TheSamba.com :: View topic - New 2.3 Dual Carb, Air Cooled Vanagon Motor

Sat Aug 09, 2014 12:42 pm

Tour of my new 2.3 Dual Carb, Air Cooled Vanagon Motor. I converted my 2.0 Long Block into a 2.3 with dual Weber Carbs. Upgraded heads, dual Quite muffler, extended crank, custom oil cooler kit, and many more custom parts. I have doubled my horsepower and I am incredibly satisfied with the performance of the motor. I will post a link to a video of the motor performance next. Cheers!

Sat Aug 09, 2014 1:02 pm

I see you're using a T2 type engine tin seal. I too did this, but found that if I glued in a section of home pipe insulation to fill in the missing sections, that it worked quite well, and was a cheap option vs the mega expensive and hard to find T3 seal. Looking forward to your performance vid. I have a soft spot for aircooled flat engines, but watercooled, not so much

Sat Aug 09, 2014 2:33 pm

How do you plan to get that through emission testing?

Sun Aug 10, 2014 2:39 pm

It certainly will not pass CA smog test. I am going to be moving back to Arizona before my registration is up and there are counties within AZ that are exempt from emissions testing. :) Definitely a concern I had to work out far in advance. Cheers!

Randy in Maine wrote: How do you plan to get that through emission testing?

Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:16 pm

Wow! I can't wait to see the performance video! Any 'how to" info would be excellent for us stock air cooled Vanagons. I have a 81 California and would love to stay aircooled with more HP. In Vermont, cars over 15 years old are exempt from emissions :)

Sun Aug 10, 2014 5:23 pm

What is your compression ratio? Does it run hot? I am considering a stroked type 4 with my own custom megasquirt FI using some L-Jet parts for my next bus engine. My main concerns are premature wear and heat, of course. I'm curious to see how yours stacks up in that area.

Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:45 pm

Hello Zeitgeist,

I did not complete the motor installation myself, so I am not 100% sure. Is there any benefit of adding insulation to fill the missing sections?

I will upload the video tonight and follow up. I am an air-cooled lover myself.

Zeitgeist 13 wrote: I see you're using a T2 type engine tin seal. I too did this, but found that if I glued in a section of home pipe insulation to fill in the missing sections, that it worked quite well, and was a cheap option vs the mega expensive and hard to find T3 seal. Looking forward to your performance vid. I have a soft spot for aircooled flat engines, but watercooled, not so much

Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:50 pm

Hello VWintVT,

I will upload it to you tube this evening. If you have an account, I am username "YouAdventure9" but I will also post a link here.

If you do not have emissions requirements, the added power options are unlimited! I DOUBLED my horsepower with this custom job. I turned my 2.0 Long Block into a 2.3 and did very much custom work to add additional power. If you were on a smaller budget, you can simply rebuild you long-block and add about 15% Horsepower through an extended crank and increased headflow. You certainly do not have to turn her into a high performance dual carbed machine like mine :) I went for the stars.

If you have any questions, feel free to call me 480-258-1801 and I can refer you to my guy. On top of this amazing work, I have a 1 year unlimited warranty. I did my research before choosing.

VWinVT wrote: Wow! I can't wait to see the performance video! Any 'how to" info would be excellent for us stock air cooled Vanagons. I have a 81 California and would love to stay aircooled with more HP. In Vermont, cars over 15 years old are exempt from emissions :)

Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:54 pm

Hello tootype2crazy,

The compression ratio is 7.6 to 1.

I only have about 250 logged miles (wow that sounds weird to say) so far and have had no heat issues. I had this concern in mind when I had it built though, so I had a custom oil cooled fan added. When the motor reached over 165 degrees, she kicks in to help out. Since I intend to do extended travel with her, I wanted to ensure I was covered in cooling.

I am uploading a video this evening, so you can scope her out. Your project sounds exciting! Cant wait to hear about the decisions you implement into the rebuild.

tootype2crazy wrote: What is your compression ratio? Does it run hot? I am considering a stroked type 4 with my own custom megasquirt FI using some L-Jet parts for my next bus engine. My main concerns are premature wear and heat, of course. I'm curious to see how yours stacks up in that area.

Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:56 pm

VWinVT wrote: Wow! I can't wait to see the performance video! Any 'how to" info would be excellent for us stock air cooled Vanagons. I have a 81 California and would love to stay aircooled with more HP. In Vermont, cars over 15 years old are exempt from emissions :)

I bought a complete Corvair engine that would be a nice power upgrade for your 81. I was going to use it myself for a future air-cooled Vanagon project until I picked up an 87 Syncro. Will sell it for 400 - im in CT

Tue Aug 12, 2014 5:11 am

It would be nice to know 1) what kind of cylinder head temps you are running 2) why the oil temp is maintained so low and 3) what the AFR is.

Just curious.

Tue Aug 12, 2014 8:05 am

When my 71 Convertible was running well, the Jacobs Electronics OmniPak ignition module gave the Bug emission levels that easily beat 2000-era cars.

The smog check guy said "I'm going to pass you, no problem, but what did you do to that thing? What additive did you use?"

"What additive? It's straight gas and probably that fancy blue box right there."

Too bad they're no longer around. This was in Nevada, so I don't know how CARB rules would apply.

Tue Aug 12, 2014 8:14 am

Tjet, Thank you for the offer, but I prefer to stick with VW upgrades. What was the bottom line ($$) of this motor job?

Tue Aug 12, 2014 8:50 am

It looks very clean with the downdrafts. As far as sealing the engine compartment. Ideally all cooling air drawn through the blower would be from the rear pillar vents. The cooler the air the better. Any seams that let hot air from below rise up into the engine compartment affect cooling to a degree.

I believe there was also a heat shield above the muffler in addition to the tin work. I'd verify that there is some sort of shield there. You don't want the tin work directly in front of the blower getting too hot.

Curious, you say you doubled your horsepower. Did you measure that on a dyno?

Tue Aug 12, 2014 1:54 pm

Engine looks good.

Has anyone tried this with 2.1 water boxer? took off the FI and went with carb set up?

Tue Aug 12, 2014 2:48 pm

imtb wrote: Engine looks good.

Has anyone tried this with 2.1 water boxer? took off the FI and went with carb set up?

Yes.

http://vwparts.aircooled.net/Waterboxer-Dual-40-IDF-Carburetor-Kit-p/waterboxer-dual-idf.htm

There's a thread buried somewhere on here with a guy from New York with dual carb setup on a tin top syncro. Looked interesting... Though difficult to dial in. Especially in weather that oscillates so much over the year.

Thu Aug 14, 2014 7:52 pm

Yes, there is a heat shield protecting the airflow. It looks really clean too, so I dig the shield. :)

I am not sure about the Dyno, as my mechanic did all of the engine work. He told me it roughly doubled my horsepower and after driving it for 250 miles now, I concur. Holy cow the power is incredible compared to what it used to be.

rsxsr wrote: It looks very clean with the downdrafts. As far as sealing the engine compartment. Ideally all cooling air drawn through the blower would be from the rear pillar vents. The cooler the air the better. Any seams that let hot air from below rise up into the engine compartment affect cooling to a degree.

I believe there was also a heat shield above the muffler in addition to the tin work. I'd verify that there is some sort of shield there. You don't want the tin work directly in front of the blower getting too hot.

Curious, you say you doubled your horsepower. Did you measure that on a dyno?

Thu Aug 14, 2014 7:55 pm

That's rad. I have never seen the dual Weber Carbs on a liquid cooled motor.

Yes, I can imagine the fluctuating weathers over there can make the dialing in a pain. I have not yet had any trouble here in So Cal. It seems easy enough to dial my beast here in sunny So Cal!

Phaedrus wrote: imtb wrote: Engine looks good.

Has anyone tried this with 2.1 water boxer? took off the FI and went with carb set up?

Yes.

http://vwparts.aircooled.net/Waterboxer-Dual-40-IDF-Carburetor-Kit-p/waterboxer-dual-idf.htm

There's a thread buried somewhere on here with a guy from New York with dual carb setup on a tin top syncro. Looked interesting... Though difficult to dial in. Especially in weather that oscillates so much over the year.

Sat Aug 16, 2014 9:14 am

Hey Kyle looks sweet. I am still on the fence with what rebuild I want but that will be decided over the next few months. Id like to have an engine in next summer when I make a trip through the mtns.

Have you even been checking the mpg's? Not that it is of great concern but it would be nice to improve on my 16 mpg's.

Can you do a check soon? Im sure others will also be wondering.

Ill be calling soon to hear about the awesomeness.

Sat Aug 16, 2014 5:44 pm

Nice looking engine. I doubt seriously you have anywhere near twice as much as stock hp, but I'm sure it is adequate. Maybe it is twice what you had before the rebuild. That I can believe.

Glad to hear you can avoid smog in the future. An engine like this, while fun, is not ideal for CA residents (or those concerned with the environment, so many of us love to go camping in).

Free advice: replace those wing nuts on the air filters with nylon lock nuts so they don't vibrate loose, and find a better way to attach the breather so you can wash those filters.

Air cooleds bring a ton of dusty air through the engine compartment, (especially ones without proper seals) and you will want to be able to wash your filters without re- siliconing the hose in every time, especially in AZ!

Glad to hear you got a "warranty". Hope you never need it. 3 years would've been nice but one is better than none, I reckon.
Enjoy you newfound power!

Neil2