San Diego 1963 Double Cab "Gustav"

[Shoyrtt]

If you do take it to the DMV to register, put an engine in it. I took our bus that was last titled in Utah in 86 to the CA DMV. Vin numbers and bill of sale in hand I thought I was set making sure that I complied with the rule that you have 10 days to register it from the date of sale, or pay a penalty. DMV inspector lady had no idea where to look. I had the bus on a trailer and she had me climb into the bus and read her the number on the vent only. I told her there was a number in engine bay and she said "no, that's ok". I then march into the office with my completed inspection thinking everything was easy. Inside they tell me they can't register the vehicle without a engine. I politely tell them that the vin# on the engine will never match the bus. They respond with it is their "policy" without any further explanation. So I then ask about the 10 day rule. The clerk says not to worry, it is only a $10 penalty. This state is crazy.

[Lee Hedges]

I've received a few uShip transport quotes for the non-running DC from $2400-2600 so far. That's just too much to swallow. So I'll be searching for a MO shop within reasonable range of Dixon MO to reassemble the current engine, install it, and get it running well enough to be driven onto a multi-car transport truck.

I've received two recommendations to have the DC serviced at B&C VW Service nearby, so it's was transferred to this shop in late-July. Thanks Glen & Bill! Mike at B&C plans to get a running engine installed and test it prior to having it picked-up by a transport truck to San Diego.

[Lee Hedges]

One of the fun parts of buying a new VW is to research its history. Tim Maring (IL) remembered seeing it & recalled who'd owned it. I contacted the previous owners & service shops that worked on it via Facebook and learned a great deal about it's life. It was a true "barn find".

1. Sold as USA export model truck and delivered to San Francisco port for distribution to dealership.
2. A few years after being sold it was the primary farm truck for Donald Charles Heuer in Cape Girardeau Missouri. Don owned Heuer Farms, a large horse & cow farm on Cape La Croix Road. The truck was driven by the farm workers and was used to transport farm equipment & hay for the animals. In the 1990's it was regularly serviced at OJ's in town, run by Orville & Jay Grim. In 1996 it was stored in the barn in Cape Girardeau and it remained there for 15 years. In August 2011 Don asked cousins Dustin Grim & Thomas Allen to come to the barn to replace the accelerator cable and they took a driving video when they first got it running again. Dustin’s father Jay had tried for 15 years to convince Don to sell him the truck. But in late-2011 Don suffered a stroke and so after 40+ years he decided it was time to sell it. It had gone 200,000 miles at that time.
3. On 18 January 2012 Don offered it to Dustin & Thomas for $2000 but since Dustin didn't have the money he convinced Thomas Allen to buy it. He took two pics of it in the barn and it had already been painted green & white but it was in complete, unmodified, running condition with original gray interior panels. In Feb-Mar 2012 it was featured in the SEMO musical theater production "Sweet Charity". In June 2012 they drove it to the Funfest in Illinois & I was able to get pics from this event including a great one of the guys sitting in the bed during the Funfest Cruise (below). It was stored for a year after that as Thomas moved to Leadwood Missouri with his girlfriend.
4. In March 2013 Thomas traded it to another VW collector, Glen Puller in Dixon MO. The truck was traded for a running 1963 Panel Van + cash. Glen spent time repairing the brakes & building a fresh engine but never got it to the driving stage. Wanting to buy a KG Convertible, he decided to sell the truck a year later.
5. It was listed on theSamba in July 2014 for $12,500 and immediately bought by Lee Hedges in San Diego California to restore as a family cruiser.

[So.Cal Danny]

Great looking bus dude. Looking forward to keeping up to date with the restoration

[Lee Hedges]

I love good news on a Friday!

The original engine for our October 1962 truck was not included with the purchase, as it had been replaced many decades earlier. Needing to get an engine built anyway, I'd been hoping to find an engine that was built during the same timeframe. The shop in Missouri couldn't find one and the closest I'd been able to find on the ads was a case from September 1962.

But this morning, sitting with a hot cup of coffee checking the ads, I was surprised to find an October 1962 engine case! The number is #7 165 037 which places its production date between 04-06 October 1962, only a day or two after the truck's production date of 04 October 1962. Trent Harp (Texas) said it was from Lyle Cherry's shop when it closed down in 2012, removed in the early 1970's when owners were putting dual port engines in. He's able to ship it for $25, so for $75 I've got an original case. It's funny how excited I can get when I've found something I didn't anticipate being able to find!

I'm planning to have VW Paradise (my trusted engine builder for 25+ years) build a nice 1600cc with Engle 110 cam & dual carbs so the truck can move along with ease.

[cru62]

[Lee Hedges]

Yes, I know the 1967 VIN plate is not the best choice. I got it to see if I could make it presentable and after a week of working it, it's clear that there's no way to make it flat & clean enough to restamp numbers.

The next choice is to buy an unstamped VIN plate, borrow a reverse stamping kit with the authentic VW font, and give it a go. If I can dirty the VIN plate up to match the rest of the truck then it just might work. So I won the ebay auction for a blank one today.

Another thought is to repair the sheetmetal stamp in the sheetmetal to the right of the engine. That would be easier to inspect without climbing behind the engine to inspect the VIN plate.

Getting the VIN # reassigned by the DMV/CHP is my last option.

[cru62]

The VIN plate in the engine compartment is more for the GVW than the actual VIN. You might want to concentrate on the stamped VIN in the engine compartment. That is going to be your biggest hurdle. The Euro font and size of those stamps make them hard to find in the US.
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"My biggest worry is that when I die, my wife will sell all my parts for what I told her I paid for them"-Jon

Jokes about German sausage are the wurst.

Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery!

[Lee Hedges]

Today the old engine case was finally delivered from Texas. I was super excited to discover what the date stamp was on the case. I was really hoping it would be as close to the Double Cab’s production date of 04 October 1962. Typically the original engine would have been built a week or two before the vehicle was built, so it could be installed when the vehicle was finished. But this October 1962 case was the closest 40hp one I could find available.

The 40hp engine cases have two round date-stamps in the top area of the large end that houses the clutch. One round date-stamp for the left half case & one for the right half case. The stamping scheme consists of three sets of numbers. First set is the day (DD), second set is the month (MM), and the next set is the shift (1-3) & last digit of the year. So it turns out that one case half was built on 09 October 1962 on the first shift and the other case half was built the following day on 10 October 1962 on the third shift.

09 October 1962 is only five days later than the Double Cab truck! That’s almost too good to be true! I’m very happy with finding this case so close to the truck’s production date.

[razoredge34]

I love it, very cool project.

Scott
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Scott Perry
Simi Valley, California

[Lee Hedges]

Just got a call from Mike at B&C VW Service in Missouri. He confirmed that he was able to install the 1961 Beetle engine into the truck and get it running well enough to be loaded onto/off of the transport truck. He swapped-out the long block for the complete 1961 engine, added a 12V coil & battery, installed an exhaust, and test-drove the truck. He said the 1961 engine was surprisingly peppy for not having been rebuilt. Total cost was $150! Great to know there are still some air-cooled VW service shops that work for reasonable rates.

Here's Glen (previous owner) & Mike (B&C owner) posing with Mike's restored 1963 Double Cab that's headed down to Buses Nowhere near the Arch this weekend.

I got a $1500 transport quote to get the truck from Missouri to San Diego. The truck is in a rural area of central Missouri, so it costs more since it's not near any major highway. I've decided to have it delivered to my home so I can begin to strip the nasty paint & surface rust.

Here's the Jack Adams VW in Cape Girardeau license plate frame I found (in the Netherlands!) with the old California license plates that will be fitted. I also was lucky to find an original Jack Adams VW service booklet with the plastic owner's credit card-style service card!

[BURLESON OVAL]

Glad you are happy with the engine case. It is amazing that the manufacture date is so close to the production date of your Double Cab. I look forward to watching the progress of your project.

Thanks again.

Trent

[nevadaheat]

[notchboy]

I think Ill plan a weekend trip around its arrival. I want to go visit anyway because of my dads poor health and the fact that I didn't get to see everyone last time I was down.

So get the beers frosty and save me a wrench to get working with!
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[BulliBill]

Hi Lee,

I'm glad that my recommendation of Mike & Laurie McCurdy at B & C Auto Service in mid-Missouri worked out well! Great folks, I saw them briefly at my BNNTA Camping weekend (last weekend) and missed talking with them. I'm glad they took care of you so well. Is the DC on the transport truck and on the way to your door yet? We want photos/video of it's arrival and your first drive down the street!

Bill Bowman
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I'm looking for these license plate frames for my fleet:
Coeur D'Alene - Lake Shore Volkswagen
Mission VW - San Fernando
Thornton VW - Stockton

Thanks for any help!

[Lee Hedges]

ARRIVAL IN SAN DIEGO
The transport truck delivered the Double Cab on Saturday 13 September 2014 at dusk. I had him unload a couple of blocks from my home so the trailer could get out easily. When the driver texted that he was there, I told my wife I was going out for a Starbucks coffee. When the driver got inside, it started right up, idled well, and he backed down off of the trailer. Signed-off on the papers & paid the $1300 cash.

So I get in the truck, start it up, and put in reverse. The clutch was way out of alignment, letting-out at the top of the pedal, barely engaging. But it was moving under it’s own power, so that was OK. I drove about a block and heard ka-thunk, ka-thunk sounds coming from the driver’s front wheel and pulled over to inspect the issue. Two freakin’ lug nuts on the left-front tire and the right-front one only had three! The transport process must have shaken them loose. Both rears tires had five, so I removed two from the rears and tightened the front tires up tight. Crazy! When I went to restart it, the key did nothing (dead battery?), so I bump-started it backwards and drove it carefully home. Got it into the driveway and up into the garage space then shut it down. Phew! Success! When I went to the back to take a look, I saw a long line of oil drips leaking from the engine leading up my driveway and into the garage. So much for a strong 1961 engine. It’ll be replaced anyway with the October 1962 one I found.

So I spend a few minutes installing the new front turn signals into the holes, added the new gray hub caps, and slapped the magnetic Slow Moving Vehicle sign onto the rear gate. I had not previously told my wife or kids about this truck purchase, so when my 7 year old daughter Tessa said there were spiders in the garage I told her there’s nothing in the garage except Gus. Gus, she asked? I said “Yes, Gus is in the garage, go check it out”. My wife figured something was up so she followed Tessa to the garage and got her first look at Gustav, the truck. Tessa said “That’s awesome, can we go camping in it?” Allison said "So Cuuuuuuute! I want to spend the night in the bed". And my wife Kathe took it a lot better than I had expected, asking questions about how it got it, when I bought it, and how it got to the garage. I showed her a photo of a restored Light Gray Double Cab and she said it looked great. And then she asked if she could learn to drive stickshift to be able to take Gus to the grocery store. So now I have a vision for this restoration project, it’s finally here in San Diego, and the family likes it.

[Lee Hedges]

Now that the truck is home I can begin taking photos of the current condition before I begin any work. It's always good to look back and feel good about how far you've come as work progresses.

Rusty areas that will need to be cut-out & welded with fresh metal are in the typical areas. Rocker panels & lower dog legs of the front cab entry. The front cab floor area has already been messed with in an attempt to provide a useful floor, so that will need to be replaced as well. Metal behind the front seats is clean & unrusty.

[norcalmike]

Congrats on the DC. Bummer about the missing Plate.
I had my vin verified by a private company. Guy was cool, he just looked at the plate behind the seat. Good thing because my stamp was gone.
I would get everything verified as is before you start restamping stuff or trying to mess with that rusted engine stamp.
CHP dont play around with altered vins unless they did it themselves

[Lee Hedges]

First priority was to replace the missing lug nuts and clean the mice nests from the interior. Next priority is to strip the paint. It had been badly painted dark green on the lower body & white on the roof. Since it was a farm truck there were scrapes (imagine Freddie Kruger using it to sharpen his knives) down into the paint with surface rust coming through. So the paint needed to go.

Used a DA & 80/250 sandpaper pads to remove the multiple layers of paint to get to the bare metal. Surprisingly the metal is in very good condition underneath! I was able to push out the large dents in the driver's door & nose, so that was a nice surprise. But there are large dents in the beltline area on both front doors that likely will not push-out.

[chrismredsox1]

Did Ellie have to sacrifice her garage space for Gustav?!?