Found this the other day, which I believe shows in graphic detail why the drive fails and why every one is a ticking time bomb.

Apologies if everyone has already seen it .....

And VAG sold these engines fitted to the later 4 cyl. Superbs, knowing full well that scores of them had already failed in Audis.

Nice people to do business with.

rotodiesel.

Hmmmm last time i saw that set up was 25 plus years ago on ford essex v6 lumps, if was lucky the top went round and the car stopped as the top end went in the distributor , if you was unlucky....like me the bottom end failed which run the oil pump.....crap design back then.....even worse now.

I've not see that before. Almost defies belief, doesn't it

Thy could probably fix it with offcuts of cord from doing the pollen filter! :think:

It's a bit tenuous, but it reminds me of the 'skin jobs' in Blade Runner having a finite longevity ('Time to die' says Roy).

Well done VAG  :clap:

Gaz

Mmmmmmmm now having my balancer shaft replaced before it goes bang £225.00 inc vat for part plus fitting (about £450) ouch

In the US they replace the chain module with a gear one - is it the gear one which still fails?

http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/b5/oil-pump-failure-passat-tdi.htm

All of the 2.0 PD engines fitted to Superbs in the UK had the gear driven balancer module. The earlier chain driven units fitted to some Audis and VWs were a complete disaster and a geared retrofit kit was made available - at a price. It seems that VAG did not distinguish themselves in maintaining the best interests of their customers.

 

The oil pump drive on the 2.0 PD is a 6mm AF hex coupling driven from the slave balancer shaft. The depth of radial engagement of the hex bar in the slave shaft is exceedingly small and the torsional oscillations present in the balancer drive (after all, that's what it's there for) soon strip off the corners of the bar - and the engine is wrecked.

 

It seems that later PD and current engines use the same arrangement and from what I can glean from EKTA the coupling length has been increased from 75 to 100mm. Although not discernable from a parts list, concentricity tolerancing may also have been improved.

 

I would never, ever buy a 2.0 PD and I would make some searching enquiries (from a useful source, not VAG) concerning the newer engines before buying one. The 1.9 PD had a reliable chain drive using a sensible drive ratio to the oil pump with no torsional stresses - so it lasts the (long) life of the engine.

 

rotodiesel.

Edited 11 December, 201312 yr by rotodiesel

Having bought a 2007  2.0 PD Superb before discovering this problem existed (with 131,000 miles on the clock and for a very low price) I started worrying, so I tried to do some research.

 

I was never able to establish exactly what had been done to the pump / balancer shaft on the later models, nor from what engine or chassis number this work was carried out, but from such "Googling", talking to dealer, independent specialist and general mechanic who does a lot of work on VAG Taxis with the 2.0 PD engine the best I could glean was as follows. Some of it is possibly speculation, some rumour, some fact, but I have never been able to establish which is which.

 

There seems to have been a Quality Control problem with one or possibly more of the machines that produced the hole in the balance shaft.

This is a truly horrendous arrangement comprising a central hole of approx. 5mm diameter, with 6 x 1 mm or 1.5 mm holes drilled radially around it, in effect breaking into the centre hole by 0.5mm to provide the 6 corners / surfaces for the bar to fit into.

This machining defect caused the hole arrangement to be drilled / bored very slightly off-centre, causing the bar to rotate unconcentrically (if there is such a word.

Machine was either re-calibrated or dumped. (Further speculation suggest this work was done by sub-contract suppliers. Who knows)

 

The length of the drive bar was increased as per rotodiesel's comment above.

 

The bar is case hardened and the depth of the case hardening was increased.

 

As said it seems that the date of these modifications, and the applicable chassis numbers is a closely guarded VAG secret

However my conversations with interested parties suggest 2 things, although these findings are largely anecdotal.

 

a. Most failures seemed to occur at around 3 years or 50,000 - 80,000 miles. The suggestion - and it is only a suggestion, with no hard facts to back it up - is that if the engine gets past these points safely it is probably going to be all right, the balance shafts were not machined on the dodgy line.but there is no guarantee. This seems to be born out by the fact that those engines that have been repaired following the original pump and shaft failing seem to then operate for high mileages without further problem.

 

b. Talking to mechanics / technicians they all suggest that the problems seemed to have occurred with pre late 2006 / 2007 vehicles, they say they haven't seem pump failures on the later Superbs (either Mk 1 or Mk 2) with the 2.0 PD engine. The trouble is, this only leaves a very short time window during which the Mk 1 2.0 PD was made, before the Mk 2 superseded it, and the PD then later replaced with the CR engine.

 

My 2007 PD has now done 197,000 miles on the original pump, which tends to sort of bear out my findings above.

However, whilst I have enjoyed the last 2 1/2 years and 65,000 miles, if I knew then what I know now I wouldn't have bought it.

There is always the nagging doubt in the back of my mind that this could be the run where it lets go.

 

Incidentally, there is a a firm in N. Ireland which will replace the naff hex drive in the balance shaft by boring out the end of the shaft and pressing in an isert with a proper 6 sided hexagonal centre hole to take the shaft.

For information, have a look at http://www.powermaxengineering.com/oil%20pumps.htm

(I have no connection with them  :think:   )

Thanks for the update - interesting stuff.

 

What shines brightly through the whole issue is that VAG have, in my judgement, obfuscated the whole issue by not releasing any meaningful or useful build data relating to pump drive modifications to these engines. An existing or potential customer has no way of assessing whether or not he is investing in junk. Knowing how the Germans work, I am of the view that they will hold very accurate records of the build specifications of all engines they produce - they are methodical people.

 

Methodical or not, I leave it to Foum readers to judge whether VAG have acted in the best interests of their customers in this, and several other matters of product failure due to bad design. I will vote with my cheque book next time.

 

rotodiesel.

Edited 12 December, 201312 yr by rotodiesel

Hi

 

I own a 59 plate Skoda superb and have just had the oil pump problem as well.  Had I known about this issue before I would have never bough the car.  I now face a repair bill of £2500 and I wonder if anyone in the forum has been successful in getting the VAG group to admit to the problem?

The engine is long gone from the production line, hence they will not and have never admitted any faults.

That is a shame.  I suspect I will have to lump it.

Hrmmm... Is it even the same engine in question?  I didn't think the same engine made it into new-shape MKII Superb? (59 plate must be new shape?)