[Need Advice] MKV GTI Cam-follower/HPFP replacement.

GIACUser · Jan 3, 2019

GTI's said:
Maybe cost?? $900 minimum in parts just for the cover adapter and the new cam the roller needs to be on.

Agree
I went with that kit on my car. Worked perfectly no issues but if you look at cost of that kit vs just changing your cam follower as needed it really makes no sense. Changing/checking you cam follower is easy and inexpensive. No performance gain of any kind with the kit, just a bit of convenience for a very high price.

GIACUser · Jan 3, 2019

kgozi said:
Here is the cam lobe.

As expected the inside of the cam follower has worn unevenly. but the outside of the follower (the side against the cam lobe) has no signs of wear yet.

So, when you pulled your cam follower out, was it worn all the way through? It appears that your fuel plunger was riding on the cam lobe at some point. The fuel cam lobe pic is not very clear but it looks very worn. Should be almost a mirror finish when fresh. The rougher that lobe is on the cam the quicker you cam followers will wear.

If your cam follower was not worn all the way through it is possible that this happened before you owned the car and owner just replaced the follower. The downside of wearing the plunger down is that it can eventually break the spring retainer and pump would fail.

The end of that shaft that has been ground down is part of the retainer. Top is yours and bottom is a stock pump. If that spring pops you will lose the pump and at the very least it will leave you stranded.

vwengineer · Jan 3, 2019

Even if the cam is worn, for most people it's not financially worth it to replace it as long as the fuel pressure is good. Of course it's the best thing to do, but unless you can do it yourself it's a 2k repair which is more than the cost of a used engine. I would just keep changing the follower as long as it works.

aeronaticaa · Jan 3, 2019

Wow I didn't know the stock HPFP was supposed to look like that, New pump will be in the mail tomorrow!

Yes, I will not replace the camshaft, for now, a new HPFP and I will be monitoring the cam follower wear.

Thanks for everything lads ^^

golfballer78 · Jan 3, 2019

GIACUser said:
Agree
I went with that kit on my car. Worked perfectly no issues but if you look at cost of that kit vs just changing your cam follower as needed it really makes no sense. Changing/checking you cam follower is easy and inexpensive. No performance gain of any kind with the kit, just a bit of convenience for a very high price.

Exactly my point why I let the insurance total my GLI & walked away from this motor. Changing a $50 tappet that was a flawed design in the 1st place frequently. Even more frequent if you upgraded hp fuel pump. Plus invasive carbon cleaning on inlet valves pretty frequently, timing belt. I would just improve flawed design/weak points now to minimize continued worry & stress. Kinda like the aluminum cooling system parts that replace my breakable plastic crap.

GIACUser · Jan 3, 2019

golfballer78 said:
Exactly my point why I let the insurance total my GLI & walked away from this motor. Changing a $50 tappet that was a flawed design in the 1st place frequently. Even more frequent if you upgraded hp fuel pump. Plus invasive carbon cleaning on inlet valves pretty frequently, timing belt. I would just improve flawed design/weak points now to minimize continued worry & stress. Kinda like the aluminum cooling system parts that replace my breakable plastic crap.

The motor is actually quite nice. I changed over to Rotella T6 oil and found that the cam followers were lasting longer. I was running an APR pump with the stronger spring. Changing the cam follower are easy. I only changed over to the TSI roller kit just because I knew I was keeping motor forever. I do agree that it is a weak point of the design for general consumer but if you can use a wrench it is is a minor inconvenience really.

Carbon build up is about direct fuel injection not a problem specific to the FSI motor but all motors that inject into the cylinder. I cleaned mine once at about 65,000 and they really didn't need it. Timing belt once every 100K miles is reasonable. The motor has a good track record in general however there are always folks with contrasting stories.

I have been on forum since I got mine 10 years ago and folks seem to mostly just have fun with them and cope with a defined set of issues similar to those found with just about any motor.

707Stang · Jan 7, 2019

GIACUser said:
The motor is actually quite nice. I changed over to Rotella T6 oil and found that the cam followers were lasting longer. I was running an APR pump with the stronger spring. Changing the cam follower are easy. I only changed over to the TSI roller kit just because I knew I was keeping motor forever. I do agree that it is a weak point of the design for general consumer but if you can use a wrench it is is a minor inconvenience really.

Carbon build up is about direct fuel injection not a problem specific to the FSI motor but all motors that inject into the cylinder. I cleaned mine once at about 65,000 and they really didn't need it. Timing belt once every 100K miles is reasonable. The motor has a good track record in general however there are always folks with contrasting stories.

I have been on forum since I got mine 10 years ago and folks seem to mostly just have fun with them and cope with a defined set of issues similar to those found with just about any motor.

Well put! [emoji106] I, honestly miss my FSI. That car was soo good.

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[Need Advice] MKV GTI Cam-follower/HPFP replacement.

GIACUser

Master Wallet Mechanic

GIACUser

Master Wallet Mechanic

vwengineer

Ready to race!

aeronaticaa

Ready to race!

golfballer78

Ready to race!

GIACUser

Master Wallet Mechanic

707Stang

I'm Hella From Nor*Cal