Type4 Newbie wants to build one..?..., Scary or dive in!? Options

[2mAn]

Hey Everyone,

Been considering buying a Type4 "kit" and building one up from scratch. I recall theres a book thats been suggested to use, and wanted to know what you guys think.

I have contemplating doing this for a while now and figured I would see what you guys think. This would be a side project with no definitely timeline as the engine currently has no home and would be a problem for future me.

So, what do you think? Any suggested books, tools, etc that are "must-haves" ?

Thanks!
-Simon

[Ninja]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

Parts list sounds good, but the crank is most likely a 78mm stroke which should fit with minimal case mods. I'm not sure if an 88 would fit at all.

Rebuilding to a 2055 is pretty easy. Building what you have is not.
The care needed to build a stroked big bore is significantly more.
You WILL be "blue-printing" the motor.
If this is a new term for you...

It will make more power but tuning will be more critical.
You will need a dedicated performance exhaust. (Tangerine/MSDS) and dedicated intake set up; dual 44 IDF or digital FI with ITBs.

If that kit has steel cylinders don't expect long service life. If that kit has LNs "Nickys" billet aluminum cylinders you should buy that NOW even if you don't have the needed skills.

The "rebuilt" heads would scare me. I'd have to inspect them closely. The real problem is 50 years old aluminum castings AND the stock 2 liters are prone to cracking.

An issue that has come up in many of the rebuild threads is lack of quality parts and quality machine work even from well know VW specialist machine shops.

Good luck!