81 cabriolet ran with no water

Plan on a replacement engine. If the car is really in excellent shape then it is worth it if you know how to change an engine yourself. Excellent to me means good interior, good ball joints and tie rods, good paint, good cv joints.

Thank you and yes i know how to drop a engine i have someone helping me as well also do you know were the freeze plug is on those cars i am not really familliar with that make.And what i plan on doing is buying the car getting a new freeze plug putting it inh fill with water and see what happens is there any other cause that would make it not start after running it so hot?

Geez I would plan on installing another engine. ;-) What did you want to install? Maybe an engine a little larger like a 1.8l from a Golf or 2.0l from an Audi 80? Something like a 16V engine or more power? hehehe

Are you talking about a manual transmission and the inspection hole for timing the engine?

well i really want to put the same size engine in it can you beleive i searched the whole united states on the internet system the salvage yards use and nothing until i found one that wasnt on the system and the guy had one allready pulled and ready to go just need to drop it in there.Anyways the hole im talking about is located on right side of the engine towards the bottom but when you look down into the engine you can see it to me it looks like freeze plug the lady said that was were the water was coming from.I also had a vw mechanic tell me that it didnt nessasarily mean that the engine blew because it shut down.I am just lost and dont know if i should even bother with the car i mean it is in excellant shape trans is newly rebuilt has brand new shocks and it is a manual trans.I know that the car ran great before this lady got ahold of it she is a gas and go type of women she just blew a brand new durango and bought this and screwed it up to.I am a woman but i know a bit about cars and have done alot of mechanical work myself just dont know alot about vw.

There's nothing on the ECU on these cars to shut it off at a given temperature. if she drove it until it died, she most likely cracked it and it's done.

The good thing is that any VW inline four from the 1970s, 1980s, and even

1990s will bolt in. However stick with a pre-1996 donor car so you don't need to deal with any OBD2 stuff. Stick with a pre-1988/1989 (somewhere around there) donor car and it's even better (the electrical system in the late 1980s on VWs (called "Central Electric II" or "CEII") is a bit different than older VWs anyway and wiring up the ECU would be a little tougher (not impossible but why make it hard on yourself).

Or go even more unique and do a swap with a diesel engine! A 45mpg Cabriolet would be great. Swap in a canadian 1.9TD AAZ engine from a Mk3 Golf/Jetta and it'll have OK power and great fuel economy. With a IDI turbo diesel like that you shouldn't have wiring issues to deal with so no need to worry about the older car's electrical system matching to a newer car's ECU 'cause there won't be a ECU. :)

Cracked head, blown head gasket, scored cylinders, and a few other things come to mind...

Will the engine start now? (without water, so don't run it for more than a minute). If no, it's probably toast.

You should be able to find an engine that will/can fit at a very very low price. DO NOT buy an unknown '81 Rabbit engine. It is over 26 years old!!!

You have sooo many options out there so with some searching you will find something that will be a good choice.

I guess I would find an Audi 80 2.0l engine and put that in. It will basically look stock but give you a great power boost! I have found some complete running Audis for $200. Not sure about the right engine mount holes, so please check on that. Oil pump should come out of an 88 Golf or later engine along with the oil pan. Manifolds should be OK to use from your '81 Rabbit but might be a little smaller than the '83 GTi intake. Exhaust manifold, if dual outlet, would be good.

Just things to think about. You have PLENTY of options! ;-)

Freeze plugs are located at the usual place : at the rear side of the block. They can be seen form under the car...

Ok thanks guys on all the advice i am picking the car up friday gonna attempt to put a freeze plug in and see what happens i mean i cant do much more damage if its alredy blown right.Anyways i found a motor for a 81 and it only has 98,000 miles on it and is already pulled for 500 so hopefully that will be a good decsion on my part.also i have pulled a couple of motors before mainly on crx's and usually it just involved discconecting everything lifting it and dropping new one in is this any more complex than that?

I too, would try to crank it over / start it for several seconds before even messin' w/a freeze plug - sounds like a good deal though - schweet find -

i thought so this is on the top of the block if you are standing at the front of the car and looking down at the engine it is visible and is a perfect circle open and looks like you can see down into the block what the hell goes there i only took a brief look at the car and didnt have the keys at the time also is 500 a good price for a used engine and the guy didnt ask me if it was automatic or manual before he told me he had 2 he just asked if it was fuel or diesal and if it was exsaust

Don't put anything it it, just try to start it... No point in locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen, right?

Engine goes out the bottom.At least it did on all the Rabbits I worked on. You can drop the engine and tranny as a unit. I find it easier to drop together.

the engine goes out the bottom?thats odd why cant you lift it out with a engine hoist?and the queation about them not asking me if it was manual or automatic for the replacement motor

Maybe you can pull it out the top. I never pulled an aircooled VW out the top either. The motor mount on the right by the strut tower which should be changed when you do the new engine is such that going up is difficult. Going down is easier. But that might just be me.

My limited experence with engines is that it does not matter if the transmission is manual or automatic.

I have pulled them out of the top, or at least I did when changing the engine in an '88 Cabriolet installing an '86 GTi engine in it. I can't remember the others that I have done. The 89 Golf engines are much easier to pull with the transmission out of the top, but that is another year/style VW.

I guess I did not want to mess with removing that front exhaust pipe in those jobs...........lazy I guess! lol I think I did take off the front engine pulleys though. ;-)

pulled mine out the top on an 85 cabriolet

md

See what happens when you are born to aircooled VWs. Everything comes out the bottom.

No

S.ugar H.oney I.ce T.ea

I think I used to drop the Rabbit engines out of the bottom too if I did not want to use my hoist. I am currently fighting the engine removal of a '97 Audi A4 quattro. I would prefer doing 20 Beetle clutches instead and probably could do them quicker too! ;-)