VR6 Coilpacks

[kai_h]

Yep, the dreaded coilpack failure hit me recently, and to cut a long story short, I've been able to source a second-hand one, with one terminal boot broken off, for $100. With the aid of a terminal boot off my busted coilpack, and some JB Weld from K-Mart, I'm in the process of reconditioning it and will post pix once it's all done =)

Here's the full story:
OK, So I thought that it would be nice and easy to repair any hairline cracks in the coilpack with some high-temperature silicone sealant.
I knew from experience that taking the coil-pack off would be nice and easy. Unplug the ignition leads, undo 4 hex-head bolts and unclip the wiring loom.
Pulled off the top three ignition leads, no problems. Went for the second row, and as I pulled off #1 - the whole freaking plug came off the coil pack!

Holy shoddy-workmanship, Batman!

The pack I have is the Beru one and it's lasted 100,000km, but seriously, the epoxy cracked so badly that the plug just came right off!
What's more, it seems that the inside is filled with expanding foam or something like that, as now there's hard foam over the bits, and I can't even fit the broken piece back onto the coilpack - it simply doesn't go! I can't even see the metal contacts that would be carrying the current!

Now I'm left with two alternatives - this one looks like it's beyond repair, I can hack one together with a $20 ford coilpack off eBay, or I can call wreckers around Melbourne and see if anyone's got one.

From what I've read, the Golf VR6 is even more rare a beast than the R32. We had 200 R32s imported, and one source said that we only got 150 or so Golf VR6s - so I don't like my chances of finding a broken one (the Golf that is, not the coilpack!)

Grrrr!

[kai_h]

Some alternatives to the $500 OEM replacement are:

Generic 6-Cyl Coilpack:
http://www.034motorsport.com/product_info.php?cPath=26&products_id=278
Wire Ends:
http://www.034motorsport.com/product_info.php?cPath=26&products_id=41

Or, use the coilpack off a 6-Cyl Ford:
http://www.gti-vr6.net/library/engine/using_1999_Ford_Windstar_3.8L_coil_pack

The other thing worth trying would be to find a MkIV coilpack, as (AFAIK) it's pretty much identical, with the exception of the plug that hooks it up to the car's wiring harness - it has rounded ends, rather than a square end...

[imported_brackie]

Welcome to our humble forum (I saw your posts on Vortex).

Really there's no excuse for poor workmanship/early failure on a quality car like a Golf. Not sure where you got your numbers on VR6 imports but that seems a little low to me (Syncro????) You could go the cheap Ford way but it would be nice to keep things genuine. However what happens in another 100,000km :shock: :?:

[kai_h]

Thanks for the welcome!
I can't believe how badly made these VR6 coilpacks are - just wait till I post pictures of my failed one, quite literally, the whole terminal came right off, and this expanding foam gushed out to fill it all up, so I couldn't even see the metal contacts inside it, let alone put the damn thing back on.

I was very happy to discover JB Weld in K-Mart, so this and my $100 second-hand, broken coilpack, should get me back on the road.

As for the VR6 imports, maybe it was 350 - either way, I did read somewhere that it was in the low hundreds and can remember it either was a bit less, or a bit more than R32s... But you know what they say about stuff you read on the internets :wink:

I'm happy to be keeping it all genuine, even if it is a failure-prone part, as that way I don't have to risk crimping other connectors on my (rather expensive!) ignition leads. It's good to keep it all as plug-n-play as possible.

Cheers,
Kai

[Golf Loon]

It can be entirely unexpected, VR6s run pretty hot.

[golfvr6]

As for the VR6 imports, maybe it was 350

i reckon the vr6's are in the high hundreds - if i remember the colour concepts were in the order of 200 - so the vr6 from 94-97? must be a few times that no.

i must be lucky - no coil pack problems on mine (yet)!

anyway - welcome to the forum!

[kai_h]

Well, if I were you, I'd go to the Hardware section in your local K-Mart and see if they have JB Weld. Mix it up. Cover your coilpack with it and have peace of mind that a $17 fix might just save you $500 =)

The places where they fail, that I've seen, is where the shiny black potting compound joins to the matte black plastic. Put a thin bead all around the edge, and around each of the 6 terminals, and you should be as right as rain...

[imported_brackie]

Great advice mate. Thanks for adding to our knowledgebase. If you can take some pics it could go in our "interesting articles" forum with other tips that save time or money.

[kai_h]

I've completed the reco on the coilpack, and took photos as I went:
http://rocketcat.info/blog/2006/05/howto-vr6-coilpack-repair-step-by-step.html

[imported_brackie]

Superb description! Proud to have you as a member of our forum!

[syncro]

Well, if I were you, I'd go to the Hardware section in your local K-Mart and see if they have JB Weld.

Not sure if JB weld has very good insulation properties. Araldite may be better.

[syncro]

As for the VR6 imports, maybe it was 350

i reckon the vr6's are in the high hundreds - if i remember the colour concepts were in the order of 200 - so the vr6 from 94-97? must be a few times that no.


Colour Concepts were only in the dozens, maybe 50 at most.

There are a few years that they did not import VR6s as they had them left over from the previous years. Some of the compliance plates were fitted on cars 3 years old. ('94 car/ '97 compliance plate)

[kai_h]

I was a bit worried, as JB Weld is a metal filled epoxy, that it might conduct electricity, but according to their FAQ on jbweld.net, it is an insulator. I wasn't too sure about the high-temperature properties of Araldite, and wanted something that was definitely rated for high temperatures.

[DVR68U]

nice write up mate
cheers brenton