Jim,
I hate to be critical but why in the world, when the head was
off and the pan dropped, didn't you have all 4 cylinders redone???
VWs, at least in my case, have had little reason to be completely
torn apart to just replace rings & bearings. Cleaning up the
cylinder bores on the other three and replacing those rings may well
have prevented your problem. If the head was a "new" one (new to you
or a rebuilt one??) the valve stem seals should have been replaced as
well as the normal work done in a job such as this. Maybe it is time
for a weekend project to complete the job that whomever did for you
in the first place. As I've said many times on quite a few VW lists
around the world, you can't scrimp on getting the job done right
initially. Once its rebuilt and running again, a visit to the dealer
or another competent shop to have it set up properly is the only way
to do it.......Jack
Steve,
I originally had low compression in one cylinder, which is why I had
ring work (one cyl) and rebuilt head done in September. I have been
averaging about 400 miles per week consistently since Thanksgiving.
I never did a compression test when I got the car back, but it idled
and drove much better.
Over the last few weeks, on a cold start, the car feels like it's
running on three cylinders and see a bit of blue smoke if I jump on
the pedal. All is fine within a minute of driving. Something is
definitely wrong. Just wondering, due to the increase in oil loss
(seems to be going out the tail pipe), does it make any sense to
prolong the Mobil 1 relationship? I think I will be going back to
dino or a blend. I'd say I'm losing a quart every two weeks.
Thanks,
Jim
