TheSamba.com :: View topic - Wolfsburg West Okrasa kit

Mon Apr 02, 2012 12:46 am

I've taken this unusual step of setting up a feedback thread on these repro Wolfsburg West twin port heads. If you have personal experience of these repro heads, please contribute to this new topic.

They, I believe, have sold very well so there should be enough information and feedback from actual users to come to a reliable conclusion.

WW please note: I have no personal agenda in starting this topic other than getting an accurate assessment to address questions that have in the past been asked and continue to be asked of this product.

Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:30 am

On my WW kit, it was discovered that the seating area for one of the cylinders was very thin (2mm), and there was concern about getting blow by. In the end, bigger cylinders and flycut heads were used to get around the problem. Also, it was found that a couple of the valves were leaky, and the top of one of the manifolds - between the manifold and the carb - was badly distorted, presumably from the welding process and had to be filed flat, by hand, to eliminate the huge air leak that was occuring. I found it impossible to get the carbs to open fully with the linkage supplied, and had to move one of the pivot points to get the carbs anywhere near fully open. I haven´t yet resolved that issue.

Mon Apr 02, 2012 6:44 pm

:? http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=363242

Mon Apr 02, 2012 6:47 pm

hazetguy wrote: :? http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=363242
D'oh

Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:21 am

hazetguy wrote: :? http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=363242

Hmmm yes to be honest I did forget about that topic but I was hoping we could get basic feedback without the baggage of in depth dissection and adaptation of the kit.

Nothing wrong with the topic you've highlighted but I was aiming more at feedback for the average Joe who would like to know if the kit is a "bolt-up and go."

Just simpler style Pros and Cons from the people who have bought the kit. Let's see how it goes.

Tue Apr 03, 2012 3:29 pm

John Moxon wrote: hazetguy wrote: :? http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=363242

Hmmm yes to be honest I did forget about that topic but I was hoping we could get basic feedback without the baggage of in depth dissection and adaptation of the kit.

Nothing wrong with the topic you've highlighted but I was aiming more at feedback for the average Joe who would like to know if the kit is a "bolt-up and go."

Just simpler style Pros and Cons from the people who have bought the kit. Let's see how it goes.
X2 :wink:

Tue Apr 03, 2012 6:36 pm

9K on mine so far :) Just had it out for a cruise and the GPS said I hit 90 MPH
I put a roller pedal in mine to help with the full throttle(old style linkage)
Been on a couple 1000 mile trips in it with no problems and~ 30MPG~ :D

Tue Apr 03, 2012 9:04 pm

60ragtop wrote: 9K on mine so far :) Just had it out for a cruise and the GPS said I hit 90 MPH
I put a roller pedal in mine to help with the full throttle(old style linkage)
Been on a couple 1000 mile trips in it with no problems and~ 30MPG~ :D Are you rollin the kit straight outta the box? Did you do anything asfar as rebuilding your 36 in anyway??

Tue Apr 03, 2012 9:26 pm

~2,000 miles into the first kit sold and no problems...it's been a joy each and every time.

It was bolted onto a rebuilt stock 36hp in minutes straight from the WW box and ran decent with no adjustments. I found it easy to tune & sync the carbs along with setting up the OG style linkage (done warm)...longest trip 500 miles, it loved it and wanted dessert.

Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:44 pm

Out of the box bolt on ran good. CSP linkage needed some tweeking to get equal and full throttle. After beating on it for a while took the heads off for chamber work, porting and decking and found the intake valve keeper grooves were hammered and the intake springs lost some of their seat pressure. Of course we were running it at 5000 and 5500 rpm and had some valve float.

The engine is in my daily driver SC and still runs great even after making 5 passes at Bonneville, takes a beating and keeps on ticking

Wed Apr 04, 2012 3:27 am

12 000 Km (7 000 miles) since March 2011;
Stock crank and cam;
Rebuilt engine (crank and rod bearings, P&C)
External bypass oil filter.

No problems with the heads. It was a general good fit, except the accelerator cable mecanism (OG style). It was necessary to put there some small ball bearings in order to have a good and free rotation movement of the vertical cylinder where the accel cable attaches. With this litle mod it can get a full throtlle situation.

The stock jetting with the PBICs was too big/rich for an "internal" stock engine. Still trying to find a better set up with the carbs jets.
Max speed ? 130 Km/h

I'm very happy with it .

Wed Apr 04, 2012 2:27 pm

Didnt think of leak testing my WW heads until i read this tread, all of my valves where leaking, seems like exhaust valves are the worst.

Kristian
Norway

Wed Apr 04, 2012 4:43 pm

Hello-

Any comments about the repro Solex carbs? When the kit first cam out, Mr. Okrasa pointed out that they needed some work right out of the box to work properly (I believe the thottle bushings were leaking). Has anyone else had this, or other problems with the WW carbs?

Cheers,

Paul

Wed Apr 04, 2012 9:20 pm

gimmesomeshelter wrote: Hello-

Any comments about the repro Solex carbs? When the kit first cam out, Mr. Okrasa pointed out that they needed some work right out of the box to work properly (I believe the thottle bushings were leaking). Has anyone else had this, or other problems with the WW carbs?

Cheers,

Paul

I just cleaned all the casting flash out of 2 sets and had to reset the throttle shaft butterflys on 2 of them. I'm also making some throttle shaft washers.
The ones on my daily driver are holding up great. Did have a few leaks when first installed but were easily fixed.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 12:16 am

Looks like the repro kit is now complete. WW have just added a forged 25/36hp 69.5mm crank: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=506589

Thu Apr 05, 2012 5:55 pm

I started fresh with mine. 69.5 crank, brgs, cam & lifters, rebuilt rods. Stock 77mm low mileage p&c which I just re-ringed. I set the CR to 8-1. I took apart the carbs and cleaned them up a bit. Also re-jetted them, I am at 4500'

Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:09 am

My customer bought a very well used and beaten down 36hp which I then slapped the WW kit on. Ran fine no complaints. I think it even had a cracked ring on number 2 :? CSP linkage was easy to setup and tune. Quality seemed top notch. No complaints here!! My customer later disassembled and sold the kit.

Tue Apr 17, 2012 8:47 pm

Can we confirm there is an improvement in performance with this kit? I read in another thread that there was very little improvement in HP or noticeable power.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=501032&highlight=okrasa

Trevor

Tue Apr 17, 2012 11:07 pm

ThreeSpeed wrote: Can we confirm there is an improvement in performance with this kit? I read in another thread that there was very little improvement in HP or noticeable power.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=501032&highlight=okrasa

Trevor

An easy 15hp + improvement

Wed Apr 18, 2012 12:14 am

ThreeSpeed wrote: Can we confirm there is an improvement in performance with this kit? I read in another thread that there was very little improvement in HP or noticeable power.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=501032&highlight=okrasa

Trevor

If you're driving a 36hp you'll find a very noticeable improvement. This is a Vintage bolt-on upgrade embraced by the "Vintage Speed" enthusiast so their agenda is totally different from recommendations you're likely to get from the "Performance Engine" enthusiast.

If you want your engine to look correct for the period in which it was produced, it's the way to go. If you're not concerned with period correctness, then there are a lot of larger engine transplants available.