TheSamba.com Forums
 
  View original topic: how to put a Porsche 914 motor in a bay window bus Page: 1, 2, 3  Next
76magicbus Mon Aug 30, 2010 4:58 pm

I have a 76 Camper and I want to put a Porsche 914 motor in it but not too sure where to start or what I need. I was wondering if there was any links or if any one could give me some tips. Camper has no motor in it now so I thought I would just go all in.

boxxcar Mon Aug 30, 2010 5:08 pm

assuming you mean a type 4 VW engine from a 914, it might be set up for D Jet Fi. BUT hopefully carbs or L Jet =-).

if you have all the ancillaries -tin-H/Es & exhaust-induction
the oil fill needs to be relocated, as well as the engine oil dipstick.

what happen to your engine?

76magicbus Mon Aug 30, 2010 5:16 pm

It had a rigged beetle motor in it that I took out in about an hour it was that bad

fusername Mon Aug 30, 2010 6:52 pm

if it has a beetle motor they may have cut the input shaft on the trans to make it fit, meaning you would need to have the flywheel machined to fit a needle bearing, as if you were installing a T4 in a bug.

you will need:
conversion flywheel (any bus flywheel with the center machined larger to accept a needle bearing, OR you can buy it off the shefl a few places)
all the upper tins from a bay window with a T4
probably a new exhaust?
either bus fuel injection and the intake runners from a 914 if the engine is a 2.0, plus a hammer to make them fit
or complete 914 FI
or carbs (I reccomend 40 Dell DRLAs)
some scrap sheetmetal and sealer to seal up the unused holes in the bus tins
hole saw to drill holes for the spark plugs in the bus tins (only if its a 914 2.0)

no need to move the dipstick and filler, its a PITA cause you need to go through the top hatch to check the oil easily, but it can be done thru the back of the bus. you would need ot machine the block to reolacte the filler/dipstick, and you would need a bus fan shroud to make it work. oh you are also going to need to splice on a wire for the alt warning light if you use a 914 alt, but easier to just use bus parts.

fusername Mon Aug 30, 2010 6:57 pm

oh its a lot easier than i just made it sound btw, a day work aside from the flywheel

76magicbus Mon Aug 30, 2010 6:59 pm

Thanks I guess I have some thinking to do but thanks for the input

vw76westy Mon Aug 30, 2010 7:09 pm

just so you know "going all in"

would be putting the original 2.0 type4 motor
your bus originally had

now if you want to have the fastest bus in town
then you get that original bus type-4 case & put a
(knock-knock) jake raby camper special in it

whc03grady Mon Aug 30, 2010 7:10 pm

76magicbus wrote: Camper has no motor in it now so I thought I would just go all in.
"Going all in" would be more like putting a Porsche flat-6 in it.
Why not skip all the pain for very little potential gain and just put a plain ol' Type IV in it? The 914-4 engine is just a VW engine anyway, so you really couldn't brag about how it'd have a Porsche engine in it (the main reason, I suspect, for most of these conversions).
The 914-4 Type IV is set up for zipping tiny little 914s down the road really quickly anyway, not for getting buses, which weigh another 2,000 pounds, going; they don't have the low-end torque that the bus requires.

Jake Raby Mon Aug 30, 2010 7:49 pm

The 914 engine has high CR and the weakest head castings of all TIV engines. They crack chambers pushing 2300 pound sports cars, in a 4,500 pound Bus thay aren't the best choice.

The 914 engine isn't special, except for the piston design, CR and heads the rest of the engine is virtually identical

fusername Mon Aug 30, 2010 10:09 pm

what he said, but damn was that motor fun while it lasted. died of oil pressure in the end when it got hot out, but all it was was a 914 4 fresh rebuild with flat top pistons and 045 deck. pulled like crazy, so don't complain about torque. bought it for parts and got suckered into installing it instead. 50 bucks lasted mew a year, so I am not complaining, and 85 on the highway was fun.

76magicbus Mon Aug 30, 2010 10:15 pm

So which one should I go with , I can get my hands on a vw 2.0 Fi real easy from a friend of mine . Would that be any easier ? And cheaper ?

fusername Mon Aug 30, 2010 11:43 pm

bus 2.0 vs 914 2.0? get the bus one, cause you'll need the tins anyways if you were to put the 914 into your bay.

76magicbus Tue Aug 31, 2010 4:53 am

Will do ... how is the FI on those compared to carbs ?

1977_L63H_P27 Tue Aug 31, 2010 7:01 am

fusername wrote: if it has a beetle motor they may have cut the input shaft on the trans to make it fit, meaning you would need to have the flywheel machined to fit a needle bearing, as if you were installing a T4 in a bug.

you will need:
conversion flywheel (any bus flywheel with the center machined larger to accept a needle bearing, OR you can buy it off the shefl a few places)
...

You cut the input shaft shorter so it doesn't bottom out in the end of a type 1 crank. The bearing in a gland nut and the needle bearing in a type 4 have the same inner diameter. As long as the input shaft isn't cut improperly (i.e. too short) you should be able to reinstall a type 4 engine with no extreme measures. All of this is pointless without measurements tho'.
You will need all the correct tin for a bus engine, so you'd be better off looking for a running used bus engine, rather than a 914 engine. Good luck!

nathansnathan Tue Aug 31, 2010 7:18 am

Basically, with the higher compression caused by the popup pistons, the early 914 engines are optimized to move the lighter more aerodynamic 914. They detuned it for a reason, and you can too by changing to dished pistons.

The later engines had lower compression ratios. The 2.0's, the heads would, like Jake says be weaker, though, and I wouldn't want the square exhaust ports either.

It seems like a 1.8 914 engine would actually be pretty nice right off. You'd have the biggest valves, low enough compression, the 914 engines I think had higher tolerances than the bus ones. Overall a 1.8 would be nice; am I forgetting something? ...besides the filler hole?

I had an EA block. I was able to mill a hole for the rear filler. I used a bridgeport mill with cnc control to cut the circle.

Bleyseng Tue Aug 31, 2010 7:59 am

besides the tin you have to change to a bus flywheel and reset the endplay..plus pull out the spacer inside the crank and install a needle bearing to hold the pilot shaft...

Only the "W" and "EA" 1.7's had 8.2 to 1 CR as the 2.0L had 7.6 to 1 vs a stock bus. Big deal, but as Jake says the 2.0L heads are fragil. If its a 1.7l run it.

I'd run the stock Ljet on whatever engine you have, djet can be harder to set up.
The 2.0L is identified by the 3 bolt intakes on the heads and a GA or GC code.

RatCamper Tue Aug 31, 2010 3:08 pm

nthing that a 914 topend is not suitable for a bus. with the right trans lowend torque isn't an issue and it becomes an acceleration monster. A suicidal monster bent on self destruction. If your VW starter can turn it.

I'm not sure on this but the 914 heads may have shallower broader chambers. Confirm / deny?

Don't be tempted to use the domed pistons with VW heads. The domes will not clear the chamber edge without clearancing or a lot of spacing.

Someone may say I'm wrong. Maybe I am. But these are my personal observations.

fusername Tue Aug 31, 2010 9:03 pm

i think domed pistons are only avail for a 1.7 motor. all the other 914 versions of the T4 had the exact same CR as the bus versions. the 2.0 914 used a shallower dish because the head has a LARGER chamber, so this kept the CR the same. I ran a even higher CR than stock 914 2.0 in my bus, and only had to pull the engine because of oil pressure, which was an issue prior to me getting my hands on that motor. 8 months and several 10s of thousands of miles later, still alive i think, will tear it down in a few weeks or months and see if there is any damage, but I think it was fine.

also i ran it with larger tires than stock which should hurt torque, but she pulled amazing! compared to any other engine i have ever run in there (stock 2.0 and bus 2.0 with mildly raised CR)

76magicbus Tue Aug 31, 2010 9:40 pm

I just picked up a 79 transporter for a couple hundred bucks. The motor looks the same but some of the wiring doesn't , far as fuel pump, the dual battery setup, and some other odds and ends . Everything else looks the same . Will this work ?

Hoody Tue Aug 31, 2010 11:25 pm

As long as you have the exhaust and the tins from the 79, yes you can swap it in.Keep the L-Jet.



Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group