Installed Cylinder Heads, timing belt, etc

I got the correct head gaskets, and put on the cylinder heads. Then, I was able to put on the rear timing covers, the timing belt, and the front timing covers.

Installed Heads Temporarily

I installed the heads temporarily [lightly tightened the head bolts], so they can protect the cylinder bores from getting dirty. Oh well, this shows how it will look. I also installed the reversed coolant header, which has the large pipe pointing to the right rear of the engine.

They sent me the wrong head gaskets!!!! ARRGGGH!!

I checked every single part I ordered, except the head gaskets. As I was about to install them, I noticed they are the wrong size. They sent me head gaskets that are 5mm too small !! Murphy's Law strikes again!!! Well, that sets me back!

Installing Camshafts and Rocker Arms

After checking the hydraulic lifters [one of 16 was bad and was replaced] and filling them with oil, I installed the camshafts [with new seals] and rocker cars onto the cylinder head. After making sure all parts were well-lubricated and turned easily, I installed the valve covers.

Polishing Aluminum Valve Covers

I polished the aluminum valve covers using a cloth buffing wheel and white rouge. The picture shows one polished cover, and the other that has not yet been polished. Makes quite a difference

Plywood covering oilpan space

One of the hardest things about installing an engine is trying to support it without denting the oilpan. Also, if you have to assemble and mount engine components before installation, you need to find a stable way to support it on a table top or counter.

I decided to cover the oil pan area with a piece of thick plastic [a 1mm thick plastic chopping mat], then a piece of 3/4" plywood. This was attached to the oil pan mating surface with bolts into the oilpan holes. On top of that piece of plywood, I mounted another using Niquid Nails adhesive [adhesive is drying in picture, awaiting the second piece of plywood].




This provides a flat, stable, strong surface, which allows the engine to be placed on any flat surface for attaching components. Also, it provides a surface strong enough to support a floor jack to raise the engine into place.



These plywood bases will add a lot of stability when mounting the engine components, because the engine will be able to sit on any flat surface. Also, it will provide a much better surface for lifting the engine with a floor jack.

Cooling and Starting System Upgrades

Cooling System

For the cooling system, I bought two specialized parts:

• A reversed coolant manifold, which moves the upper radiator hose outlet from the left front of the engine to the right rear of the engine. This reduces the amount of piping necessary to carry the coolant to the radiator..which is at the front of the vehicle.



• A thermostat spacer, invented by Tom Shiels of subaruvanagon.com, allows the heater line coolant to flow even if the thermostat is closed. This allows for more stable engine cooling in idle/cold/hot conditions

Starting System

Some engine-converted Vanagons have problems starting, mainly because the replacement engines have higher compression ratios than the stock Vanagon engine. This is aggrivated by the fact that the battery is all the way up in the front of the vehicle,so there can be voltage drop problems. These lead to problems starting when the engine is hot. Since mine behaved like that on my drive back from Reno, and because it's infinitely easier to replace the starter when the engine and/or transmission are out of the vehicle, I decided to include this in the engine ewap.

Karl Mullendore of westyventures.com invented a spacer that allows you to use the starter from mid/late 90s to early/mid 00s Volkswagens [Beetle/Golf/Jetta/Passat] that has the 1.9 liter Turbo Diesel Injection (TDI) engine. These starters are designed to handle the high compression of the TDI engines, and are a perfect match for starting an engine-modified Vanagon.