TheSamba.com :: View topic - Meet Pumpkin - my new bus restoration thread (lots of pics)

Wed Dec 16, 2009 10:15 pm

Hello everyone :D

About a year ago i purchased this bus for $500

She's a 1975 Westfalia Campmobile. She came with a seized 1.8 liter with the complete fuel injection. The old owner loved her and even lived in it for a year and a half but once the engine seized he had to get rid of her. I plan on bringing her back to her former glory. Unfortunately the old owner gave away all of the camper stuff except the bed...but i tracked down a factory cabinet sink and even a refredgerator, a real one with a compressor and everythig :D. I am finally gettig around to swaping the seized engine out for a newly rebuilt 2.0 liter with hydrolic lifters that i have also had for the last year (i plan on keeping all of the stock fuel injection).

My first question is do i need to buy a new oil cooler? I have heard people say that once an engie has seized they will never use the oil cooler that was on it because you can never get all of the metal shavings out of it. Is there any way to flush it out well enough that you can be sure it won't hurt anything? If it is really a good idea i will get a new (or good used) one but i would like to save the cash.

Here are a few more pics:
Towig her from storage to the shop:

Right at home among friends:

I plan on asking a lot of questions :D and keeping this thread up to date with all of the progress and plans for Pumpkin. Hopefully you will enjoy it, and thaks in advance for any help you provide.

Wed Dec 16, 2009 10:40 pm

Looks like a great start. I bet that paint will buff out to a nice shine.

Quote: and even a refredgerator, a real one with a compressor and everythig

What kind of fridge are you talking about? The original one is an ammonia adsorption unit, is this something different that you plan to retrofit into the old cabinet?

Either way, looks like a great bus, solid body, minimal rust, even better for $500.

Wed Dec 16, 2009 10:44 pm

I would not reuse a oil cooler from a seized engine. We threw the one from our seized engine away rather than sell it I felt that strongly about it. There is no possible way of guaranteeing that all the debris is out - and it only takes a spec to destroy a new bearing or cause a lifter to stick.

One other thing - if a rod or main spun on that engine then the case webs may be warped and it will never bolt together properly. It is very subtle and a good reason to know the history on a used case before you buy it. I imagine a long straight edge would reveal it too.

Wed Dec 16, 2009 11:50 pm

Thanks guys, as for the fridge it is the ammonia absorbtion unit, in the end i don't know if it will be better than the ice box or not, but if i can get it to work it will add to the cool factor (pun intended). It' s apretty solid bus all in all, it has a little rust in the front foot steps and the bottom of the slider and the same spot on the other side, but i plan to fix all that properly and she'll be as good as new :D

As for the oil cooler...that's what i was afraid of. I REALLY don't want to buy a new one because of the price but i am not sure if i can trust a used one, they could just tell me it's from an engine that has never seized but it may be as bad as the one that i already have. I know a reputable bus guy in colorado that i'll ask about getting one from. And as for the case i plan on selling it as a used seized longblock core for a few bucks (if i can). i am not really a type-4 guy i really know the type-1 but i got a smokin deal on the 2.0 liter long block so i figured i'd give this type-4 stuff a try, maybe after this i'll be hooked on the type-4, i have already seen a lot of stuff i like.

Thu Dec 17, 2009 7:42 am

You have a pm. Type IV's are no more difficult than a type I. Enjoy. Bus looks solid.

Thu Dec 17, 2009 10:06 am

70-1914-blackw/chrome wrote: i am not really a type-4 guy i really know the type-1 but i got a smokin deal on the 2.0 liter long block so i figured i'd give this type-4 stuff a try, maybe after this i'll be hooked on the type-4, i have already seen a lot of stuff i like.

You will be hooked, and you'll love the difference. Don't even think about converting that 75 to a Type 1...please. Do it for my bus, its 75 Transporter cousin, a recovering former Type 1 user :)

Thu Dec 17, 2009 10:42 am

I have an 1800 that was running when a valve dropped. Aside form that the engine is in good working order as far as I know. I'm in Westminster, CO. Let me know if you need any parts. Nice find!

Sun Dec 20, 2009 11:22 am

This weekend i finally pulled the old motor out, striped it down and cleaned out the inside of the bus a little. I am now in the process of going thorough the bently manual and finding out what little peices of tin are missing. Then i will start to clean all of the tin and hit them with a little black spray paint.

I posted earlier about using a 010 distributer but based on the feedback, i think i will use the stock DVDA with the retard not hooked up until i can afford a SVDA for it. I also posted a question about upgrading the oil pump. Aircooled.net sells a type-1 pump with larger gears and they say that the type-4 can handle the extra pressure and flow with no modifications. I think i'm going to try and order it and unfortunately pay a little more for faster shipping since i need it by monday the 28th, i really wish i had thought of this earlier :?

The old seized engine:

The floor was actually REALLY clean :D , just a little rust on the drivers step.

It has a pretty decent interior:

These are some extra parts i found in a box, i don't think i need much more that the thermostat flap though.

Until next time:

Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:11 pm

Well lets see..

Yellow hot-rod/jeep hybrid? Check.
Bus on jacks with chunky welder standing by? Check.
Nice big garage with plenty of space for 'projects'? Check.

I think everything seems to be in order here sir...

Seriously, that's a great deal for the money. I'm not a type 4 expert, but I'd think twice before selling the seized motor or any of the spares shown even when you get the 2.0 running. You never know when you'll need something obscure in the future and they're just not making this stuff any more.

Good luck with the resto.

Ant

Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:18 pm

cool karmann collected wrote: Well lets see..

Yellow hot-rod/jeep hybrid? Check.
Bus on jacks with chunky welder standing by? Check.
Nice big garage with plenty of space for 'projects'? Check.

I think everything seems to be in order here sir...

Ha Ha Ha, ya. My friend owns an aircooled shop here in colorado and he lets me use it to work on stuff. the jeep is another friends project/abomination - it's a 1946 jeepster on a cyclone chassis and with the cyclone turbo motor. Thanks for the comments, i have too many projects but at $500 i couldn't pass this one up, it's a really solid bus. The more i get into it the more i like the busses and type-4 engines.

Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:41 pm

Very nice, it is cleaner than I expected inside. I would not use a oil cleaner that I am not very familiar with. Take that from the voice of experience. I lost my motor (78- 2000cc) to metal flake material. Good luck with it and I do like the falcon and the jeepster also.

Mon Feb 08, 2010 8:48 am

when ya gonna finish that thing?