1975 Riviera Refresh

[Pinetops]

All of the camper utility stuff looks great! It's funny how a lot of the same exact parts are still made to this day, even with my bus that's 8 years older. For example, you can still buy the water tank for the sink from the same manufacturer.
_________________
"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[LazyLightning75]

I was pleasantly surprised to find some of these parts still being made. The holes all matched up. Just take the old one off and attach the new. It's a quick way to dress up the bus and feel like you're accomplishing something.

However, I have recently found myself buying 2 of everything, especially if the part is inexpensive and the shipping costs are relatively high. Seems to pencil out, at least in my mind. I now have a plastic storage bin for all my spare parts, and another for all the parts I've removed and I'm saving (maybe someone can use them one day). I'm quickly running out of space and I think I've caught some sort of VW sickness. Am I destined for one of those hoarders shows?
_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[wcfvw69]

You're doing a great job refreshing that bus one piece at a time. I like the job you did on you slider windows.

Keep up the good work.
_________________
Contact me at [email protected]
Follow me on instagram @sparxwerksllc

Decades of VW and VW parts restoration experience.
The Samba member since 2004.

**Now rebuilding throttle bodies for VW's and Porsche's**
**Restored German Bosch distributors for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored German Pierburg fuel pumps for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche fuel pumps or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche distributors or I can restore yours**

[LazyLightning75]

Here's a short video that my son created. The end is the best part. He refers to Hazel 2.0 - if you're wondering, Hazel is the name of our bus.

Link
[/youtube]
_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[LazyLightning75]

A little more progress on the bus. Nothing earth shattering, but it feels good to get a few more things completed.

Installed new Koni shocks on the front and back of the bus. Ah, much nicer ride than the old worn out shocks.

Also finished installing the seal on the rear window. Stripped and painted the metal work around the vent window back there.

After I ordered all the parts and was half way through replacing the seals, I realized that I should have just pulled it all out and replaced it with a solid window and single seal. One less thing to leak. The vent window is a leftover from the bus' life as a transporter and not needed any more. Duh! Next time I replace the seals back there, I'll replace the window.

The rear panel cover on the back of the bus was looking a little rough too, so I stripped it down to bare metal, primed, and painted it. Also replaced the rubber seal between the panel cover and the body (seal slips into the grove that the panel cover fits into).

Before and after shot of the painted rear panel cover.

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[LazyLightning75]

Plugging away on the bus. Got a few more things done.

My gas pedal felt like mush and seemed to be sinking farther down into the floor every time I drove the bus. I knew something was not right. Pulled it apart, cleaned, and replaced the return spring and pin. Also, ordered the Butty's Bits throttle linkage kit and installed it. Wow, night and day difference from before.

Check out the angle on the gas pedal before the fix.

Broken spring and worn connecting rod.

Butty's Bits throttle linkage installed.

Much better angle on the gas pedal after the fix. I later covered the hole with a square of closed-cell foam with a slit for installation.

Replaced the rear panel cover behind the slider. Had to order a new one since it looks like the slider smashed into it at one point in time. Here are a few before and after pictures.

Installed the Blazecut fire suppression system and a new fire extinguisher on the front of my box.

Lastly, laminated the faux wood piece onto a new fiberboard hatch panel and installed with some generic plastic screw-rivets from the local auto parts store.

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[Pinetops]

Nice, it looks better and better.
_________________
"A rolling bus gathers no rust."

[Ives676]

Loving the updates!
_________________
1974 Riviera - Subaru EJ22
Build Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=630031

[LazyLightning75]

I always appreciate the comments. Got a few more things checked off the list before I tore into my instrument cluster and got stuck.

Shifting into reverse and down shifting into second had gotten a little tricky. Thought I'd pull the pedal pan and check out the front bushing on the shift rod. Where'd that thing go?

Pulled it all out and cleaned up all the parts. The grease (if you can call it that) was hard as a rock.

I found what was left of the shift rod bushing. It had slid back up the shift rod.

Had to work around the carpet, but got it all put back together. Took if for a spin. Between the new Butty's Bits throttle kit and the new shift bushing, the bus feels 20 years younger.

I also tackled my non-functional dome light. Nothing like trying to load kids into the bus in the dark. Pulled off the light cover and little pieces of plastic rained down on me. Fixed the contact and the broken plastic that holds it in place with some JB Weld. It's not pretty, but that stuff is strong.

Cleaned the contacts (at tip of razor blade) and gently bent them upward for better contact with the switch. Also added a little dielectric grease to them.

Headliner was sagging too, so I glued that back in place with some contact cement. That stuff works well, if you give it 15-20 minutes to get tacky before sticking it in place.

Replaced the slider door light switch which was stuck closed.

Viola light! Oh, the little things that make you happy.

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[wcfvw69]

Nice job! You're lucky to have the original shift plate in it. The originals work night and day better than the lousy aftermarket ones sold today.

It's amazing what a few dollars and a few hours does to make these buses drive so much better.
_________________
Contact me at [email protected]
Follow me on instagram @sparxwerksllc

Decades of VW and VW parts restoration experience.
The Samba member since 2004.

**Now rebuilding throttle bodies for VW's and Porsche's**
**Restored German Bosch distributors for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored German Pierburg fuel pumps for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche fuel pumps or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche distributors or I can restore yours**

[LazyLightning75]

You're right, Bill. Less than ten dollars in parts for today.
_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[KentABQ]

[kenryan]

LL75
Thanks so much for your thread.
It can't have come at a better time for me.
Just starting on my 75 Riviera after 7 years in storage.
I especially appreciated the tip on the trim from McMaster for the fiberglass top... had been wondering what to do there.
I'm in MN and we'll post a few pictures to show my project but don't want to confuse your thread with more than a few.
Thanks again for the detailed glimpses into your progress.
Ken Ryan Alexandria MN

[LazyLightning75]

Glad to hear there's some helpful information in this thread. I would have struggled with a lot of this stuff if it wasn't for all the helpful threads that other people have posted on the Samba. The Google search function in this website is a wonderful resource for finding information. Good luck on your Riviera and let us know what you learn.
_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[kenryan]

Hi LL,
Thank you so much for the play-by-play on repairing the sliding side window.
I was about to send mine back to Peninsula glass to have them rebuild it when I found your thread.
You save me a ton of time and probably money.
Can you give me the source for the felt the channel liners and for the seals?
You mentioned that those came from a vintage trailer site.
Could you possibly share a link on that.
Thanks so much, really appreciate the time you're taking to document this built.
Ken

[LazyLightning75]

Hi Ken - Glad you pulled some useful information out of this thread. I was in the same boat as you. Even talked to the folks at Peninsula Window about rebuilding mine. Got to be too expensive with shipping, parts and labor, and I just decided to give it a try on my own. It's very doable and I'm happy with how they turned out.

Bought the channel seals and window felt from vintagetrailersupply.com

The seals were an exact fit. Check out earlier in my thread for the specifications. The felts were way off, but I managed to trim them down with scissors and a utility knife to fit. They push down in the channel, so you can't see any imperfections. However, I did hear from another Samba member that you could buy the felts from Peninsula. You might try to email them, if you're looking for an exact fit. I decided to take my chances on what I thought was a close fit instead (lots of trimming - take it slow). Good luck with your window rebuild!

I'm on the road this week (sans bus), so no bus time for the past couple weeks. I'm lining up parts for the next project and hoping to get back at it soon.
_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[LazyLightning75]

I've been tinkering around with my instrument cluster. When I bought the bus, neither the speedometer nor the odometer worked. The glass for all the gauges was rattling around, the brake warning light lens was broken, and the cylinder head gauge had fallen out of place. Here are a few pictures of what it all looked like:

WARNING - disconnect the negative cable on the battery before you pull your instrument cluster out! And, keep an eye out for the clips that hold it in place. They will fall out when you loosen them.

I numbered all the wires as I removed them on both the wire and back of the gauge cluster to make sure I could put everything back as it was.

I pulled the back off the gauge cluster and found the odometer gear was broken. You can order a new one from Odometer Gears Ltd. It wasn't an exact match as the old one, but they said it would work okay. It's a bitch to push on, but I finally got it centered.

The reason the speedo didn't work was because the glass was sitting against the needle. There is a metal ring that holds the glass in place. The ring slips into plastic notches inside the gauge housing. Almost all my plastic notches were broken. I slipped the ring into those that still worked and hot glued every one in place.

The gel strip for the warning lights looked like crap, so I colored it up a bit with some pens. Looks marginally better. Wish I could just find a nice replacement for it.

I bought a bracket and moved the cylinder head gauge down below the dash and bought an aftermarket clock to fill its old spot in the gauge cluster.

I also found a brake warning light lens from the Thing Shop. It's a tight fit, but I got it to work.

I replaced my hazard light switch too. The cover literally fell off the thing. I read you can zip tie it back together, but I opted to just replace it.

I also replaced all the bulbs while I had the gauge cluster apart and upgraded the dash illumination lights per the Ratwell "upgrade" recommendation. I like the old school glow of the lights.

I was missing one of the clips that holds the gauge cluster to the dash, so I just made one out of a copper fastener that I had laying around.

Got it all put back together and everything works. Apparently miracles do happen. I still have a few loose wires under the dash that I need to clean up.

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[LazyLightning75]

The work continues! Nothing earth shattering - just a little project here and there. I finished up the seals, felt channels, and scrapers on the two front doors this weekend. I now have new rubbers on all windows around the bus. To finish the front doors, I bought the Bus Depot "door seal kit". I was pretty happy with the fit of everything with a few exceptions noted below.

Front door seal condition.

Scraper condition.

Felt condition.

Just a few notes for anyone tackling this job. If you replace the felt channel (one long piece) on the upper and back frame of the window, buy some extra clips. I broke three of them getting them out. They were very brittle. Each window requires five clips. The new ones are a little longer, but they work real well.

If you do the rubber around the vent window, you're going to need to order a replacement rivet if you want that near factory look. If not, you're going to have to find something that works at the hardware store. You have to grind or drill the old rivet out to remove it. Here's my new one installed. Installing it is a little tricky. I had to use a vise and ball bearing to get the end to mushroom and then hammer it flat.

Replacing the vent rubber and felt.

The BD inner scraper has a slightly different clip that was impossible to insert in my door. Save your old clip from the scraper and re-use it.

Like I said, most of the BD stuff fit real well. However, I didn't love the felt for the upper and back channel of the window. It didn't fit the clips real well and didn't fill the space in the channel like the factory felt. I ended up ordering two new ones (one for each door) from Wolfsburg West. Much better.

BD on left, WW in middle, and factory on right.

Also, if you want to get that bend perfect on the felt before trying to bend and cram it into the door frame - remove the window from the door and use it as a template. Way easier.

I used this stuff to remove the old glue on the door and to adhere the new seal.

Plastic Clamps work well to hold the corners until they set.

Finished product shots. With everything replaced, the road/engine noise is way quieter in the cab now.

I also re-did my vaper barrier and added the missing flap that several of you pointed out. My bus (and I) thank you for that!

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI

[wcfvw69]

Of all the work I've done on my bus, the window disassembly and then reassembly with new felts, rubbers and associated parts was my least favorite. Excellent tip using the original ring on the inner scraper. I did the same. I also bought the vent wing rubber from CIP-1 which was a VW of Brazil seal in the factory package. It fit PERFECT. I was super happy with it.

Nice write up.
_________________
Contact me at [email protected]
Follow me on instagram @sparxwerksllc

Decades of VW and VW parts restoration experience.
The Samba member since 2004.

**Now rebuilding throttle bodies for VW's and Porsche's**
**Restored German Bosch distributors for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored German Pierburg fuel pumps for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche fuel pumps or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche distributors or I can restore yours**

[LazyLightning75]

I have an oil leak that is progressively getting worse. I can't really tell where it's coming from. I'm hoping it's just the seals on push rod tubes, but I'm not really sure. I have them on order since they're inexpensive and everything else that is a rubber gasket, seal or hose on the bus seems to need replacement. Any other thoughts or obvious places I should check?

This was after a thirty minute drive around town.

You can see a couple of drips in the photo below.

_________________
1975 Riviera 1.8L FI