My dad is a workingclass guy who is quite handy, mostly due to necesssity - 'shade tree mechanic who despite his own crippling arthritis, kept five 15+yr old/$400 vehicles operational at the same time so each of us in our family could independently run around the Okanagan valley.
Since I have a brother, my own mechanical skill development was somewhat curtailed. My brother had the 'opportunity' to be hauled out of the stalling car at the side of many highways to hold the light, or press on the gas, or pump the breaks, or put his finger on some dangerous moving part under the engine. I think I have mechanical aptitude, but am missing lots of background skills
About my car:
Joan Jetta is a 1991 1.6D turbo diesel jetta. picture to follow.
She has 450,000 kms, about 2,000 now on a rebuilt engine. However, research showed that the engine may not have been rebuilt & the guy who sold it to me, while a charming christian man with a smiling family, may have lied.
About my driving habits & overall plan.
I drive only 5-10 kms on each trip, and usually ride my bicycle around town. Or I drive on long trips.
In either case, the 2 tank conversion doesn't seem like the right choice: I'll be at work before the car is hot enough to switch to grease, and will be too far away from home with a trunk full of camping equipment to carry 1500kms worth of grease.
SO, watch here to learn how i do it.
xoxo jax
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