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Tue May 14, 2002 8:49 am

I just bought a 71 westy which the guy said had a1690 in it, but after referencing the engine # ae404370, it shows a 1600. I'm using the data from Muir's book which also shows different HP for a 1600. does anyone know how to tell for sure? I need to do some work on it (of course) and want to know if there are any gremlins to be wary of. It runs rough, sounds like maybe 1 of the cylinders isn't firing; and backfires occasionally.Any help would be appreciated. Cheers.

Fri May 17, 2002 10:17 am

The previous owner may have meant it had 88mm THIN wall pistons and cylinders installed, the case #'s will always tell you it's a 1600 (or whatever for that year case) you can't be sure until you tear it down. Which if you do have 88's that's trouble in my opinion, especially in a bus, the cylinder wals are just too thin and will overheat and there is not enough surface area at the top of the cylinder and they are prone to leak between there and the head! Try re-torquing the heads and properly adjusting the valves before you move on to too much else, also sounds like plug wire could be on wrong,
1-4-3-2.......:)

Mon May 20, 2002 12:19 pm

Thanks for the info. I'll try the valves and heads. Cheers

Thu Jun 06, 2002 7:38 pm

I had a 1680 cc in my '69 Westy for 40,000 miles before I sold it. This engine is built with thick-walled Mahle 88 mm cylinders, which require the case to be bored, as well as the heads (as mentioned above the slip-in 88 are not very reliable as they wear out quicker in a bus). The thick-walled setup however is a very durable combo.

I would recommend checking your spark plugs, wires and ignition points/condenser, as it could just be a bad electrical spot. Also, do a compression test to check if the four cylinders are within spec. The AE case is a dual-port early '70's model with dual oil pressure relief pistons...a great setup.