szrdave

Useful info for me too. Definitely want a set of standard wheels for mine, but I reckon a set of 14s with a bit more sidewall would also look great!

Head is done: Rest of the parts will be ordered this weekend. Onwards!

Hi Wolfgang! Good to see you on here Don't worry, the Lupo will be ready for another 176k (at least) soon! Back to the cylinder head, I contacted the local VW garage to source some valve guides. A few back-and-forwards emails with the parts guy and he tells me the guides are not available as separate parts from VW and only come with a complete head. I wasn't about to argue the point, so asked around at work if anyone had a contact for cylinder head rebuilds. One of the guys has a friend who races a VW, and they put me in touch with the guy who rebuilds his cylinder heads. Lovely chap, dropped the head off to him this afternoon and will hopefully have it back next week

Heaviest deposits are on the valves, but the whole head needs a good clean. Will check the compression again once it's back together and see how much it's lost! Nice trick using the motor to undo the bolt, although the €50 tool made it an easy job and I'll be able to torque it up correctly on reassembly too. Contacted my local VW garage for price and availability on OE guides, will see what they say before deciding which way to go with the head rebuild. Thanks! Garage is also a work in progress, floor needs epoxying and the electrics finishing off, but it's a nice place to work on the car. It's build into a hill on one side with the house on the other, lowest temperature so far in the winter (without using a heater) is 13°. Looked like this when we moved in a year ago:

Managed to get some quality time in the garage today. Got the new (correct) tool to hold the crank pulley and removed the bolt, can't give the Ryobi too hard a time for not undoing it, it was bloody tight! Cams locked and belts off, followed by the cam housing and head: I'd already wiped the worst of the oil and carbon of the piston crowns at this point, all the bores look in good shape for the 170k km on this motor so the pistons and bottom end can stay as they are. With the head off I pulled the valves, saw this one and thought it had been contacting the piston at first glance: On closer inspection there's just so much carbon build-up that it's started to crumble away at the edges. Good news, as I don't have time to pull the bottom end apart if I want to get the Lupo on the road this summer! Popped all the valves out, every single one had play in the guide and heavy carbon build-up: Quick scrub up to check the condition of the seats, and none are heavily pitted: Two options now, either invest in a small press and change the guides myself, or give the head to a machine shop and get them to do it. The price will probably be about the same either way, option one I gain some experience and a press, option two is less stress and I know it's done right. I'm leaning towards option one, would need to source VW tools 'drift 3360' and 'reamer 3363' though, if anyone has a lead on where to get them (or a suitable replacement)?

Bit of an update, I did a compression test last weekend and got between 14 and 15 bar on all cylinders. I went for a short drive beforehand to warm the engine up and clear the oil out of the cylinders, but any oil left in the bores could have helped out with the results a bit. Still, nice and even across the 4 cylinders so I'm hopeful the bores are in good condition. Pulled the Lupo into the garage and started the stripdown: I was expecting the exhaust header nuts to put up a bit of a fight, luckily they span straight off. I can't get the heatshield off (poor access to the lower bolt, which already feels partially rounded), so will pull the head out with the intake and exhaust manifolds attached. Drained the coolant, disconnected a ton of electrical, coolant and fuel connections and setup my newly purchased bridge lift. The nut was jamming on the threaded portion (I didn't think much could go wrong with a cheap engine bridge, wrong!), so half an hour later and one was installed and I could remove the RH engine mount (jack under the sump too just in case): Unfortunately I bought the wrong crank pulley holder: I assume this one is for a different variant of Lupo? My Ryobi impact wouldn't shift the nut, I'll fully charge it tomorrow, heat the nut slightly and try again. I bought the car from a bit of a Lupo fan (who also visits here occasionally, hi Wolfgang if you read this!), who told me it's not a bad idea to remove the arch liners every now and again to stop trapped debris rotting the arches. Definitely good advise as I found half a kilo of mud, leaves and sticks behind there! Clean painted metal underneath once it was cleared out though Hopefully I can get the crank pulley nut out tomorrow and the cylinder head off before next weekend. My girlfriend and I are expecting out first child at the start of April so time is pretty tight!

That must be fighting talk in here!

And...it's now mine Will stick a post in the 'new owners' section when I get a minute, here's a photo as it stands for the meantime: The car is currently filthy and it's too cold to clean it, as per the plates I'm living in Austria and it gets a bit nippy here over the winter. First things first, I'd like to download elsawin to gain access to the Lupo GTI workshop instructions. Can anyone recommend a trustworthy site to buy it from?

Useful info, thanks! I've seen the how-tos for all the standard stuff. Wings and doors are alloy still, it's just the bonnet that's been changed. It's currently on 14" steelies, which are for when it's sitting parked up over winter.

I went to have a look at the car yesterday, it seems like an interesting project to learn a bit about working on cars (I've rebuilt a few motorcycles so have half an idea which end of a spanner is which) and a good opportunity to save a Lupo from being broken! Positive points: Interior is in very good condition for the mileage (110k) The car hasn't been used in winter (by this owner at least), so the underside is very clean Recent discs and pads all round Seems to have been well looked after Negative points: Smokes like a trooper! Patch of rust on one of the roof gutters Paint peeling off spoiler Steel bonnet Standard wheels not currently included Rear brake light and both door switches broken No tyre compressor The positive list IMO outweighs the negatives in terms of importance, with the motor repair being the only thing requiring immediate attention. A couple more questions to that end: I don't have an engine lift or stand, is it possible to remove the sump and access the rod caps without dropping the motor? Likewise, can you hone the cylinders with the crank in place without the risk of getting metal particles in the main bearings? If it's really worth it I could always pick up the engine lift and stand, I just can't see me (hopefully) needing them again.

Thanks for the replies guys! Nice to see there's a bit of life in this forum too. Will report back after I've had a look at it

Hi all, First post here as a prospective Lupo GTI owner. I've been keeping an eye out for one locally in decent condition, and although not exactly what I was looking for a project car with very heavy oil consumption (1.5L per 600 miles) turned up recently. I'm going to have a look at it on Friday, the price seems ok as long as the rest of the car is solid. I assume it's either valve stem seals or rings gummed up/broken, so head off to check. I've rebuild a couple of motorcycle engines but never a car, so if someone could give me a rough idea of what I'm getting myself into it would be great! Couple of specific questions: Can you remove the head (and cylinders if necessary) with the engine in situ? Are any VW special tools required that can't be avoided? Thanks in advance for any help!