The SI project is now complete and on the road. I love it!
Love the rear guard treatment and the car just looks so much better than a GTi with the planks of plastic along the sides.The SI project is now complete and on the road. I love it!
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The XU9J4 can be expensive to rebuild. There are basically two paths:
1. Standard pistons. This assumes the standard pistons can be reused and you buy new liners and rings. Then it's a relatively easy process to rebuild back to standard, along with possibly reground cams and a serviced head.
2. New forged pistons. This is where it becomes expensive and tricky. The std pistons centre and control the conrods. It's a great idea, except aftermarket pistons don't. Thus you either modify aftermarket pistons to match the standard rods, or buy new rods as well, which will be wider and centred/controlled by the crankshaft (the same as most engines). Fitting the narrower Mi16 rod to an aftermarket forged piston will result in excessive rod clearance/thrust and probably piston boss cracking.
Your first course of action should be to strip the XU9J4 and assess the pistons and liners. Also look for the cancer around the liner seats of the block. Sometimes it's easier (cheaper) just to use a 2L XU10 block.
I am still trying to find out...What wheels are those?
Thanks PeterT, I still have options if I run into problems. (1 GTI long motor, 1 GTI short motor and the 405 Long motor) I shall take it slow and steady.The XU9J4 can be expensive to rebuild. There are basically two paths:
1. Standard pistons. This assumes the standard pistons can be reused and you buy new liners and rings. Then it's a relatively easy process to rebuild back to standard, along with possibly reground cams and a serviced head.
2. New forged pistons. This is where it becomes expensive and tricky. The std pistons centre and control the conrods. It's a great idea, except aftermarket pistons don't. Thus you either modify aftermarket pistons to match the standard rods, or buy new rods as well, which will be wider and centred/controlled by the crankshaft (the same as most engines). Fitting the narrower Mi16 rod to an aftermarket forged piston will result in excessive rod clearance/thrust and probably piston boss cracking.
Your first course of action should be to strip the XU9J4 and assess the pistons and liners. Also look for the cancer around the liner seats of the block. Sometimes it's easier (cheaper) just to use a 2L XU10 block.
PeterT what are your thoughts about after market ECU's? Haltech compliant in particular.Thanks PeterT, I still have options if I run into problems. (1 GTI long motor, 1 GTI short motor and the 405 Long motor) I shall take it slow and steady.
Hi Budgie, I’m building up my own Si and really like this style of wheel, did you end up finding out?I am still trying to find out...
I concur. In 1996, when my S3 205GTI was 3 years old, there were visible cracks at the base of the 'B' pillar. The body flexed so much that the door would move in the frame when driving over a driveway and once jammed my finger between the body and the door frame. These things are quite bendy.I can not tell from the picture if that is freshly sandblasted or primer coated.
If it were my car I would inspect very closely the seams at the top of the B pillar for cracks and the ones at the bottom inside the rear quarter panel for rust. Right after blasting these areas should be easier to inspect. Even if there are no cracks, I would seriously consider some strengthening of the shell at the B pillar and perhaps in some other points. not sure how I'd go about it, but from my experience, these shells are not exactly rigid. In fact far from it.
There are also many other areas where rust can hide but these are a common problem pretty much on all cars.
Another area where I even fear to think of what lurks inside are the sills but you can't know unless you inspect them, perhaps with a scope through the drainage holes (one at the bottom of the front wheel well, another two on the inside (under the car) wall of the sill, one at the front, one at the back). Water can stay there for a long, long, long time. In fact I would hazard a guess it would never completely dry out. Grrrr.
Nice work.