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Fri Apr 24, 2015 8:28 pm

My 1982 Westfalia sold yesterday morning here in Hawaii and the air cooled engine failed literally 10mi into the new owner's stewardship. I took the Westy back and need to fix the problem. I am seeking advice.

It ran well before it sold yesterday for $4700, but the exterior was ugly from Hawaii induced rust and a damaged corner. The interior was OK but the appliances were not used by anyone for several years. Under my ownership, the fuel system was replaced as was the windshield.

I am seeking advice for the most financially prudent option.
1. Spend money on a rebuilt air cooled engine
2. Spend a lot of money on a Subaru upgrade
3. Repair whatever is wrong with the old engine
4. Scrap it (My least desired option)

Thank you for any thoughts you may have.

Fri Apr 24, 2015 8:43 pm

If you still hope to sell it at the other end of whatever you do.. a used engine may be your best hope to recoup your costs clear some $$$.

Fri Apr 24, 2015 9:37 pm

I feel for ya. my van let me down in tucson recently.

I've highlighted the correct answer in red.

kabulpilot wrote: I am seeking advice for the most financially prudent option.
1. Spend money on a rebuilt air cooled engine
2. Spend a lot of money on a Subaru upgrade
3. Repair whatever is wrong with the old engine
4. Scrap it (My least desired option)

welcome :)

Fri Apr 24, 2015 11:59 pm

Ahwahnee wrote: If you still hope to sell it at the other end of whatever you do.. a used engine may be your best hope to recoup your costs clear some $$$.

+1 This is the simplest, most cost effective plan.

Sat Apr 25, 2015 12:16 am

It could be worst...the guy I sold my Carat to had bought another one a few weeks before. It caught on fire 30 minutes after he purchased it...and burned entirely.

Crazy thing is that he had it insured and they paid him back more than he bought it for.

Sat Apr 25, 2015 3:58 am

See if you can pick up the engine from someone else who's installing a subi....

Sat Apr 25, 2015 11:37 am

Bummer, there is not many options out here in Hawaii . Obviously parts can be shipped from the mainland, but finding a used engine locally , not likely . What island are you on ? There are a lot of subaru cars here , but changing an air cooled to water cooled --- too much $$$ Especially since the van probably has the Hawaiian rust coating . I want to build a new motor myself , still just buying parts though . Best of luck to you , I 'd also suggest tearing it down to find the problem ( a big can of worms ) . It is interesting that during the 70's Hawaii was home to more vw's per population than any other State and it was easy to have repairs done.

Sat Apr 25, 2015 12:29 pm

Looking at options you suggested and making a decision on Monday.

Maui really is a great place for a Westy!

Luke

Sat Apr 25, 2015 1:09 pm

your not going to get rich fixing it nor selling it ...

Why not sell it to someone who wants to put the time and cash into and be done with it. Unless you took it back hoping to fix it cheap and make your money back. in that case you are going to have to find an used engine you can drop in there. ... being your in hawaii that might be a bit harder.

You don"t say why the engine died did you drop a rod ect ... is it just the top end if so you can rebuild the top end get it back running sell it to someone who wants a VW ..

My advice ... fix it up keep it and enjoy it Hawaii is such a perfect place to have one. If I lived there i would spend everyone day off camping out in my VW enjoying the Island.

Sat Apr 25, 2015 2:20 pm

Too little information provided for anyone to give you useful help.....

"Air cooled engine failed"

Threw a rod?
Swallowed a Valve?
Oil drained out and crank seized?
Coil went bad?
Fuel pump stopped pumping?
Coil wire fell out of coil?
Ignition switch went bad?
Ground wire fried to the chassis?
Ran out of gas?

You really need to do some basic diagnosis.....
Spark
Compression
Fuel

Then proceed seeking advice.

Dave

Sat Apr 25, 2015 5:45 pm

So the engine just bit the dust? No warning of any kind..no noise..no indication prior to selling it that something was possibly wrong? Odd for a motor to just up and screw the pooch. :shock:

Sat Apr 25, 2015 5:58 pm

I was driving the Westy to and from work most days (20mi round trip) and had test driven it with several prospective buyers. The eventual buyer said that six miles from my home, while going uphill, it was sputtering in the higher gears and then an oil light.

Preliminary inspections indicated compression below 100 on all four cylinders ranging from 65-97. I have not continued to evaluate until the new/repair existing engine topic is resolved. I am seeing wide fluctuations on engine prices online ranging from $650-$2500.

Does anyone know the mean or reasonable price for the 2.0L Air Cooled engine from a reliable source?

Thanks for all your input.

Sat Apr 25, 2015 7:51 pm

Hello!

first of, on what island are you?

there's a guy selling a shit loads of parts on Big Island right now.

If on O'ahu, you can check out Steve's auto repair, he often has parts, and I wouldn't be surprised if he had an engine for sale.

At less than 5K value hope for reselling your van, it's not a lot of margin to fix it up and re-sell it....

If you spend 2K on an engine to sell it 4500, minds as well part it out for 2K .

There's also Eddie on Republican St I think, or Democrat St, forgot his business' name but always willing to help.

Barry in Kailua too, although I wouldn't trust him, he has a shitty reputation and I got a Westy that was serviced by his business: busted transmission because the input shaft pilot bearing was missing when they replaced the engine (2.1L with a 1.9 injection system), clutch got burnt etc... all for that tiny detail :/

Aloha!

Sun Apr 26, 2015 6:03 am

If you don't know, do not buy from GEX, they sell crap. Slick website, though.

Sun Apr 26, 2015 4:43 pm

please please remember to stay clear of waterboxer inc in NC

big time scammers :evil: