MK2 Polo Saloon G40 Conversion - Clutch and clocks help/advice

[bradderss]

Hello All

Last weekend myself and a mate (XRrich) converted my MK2 Polo Saloon to a G40 which went suprisingly well (probably couldnt have gone better in the grand scheme of things).

A huggee build thread will follow once the last few parts have been sourced and fitted.

However, at current I have two points that I was hoping to get some advice or pointers on so that we can rectify these at the weekend when we aim to finish the project.

Point 1 - Gearbox issue
We started the engine to make sure that all of the wiring etc was working and had no issues from this side. However the car will not go into gear once the engine is running.

Based on this we tried the following from advice found across a few forums...

Car will not start with the clutch pressed down and in gear..but does move forward if started in gear and the clutch is engaged (pedal not pressed).

From this we are under the impression that there is an issue with the clutch as opposed to the gearbox itself. We tightened the clutch cable hoping this would be an easy fix but unfortunately had no luck there.

Annoyingly when the engine was being rebuilt, we changed the clutch release bearing prior to re-fitting the gearbox but we have still encountered this problem. We are removing the gearbox at the weekend to check that the plates are correctly aligned and that the bearings are seated correctly but was hoping to get some comments on what else could be causing this issue so that we can check everything in one go....dont really want to have to keep removing nad refitting the gearbox for obvious reasons.

Point 2 - Clocks
At the moment we have not replaced the clocks with the MK3 and am still a bit unsure whether to keep the MK2s or not.

When we started the engine the clocks did not work i.e. no revs. This was as expected as I had read previously that an extra wire is required from the coil to the back of the clocks in order to make them work. Unfortunately that is all that we know and was wondering whether anyone knows any details about this?

Also what are the thoughts on retaining the MK2 clocks...or should these be replaced with the MK3 version....are there any other benefits of changing the clocks or simply cosmetic?

Any advice would be massively appreciated.

Thanks!

[DaBigGinger]

1. It sounds like the clutch isn't adjusted correctly. i.e. You're putting your foot on the pedal, but it isn't disengaging the clutch correctly. I know you've tightened the cable, but have you done it enough?
2. Yes, you need to run a cable from the coil to the Mk2 clocks. I can't remember off the top of my head which of the terminals and which wire on the clocks it needs to go to, but I'll be changing my speedo cable at the weekend, so should be able to let you know then. Or, if you've got the Haynes Mk2 Polo wiring diagram, you should be able to figure it out from there.

You will notice when you wire the rev counter up this way, the oil pressure warning light and buzzer will go off when the revs build. To stop this, you need to open the clocks up and remove the L-shaped circuit board from behind the speedo. It's easy enough to do and will only take 5 minutes to do once you have the clocks out. You'll need to fit an aftermarket oil pressure gauge or warning light.

If I haven't updated you on where the rev counter cable by Sunday, drop me a PM. I'll have just forgotten to post on here 

I hope that helps.

[DaBigGinger]

You want to connect your wire on the furthest back of the two connectors on top of the coil (under the plastic cap). I can't find where I ran this into the rev counter - it may have been a red and black wire. Check our Haynes - it will show which wire on the instrument cluster loom runs the rev counter. I hope that helps a bit!