Cali the Jetta

So I DID go to the garage, but I left the ECU parts at the office, so it wasn’t happening. Doh. We cleaned up the garage and watched keiran attempt to cut the front end off his mk1 Jetta parts car.

I am thinking I am going to check the timing on the cam. I need to do some research on that to determine exactly how to read the cam. On the audi, there was a cam ‘window’ where you could tell how close you were when the engine was a DTC, but I pulled the valve cover off last week and didn’t see such a thing on the VW cam. We’ll see.

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so I repaired the ECU… then I blew it up again. Ordered new parts, now I need to solder them AGAIN and try again. grrr. This time I bought 2 of the components.

Reminder, don’t invert your spark output unless you need to. And then, you must do it.

So tomorrow I will resolder the ECU, and then I will try again, then I will hit up the patatron forums and see what they have to say.

We did add 5 gallons of good gas, and we checked the timing again, that was all correct.

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sorry that the time between posts has been so long, I am sure everyone is on the edge of their seats in anticipation. Well, relax. While working on the timing, I managed to blow a component on the main board. I have not yet ordered that component to replace it yet.

Reason for that is I have been swamped with with work on the house and side work, so the car has taken a back seat. I drive the Audi around, and will for now. Once the house work is done and mason’s birthday party is over, I will be in a position to dedicate more time to this project.

So check back beginning of november.

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The list as we left it last:

-jumper the ECU (easy)… DONE. I relearned to solder this evening and it seems that I am good. I did the steps as laid out in this post and I checked it with the multimeter. Good.

-wire up the hall sender/coil (easy, waiting for the wiring diagram from protocar.net so I know which color goes where, not a problem, 3 wires)… Got the diagram, shouldn’t be hard to do.

-wire up the O2 sensor (again, easy, need the diagram, but the wires are pretty much run) … see above.

-get motor mount … EIP didn’t return any of my emails (2) so screw them. I ordered a new one from Bahn Brenner…. Already shipped, scheduled to arrive friday. This will obviously keep me from driving, but I still could start it….

Still need to do:
-get fluids (oil, coolant, gear oil)
-get serpentine belt (have size, just need to grab it)
-tune it (exciting, and I have a bunch of base maps to start with, so I should be ok to begin with)

oh, and dylan and kieran got me the clip for the brake pedal, which I installed the other day. So… we are really getting there. We shall see what tomorrow brings.

I am eager to have the car run.

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So we are getting there. Last night we set the timing, although I have a couple minor steps to take to set up the trigger angle in the MS ECU. I have all the information I need on how to mod the ECU for spark (I need to make 3 jumpers, no problem). I got an alternator and installed it (Thanks javier!). I have the measurements for the serpentine belt, and I get that when I go get all the fluids that I need (oil, coolant, and gear oil). I still need to contact EIP about the motor mount. Also, I need to put a couple wires in their respective places…

so, the list:

-jumper the ECU (easy)
-wire up the hall sender/coil (easy, waiting for the wiring diagram from protocar.net so I know which color goes where, not a problem, 3 wires)
-wire up the O2 sensor (again, easy, need the diagram, but the wires are pretty much run)
-get fluids (oil, coolant, gear oil)
-get serpentine belt (have size, just need to grab it)
-get motor mount
-tune it (exciting, and I have a bunch of base maps to start with, so I should be ok to begin with)

SO… presuming I can get the shopping stuff done and the ECU jumpers before wednesday, and I get the wiring diagram (should have it emailed to me by the end of today), I should have a little wiring to do on wednesday, install a motor mount, and turn the car over. THAT would be exciting.

Oh, and I need to replace the brake pedal clip.

edit: as I was typing this, the wiring diagram came via email.

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So it has been a long time since I last posted…

Currently the car is in the garage. The engine is in and wired. Most things are ready to go. The todo list is as follows:

-Set timing and distributor
-wire the 3 wires to the distributor and coil (wires already run, just need to be connected)
-get an alternator
-get the serpentine belt in the correct size
-front motor mount
-fill it with fluids
-tune it

I plugged the laptop in last night and poked around. The communication with the ECU and the laptop was fine, and I poked around a bit. I need to import the base tables I am going start with and get the rest of the settings in and I should be able to start driving it. I am excited. Oh, and the new wheels (used) are in the garage, but not yet on the car…

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Jason had a minor plumbing problem, so the megasquirt didn’t get wired last night… but the alternator is on and all lined up, but we have the wrong size belt, due to the smaller crank pulley… which I knew and it should have dawned on me, but it didn’t…

So I need to find what size belt I NEED, and I have emailed the dude I got it from, cause I can’t find my paperwork that says what size…

I also ordered some air filters from K&N for the intake and the engine breathers, so that is getting close…

I am all over the map on this car… sometimes I am like YEAH other times I am like I HATE THIS and other times I am just like OMG I WILL PAY YOU TO FINISH THIS FOR ME…

grr. but it will be fun to drive.

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So Jason came by last night and checked stuff out, he is coming BACK tonight to wire up the standalone… So that should be done tonight… There are a bunch of little things I need to do as well that I am sure I am forgetting, but it is coming along. Dylan and I stopped by the new garage last night and grabbed the alternator bracket, leaving only BIG thing left being the swapping of the gears on the distributor. Oh, and tuning it. The exhaust needs to visit an exhaust shop to get tweaked and aligned as well…but I think we are really getting there.

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Things Done:
-Run the fuel supply and return line to the rail (Rail has lines on it, rail is in, hoses need to connect to the supply/return hard lines)
-Finish hooking up the exhaust (ALMOST done!)
-Reinstall the rear beam (ALMOST done!)
-Get a Vacuum T Connector for the Charcoal Canister (got!)

Could Do Tonight:
-Run the vacuum lines
-Run the breather lines
-Connect the lower front valance
-Wire the megasquirt
-Tighten the plugs
-Reinstall the charcoal canister (mostly done)
-Swap the fuel filter
-Install sensors

Things To Do
-Swap the distributor gear
-Fill trans with oil
-Fill engine with oil
-Fill coolant
-Install Serpentine Belt

Things To Buy/Get
-Get a digi ignition module
-Coolant
-Oil
-Transmission Fluid
-Air Filter: 2.75 inch hose, get a 2.75 inch cone filter, 2.75 inch pipe to connect the 2
-Sort out the Alternator, need the bracket, steal Kieran’s
-Get an electric fan and a relay for it

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-Air Filter: 2.75 inch hose, get a 2.75 inch cone filter, 2.75 inch pipe to connect the 2
-Sort out the Alternator
-Wire the megasquirt
-Finish hooking up the exhaust
-Reinstall the rear beam
-Run the vacuum lines
-Run the breather lines
-Connect the lower front valance
-Get an electric fan and a relay for it
-Get a digi ignition module
-Run the fuel supply and return line to the rail
-Swap the fuel filter
-Tighten the plugs
-Reinstall the charcoal canister
-Install sensors
-Fill trans with oil
-Fill engine with oil
-Swap the distributor gear
-Fill coolant
……

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