ring a ding ding
 

I thought I had a stock 74 2.0, Seems someone changed the pistons. I bought PP 2.0 rings, when I went to see the fit I noticed there was a large gap in the ring. Going back to the car I found I had euro pistons, I take one ring home and its a bit larger then the PP ring. Will the oversized rings fit?

Also can anyone help with some ID numbers -

Stamped on engine: W0035256
Driver Door: Karosserie - NR. 829521
Knstharzlack - 4742914654

1.7l engine?
 

Ruddy,

Take a look at the tech specs article at www.pelicanparts.com under the 914 links area. If that engine code is correct (and if I read the table correctly) you have a much older 1.7l case and probably a 1.7 l engine. 2.0 pistons are larger in circumference (94mm) than the 1.7s (90mm) thus the ring discrepancy. As I have found out as well (the hard way), 2.0l emblems for the back of the car are cheaper than 2.0 engines.

Good luck,
Rich

OK, let's try to translate what you've got.

Karosserie - NR. 829521

This number is divided into three groups and is read as follows:

8 2 9521

8 = Your car was made the 8th week of the production year. Actually, it was scheduled for production in the 8th week. It normally took another 2-3 weeks before production began.
2 = Your car came off of the line on a Tuesday (1=Monday, 2=Tuesday, etc.)
9521 = This is a recurring number. Other cars may have the same last four digits. The only thing that is pertinent is that the first digit being a nine tells us that it was assembled in the Karmann plant.

Knstharzlack - 4742914654

This just tells us that your car is a 1974 model

Stamped on engine: W0035256

Got me on that one. I would guess a 1.7 but I'm not sure it's originally from a 914.

This is tough.

You could have a 2.0 with original pistons.
You could have a 2.0 with non-original pistons.
You could have a 2.0 with big bore 96mm pistons of various manufacture.
You could have a 1.7.
You could have a 1.8.
You could have a 1.7 or a 1.8 with big bore 96mm pistons.

Any of these could be in your car with any type 4 case, so engine number won't tell you anything if the engine has been rebuilt.

Isn't the size of the piston stamped somewhere inside the skirt? Also, you could just measure them with a set of calipers or even a ruler - 4 mm is a big difference.

Another clue about the original engine size may be found on the left side of the engine compartment. I believe that there are different emissions stickers for the different engine sizes. Although my car - a 73- had a 2.0 emblem, it had a 1.7 engine (case, heads and displacement) and a 1.7 emissions sticker. Does anyone know whether the emissions stickers are specific to the engines or if I am just missing an additional sticker?

Rich

Yes, the stickers are specific to 1.7, 1.8, or 2.0 and indicate what was originally there.

It really makes no difference, though, as any engine or combination of parts could be in the car.

The size of the piston should be stamped in the crown.

I have the cylinder off and the inside diameter is 95.5mm. The piston has no numers that I can find, just a small 1/8" circle in the center of a flat faced piston. Checkin web sites I found the engine is a '70 1.7. Can there be a way of putting 2.0 cylinders on a 1.7?

You have aftermarket 96mm pistons. You need to measure the width of the rings to be able to get the correct replacements.

2.0 more or less
 

I think the displacement of a 1.7 with the 66mm stoke and 96mm pistons is 1.9l so the previous owner may have rounded up and told you it was a 2.0. As Mr. Adams has pointed out, you could have any crank so you may have a 2.1 (71mm stoke of the 2.0 crank and 96mm pistons). You could figure it out by measuring the location of the wrist pin on the piston (although I don't know what the measurement should be) as the different cranks use different pistons.

Rich

Or you could just rotate the crank and see how far the wristpin end of the rod moves. If it moves 66mm, you have a 1.7/1.8 crank (they're the same). If it moves 71mm, you have a 2.0 crank.

--DD

OK heres more news:

After doing some scraping of old paint I find my '74 was a black special edition. The engine must have been removed at some point (the PO is on a hunting trip this week so I can't ask him) and replaced with a '69 or '70 1.7 (the engine serial number is inbetween the posted PP list. The piston measures 96mm. The piston has a flat face with a 3mm indent in the center. Also on the cylinder head there is an arrow which pointed to the rear. On the inside is the number 6124. Then inside diameter of the first and second rings are 9.2mm with a thickness of 3mm. I want to return my PP '74 2.0 rings with new ones. So Dave should I get the 74-75 1.8 big bore 96mm (96m-1972) or the 70-73 2.0 big bore 96mm (96m-2145).

Also as a side note with these mods what would the displacement be and increase , if any to horse power.

How far do the rods move when the engine is rotated? If they move 66mm, you get the 1.8 version of the P&C kit. If they move 71mm, you get the 2.0 version.

I don't know the wrist-pin to crown distance for the 914 pistons....

--DD

Dave, Im not sure what the cranshaft has to do with piston rings. But I'll check anyway.

Dave, the stroke is 66mm so it must be an original 1.8 crank.

The stroke doesn't have anything to do with the rings, unless the pistons used with different strokes use different rings. (I have no idea if they do or not.) I thought you were asking if you needed the 96mm pistons that were built for the 1.7/1.8, or those built for the 2.0. Sorry if I was wrong about that.

--DD

Because the car came with a 2.0 I bought pp piston rings for that engine. Finding them to small I need to exchange them for bigger rings. I'm not sure which 96mm ring set I need. The rings I need are for this piston:

The piston measures 96mm. The piston has a flat face with a 3mm indent in the center. Also on the cylinder head there is an arrow which pointed to the rear. On the inside is the number 6124. Then inside diameter of the first and second rings are 9.2mm with a thickness of 3mm.

So Dave should I get the 74-75 1.8 big bore 96mm part number (96m-1972) or the 70-73 2.0 big bore 96mm part number (96m-2145).

I don't know for sure. Since you have the 66mm crank, I can assume that you need the rings for the 1.8 version of the 96mm pistons, but I do not know for certain.

--DD