VW TDI - convert to one cylinder?

[Doug]

There are some all mechanicl injection TDI engines. I have the computure controlled common rail version i my car but I think one of the mechaincs at work told me the pre 2000 units were mechanical with a regular redial pump.

[panaceabeachbum]

Not a VW but my dad has an early 80's mazda diesel pickup truck that came equiped with a 2.2 litre perkins diesel, whopping 68hp . We are going to pull the engine and scrap the truck over the next few weeks. Lots of these in the junkyard cheap, truck usualy rusts away while the engine is still in good shape .

Thinking of spinning a 25 kw gen at 1800 rpms  I have a 43 hp ford diesel in a boring rig I am pulling for a similar gen project

[Doug]

There were also some good little diesels inthe Chevette and Acadians in the 80s ( Isuzzu )
And of course there are a lot of small excavotors and machinery using Kub diesel that have that realy nice Nippon inline injection pump.

[Grael]

TDI's only started being sold in North America since '98, so they are not that old. Everything before that was IDI, except the bastard child AAZ engine from '93-'97, that was direct injection but pure mechanical pump. Computer controls also start in '98, before that was mechanical pump. '98-'03 still had a rotary distributor style pump, but was computer controlled, '04-'06 started the PD or "pump injector" engine, injectors operated by a cam lobe, but computer controlled. '09 has common rail. VW also does not have urea injection in the exhaust. That's a Mercedes and BMW thing.  VW uses sophisticated catalysts and re-gen cycles to comply to emissions. In the '09s you need to use ULSD or the catalyst will die. Except you can't get anything but ULSD at the pumps anymore.

With that said, making a 4 cyl run on 1 cylinder will make it die a quick death. Run all 4, or get a single cylinder engine.

[mobile_bob]

even after all the conversion from 4 to single, you will have a serious balance issue, even if you keep the
pistons and rods intact.
it is not at all uncommon for 4 cylinders to break crankshafts being run under load, with one cylinder dead from a bad
injector, i can't imagine having 3 dead holes is going to eliminate this issue.

and i don't know about the vw and its crankshaft history being worked with a dead cylinder?

bob g

[MeanListerGreen]

Why not leave two cylinders to fire and use two cylinders as an air compressor?  Run appliances on air motors, like an air powered can opener?   

[Tijean]

Why not leave two cylinders to fire and use two cylinders as an air compressor?  Run appliances on air motors, like an air powered can opener?   

You better plan on playing some very serious tricks on the manifolds and valve actuation mechanics.

It has been done with flat head fords to make a compressor of them but that may have been before the second world war.

Maybe if you try to make a one cylinder out of a 4 cyl. VW you also have to use a "ton of cement" to tie it down!

[panaceabeachbum]

I had a commercial compressor a few years ago that was built from a small block ford engine , used one bank as the engine and the other as the compressor , a little off topic but ...

[rcavictim]

I had a commercial compressor a few years ago that was built from a small block ford engine , used one bank as the engine and the other as the compressor , a little off topic but ...

I guess that is proof that YOU CAN make something that both sucks and blows at the same time! 

[rcavictim]

On a more serious note.  In case someone would like to experiment with reducing the number of running cylinders on a 4-cylinder diesel automotive engine I have a 1681 cc Nissan diesel engine in a 1985 Sentra that I am trying to get rid of cheap.  Details in the Lister Marketplace forum.

http://listerengine.com/smf/index.php?topic=4927.0

[mike90045]

Came across this years ago, the Volksair   http://www.dunnrightinc.com/   A kit to replace a camshaft in an air cooled VW beetle engine, and turn 2 cyl into an air compressor.