[Drewhastheinternet]

So this is what I did with the engine I bought in calgary that turned out to be no good and also had rod bearing issues.
I tore it all down but since I have no head gaskets I left the heads and pistons in place and removed everything else so I could clean it all out. I also discovered that 12v VR6 rod bearings had the same thickness and shape as the w8 ones, the only difference was the width.
This is how I modified the vr6 bearings so they would fit in the W8

After the cut I used a deburring tool to carefully take the inner edge off and voila! The one on the far right is an original bearing and the next ones over are the first few I made followed by the unmodified ones.
I also took this oppertunity to match the intake and exhaust ports to their gaskets

here is right after I washed it

I hand polished the crank with a rag and compound until my arms felt like they were dying

and here is the first part of the case back on. I had to be very careful applying silicone to the surfaces, it was quite tedious work!

Next is this part, lots of different length bolts, this is where it paid off to keep things organized when I took it all apart.

Next the oil pump

I will update soon with more as I get this all together and back in a car

 

[bherman13]

Hope you do something awesome with this one so mike02467 can eat sh!t. :thumbup::laugh:

 

[ChillOutPossum]

Hacksaw for the win! :thumbup::laugh:

 

[uberR32]

I'm pretty sure that's the first and last time a hacksaw made it into an engine rebuild tool list.

 

[mycarsux]

I'm amazed at your work. I have a couple of questions for you.

A friend of mine is a VW tech, and he was the only one at his dealership that was willing to go near these years ago when they were current. Are these really that complicated compared to a VR6, or is it just how rare they are that makes them seem so intimidating?


How did you get so experienced with the W8?

I love the W8 would love to own one.

 

[Brycejoseph]

watching this! Cause I would love to shoehorn a W8 into something!

 

[nm+]

Are W8 bearings NLA? Jeebus, in a decade or two there won't be any of them left.

 

[Air and water do mix]

I'm pretty sure that's the first and last time a hacksaw made it into an engine rebuild tool list.

Wait. Wait. Gimme a minute...




How 'bout...















I got nuthin'

 

[Iroczgirl]

Just awesome.

I feel like saying German engineering meets Russian ingenuity.

 

[angel v]

:thumbup:

 

[Atl-Atl]

Just awesome.

I feel like saying German engineering meets Russian ingenuity.

Just make sure you get a "sorry" in there somewhere.

 

[patrikman]

Did you seriously hacksaw bearings? What are you using for feeler gauges? Charleston Chew for Plastigage? opcorn:

 

[Drewhastheinternet]

 

[Drewhastheinternet]

Did you seriously hacksaw bearings? What are you using for feeler gauges? Charleston Chew for Plastigage? opcorn:

YEs i did, it felt as wrong as it sounds too haha. I measured the bearing thickness with a caliper and a micrometer to check the crankshaft. I also torqued a spare rod on the other crank with my homemade bearings and it felt good. We will see once it's back in a car

 

[ValveCoverGasket]

hacksaw bearings... awesome :laugh:


are the oem ones NLA or was this a "cost" issue...?

 

[Crispyfritter]

hacksaw bearings... awesome :laugh:


are the oem ones NLA or was this a "cost" issue...?

Seems like a parts availability issue. Seeing as he did all of this with the heads on because he didn't have gaskets leads me to believe he's just using parts he had laying around.

Chris

 

[Aonarch]

:thumbup: :beer: awesome

 

[dub01]

Are W8 bearings NLA? Jeebus, in a decade or two there won't be any of them left.

They were never available to begin with. VW never sold any internal bottom end parts for these motors.

 

[chdavis]

They were never available to begin with. VW never sold any internal bottom end parts for these motors.

That's almost unbelievable. :banghead:

 

[GT-ER]

This is so wrong, yet so right.


It sucks that VW doesn't sell any parts. I'd be super pissed as a W8 owner.