TheSamba.com :: View topic - 1968 Type 1

Thu Dec 27, 2012 10:53 am

@ Busdriver 79 - I purchased the split axle boots from Cip1 - part number C24-111-598-021-A. They were wrapped in packaging from VW/Audi and came with the crimp style clamps - they fit well and I thought the quality was great as well. I replaced the clamps with screw type clamps. Link below (they are on sale right now if you need them, act fast):

http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=C24%2D111%2D598%2D021%2DA

@rbrandes - yeah, the pictures I have taken along the way have helped the most during the re-install process - benefit of the digital age. I take pictures from every angle so things go back the correct way (assuming they were correct to begin with :wink: ). As a side note, I also kept every part I took off until I installed the replacement part. This was a big benefit for the brake lines, since I could use the old brake line as a guide to bend the new brake lines. Made the install easier, but you are right, it creates quite the parts stack! Good luck with the restoration and when you start...post it!

Mon Jan 07, 2013 6:25 am

I see that you are going along well with the build and it looks awesome!! With as little rust as your car has I'm jealous, mine was/has seemed like it has been from scratch with the steel I've replaced... :roll:

Anyway, I see that your 68 is an early 68, (by the swing axle). I have a late 68 with IRS and from what I have gathered, the 68 was a year that VW had decided to change up things... :shock:

So for a heads up...
If the gas tank has a one piece fuel filler hose, like the one in the pic below, then a 2" Fuel Filler hose for a Bobcat will work. It has a slight angle to it that works perfect with a trim... :wink:

You may want to install a sway bar for the rear if you don't have one. IRS ellimentated that part...

There are more minor changes but you may not run into them.

Keep the pics coming...

Nice job!

And Ref Pic

Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:00 pm

UPDATE: OK, worked on finishing the rear axle and brakes. I replaced the rear axle seals, wheel cylinders and generally just cleaned things up. I also, painted the back side of the backing plates so everything matches with the rear axle tubes and to keep rust at bay on the outside. I know a step by step of replacing the axle seals can be found elsewhere, but I decided to do a step by step below with pictures for other newbies so certain procedures are in one thread. The steps start after the rear drum and brake components are removed. See below.

Step 1 - Remove the 4 14mm bolts that hold the bearing cover plate and brake backing plate to the axle.

Step 2 - Begin to remove the cover slowly and keep track of the seals and gaskets that you have. Just take a look before you take things off just to orient yourself to the placement of the seals and other items. My cover came right off. You may need to tap on the sides of it lightly in case a ton of form a gasket was used (e.g. permatex).

Step 3 - Remove the bearing cover and the gaskets. Also remove the large O-ring that goes around the bearing and rests against the backing plate.

Step 4 - The bearing cover has an oil spinner and a seal. You may also find a large spacer with the cover or the large spacer will be on the axle. Remove the spacer if still on the axle.

Step 5 - You should now see a smaller o-ring against a shim that rests against the bearing. Remove both. The o-ring can be lightly scraped out with a small screwdriver. Mine was split and was likely the cause of the leak. Remove the small o-ring and the shim that is right behind it.

Step 6 - See picture below. Here are all of the pieces there were removed. Bearing cover, oil spinner, seal, spacer, shim, small o-ring, large o-ring and 2 gaskets. (I marked each item in the picture). I purchased (from WBW) an axle seal kit that replaced everything but the cover. All new, clean and neat.

Step 7 - The bearing cover will have a seal and the oil spinner in it. You will have to remove the seal without marring up the inside of the bearing cover so you can re-install a new seal without any problems. I put the seal in a vise and then pried the seal off with a large screwdriver. What worked for me was to place the tip of the screwdriver under the seal where the small drain hole is. The seal rests on a small metal lip and that can block the screwdriver from getting under the seal. There is a small area right where the drain hole is;it is easy to get the screwdriver under the seal without messing up the lip. It was a lot easier to get the seal out once I took this approach. With the seal out, you can also remove the oil spinner which will fall right out once you remove the cover from the vice.

Step 8 - Clean and prepare the bearing cover for install. I removed all of the crud and old grease and oil from the cover. I also removed any old gasket from the bearing cover and the backing plate. Most important, make sure you clean out that little hole that is on the bottom of the cover. That hole is used to drain out any fluid that gets past the seals and allows the fluid to drain out of the back so the brakes do not get soaked with trans oil. I cleaned it out with brake cleaner and a small screwdriver that fit in the hole perfectly to get rid of the old crusty trans oil.

Step 9 - Insert the bearing cover back in the vice so that the little drain hole can be seen. Insert the oil spinner, which will go in real easy and
just rests loosely inside the cover. Next place the new oil seal inside the bearing cover (seal face down as pictured) and lightly tap it with a hammer to get it seated. You still need to get the seal deeper into the bearing cover.

Step 10 - Using the old seal you took out and a small piece of wood (I used a piece from a 2x4) place the old seal directly over the new seal and place the wood piece over that. Make sure the old seal does not move. Place the cover in a vise, crank, and apply pressure. The new seal will sit right down into the bearing cover.

Step 11 - Depending on the amount of crud you have, you may want to remove the backing plate and clean it up with brake cleaner. Pay special attention to the basin that is right above where the brake adjusting stars are inserted. This collects any grease and oil that gets past the seals and the small drain hole. Mine was full of crud and had to be cleaned out. I used a small wire brush and a small screwdriver to scrape the old crud out. This basin also has a small drain hole on each side (left and right side of where the adjusting stars go) that needs to be cleaned out as well.

Step 12 - If you took the backing plate off to clean it up, replace it and make sure the wheel cylinder hole is at the top and the basin and adjusting star holder are on the bottom. Now install the larger o-ring around the bearing so it is next to the backing plate. Make sure the o-ring is not twisted up or it will likely spilt later on. Next, install the small shim and the small o-ring and place the o-ring against the small shim. Shim goes in first. Make sure the small o-ring is not twisted either.

Step 13 - Time to prepare the bearing cover for re-install. Next place the spacer into the bearing cover where the seal is. It will fit right inside the seal. The spacer has a beveled edge on one side and a flat edge on the other. The bevelled edge needs to face the bearing (axle) when it is installed. So when you put the spacer in the bearing cover, the beveled edge should be facing you. That beveled edge will fit against the small O-ring that is between the spacer and the shim. Place the 2 gaskets on the bearing cover and makre sure you line up the small drain hole so the gasket does not cover it. I used a small amount of form a gasket to keep the gaskets in place on the cover and each other.

Step 14 - Install the bearing cover. Make sure the backing plate is pushed against the axle tube so it does not push the large o-ring off of the bearing. The ring should keep it in place, but just make sure. Install the bearing cover with the 14mm bolts and you are good to go.

Now the wheels are back on and the backing plates are painted black and match the axle tubes, shocks, etc.

I hope that helps. I am just happy nothing is leaking now. I will re-check everything once the car gets moving. It was leaking just sitting so I know it is much better now. I cleaned up everything else and installed new wheel cylinders and cleaned up the adjusting stars. I put a little grease on the adjusting stars where the stars go into the backing plate. That way things stay lubed for adjusting the brakes later. Next I need to change the throw out bearing and a few other trans items and that should do it for the rear end of the car.

Fri Jan 11, 2013 10:53 pm

Cage, your pan is looking great! Everything is coming together beautifully. Not that i'm complaining, but with all that work you've done, why didn't you paint the trans too? :?

Sat Jan 12, 2013 3:39 pm

@Cmontoya9 - Great question. I have been fighting with myself over what to do, what not to do, it's going to be daily driver not a show car, etc. With the trans, I figured as long as it is clean and I can detect leaks, I would be content. The engine will be a different matter. Also, I am blowing my budget way out of the water :D Hey for a car I have had for 23 plus years, it is worth it.

I am already way beyond what I thought I would do to the bug. I thought I would do a little sanding, some paint, clean it up and get back on the road. Instead, I completely stripped the whole car, took the body off, replaced almost all of the parts, etc., etc., etc. As someone else on this thread stated...it becomes a life of its own. :D

Sat Jan 12, 2013 7:54 pm

Quote: ...it becomes a life of its own.

Too true!

Sat Jan 19, 2013 9:41 am

UPDATE - Install new clutch release (throw out) bearing...or so I thought. First, special thanks to "glutamodo" for giving me the idea to keep my old one and get it back to working order. My old bearing disc just rotated side to side about 1/2 inch and did not spin at all. Sure this topic has been covered extensively, but I did not find anything with pictures during the process, so here it goes.

I purchased a new clutch release bearing and when it arrived it looked very different than my old one and was a little thicker (front to back) as well. The new one has a plastic looking insert which just did not look right as well. Of course, the item that arrived looked different than the item pictured when I ordered the part. However, the part numbers matched so it must be how the item is manufactured these days (ordered from Cip 1). Below are pics of the new one, the old one and my clutch pressure plate - and of course a picture before I touch anything.

I did a search and did not see a step by step to do it, so I will add something here to keep this thread complete as I progress through the resto. Hopefully, it helps someone else along the way.

Get the old bearing apart to see what the heck is going on. The part of the bearing that presses against the clutch pressure plate (I call it the disc) is raised of course and is held in by a small dust cap that attaches from the other side of the assembly.

The picture below shows the small dust cap that holds the front part of the bearing disc in the assembly.

Given that the disc that touches the clutch pressure plate sticks out of the assembly and the small dust cap on the other side is resessed, I decided to put the bearing in my vice in a vertical position. I used a small piece of a 2x4 (same one I used to get my rear axle seals installed) and pressed the assembly just a little so things did not get marred up. It worked and the dust cap and the disc separated a little.

I noticed that the bearing assembly has 2 straight sides to it, one on the bottom and one on the top. Looked perfect to hold the assembly horizontally on the vice - VW had to do it originally for something :lol: . See pic.

BEFORE YOU TAKE IT APART. Note which side the disc is on and which side the small dust cap is on. Below are pics of the ball bearings. They are in the assembly a certain way and make sure it goes back the same way. The ball bearings sit in a tray and face one side of the assembly. My dust cap sits against the assembly side with all of the serial numbers and the manufacturer name (SACHS made in Germany).

So once in the vise, I was able to use a screwdriver and place it under the bearing disc (the part that touches the clutch pressure plate) and lightly pry it up little by little going around the entire disc. Be careful, the metal dust cap and the other metal rings that hold the ball bearings in are very thin and could bend and mar easily. The disc came right off and the small dust cap ring on the bottom simply fell off with no issues as well. Below are pics of the assembly. Next, time to get things cleaned up.

I cleaned up each piece with brake cleaner and a rag that does not leave any residual threads all over the place. After all the old grease was removed, I used my finger to move each ball bearing to make sure it moved freely and was not stuck or broken. Got everything back to a nice clean state, then repacked the bearings with grease and used my finger to rotate the bearings around the assembly with no problems - all seemed smooth. I also inspected the disc portion (the piece that the bearing actually touches and races around) and there was no marring or any indications that the piece was damaged.

Time for re-assembly. Basically, I only had to deal with 3 parts, the metal disc that goes against the clutch plate, the bearing housing and the dust cap that holds the pieces together. So, using the anvil part of my vice, I put the disc and the bearing housing together and face down. I then put the dust cap on the top. To get the dust cap into the disc and bearing, I used a 30mm socket which fit perfectly on the dust cap to drive it into the bearing assembly. I took pictures below, hope it helps. The pictures are of the pieces all cleaned up and ready for assembly.

Bearing all cleaned and ready for grease. I cleaned it all out with brake cleaner and clean rags which got rid of all the old grease. I made sure each ball bearing moved freely and was not stuck.

Here is the inside of the disc portion that goes against the clutch plate when the clutch pedal is pressed. Looks nice a clean with no scarring or anything like that from the ball bearings.

Here is the other side of the disc portion. In this photo, on the inside you can see a clean ring. That is where the dust cap sits once installed into the assembly. I used that to know when to stop pushing the dust cap in where it touches the disc portion. The dust cap basically holds the whole thing together.

Here is the 30 mm socket that fit perfectly in the dust cap and allowed me to drive the cap in with equal pressure all around. I tapped it lightly with a hammer then used a small piece of wood (2x4 block) and hammer to drive it in further. Finally, I put the assembly with the 30mm on the dust cap end and a the small wood block on the other end in the vice and gave the whole thing a light squeeze to make sure the dust cap seated in the piece. Worked with no issues and without bending the dust cap. All done.

Again, thanks to glutamodo for giving me the idea to take this thing apart. Also, here is a link provided to me by glutamodo that has a discussion and other threads regarding issues with new clutch release bearings.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6000571

Sun Jan 20, 2013 11:13 am

UPDATE. It is time to re-install the pedal assembly, clutch cable, bowden tube and a few rubber grommets. Pics below. I took a few pics of the pedal assembly from different angles since I know it comes up often where things go, or how does the brake pedal spring re-attach, etc. I re-installed mine based on the pictures I took before removing it, so hopefully mine was correct in the first place :D .

First, doing this with the body off makes it a real snap. I could not imagine doing this with the body on. Squeezing my frame into the floorboard space would have been a PITA.

Well, first concern was the clutch cable and the pedal assembly. I did exactly what others have stated...I attached the cable and put a small piece of tape where the cable goes over the hook on the pedal assembly. Next, I just looked at everything and visualized where things were going to go. For example, the brake push rod, the brake pedal spring, the brake/clutch pedal stop, etc. I knew there would not be much room to make manuevers once the pedal assembly bolts were started. As a side note, I replaced the bowden tube (with new rubber for the end of the tube where the cable exits) as well, so I made sure the clutch cable was through the new bowden tube before I attached the cable to the pedal.

I attached the brake push rod and also made sure the bottom piece of the brake pedal spring was at the bottom facing forward (front of the car) and in position. It would be much easier to attach the spring on the hook side (top side) which attaches to the brake pedal rather than trying to spin the spring around underneath.

Next, I made sure the brake push rod (greased up) was inserted into the master cylinder and then attached the pedal assembly to the center tunnel. But most important, I also kept the clutch pedal in a vertical position as I inserted the pedal assembly into the center tunnel. This makes sure the hook stays in a great position to keep the cable on it. Even with tape the first time I tried, the cable slipped off because I let the clutch pedal flop around. I only knew this since once I started bolting it on, I would move the clutch pedal back and forth to see if the cable in the rear moved...it did not. That started round 2 and the thought to keep the pedal in a vertical position.

Being parionoid, I still tried my best to keep the clutch pedal in a vertical position. In fact, I taped 2 paint stir sticks (free ones from Home Depot) to each side of the clutch pedal in a 45 degree angle one going to the front and one to the rear (looked like a half assed pyramid). That way the clutch pedal would not flop around. Again, I think this only works since the body is off and I can get to things from different angles. This allowed me to be hands free to install the clutch/brake pedal stop which helped keep the pedal from moving backward on its own. I removed the paint sticks once the cable was connected to the trans with tension.

The rest was straightforward. Before I tightened the bolts, I attached the clutch cable to the clutch lever on the trans for tension and to make sure the cable did not slip off as I finished assembly (yes paranoia). I attached the clutch/brake stop plate and checked the play of the brake pedal. The brake push rod that goes into the master cylinder from the pedal assembly should have a clearance of 0.04 of an inch or 1mm. That is pretty damn tight, so I adjusted the stop plate so there was only a tiny but of movement before the push rod begin to push inside the master cylinder. All seems in order. Last was the cable pedal play which is really adjusted at the trans. The stop plate at the pedal assembly stops both the clutch and brake pedal, so not much adjusting for the clutch play using the stop plate. Play for the clutch pedal is 0.4 to 0.8 of an inch so I made the clutch pedal free play 1/2 inch by adjusting the cable adjusting nut at the trans.

As for the assembly, everything was in great working order so I just re-lubricated all of the pieces and painted the brake and clutch pedals gloss black. New rubber pads for the pedals and of course, the VW emblem is facing the correct direction. Drives me nuts when I see the pads upside down. Next, I think I may have worked up the stones to tackle the shift rod bushing...I will update if I do :) . If I am ever going to do it, now would probably be best with the body off.

Sun Jan 20, 2013 2:17 pm

Cage, great write up, I have 2 68's. One I'm working on for my son, almost done with it. Just need to get luggage tray repaired and put his lowered spinedles and brakes done. I will be putting a new interior in after that. This car won't be a show quality but it is his first car. My other I just picked up from a guy in Dallas. That one will be a frame off, you showed me Bug Me videos that show everything, they have saved me many times, great wealth of knowledge. Good luck and thanks for sharing, I will be following this till your done.

Sun Jan 20, 2013 3:38 pm

Thanks cuevas72!!! Just finished installing a new shift rod bushing...I will do a write up with pictures tonight. That was fun - much easier than expected thanks to the samba community and other sites and thoughts. Thank's for looking and I think it is fantastic that your son's first car will be a bug. This was my first car as well - bought it back in 1987 when I was 16. I have throughly enjoyed restoring it thus far. Take care and thanks again!!

Sun Jan 20, 2013 6:45 pm

UPDATE - Remove gearshift lever and shift rod bushing install. I decided to put my big boy pants on and tackle the shift rod bushing. I took tons of pictures along the way so I hope it helps others who tackle this project. There are ample posts and guidance on this topic so maybe only a few things will be new here and there. So here it goes.

First, I marked the gear shift plate before removal so I know where to put it back without any shift problems. NOTE. I used a sharpe in silver so I could see it. Well, towards the end with grease everywhere, most of my marks were wiped off. Use something else...lesson # 1 :)

I did the same thing with the stop plate underneath, being careful to see which way the shift plate is situated and marked it for reinstallation later. The raised lip in the center hole of the stop plate is on the right passenger side. Below are all of the components that make up the gear shift assembly. The gear shift plate, shift rod, stop plate and spring.

Here is the ball housing in the shift rod where the gear shift is inserted. You can see the hanger inside the tunnel which holds the bushing and the shift rod. I checked for play up and down and side to side. Even with changing the coupler in the back where the shift rod connects to the trans, I still had a lot of movement which meant the bushing was shot. Time to take out the shift rod. Only way to see the bushing is to pull the shift rod since I could not see the bushing on the otherside of the hanger inside the tunnel.

I went to the access plate that is under the rear seat (my body is off so access is really easy). That is where the shift rod coupler is. Remove the small square head screw ( and wire if there is one) that connects the shift rod to the trans (has the wire through the head) and also remove the coupler from the shift rod itself. There is a self tapping screw that has to be removed then remove the shaft that goes through the end of the shift rod. The shift rod should be free at that point. Of course, if you drop something have a long set of long needle nose pliers with you. This tool helped immensely through this process.

I went to the tunnel access plate at the front in the bulk head. Removed the 2 bolts. Here are a few shots looking inside the tunnel. A little tough to see but you can see the front end of the shift rod and also the rear end where the trans is connected to the coupler.

With the shift rod coupler in the rear disconnected, the shift rod is ready to be extracted. First however, I tied a string to the rear part of the shiftrod...using the hole where the coupler attaches to the shift rod in the rear. The string will follow the shift rod out of the front for later use.

I pulled the shift rod out of the front through that access tunnel. Frankly, it took very little effort and slid right out with no issues. I first pushed from the rear access hole where the coupler is, then pushed the rest of the way from the gearshift hole. Slid out no problems.

I went back to the gear shift hole and pulled out the pieces of my old bushing, most of which was on the ground inside the tunnel. Just a small piece was still on the shift rod.

Here is the shift rod with a basic wipe down with a rag. I then got some purple power and srubbed much of the old grease and rust off. After that I took medium emery cloth and scrubbed off any loose rust and remaining grease. Finally, I used a wire wheel on the bench grinder to get any remaining surface rust or grease off the shift rod. Looks shiny and new now.

Now, the shift rod and bushing are ready for reinstall. I paid special attention inside the tunnel...just looked around studied what the heck was in there and to get a general sense of which way to go to make sure the shift rod makes it to the back. I strongly suggest you do the same. So, I got out the new bushing and installed the clip on the bushing first.

Time to install the bushing. The clip should be on the front side of the shift rod hanger facing the front of the car after install. The hanger is about 2 inches inside the gearshift hole, towards the rear of the car. You can see the hanger if you look in the hole at an angle from the front. Now for the string. I decided to put the string inside the bushing. The bushing is split down the side. I opened the clip a little to get the string inside the bushing and the clip. I did this so if I dropped the damn thing inside the tunnel, I could easily retrive it with the string if my pliers did not reach. By the way, I did that and the string saved my bacon.

After 3 or 4 tries. I got the bushing to sit in the hanger and with a little push it popped right in. It is unmistakable, you know when it is in. I pulled the bushing a little to make sure it was in and seated...install confirmed. I then rotated the bushing so the split is facing the driver's side. Not sure why, just read that it should be that way. See below, picture of bushing in hanger with string down the center.

Now time for the shift rod. I greased up the first 6 inches or so of the shift rod. I also used a wire hanger that would rest over the gearshift hole to hold the shift rod once it gets near the gearshift hole. I was not sure if the string on the end of the shift rod would make it difficult to get it through the bearing so I removed the string before I greased it up and pulled the string out of the tunnel from the rear. I rotated the shift rod so the ball housing is facing down as it goes through the tunnel. I had to rotate the ball housing a little to get it out and the ball housing facing down seemed to be the best. I pushed the shift rod through the tunnel in the front until it rested on the metal wire hanger that I put in the gear shift hole. The last pic shows about how far the rod needs to go until it reaches the gearshift hole.

With the rear part of the shift rod all greased up, time to push it into the bushing. I went back to the gearshift hole and lined the shift rod and pushed the tip of the shift rod so it was just touching the bushing. I then went to the front access tunnel, and gave the shift rod a few good solid pushes....not like a hammer, just a few pushes. The rod slipped right into the bushing with just a small amount of force. GREASE IS THE KEY!!! I did not want to force it too much...I did not want to damage the hanger where the bushing is held. Just try a little more force each time, with enough grease, it will slid right in and seat in the bushing....the bushing has a nice seat for the hanger.

I then went back to the gearshift hole, and using a pair of neddle nose pliers, I grabbed the rod and pushed it toward the rear...about a few inches or so. Then, since I only greased up the first 6 inches of the rod, I would add grease to the rod then push it to the rear. Repeat, repeat and repeat until the rod is close to the rear access tunnel where the shift coupler and trans are. Be careful not to put downward pressure on the shift rod as you move it backward. You do not want to break that hanger that holds the rod and the bushing you installed. My hanger was in great shape and it did not have any wonky shape nor was it loose.

Now, back to that string. When I first pushed the shift rod to the rear, it went under one of the brake cable housings and I could not lift it up to connect to the coupler in the rear. So, I had to back it out inch by inch until is was just in front of that cable housing. I then placed a small amount of pressure with one hand to and also gently lift the rear part of the shift rod with the pliers - doing this from the gearshift hole. At the same time, I pushed the rod toward the rear. Had to do it once or twice, but I cleared that brake cable housing easily. The string would have been handy, since I could have probably pulled the string to keep the rod in a higher position through the tunnel and I would not have likely had that problem. My fix was easy. Why??? Because I paid attention and studied the tunnel contents before I inserted the shift rod. I knew right away what I did when the rod could not be lifted to reach the coupler in the rear. That helped keep any frustration at bay.

The last pic is the rod and the ball housing in their proper place, the shift coupler in the rear re-installed and everything looks great. What a difference. The shift rod does not have any movement up or down or side to side...tighter than a dolphin's ass and ready for smooth shifting. Yes, it will still rotate a little, but that is normal inside the bushing. I cannot wait to see how smooth it is, but even without the gear shift in it, the lack of sloppy movement is a great sign. Hope this helps. I will update once I get the gearshift cleaned up, painted, etc. Thanks all.

Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:23 pm

yeah I did my shifter bushing about 6 months ago, I had to acyually chenge the holding bracket too. It broke at the bottom allowing the rod to fall from the shifter. I ended up just cutting a square panal out and rewelding the piece in. I found a video on youtube showing to use a Dremel and cut wheel to get the spot welds off. I changed all the cables (clutch and throttle) with the body on, I just put the bigfoot clutch kit on and have to put the assemble back in. The longer clutch rod has a nut on it to hold the cable on. I will see how hard it will be tomorrow. I also need to put a new master cylinder, stainless steel brakelines and drop spindles on. Almost roade worthy, maybe another 2 months or so. i have until May to get it drivable and just worry about the interior and paint. Baby steps

Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:27 pm

@cuevas72 - bummer about the holding bracket. That does not look like fun. I think I have now done mose of the major stuff I can at this stage - excluding the engine. I am waiting for paint to finish. However, I should get the body back in the next few weeks. That will really allow me to get things into gear. Keep us all posted when you give the car to your son all ready to go.

Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:33 pm

Will do, as soon as I finish up his I can start on my 68 I just got the other day. I told my wife I will always have a bug for now on, I have to get one for her also. Have my projects for the next couple of years, when I retire I want to open a shop or just a hobby thing and restore these.

Sun Feb 17, 2013 6:25 pm

Gearshift lever install. OK, had a little break and now I am back at it. Not much for this post, but here it goes. Here is where I started:

I put the trans in neutral and marked the gearshift ball housing and gearshift stop plate position before I removed it. Here are all the pieces that make up the assembly...gearshift, gearshift ball housing, spring and gearshift plate.

I cleaned all the old grease off and re-greased all the pieces - greased the gearshift ball that fits into the shift rod, the spring, the inside of the gearshift ball housing and the stop plate.

The gearshift plate has two raised edges on both sides of the opening (see pic above and below). The small raised edge faces the driver's side and the longer raised edge faces the passenger side for my year bug (1968). Below is a pic with the greased up stop plate.

I painted the gearshift ball housing gloss black and re-installed the assembly after polishing up the bolts.

Finally, I painted the gearshift itself and put on a new boot to keep the dust and grime out.

Like I mentioned, not much to this post, but it does sort out the small jobs that have to be completed as well as the big ones. I just finished the front brakes and will update with a post shortly. I intend to tear down the parking brake assembly and re-grease and paint.

Wed Feb 20, 2013 8:53 pm

UPDATE - Front Brakes. I took apart the front brake assembly down to the steering knuckle to inspect and get things cleaned up before installing new parts. The pictures and steps below are of the driver's side front brake since it is slightly different than the right front and the rear drums.

For a small parts list, the assembly will have a clamp nut, thrust washer, small outer wheel bearing, larger inner wheel bearing and a seal. There will be pictures below.

First, since the body is off, I already removed the speedo cable. It comes out of the center hole of the dust cap and is held by a c-clip. Remove the c-clip and the cable slides right out of the back. Next, using the adjusting starts behind the backing plate, move the brake shoes away from the drum to make it easier to get the drum off. You can see where the shoes rest against the drum using the inspection holes in the back of the plate. Trust me on this, I tried to remove the drum and it would not budge. Once logic set in, I backed the brakes off and the drum slide off nice and smooth.

Here is a picture with the dust cap off.

The first item that needs to be removed is the clamp nut. The clamp nut is held on by a screw (use allen wrench to remove) that "clamps" the nut down on the steering knuckle. Remove that first. The clamp nut is on the steering knuckle with a left handed thread. So for newbies like me, righty loosey, lefty tighty.

Once the clamp nut is off, there will be thrust washer. I used a small screwdriver to lightly pry the washer out.

Next, you should see a small bearing (outer bearing). I just pulled a little on the brake drum to move the small outer bearing out so it can be removed. You could take out the bearing along with the drum if need be.

On the inner side of the drum is a seal, and a larger bearing. Here is a pic of all the pieces of the drum all cleaned up.

Now for the brakes. My wheel cylinder was leaking pretty bad based on the brake fluid stains on the backing plate (see below). I removed the brake shoes and hardware (springs, spring clips, etc.). When I removed the brake shoes I layed them on the floor in the exact same position as I took them off. The new shoes have to go back in the correct way so that they fit correctly with the adjusting stars and the wheel cylinder. The notch in the adjusting stars is slanted with a high side and a low side...you can see clearly. Just keep track of which way the stars should go back onto the plate so the shoes are installed correctly.

I had the new brake line attached to the old wheel cylinder, so I removed the bolt that holds the wheel cylinder to the backing plate so the wheel cylinder can be turned without turning and kinking up the brake line.

Once the backing plate was removed by removing the 3 bolts that hold the backing plate to the steering knuckle, I just cleaned things up to remove any remaining brake fluid, grease and grime, then re-painted the backside of the backing plate. I then installed a new wheel cylinder, brake shoes, new springs and spring clips, etc. I also cleaned up the adjusting stars (also lightly applied grease where the adjusting stars are inserted into the backing plate and polished up the bolts that hold the backing plate to the steering knuckle.

I cleaned up my bearings and the inside of the drum to remove the old grease. I checked each bearing on the wheel bearing assembly to make sure they turned freely and were not stuck. Both of my bearings (large inner and small outer) where in great shape and I could still use them. So, I re-greased the bearings real good and made sure plenty of grease got into the individual pieces of each bearing before re-installation. Here is a pic of the larger inner bearing greased up (facing the direction it goes into the drum) and a pic of the seal ready for installation. I used a light tap of a hammer to insert the seal.

That leaves the small out bearing. I greased that up as well and installed into the outside of the drum. You can install it after the drum is on the steering knuckle, it should work both ways. I just held onto the bearing with my thumb so it would not slide off as I inserted the drum. Next, re-install the thrust washer. I did not notice a difference or special direction for the washer (e.g. one side versus another side), but mine had a VW stamp on the side facing outward, so I re-installed it the same way. The parts pic above should show the VW stamp. Here is a pic of the small outer bearing before installation and grease...also shows which side should go into the drum housing.

Now for the clamp nut. The clamp nut has a raised lip on one side and a smooth surface on the other. The raised lip side should face toward the drum and away from you as you install. Remember, lefty tighty, righty loosey since it has a left handed thread. Here are a few pics of the 2 sides of the clamp nut.

When installing the clamp nut, tighten the nut so it is snug, then back off the nut a 1/4 turn. I read that the thrust washer should be able to move slightly. Once I tightend the clamp nut, I would move the thrust washer with a small screwdriver to the left and right. If it moved too much or seemed lose, then I tightened or loosened the clamp nut. You can feel when it seems right. Once I had the clamp nut tightened where I wanted it, I used the clamp nut bolt to finish the install. I read that if it is too tight it could damage the outer bearing. Pic below.

I know the front brakes are much easier to deal with than the rears, but I hope this step by step with the pictures helps others. I am working on the parking brake assembly, painting, re-greasing etc., that will likely be the next updated post.

As a final note, the right front brakes have a normal right handed thread so the old rule of lefty loosey, righty tighty will apply...just the front left brake has the difference. Other than that, it would be the same steps - minus the speedo cable and c-clip- to tear down the right front brakes. I hope this helps others, especially the newbies like me. Thanks!

Sat Mar 02, 2013 8:53 am

UPDATE: Parking Brake Assembly. I decided to clean up and paint the parking brake lever, check the cables, bushings and the heater levers, etc. Here are pics of the starting point.

I started with the parking brake cables. Using 2 10mm wrenches, remove the nuts holding the brake cables to the small lever (compensating lever) the cables attach to. Next, I removed the C clip that holds the lever pin in place. The lever pin is the pin that goes through the rear of the brake handle and holds the brake handle to the frame (the rusty looking pin in the picture). Push the lever pin out through either side.

Now the brake lever should slide towards the rear and lift up to free it from the body. I then pushed in the brake release button on the front to slide out the large ratchet part that fits inside the brake lever. There is also a small ratchet segment that is in the middle of the brake lever. Push that towards the rear of teh assembly so you can remove the pawl rod, spring, etc. Here are a few pictures of the entire piece once removed and the individual pieces.

I used the wire wheel on the bench grinder and removed the old paint and any surface rust from the brake lever, pawl rod, spring, etc.

I cleaned up the rest of the pieces, nuts, small lever the cables attach to, the lever pin, etc. I also painted the parking brake lever. I did not remove the heater levers since the bushing and cables were in great shape. The levers are smooth and are not loose and do not flop around. The cables were not frayed or rusted through. So I cleaned up the levers and re-greased the cables for many more years of service. Here is a picture of the pieces removed and cleaned.

Time to reinstall. I tried it different ways, but the best was to re-assemble the parking brake lever, large ratchet and the pawl rod before re-installing to the body. Start with the pawl rod. Insert the pawl rod, with spring and rubber bushing, inside the parking brake lever with the hook part facing down. See pic. It must go in that way so the small ratchet's round side (it has a round side and a side with teeth) can sit inside the hook part. Otherwise, nothing will happen when you press the release button. Next, I greased the large ratchet where it makes contact with the parking brake lever and the frame. The large ratchet has a little notch that allows a small piece of the frame to sit in there and a large hook looking piece which sits around the rod inside the parking brake lever (the round piece the protrudes on each side of the parking brake lever). While pressing and holding the release button (which will open up the small ratchet if you installed the pawl rod correctly) insert the large ratchet into the brake lever and slide it up so the teeth from each piece meet. That will hold the pieces together so the parking brake lever can be installed back into the frame. Before installing back into the frame, I also greased up the bottom of the brake lever where the parking brake cables slide against it.

Finally, install the lever assembly. Slide it back into the frame but make sure the notch in the large ratchet (that small square notch) slides over the little nub on the frame - that nub should fit right in that notch which prevents the large ratchet from moving up and down. I inserted the brake lever starting a little farther back then slid it foward to make sure the large ratchet notch seats in the frame. Line up the hole to re-install the lever pin that attaches the brake lever to the frame. I greaed up the lever pin and slid it through the frame and brake lever. Re-install the C Clip to hold the lever pin in place.

I re-attached the brake cables and cleaned up any excess grease. Since I am in the middle of the resto I did not check for brake adjustment or how many clicks the parking brake level makes before the rear brakes engage. I will do that later on. I read that once the rear brakes are bleed, adjusted, etc. the parking brake should engage the rear brakes and stop the car from moving with only 2 to 3 clicks when you pull up on the parking brake lever. Here is a pic of the installed assembly. After I took this pic I realized that the nuts that hold the cables were not installed the same (I looked at the original pics I took before work started). The locking nut goes on first then the regular nut.

Well, that is it for this one, hope it helps.

Sat Mar 02, 2013 12:18 pm

I'm really enjoying this thread. You're doing a great job!

Best,
Danny

Sun Mar 03, 2013 7:33 am

Thanks Danny! It has been quite a process with much more work to go..hoping to get the body back from paint in the next 3 weeks...then things will really get moving.

Sun Mar 03, 2013 9:12 am

this is just awesome. wish i had the knowledge and space to do something like this to mine.