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DIY: Bleeding MKV hydraulic lifters/Lifter shim install

eurocars

5/17/15 - Never forget
Location
Indianapolis
Car(s)
2006 GTI
I had never seen this done and didnt know how to do it until I poked around online for a few minutes. Its not hard but I figured a write-up wouldnt hurt and it would be nice to have a step by step for the MKV platform.

Once the camshafts are removed, you can access the lifters. They simply pull out of the holes they rest in.



To separate the lifter from the arm, pull down on the tab that holds the lifter on, on the side closest to the lifter itself (left side of this picture):



Once you pry down on the tab, the lifter will separate from the arm:



To bleed the lifter, a paperclip can be stuck down the top of the lifter to unseat the check valve inside. It may take a pit of poking around, but once you hit it the lifter can be compressed.



Keep compressing it until you can compress the lifter without the assistance of the paperclip. You wont be able to compress it as far but you will be able to compress it some. It may take as many as 10-15 compressions to fully bleed down.

Extended on top, vs compressed on bottom. Both with paperclip in the top. You can see the area near the clip is exposed in the first picture, not in the second:




The reason i'm bleeding these down is to make sure that my valves wont be stuck open due to retained oil pressure when I get my lifter shims installed:



The shims are installed under the lifters in the head. They just drop into place:



Hope this helps others for future reference. Im sure this is not a DIY that will be referred to alot but I feel it can be helpful.
 

The Fed

Old Guys Rule
Location
Florida
Nice write-up. I see you got about .035 more lift - did you do a before and after dyno or take VAG-COM air flow reading to calculate the improvement in HP/torque?
 
Last edited:

brokenparts

Go Kart Champion
Location
hillsboro,or
I imagine that the theory is true for these lifters as with Chevy lifters...

Make sure to prime them with oil before that cam starts turning!
 

Kishon

Ready to race!
Location
South Africa
Car(s)
MkvGti
My Car has the really loud ticking noises. All my buddies MKVGTI's isnt as loud as mine. They all say its the lifters that are noisy and not the injectors. Do i need to replace them? Or should i do something like OP did?
 
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