1.9TD engine ok?

Sandy · Feb 16, 2013

Hello all.
I'm looking to buy a California and my budget means it's going to be a 1994-1996 and either a 1.9TD or a 2.4D engine. The best looking van I've found is a 1.9TD but I'm worried it might be a bit underpowered compared to the 2.4D. I'll be using it manily locally and for short trips, with one long trip to Spain a year.
Anyone on here got experience of both engine types in a Cali? Is ther much difference? Any happy owners of a Cali with a 1.9TD engine?
All feedback most appreciated

Freeley · Feb 16, 2013

Sandy said:
Hello all.
I'm looking to buy a California and my budget means it's going to be a 1994-1996 and either a 1.9TD or a 2.4D engine. The best looking van I've found is a 1.9TD but I'm worried it might be a bit underpowered compared to the 2.4D. I'll be using it manily locally and for short trips, with one long trip to Spain a year.
Anyone on here got experience of both engine types in a Cali? Is ther much difference? Any happy owners of a Cali with a 1.9TD engine?
All feedback most appreciated

I don't know much about the 1.9 but it's turboed so is probably no worse than the 2.4 which is only 70 odd hp anyway. I've driven a couple of the 2.4's and they're ponderous but get you there! Perhaps the 1.9 can be remapped being a slightly more recent engine? I know the 2.4 can't be.

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TwentyOneThirtyFive · Feb 16, 2013

The 1.9TD is mechanical, so can't be remapped. I'm sure there's stuff you can do to up the power, but it'll be old school mods. Don't think there's anything particularly wrong with them in general.

Sorry, haven't driven a 1.9 so can't give any feedback, all the vans we looked at were 2.4s. Our 2.4 van has a turbo added and it's still ponderous

dan

brother10 · Feb 16, 2013

Hi,
My first camper was an Autosleeper Trident with a 1.9 engine. I didn`t know any better at the time and as someone has mentioned they are ponderous. One has to learn to give it loads of wellie down the hills if you are to get to the top of the uphill bit that usually follows. On my first trip out, I went to pass a lorry on a uphill section and ultimately had to drop back and sit behind.
Think I would go for the 2.4 which powered my A/S Clubman. Either way, as at present, I always had the feeling that my VW engine would happily take me to the ends of the earth. I believe I used to get 40 plus mpg without difficulty but be prepared to work the gearbox.

Bob

Sandy · Feb 16, 2013

Thank you all for the replies.
Dan - could you define 'ponderous' in terms of motorway cruising speed? I'm not looking for (or expecting) much acceleration but want a van that can sit at somewhere near 70mph without too much noise/fuel consumption.... The 2.4d is 77 bhp (older models) compared to 68bhp for the 1.9td.... in which case the 1.9td even with it's turbo is likely to be 'mega-ponderous' I'm guessing.

Duncan

TwentyOneThirtyFive · Feb 16, 2013

My van's probably not the best example - as well as the turbo (up to 90bhp + 4200rpm), it's got a non-standard gearbox too. Not sure why...

Anyway, this all results in quite high rpm, we pull around 3,000 rpm at 60mph. I guess a standard 2.4 would be much lower? Our mpg is lower than the standard van as well (30-32mpg, think a standard 2.4 will do around 34-36?)

Up side is for us, motorway driving is fine, plenty of go for overtaking on motorways (turbo really kicks in around 3,250rpm by the feel of things). Bit noisy, but we can still talk to each other.

It's low speed accelerating and those long hills that are the van's downfall. It's a heavy van. As a previous poster said, use downhills to your advantage

Hopefully someone with a standard van will be along soon to compare and contrast.
dan

Freeley · Feb 16, 2013

TwentyOneThirtyFive said:
My van's probably not the best example - as well as the turbo (up to 90bhp + 4200rpm), it's got a non-standard gearbox too. Not sure why...

Anyway, this all results in quite high rpm, we pull around 3,000 rpm at 60mph. I guess a standard 2.4 would be much lower? Our mpg is lower than the standard van as well (30-32mpg, think a standard 2.4 will do around 34-36?)

Up side is for us, motorway driving is fine, plenty of go for overtaking on motorways (turbo really kicks in around 3,250rpm by the feel of things). Bit noisy, but we can still talk to each other.

It's low speed accelerating and those long hills that are the van's downfall. It's a heavy van. As a previous poster said, use downhills to your advantage

Hopefully someone with a standard van will be along soon to compare and contrast.
dan

We borrowed my in laws autosleeper 2.4 b4 we bought our cali to see if we liked the camping thing. We went to oxford in it and found it fine, sat at 70 on the motorway quite happily and not too noisy from what i remember. You don't have the power so adjust your driving style accordingly and accept you won't be doing much overtaking.
Hopefully someone can advise on what the 1.9 is like but i can't imagine that 9hp less will be much different on the road.

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pabloalfa76 · Feb 16, 2013

Hi Sandy,
I think with either the 2.4 or the 19td, It won't be long before your looking for more power and a taller fifth gear. The T4 westfalia is a heavy van.

People who mod the 19td, tend to throw the engine away and use a mk3 Passat or Golf 1.9 110hp, but you will need to mod the wiring loom.

The 2.4, you would be looking to turbo it, not to expensive. but it's still never going to be a racehorse.

This all depends on your needs and expectations, after all it is a camper-van. I guess it would bother me more if it was a daily driver.

Just my opinion, Paul.

Sandy · Feb 16, 2013

Thanks again for the info/ideas. Our van will be used regularly for short journeys but the lack of power doesn't concern me too much for this kind of use. The family's 2 present vehicles are a 1.9d citroen zx estate with 230000miles on the clock and a rusty old Citroen C25 1.9d with a broken fifth gear !
I'm more concerned about holding a high enough average speed on a long motorway run so that getting to Spain isn't too slow.
cheers
Duncan