90 - First Impressions!!!

So ive got my winter project thro its MOT at last (94 n/a 90) and have been trundling round over the weekend. The good points first, it runs, it stops in straight line and no really nasty transmission faults BUT, am i expecting too much?
Engine is v noisy and vehicle v slow - 55mph is about it and at this speed conversation is about impossible - is this normal?
Steering is still quite vague - ive replaced most steering joints - would new axle bushes help? it is on goodrich MT tyres
Gearing seems low - into 5th at about 30 - tyres are 10.5 by 15
Starting from cold is quite an art - she has new heaters but after about 15 secs pre heat, its necessary to jiggle the throttle to get her to fire uo - this she does as the throttle is released and then it sounds as tho only one cylinder is catching - lots of blue smoke on start up.
She runs clean once warm but i did notice yesterday on tickover when hot that every now and again there is a quick puff of blue as tho one cylinder doesnt burn - injector prob?
Your help on any of the above would be most appreciated - thanks steve

First of all, it is quite noisey and with no sound proofing you can expect that. 55seems a bit slow, my 1990 90 2.5NA will do 70mph easy up a hill after a bit of a wind up, get her out on the m-way and just keep her going she is great.

Gearing: mine is happy in 4th for 30mph that works out at about 1500rpm.

Starting: the injection pump is fitted with a cold start system, even touching the throttle (or a wrongly adjusted throttle) will cause the cold start system to fail, making starting the engine difficult. When the engine turns over at low rpm, the cold start governor knows that you are trying to start the engine and will go into excess fuel mode. If you touch the throttle you are stopping the governor from doing its job. It could also just be the engine is a bit shot and the compression is low.

Blue smoke is oil, rings are probally shot.

Engine overhaul?

thanks discomania - is setting the cold start something i could tackle myself if its not set properly? steve

Basicly, if the throttle lever is not at its resting position either because the pedal has been pushed or wronly adjusted so that it is always pulling the throttle cable, or wrongly adjusted on the pump it will cause the cold start to fail. You can look at this on top of the IP and make sure that the throttle lever is at resting position.

Something I completly forgot about, but are your glow plugs working? If these are not working, it can make the 2.5 almost impossible to start.

Save yer pennies and get yerself a 200 Tdi stuck in there, you won't regret it.

Ive beenn seriously thinking about an engine transplant but after buying the truck and spending the winter getting it roadworthy pennies are at a premium. i see on ebay that 200tdi engines go for about 500 notes. i am capable of doing the work myself but roughly how cheaply can the transplant itself be done? thanks steve

Well if you can go and get it its just fuel, £50 on a pallet.

I got a BIG petter engine from the south coast brought 3/4 of the way up the country for £50 on a pallet.

was the minimum cost for TRANSPLANT not TRANSPORT!!!