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93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« on: October 27, 2015, 05:48:07 pm »
Hi all,
I'd been lucky enough to have a lot of good advice over the past two years while doing a 93 Eurovan TDI conversion and then a MV to Weekender conversion with the same van.  I have a bit of time finally to do a write up of the process and thought I would do it in some installments here. I'm not a full time mechanic and just did this over two summers while on break from teaching. I've rebuilt a few engines and replaced a number of them from TDIs and a bunch of Hondas. I have pretty good but not stellar mechanical skills and can generally keep a vehicle going when it needs to get somewhere.

 In the end what I wanted (and got) was a VW Eurovan that can comfortably seat six or seven for long distances, camp with 2 - 4, and get 30+ mpg on home made biodiesel.  And I wanted to do this without getting too crazy on the price, so set a goal of about $7000 for everything except my time (which was of course way too valuable to cost out)  :o.

 I started with a 93 Eurovan MV 5cyl 5 speed with about 180,000 miles that I bought for $3000, which was in not too bad of shape.  I also had all the parts of a 96 Passat 1Z TDI which I had owned for about 5 years and served me well, and whose engine had been taken care of well and also had 180,000 miles. I found the top half of a Eurovan MV Weekender at a junkyard and had them cut off the entire top and about 8" of each post, keeping all the plastic trim and all the interior parts together. For replacement middle seats I found swivel middle captains chairs from a 1997 Toyota Previa and welded brackets under the carpet to enable me to quickly bolt the chairs down or remove them in less than a minute.

Here is the outline of what I did; I'll try to explain most of the points in detail and add pictures as I can find them (I posted this earlier on a few forums):

things to keep from 96 Passat or 96-98 Jetta TDI
Engine and transmission - engine for obvious reasons and transmission if you rebuild your exisiting Eurovan transmission
ECU and entire ECU wiring loom,
15 pin OBDII plug - 7 wires attached in back.
Fuel tank sender and entire fuel line
Entire vacuum line system including line from vacuum pump to brake booster, N75 valve, etc…
Front half of exhaust system
Entire intake from air-intake box
instrument cluster from 96 Passat; Jettas do not swap into 93-95 Eurovans
Cruise control wiring from switch to ECU plug.
Clutch and brake pedal switches
Fuses and relays for spares
Emissions diagram from plastic piece near battery (to prove to California DMV that your engine is from a car at least as new as the Eurovan).
Anything else that looked valuable!

Basic to do list:
-order transmission, right side engine mount, transmission support, oil dipstick tube and dipstick, oil pan, oil pickup tube from Dutch Auto Parts in Holland. Total for me was $1641 shipped to California; or have Dave Folts Transmissions in LA do complete rebuild of existing Eurovan transmission with new 4.23 ring and pinion gear, Passat 3rd and 4th gears and a .681 5th gear. Total cost about $2300 - $2500. If you do this you still need the right side engine mount, transmission support, oil dipstick tube and dipstick, oil pan and oil pickup tube. 

-remove 1Z engine and completely clean and/or rebuild upper or lower end
-enlarge two 8 mm to 10 mm mounting holes on front of engine for new right side engine mount
-drill out hole for oil dipstick on rear of engine
-attach new transmission mount
-new G60 clutch, pressure plate, flywheel, rear oil seal from IDParts
-new water pump, harmonic balancer
-new a/c compressor (don’t buy a cheap one - they break - ask me how I know!),
-new alternator, new starter, new Passat TDI battery
-new front crank bearing and oil seal,
-clean clogged air intake

-delete 5th injector on 96 Passat
-order and install .681 5th OEM gear

-buy all new transmission linkage joints/parts from SD Euro

-mount 50 amp fuse and N75 valve on top/middle of engine compartment
-extend wires for N75 valve and other electricals
-splice together EV and Passat brake booster vacuum line to connect with EV brake booster to Passat vacuum pump
-mount ECU on passenger side towards back of engine compartment and sealed from elements
-wire in ECU to TDI engine. Keep track of wires! basically plug and play if using 1Z or AHU engine.
-install go pedal linkage with potentiometer from tdi;
-attach new cv joints/axles
-remove, clean, and reinstall fuel tank after modifying fuel sender: removed EV electric fuel pump and replaced fuel sender with Passat fuel sender.
-attach TDI fuel filter to frame near power steering pump
-modify/replace upper and lower coolant lines and attached.
-modify brackets to hold lower coolant line in place
-splice in vacuum canister (3 "tennis balls") to vacuum system of TDI.
-route fuel tank lines to right side of van, near p/s lines and place fuel filter on frame
-exchange BK to GQ ECU in 96 Passat so OBDII/Vagcom compliant and can chip it.
- order and install Rocketchip stage II chip
-install PP205s injectors; professionally clean and pressure test all injectors
-connect power steering pump line from Eurovan to Passat with modified custom-made elbow

-replace all vacuum lines
-exhaust - bring to muffler shop to weld together Passat down pipe and catalytic convertor to rest of Eurovan exhaust
-brake pedal and clutch pedal switch replace from Passat to connect in with Passat wiring
-airbox intake: replace Eurovan airbox with 96-98 Jetta TDI air box
-install front mounted 2” intercooler from Ebay; mount under front bumper.
-cruise control wires join together 4 pin wiring from Eurovan with Passat stalk; eliminate all sucky Eurovan vacuum cruise control equipment.
-ignition switch - replace even if it works and buy spare for next time it fails
-reduce smoke - adjust iq setting with vagcom to about 5.5 to compensate for bosio injectors and RC2 chip

other stuff that needed to be done on mine
-replace a/c compressor, dryer,
-replace leaking a/c evaporator - remove dash completely; remove all spongey insulation and replace with new insulation;
-add a/c switch to have option of not automatically turning on a/c for first three settings.
-windshield chip repair
-flush and bleed brakes and check all lines; replace as necessary
-register van in California - if pre 98 engine no smog required; 98+ smog check is simple visual inspection; engine must be at least same year or newer then vehicle
-replace rear brake cylinders and bleed brakes
-alignment; new bolts and pieces as needed throughout suspension
-balance tires
-replace burnt out instrument cluster lights
-put molded insulation around doors and front air intake

Westfalia Weekender conversion
-cut out roof and replace hardtop with westfalia pop top. (easier said then done but not too difficult!. If you go this route buy *entire* westfalia pop top roof from junkyard; keep all interior trim from bottom of windows up.


Interior stuff
-remove dash; create good seals for all HVAC ducting; replace heater core and a/c evaporator
-attach floor with sound deadening insulation under floor, behind all side panels; double layer over all four wheel wells

-paint all grey plastic trim interior
-install VDO or other boost gauge, oil pressure gauge, oil temp gauge.

-replace front speakers and rear speakers; replace stereo
-install 2nd row seats with 97 grey Toyota Previa seats that rotate - allow middle seats to recline, provide comfort, and still allow rear seat to completely lie flat.
-install middle shoulder belts from 2000 Honda Odyssey middle seat ($18 at junkyard; custom heavy duty sewing job to install).
-add coach battery under driver’s seat
-new grey one piece front mats from Go Westy

O.K.  That is the basic outline.  I'll try to go over some of the more pertinent points one at a time.
« Last Edit: October 27, 2015, 05:54:41 pm by veganvan »

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Offline Strawman

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Re: 93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« Reply #1 on: October 29, 2015, 02:28:02 pm »
Ooops, I mistakenly responded in the Westfalia section before seeing this post...

It sounds like we went the same path in converting to tdi power, although my donor car was a '97 Passat tdi. I also installed the tdi ECU in the driver side front fender area of the engine compartment (bolts right in place of the gas ECU) and extended some wires to reach the components on the passenger side of the engine bay. I ended buying all of my used engine conversion parts from Frans at Dutch Auto, including a diesel in-tank pick-up.

I still haven't been able to get my cruise control to work, and I'm getting a check engine light but can't figure out what's wrong using VCDS. Mine only has ~5k on the conversion, and I plan to attack the CEL and cruise control this winter. Have fun with your EV!

Geoff
SLO, CA
'93 EV Weekender with AHU swap

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Offline Cole

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Re: 93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« Reply #2 on: October 30, 2015, 10:29:59 am »
More pictures :D


Looks like a cool van!
Cole

Re: 93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« Reply #3 on: November 02, 2015, 07:01:19 pm »
What codes are you getting?


2000 EVW 5-spd TDI
Justin
2000 EVW 1.9l TDI 5spd Syncro

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Re: 93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« Reply #4 on: November 03, 2015, 08:21:05 am »
Here are a few notes on what I kept from the donor vehicle, in my case a 96 Passat TDI. The Passat has some slight advantages over a 96-98 Jetta, but other disadvantages. The most obvious disadvantage is that they are harder to find. The AHU has some slight advantages over the 1Z as detailed here by lugnut in the TDI club:

Engine:
"The 96 Passat TDI (1Z) had:
a 5th injector, but that was for the exhaust cat, not an engine difference, (and not used for the 97+ Passat and Jetta TDI),
the oil supply pipe for the turbo came from the head (piped from the filter mount on the 97+),
the low oil pressure switch was in the filter mount (in the head on the 97+)
and the 96 1Z had no water cooling jacket for the EGR (the 97+ EGR was water cooled)
The 96 1Z is easy to tell if these external items are unmolested.
The 97 1Z is nearly indistinguishable from the 'AHU'.
The 98 and 99 Jetta A3 are AHU, but the 97 might be tough to tell apart without total tear down."
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=302068

Advantages:
The Passat TDI instruments cluster is easily swappable with the 93-95 Eurovan cluster. You will probably want to swap them for the tachometer to work properly, and to show the glow plug light.  If you end up with a 97/98 Jetta there is different wiring harness on the instrument cluster and a few extra wires that come from the ECU that will need to be dealt with to connect to the Passat cluster.

More important, however, is that you find a entire car or at least all the parts you will need from one car rather than trying to find all the parts listed below from ebay/parts stores, etc...

Transmission:
You will be using a 93 or 95 Eurovan CHP or CTN transmission. The problem is that the ring and pinion gear on the gas 5 cyl. is 4.61  - a very high gearing that makes the engine run at well over 3000 at 60 mph.  The goal is to get the rpm’s down to something close to the Passat/Jettas, though perhaps not quite as low as that for engine and torque efficiency. There are three ways to go to achieve this.
1. Buy a very low 5th gear to compensate for the high ring and pinion gear.  This is the cheapest way to go but there are many problems with this. All the other gears all be far to high for the diesel engine. The gap between 4th and 5th will be so large so as to make shifting between 4th and 5th a challenge at best, a huge headache and possibly dangerous at worst.
2. Rebuild the existing 5spd. It is probably time to do this anyway on most Eurovans. Before I learned of option #3 I had my done at Dave Folts Transmission in L.A.  Excellent work, knew exactly what he was doing. I ordered a new 4.23 ring and pinion gear for $700 and then had him swap in that along with the Passat 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears, and a new .658 5th gear from a good VW vendor.  A good way to go if option 3 is not available or if you like your existing transmission.
3. Buy a rebuilt V.W. T4 EWB 5 speed transmission from Frans at Dutch Auto Parts in Holland.  If you are also converting from auto to manual he can get all the linkage parts, clutch pedal, etc.. as well as additional parts you might need. They can ship it via DHL from Holland in about 4 days, for a very reasonable price - the total I was quoted for transmission and a number of other parts was around $1800 shipped.

ECU and entire ECU wiring loom
If you have a 96 Passat you may have the ‘BK’ ECU - it has a black plastic covering and BK at the end of the serial number.  These were recalled at some point and replaced with a ECU with a silver housing with a GQ serial number. If yours is still a BK it is a good idea to swap to a ‘GQ’ from Ebay or another source, as the BK is a pre-OBDII ECU, and is also not chippable.

Regarding the wiring loom, you’ll want the same wiring loom as the ECU you have, so if you end up with the Passat

15 pin OBDII plug - 7 wires attached in back.
You’ll need this plug if you use the Ross-Tech software to do any kind of test or change any ECU setting. Make sure and get it out of the donor vehicle or get it from any Jetta or Passat. There are 7 wires attached on back. See wiring section for explanation of where everything goes.

Fuel tank sender and all fuel lines, fuel filter and filter holder, lines from filter to IP
The fuel sender unit on the Eurovan includes a fuel pump. Since the TDI has the fuel pump integral to the fuel injection unit advice I read was to replace the entire unit from the Passat. I did that, though with a few small issues along the way. Unfortunately I can’t (yet) find the pictures I took from the Eurovan or the way I made the Passat unit fit into the Eurovan tank.  In essence the Eurovan fuel pump/sender unit is set on the bottom of the fuel tank and is locked in place, while the Passat sending unit hangs from the top of the Passat tank. To make things work I found a plastic ring that was the same inside diameter as the outside of the Passat fuel sender unit and glued that to the base on the Eurovan fuel tank. The Passat fuel sending unit then set nicely into it and I extended the lines to the ring that holds everything in place from the top of the tank. A bit hard to describe, but it should be clear when you do this. The main thing I found was that you somehow need to have the Passat fuel pickup/sending unit attach to the bottom of the Eurovan tank rather than hang from the top because the Eurovan tank is much deeper.

The fuel lines were not too tricky to deal with. I pulled out the stock Eurovan fuel filter which sits outside the tank attached to the frame and connected the lines together with a short piece of Passat fuel line. Then I ran the fuel line across the top of the tank until it came out close to the right frame sub-member - along where the power steering lines run. I extended the fuel lines by using some of the Passat fuel lines I had saved and brought the lines to just inside the right front fender, and fitted the TDI fuel filter at a place that was relatively easily accessible but not too close to the TDI serpentine belt.

Entire vacuum line system including line from vacuum pump to brake booster and N75 valve.

The important thing here is simply to keep a diagram of the vacuum system and label things well. It is not terribly complicated system; most troubles occurred for me when I accidentally/stupidly put a vacuum line on the wrong fitting when reassembling.  Since some lines will be longer/shorter and all lines are probably plenty old, now is a good time to order new silicone lines from a place like McMaster.

Exhaust manifold and exhaust through catalytic convertor, including wiring for forward and rear cat sensors
On my conversion I decided to go with the stock exhaust the whole way through - the Passat and Eurovan both have 2” exhaust. To keep things legal in California I kept the exhaust through the catalytic convertor. I had to substantially change the shape of the exhaust to conform to the twists and turns under the Eurovan but it all worked easily enough with a trip to a custom exhaust shop. 

air-intake box - from 96-98 Jetta TDI
Others have done this differently but I found that the best/easiest way to get an airbox in place was to pull out the huge Eurovan box and replace it with a 96-98 Jetta TDI airbox.  The Passat airbox  is too large to put anywhere in the Eurovan’s passenger-side space, and the stock Eurovan unit is also very large.  I managed to just fit the Jetta TDI airbox.

Instrument cluster from 96 Passat
As mentioned above the 96 Passat cluster is a direct replacement for the 93 Eurovan. The 93 Eurovan cluster will work but the tach will be calibrated wrong.  The Jetta cluster does not fit in the Eurovan.  The only other option that would be to use an aftermarket gauge like ScanGauge II or an OBDII digital display like Torque for Android.

Cruise control wiring from stalk to ECU plug.
Others have mentioned the difficulty in getting the cruise control to work on their Eurovan TDI.  I did not have any significant problem. I used the stock Eurovan cruise control stock and wired it to the four-wire connector that supplies the on/off and higher/lower speed commands. All the Eurovan cruise control vacuum paraphernalia can be taken off the van; the TDI has only electronic controls.

Fuses and relays for spares
In the end the electrical swap or splice was considerably easier than I expected from the Eurovan to the 1Z engine. One or two relays had to be used from the Passat and a few connections needed to be reworked, but overall it was virtually plug and play.  I’ll deal with what I found in a section below; of now suffice it to say that it is good to keep all the relays from the Passat or Jetta just to be sure you have everything you need.

Under hood Emissions diagrams (to prove to California and other DMVs that your engine is from a car at least as new as the Eurovan).
The emissions diagram that at the forward panel on the front left side (near the battery and front left headlight) is a good thing to keep, not necessarily for its own value but the DMV might want you to have a copy of it on the car.

O.k.  I think that was most everything I kept from the Passat. Hopefully now on to the actual install.

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Offline veganvan

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Re: 93 Eurovan MV to TDI Weekender conversion
« Reply #5 on: November 03, 2015, 08:26:31 am »
Geoff, we need to meet sometime - I'm up in Fresno (well actually at the moment I am in Vietnam with a group of students but I'll be back at the end of the year).  I don't know what the issue with your cruise control is. Mine was very straight forward - 4 wires from the EV control stock spliced directly into the four wires coming out of the ECU for the cruise control. My only problem is a bit weird - when I put on the right turn signal the cruise control quits.  ???  But others have had your same issue so I'm not sure what I did that was different.
Ken

Ooops, I mistakenly responded in the Westfalia section before seeing this post...

It sounds like we went the same path in converting to tdi power, although my donor car was a '97 Passat tdi. I also installed the tdi ECU in the driver side front fender area of the engine compartment (bolts right in place of the gas ECU) and extended some wires to reach the components on the passenger side of the engine bay. I ended buying all of my used engine conversion parts from Frans at Dutch Auto, including a diesel in-tank pick-up.

I still haven't been able to get my cruise control to work, and I'm getting a check engine light but can't figure out what's wrong using VCDS. Mine only has ~5k on the conversion, and I plan to attack the CEL and cruise control this winter. Have fun with your EV!

Geoff
SLO, CA