In a garage with the right tools its a couple of hours. The other day I dropped my engine when I realised the fuel hose had fallen off the tank. Started at ten in the morning, finished engine back in by 7pm - about 7 hours working including fixing the fuel hose, and thats because I had forgotten where bits are because I have a brand new engine and it doesnt go wrong yet, so its now been nearly 2 years since I had it out..
I found a VW Aircooled mechanic...just 6miles away! He came round this morning to take a look. Spent an hour chatting through what’s happened and a possible way forward. It’s definitely seized...and badly Still not really known exactly how it’s happened - doesn’t all add up. Anyway. He is coming round tomorrow to take it out and to his workshop. I’ve only done 3000miles on what was a 1000mile engine. I hope this doesn’t go the same way as my motorbike tyres...when I got through 3 sets in just 500miles! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Good luck mate. Hopefully it’s something that won’t cost you an arm and a leg to rectify. Stirlingmoz
Thank you Zedders. I don’t think i’ve ever seen you use an emoticon, so I appreciate the sentiment doubly! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Cheers mate. Guess we’ll know in a few days time as he wants it apart before his holiday on Friday. Given how things are in my home country of Hong Kong, and the current global Covid crisis, I still consider myself to be the luckiest unlucky person alive. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Ok, so who didn’t have their fingers crossed? Go on, own up! Engine has already been taken apart and it’s not pretty apparently. Lots needs to be replaced with only some aspects salvageable. So the diagnosis is: When that return pipe on the engine split due to rubbing on the exhaust, my guys capped the holes it was connected and should have also done something with the Oil Pump - something to do with a Full Flow System. That wasn’t done. The anomaly of me managing to drive 130miles like that is possibly down to the fact it also had a litre too much oil, so some of it managed to slosh around. With it being sat for a while and the oil settling, then me starting it up, it seized quickly then. If none of that makes sense then it’s because I don’t understand it so am botching relaying info. So it’s rebuild this engine or get another one! With the engine previously being the best thing about it I told myself if that ever went i’d give up. I’m not sure I have that choice anymore, having spent everything i’ve got on it already and it not really having any resale value, yet being invaluable to me if it ever gets finished. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
If someone did the work that caused it, I'd think a call to them might be next... and I'd be quite cross too.. hope it all works out tor you.... Sent from my SM-T580 using Tapatalk
Terrible news, sorry to hear that. Post up a photo of the engine where they 'capped' the flow pipe as you call it. Then find an old picture of how it used to look. Seem to remember looking at your engine at TE and think you had a full flow oil system. Photos will help people diagnose what you had and what your guys did and if that was the cause of it seizing. Hard luck. When you know what happened you'll be in a position of knowledge, before you speak to your ex guys!
They totally shut off the oil feed to the engine. They should have looped it back .. Total muppets deserving of naming and shaming... But the installer of the full flow (meaning all of the oil goes through it) system shouldnt have left pipes where they can rub, and you should have spotted the fraying. Cable ties would have saved it.
If you think that you might go down the legal route take lots of photographs now and make notes. At some point you'll need an engineer's report, so that might be worth organising now; maybe a suitably qualified TLB member can help. Hopefully you can get some redress without court action. If the garage hands it over to their indemnity insurers then you are unlikely to win without spending a lot of time and possibly money on it.
It's true this would have never have happened if the OP had more familiar with his bus. It really does pay. It's all very well attributing blame but I always assume the buck stops with me because it's me that will be inconvenienced. And it's another vote for an oil pressure guage. I'm surprised the OP's oil light wasn't on though. Then again I'm the muppet that blocked one of my oil lines for it's first ever drve, 350 miles. I was lucky my system had a small bypass in the sandwich plate that kept the pressure above 20psi and I was driving gently running in.
At least 5 mechanics have poked their heads in the engine bay over the years, with not one of them even mentioning that pipe. You and I chatted about it at September Techenders and agreed it should be made safer because it concerned me...and you. Guess what, it was on the list of things to do when I got to my mechanics...I was 15miles away from them when it leaked. But that incident didn’t cause the engine to seize though. Not altering the Oil Pump caused that They should’ve known to do that apparently. I’m not going to blame myself in any way for something I know nothing about - that’s why I seek advice and pay professionals I’m smart enough to do that at least. Nothing one can do when that sensible course of action doesn’t pan out. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Good thinking But I doubt i’ll make a claim over this. They let me down and i’ll let them know that. They are good guys, done me favours over the years and we get on well...i’m sure they will do some work for me to make it up - question then becomes “do I trust them?”. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Can't agree. The pump didn't need altering, that would have been silly, you just needed another piece of pipe to restore your oil system. Failing that a loop made of the pipe you had as Mike says. And trusting the professionals? That didn't go well did it? If you aim to proceed into the future in the same way your arse and wallet are in for a good chewing...5 times this was missed! You PAID to have your engine sabotaged by muppets. Time for a strategy rethink methinks.
From the new mechanic. Maybe I got mixed up about the pump. If he’d talked in terms of muscles, respiration, organs and the endocrine system it would’ve made more sense to me. If it’s all my fault, fair enough. A harsh and expensive lesson. I’ve suffered worse...i’ll ride this. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
It's not your fault, it's the garages fault, all 5 of them or them 5 times or whatever. Whoever plugged the lines is the culpret, those following on could be forgiven for assuming the oil pump had been dealt with...but still...nobody bothered to check, or check your oil pressure...or even wonder about it. The point being that it's a lesson in where the buck stops - garages are there to make money. If the f up they look for blame elsewhere so they can charge again to rectify their mistake. Because of that you can never be 100% sure what's going on or what really happened hence recommending one take responsibility even when using a garage. That chap with the garage randomly setting the timing is a great example. They had it back because they'd f'd up the timing, but managed to find a dirty filter to blame for poor running.
