One thing you can do to help figure it out is post the VIN.

The year of manufacture is coded in the VIN. Model years don't correspond to calendar years- a 1983 model would be built between August 1982 and July 1983. You will find the date code as the letter in the 10th digit of the VIN.

A= 1980 (after Jan 1, 1980)
B= 1981
C= 1982
D= 1983
E= 1984
F= 1985
G= 1986
H= 1987
I is not used because it is easily confused with 1
J= 1988
K= 1989
L= 1990
M= 1991
N= 1992
O is not used because it looks like a 0
P= 1993 (last year of 240 production)

So yeah, you could have a 1983 vehicle with a 1982 date code. The title ought to reflect the correct year but people screw things up.

1983 was the first year for factory intercooled 240s. However, this only applies to the special 242 flathood cars. 1984 and up cars received intercoolers on all Turbo models. Yours most likely wasn't one of the 500 flathoods, and so probably is not intercooled. The turbo outlet hose will come right across the valve cover to the intake if so. If the turbo hose goes forward to a radiator-looking thing that's sandwiched in front of the regular radiator, you've got an intercooler.

The other thing you see in there is an oil cooler. Turbos put a lot more strain on their oil than non-turbo cars. The turbo unit itself makes a lot of heat. I would suggest that you run only synthetic oil in this car- the temperature tolerance of this oil will save many problems in the long run.

Good luck with the car, it's a cool one. I had an 82 245T for a while and it was a total blast. Now I get to hear it drive by the house every day...
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::: Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: 92 244 M47 211K ::: 90 745GL M47 273K ::: 88 245DL AW70 190K ::: 84 242DL Project ::: 70 VW Bus ::: 70 VW Pickup Project ::: 71 VW Notchback :::