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Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:23 pm

i have a question about this "gap" in my engine compartment. my bus is a '71 westy and we also have a '72 super beetle and where this gap is in the beetle there is a rubber seal. i was just wondering if this is something that can have negative effects on the engine and should invest in buying a seal for it. also where may i find one if i need to get it

can you see what i am talking about? right there where the tin is?

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:30 pm

yes you need it. it ensures that the cooling air is directed to the proper place: out of the engine compartment.

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:37 pm

aright thanks dude

i was thinking it would screw up the air cooling some how, do you know what the name of the seal would be. what kind it is?

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:53 pm

i just bought one. Its just called the engine seal. Mine was 12 bucks at the local vw parts place.

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:56 pm

oh werd

i just need the rubber seal right. there's nothing else, like for it to attach to or does it just slide in the way it is now

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:57 pm

engine COMPARTMENT seal

http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=C16-111-741G

and

http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=VWC-111-813-705-A

Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:58 pm

Yeah, its like a flat piece of rubber. I haven't installed mine yet, so hopefully I got the right part. According to the parts guy it is, so we'll see if someone else chimes in.

edit: the one I have looks like the second link. Hopefully there is a way to get it on with the engine in....according to the website the engine must be pulled.

Thu Oct 16, 2008 10:06 pm

you can undo the engine mounts and drop the engine a bit and install it. No need to take it all the way out. or you can realy fanagle it in there with the engine in. But, odds are it will not be in there correctly.

Fri Oct 17, 2008 1:10 am

ah crap cus my seals looks just like the OP :?

So far Iv used some duct tape to fill in the gaps, Id really hate to pull the engine just to replace a little seal.

Fri Oct 17, 2008 2:11 am

There is an engine compartment seal and a firewall seal. The photos are of the engine compartment seal. The one in the rear. The common name for it is the rear tin seal. People also call it the rear engine seal.

luckys420 wrote: it ensures that the cooling air is directed to the proper place: out of the engine compartment.
No. It prevents hot air from the exhaust and also road dirt and dust from being drawn into the engine compartment. Cooling air gets directed to the proper place (the cylinders and heads) by the fan shroud.

drklon wrote: Hopefully there is a way to get it on with the engine in....according to the website the engine must be pulled.
Whatever bogus website that info came from is out to lunch.

luckys420 wrote: you can undo the engine mounts and drop the engine a bit and install it. No need to take it all the way out. or you can realy fanagle it in there with the engine in. But, odds are it will not be in there correctly.
That's not the way it is done. You take out the rear apron. Clean the groove in the rear apron and slide the seal in. If it is one long seal you cut off the seal at the end of the groove. Then clean out the grooves in the body at both sides of the engine. Cut the remaining length of the seal in half and slide them into the grooves at the side of the engine. Some silicone spray helps getting them slid forward. Replace the apron.

Sometimes careless people have bent up the grooves when they have been taking the engine in and out. If so, you will need to bend them back into shape.

As far as the firewall seal. The one that is in front of the fan shroud. The one he didn't ask about. That is the one you want to replace if the engine is ever out. With a '71 with a doghouse shroud it is a lot more difficult to get at with the engine in. With a '68-'70 non-doghouse you can remove the front tin much easier and get the seal in the groove. But with all of them, if the groove is clean and not bent up you can work the seal in from under the bus at one end. Lube it with silicone spray and alternately push it in and pull it in with pliers. The whole key to it is if the groove is clean and in good shape.

Both the front and rear seals need to be in there and in good shape. No gaps. You don't want either heat or dirt getting in there. Either one will ruin the engine.