Rear End Operation?

[Bomzin]

I've been reading these forums for some time now. Nice place you have here and I've always been able to find my info. Now I seem to have something up but can't put my finger on it.

Little about my vehicle. Off road tub frame buggy. Had it for about 8 years and the best I can tell may be a mixture of years. I just changed out the engine and it came from a '68. Assuming the trasmission is the same.

My old engine had weak compression. I got a deal on a newly rebuilt and went for it. Before in the dirt I could never really spin the tires. With this new engine in I have BOTH tires spinning in the dirt for a good 15'. When I saw this I was surprised Both tires were spinning.

Here is my question. Does a bug trans differential work the same as a regular differential. With both tires off the ground in back if I spin one forward the other usually spins backwards on a regular open differential. When I try this, never noticed before. The other tire doesn't spin in either direction when one side is turned. To make matters stranger the tire I'm turning only turns for 3/4 of a revolution before locking. I then have to turn the other tire in order to get the tire I was turning to move . This just seems strange to me.

Even if somehow I had some sort of positraction . I think both tires should turn when I spin one from one side.

With the car in gear I have little play , was right when I checked it against the book but didn't get anymore information about what I am seeing.

Now my question is. Is this normal ? Do I have some sort of Limited Slip- Positraction or is my trans just getting ready to blow up. It's not making any funny noises and seems to be running ok. I do have limited time on it since making this revelation.

Hello from Utah

[Bomzin]

So I went out and took it off the trailer. Jacked up one side leaving one tire on the ground,passenger side. Couldn't drive off Jack. One tire spins freely.

Jacked up both tires.

In neutral when spinning passenger other tire starts to spin backwards then does a bump after a rotation and try's to spin forward . Will just keep sitting there doing alittle bump , spinning backwards rotation from the other tire and then making a soft bump and reverses direction for 1/4 tire rotation.

When spinning driver side tire after one rotation it hits that bump. I didn't push hard enough on it before . If I get the momentum up on the driver side that bump kicks both tires in the same direction. This appears spinning the driver side either forward or backwards. Spinning one side makes the other go in the same direction.

Could I have a limited slip or some sort . I thought with a limited slip you spin either tire forward , other tire would go forward.

It just seems odd to me. When I put it back down I'm putting down driver side first and see what that nets me.

[vugbug68]

I'm not too sure but i think limited slips allow the wheel to turn so far freely of each other before locking, which it what sounds like is happening to yours. I don't think VW put a limited slip in any type 1 trannys but that doesn't mean someone else didn't. The fact that you couldn't drive off the jack tells me that its probably not limited slip, I actually got my super beetle stuck because i tried to go up a driveway at a funny angle and it lifted one of my rear wheels off the ground and it was spinning lol yeah my suspension is pretty stiff!
_________________
71 Super - Backroad Thrasher
66 Corvair - Weekend Cruiser
90 4 Runner - Muddin

[Bomzin]

Well I just didn't perform my first search right or something. Dug some deaper and Samba came through again.

This post. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/archive/index.php/o-t--t-78901--.html