TheSamba.com :: View topic - 71 Double Cab - New Owner and the newby-est question ever!

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:28 am

This is only my 4th post in this forum after years of being over at the T3 part. I just got a 71 Double Cab and I am hyped. Having next to zero experience with buses, I feel like a total newb- Though I have had several squarebacks, fastbacks and a notchback over the years, I dont know the basics about buses. Like what the dash knobs and levers are supposed to do, where the electrical stuff is(relays, flashers, etc), where the hell is the brake fluid resevoir (I need one BTW), etc....

So here are some pics and a beginning list of what I need....

Right off the bat I need a rear seat, and the brake fluid resevoir that sits on top of the master cylinder. I need to get rid of the .009 distributor (runs like sh!t at low RPMs) and give her a tune up.

What do you guys think? The folks in my 'home forum' either think I am crazy or are jealous..... I am ready to have fun with this one. :D

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:32 am

I am jealous. I really like the double cabs, you can do alot with them! yopur going to have alot of fun with that bus 71 is a good year IMO.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:33 am

Nice DC, looks real clean, cleaner than mine, anyway.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:33 am

what a great score, lucky you :D

runs ok?

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:38 am

Very solid looking DC 8)

We like photos here so keep 'em coming!

Have you checked the classifieds here for the rear seat and BFR?

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:47 am

Very nice, I'm jealous too. Don't listen to those type 3 dudes, you have just discovered the most functional vehicle on the planet and will compare every car/truck you ever own to it for the rest of your life.

Here's the owners manual http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/manuals/71bus.php
The reservoir is behind the drivers seat.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:51 am

rustbus wrote: what a great score, lucky you :D

runs ok?

It seems like it needs real high RPMs to get it going and once it is, it stutters and coughs if the RPMs drop through shifting. Sounds like timing or .... :?:

patayres wrote: Very solid looking DC 8)

We like photos here so keep 'em coming!

Have you checked the classifieds here for the rear seat and BFR?

Just started looking for a seat, but I have heard its pretty much like "good f'ing luck". I have started looking for the BFR and a stock distributor too. Again, I am a newb to buses so any help pointing out what I can use as far as part/year interchangability would be great.... :)

Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:52 am

Congrates. Nice and very solid looking bus. There should be 2 resevoirs (brake). One behind the driver's seat as mentioned and one right on top of the master cylinder. When you order them, make sure you order the rubber grommets that connect the tube from the upper reservoir down the the main resevoir. Those grommets alway go bad. There should be 2 (one on top and one on bottom)

Too bad that I just saw this post. I just threw away a good working resevoir (the one on top of the master) when I replaced my Master cylinder last week.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:00 pm

purplegodzilla wrote: Congrates. Nice and very solid looking bus. There should be 2 resevoirs (brake). One behind the driver's seat as mentioned and one right on top of the master cylinder. When you order them, make sure you order the rubber grommets that connect the tube from the upper reservoir down the the main resevoir. Those grommets alway go bad. There should be 2 (one on top and one on bottom)

Too bad that I just saw this post. I just threw away a good working resevoir (the one on top of the master) when I replaced my Master cylinder last week.

I was told that the res on top of the master cyl is the one leaking do to a small crack where the tube connects, though I havent yet got under it to see if it is these grommets or really is a cracked inlet or whatever...

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:03 pm

Get under there, find out what you need and pm me. I have a good upper and lower reservoir as well as the tube that connects them from a '71 Bus. Nice DC BTW, I'd KILL to find one around here!!

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:06 pm

VDubTech wrote: I'd KILL to find one around here!!

It'd probably kill you when it split in half from all the rot it had from living on the East coast. :lol: I hear ya though it would be sweet to have one.
8)

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:09 pm

Most likely it is the grommet. The hard plastic tube is hard to crack because the band that is used to tightened the hard tube is very soft.

Here is the grommet (rubber sleeve).
http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=VWC-211-611-833-C

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:33 pm

Jimmy - where are you in Sacto? We are in Citrus Heights. TubDub is off Greenback. He has lots of early parts.

I had a 1971 Deluxe for 10 years and did all my own maintence but have not seen a double cab engine although I would assume they are close to the 71 Deluxe. You have some strange things on that carb I have never seen before, looks like some kind of vacuum valve setup with a delay valve - nothing at all like what my 71 deluxe had. Unless that is some substitute like an Empi carb or something like that, it may be part of your problem. When I ran an 009 I just plugged off the dist vacuum lines with caps. Personally I could never tell any diffference between the stock dist and 009 except the 009 had a tiny flat spot but nothing that bad. Main thing you will have to watch on any 1971 is oil temps on long sustained hill climbs unless you have an extended sump. Glad to see you bought it.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:41 pm

I miss Sacto used to live in citrus heights and downtown 24th T. That was when I was into vespas though. Keep the pics coming on that double cab. I never see those up here.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:58 pm

SGKent wrote: Jimmy - where are you in Sacto? We are in Citrus Heights. TubDub is off Greenback. He has lots of early parts.

I had a 1971 Deluxe for 10 years and did all my own maintence but have not seen a double cab engine although I would assume they are close to the 71 Deluxe. You have some strange things on that carb I have never seen before, looks like some kind of vacuum valve setup with a delay valve - nothing at all like what my 71 deluxe had. Unless that is some substitute like an Empi carb or something like that, it may be part of your problem. When I ran an 009 I just plugged off the dist vacuum lines with caps. Personally I could never tell any diffference between the stock carb and 009 except the 009 had a tiny flat spot but nothing that bad. Main thing you will have to watch on any 1971 is oil temps on long sustained hill climbs unless you have an extended sump. Glad to see you bought it.

I am in Fair Oaks. I would be hyped on some tune up expertise. I hated having am .009 in my notch- it ran terrible. But that was with dual Solexes. So how do I time this thing? At idle with a timing light it looks like its set at 10 degrees BTDC. Is that right? Also, the oil light never comes on- even with the key in and engine off... burnt light bulb maybe?

Sat Nov 07, 2009 1:06 pm

maybe he will trade for a stack of bills :D
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=871335
congrats on your double cab
They are a blast!
mine

welcome to the madness!!

Sat Nov 07, 2009 2:15 pm

i just pmed you my cell # i am off today so if you have time come by with a wanted list and i will see what i have left.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:11 pm

Excellent find! And the pickup is in remarkable shape, too. I just got a double cab this last spring (a '78) and have been having a blast. It is very useful! And my daughter loves it too. Most of the mechanicals are just like a bus, so that makes finding parts easier.

Sat Nov 07, 2009 5:57 pm

Great score. Looks solid. I am also a bit jealous. Hard to find but great to have. 8)

Sat Nov 07, 2009 7:00 pm

Great Find,

DC’s are great vehicles, as mentioned engine temp’s (Oil & Head) is the greatest danger to your bus’s health after Rust ;0)

One of the simplest thing to forget as someone new to T1 buses is that bug & bus carburetors are not interchangeable…
Buses are heavier and need more accelerator pump volume and richer higher rpm jetting to help keep the engine running as the factory intended…

The Carb on your engine looks like a South American Solex and may need to be re jetted for a bus; also to jet it properly you can’t realy use the manual's Jet #'s because those jets are spect for pre ethanol blended fuels…

I you will get a lot of opinions but if you have access to an Air Fuel meter, rejecting and adjusting your carb will make a hell of a difference on how your bus runs, and how long your T1 engines run in your/any bus…

Good lock on your New project!