Wow, so I just picked it up today. I guess when the mechanic told me the engine was in "not-so-good condition" he meant that the compression is really low. I called to tell him I was coming to get it and I guess he went out and tried to start it but it just wouldn't. He ended up removing three glow plugs and squirting some oil on top of the pistons to get it started and just left it running until I got there. He warned me that if I let it sit over night, I might not be able to start it again (
). So, besides tearing it down and replacing the rings, what else can I do to remedy this? I'm going to try that BG 109 additive to see if it does anything and I remembered that the engine did come with a block heater (though I haven't tested it yet), could these things possibly help? Also, I think someone mentioned that I could shoot oil into the intake to seal the rings better. Would that be just as effective as going in through the glow plug holes?
Also, the car seemed much peppier in first and second gear than I remember it. Could this be due to the timing getting fixed? I was thinking after almost three months driving my bimmer every day that it would be difficult readjusting to the slowness of my diesel.
I'm really bummed that this car isn't even close to what it was cracked up to be when I bought it. I don't think it's the previous owner's fault though, since he was just repeating to me what he was told by the guy he bought it from. So, the plan is to eventually score a D24T out of a junkyard and rebuild it in my major engine repair class this coming semester. Hopefully one will turn up soon.