I am working on a 2001 new beetle with 1.8L turbo engine and automatic transmission. or at least I would like to be. I have read about a kazillion of the diy posts on here and around the web and am a competent mechanic. I got to the part where you remove the four 6mm allen headed bolts from the vibration dampener and these suckers will not come out! I, thru much looking would assume if they were left hand threaded or there was some secret handshake required I would have learned about it. I have used PB Blaster, wd40, and a propane torch even though scorching the rubber was a last resort and didn't scorch it but also didn't get ANY of the 4 allen bolts to even budge.

I am out of ideas short of getting it to TDC by whatever means and pulling the 19mm bolt and sliding everything out as a unit, and dealing with the bolt removal off the car, or drilling out the heads of the allen bolts to remove the pulley or driving the thing off a cliff.

Someone please help me come up with an idea before option C becomes too tempting.

And yes i am using the allen socket on ratchet and breaker bar with socket to hold the crank bolt.

 

40 People have looked at this and not one person has any suggestions???