TheSamba.com :: View topic - My restoration project, a 1971 Westfalia. Still learning.

Fri Mar 31, 2017 8:59 pm

Fri Mar 31, 2017 10:45 pm

You look for voltage ( electrical pressure) when troubleshooting.

Put those plugs back on the master cylinder, key on, asst steps on brake , you look for 12 volts on the brake light wire in back on each side.

Look for the working one first, find the 12 VDC, then match to the other . The black side lead of your power meter goes to a ground or battery negative terminal, the red lead to the point under test.

It's likely you will find it and you have a bad bulb holder or ground to the other side.

Sun Apr 02, 2017 3:18 pm

Sun Apr 02, 2017 3:23 pm

Abscate wrote: It's likely you will find it and you have a bad bulb holder or ground to the other side.

It appears to be both a rusty old bulb holder and the ground. Thank you Abscate. I am always all ears on repair tips and suggestions. :-)

Tue Apr 04, 2017 6:45 pm

Sat Apr 22, 2017 6:18 pm

This weekend was suppose to be the time when I test drive my 1971 Westy. When I started the engine it was out of tune. These are the things that I did to try to tune it.

Valve adjustment
Changed intake manifold boots & gaskets
Cleaned carburetor & used pressured air to clean passages in carburetor.
Set timing.
cleaned connections to coil.
Did compression check and all of the cylinders have pressure of 120-125 PSI.
I checked the fuel pump flange and rod if it is working and it seem to be doing fine.

I started the engine and waited until it warmed up. When I press the gas the engine gasps as if it is going to die. When I let go of the gas pedal the engine idles again but there is a slight miss on the timing.

I took the carburetor from my 1963 bug that I know works and switch also the distributor and cables. I check the gap in the contact point and it is .016”. I started the engine and the problem is still there.

Here is a video of the engine. What do you guys think the problem could be? Have I missed checking other things?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87RNd3QyQKg

Sat Apr 22, 2017 7:12 pm

Check all the vacuum openings. It looks like there are rubber plugs on the vacuum ports on the carb, check that the plugs are good and not cracked. Also, I can't tell for sure on the port in the manifold under the carb,and on the dual port end on the left side. Are those connected or plugged? Check there are no leaks in those areas.

Try adjusting the accelerator pump for more or less fuel. Look down the carb throat with engine off and make sure the fuel pump is squirting when you give it gas.

I am amazed with all the body work you did. Thank you for posting all the work you've been through.

Sat Apr 22, 2017 7:31 pm

Woooo....., this is getting exciting, finally time for a drive!

That 009 isn't helping any of your hesitation issues, set the acel pump stroke on the rich side, make sure the nozzle is aimed directly at the gap in the butterfly when if first opens, set the idle mixture on the rich side and maybe even bump up the idle/pilot jet size a few numbers. You may have spotted a trend in the recommendations with the word "rich" used alot, sourcing the correct distributor will make your slight acceleration performance much smoother and will pay for itself after a few tanks of gas. 009's are great for drag racing or sand cars that require dramatic pedal action, but not so much for slow cruising and traffic. In the mean time put a few drops of oil down the shaft under where the rotor goes, that mechanism needs to work smoothly and freely.

Sat Apr 22, 2017 7:38 pm

It almost sounds like that POS 009 distributor is not advancing. Are you sure your accelerator spray nozzle is clear and is flowing a good stream of fuel to where BD already mentioned? Also, as mentioned, rule out any vacuum leaks w/a can of carb or brake cleaner sprayed at all the junctions and especially the throttle shaft area.

If you want the correct distributor for that engine (205Q), check out my ads. I have a couple for sale. :wink:

Fri Apr 28, 2017 12:09 pm

I am still having issues with tuning the engine of my Westy. It keeps on stalling when I press the accelerator. I swapped the coil from my 1963 bug to the Westy because my 63 has a new coil. I re-cleaned the connections inside the distributor. Since it is stalling I was thinking that the carburetor might not be supplying enough fuel down the intake manifold. So what I did was while the engine was running I pulled the accelerator & when the engine started to stall I sprayed starter fluid down the carb. The engine’s rpm went up and started to stall again after a few seconds. I repeated this a couple of times with the same result. I am beginning to feel it is the carb that is the problem...but of course this is just a guess.

What do you guys think? Here is a video that I took an hour ago:

https://youtu.be/1vi_NF8XMTs

Fri Apr 28, 2017 5:24 pm

A few hours ago I decided to go to Bill & Steve’s VW store to get some advice about my tuning problem. I showed them the video I took and after the guys there looked at it they said that I might have a problem with my carburetor. I wanted to buy a new carb but they guys there said that it would be best to just rebuilt the one I have and just clean all the parts really good to make sure there is no blocked passages. They sold me a $15 rebuilt kit and I went home hoping to see if there will be any improvement. I disassembled the carburetor and used both the carb cleaner spray can and also a air pressure hose to clear all the parts. I also checked if the float is indeed working and it does. When I installed the carburetor & started the engine I was surprised that the engine is now sounding much better. Cool! What a relief! Hopefully I can test drive my Westy this weekend. The next problem I have is to check if the tank is clean or not. Well, that task is for tomorrow.

This is a video that shows how the engine sounds now:

https://youtu.be/hlEfHMo_gsE

Sat Apr 29, 2017 9:23 pm

Today while bleeding the brakes of my Westy I noticed that everytime I press on the brakes the engine struggles to stay idle. This made me think that there is a leak in the brake booster or the hose that goes from the intake manifold to the booster. While I was checking the length of the hose I noticed one thing missing--the check valve. I called around and only one place has it--Bill & Steves. I immediately went there and bought the only check valve they have in stock. It turns out that not a lot of people look for this valve.

When I installed the check value and also replaced the hose, the problem of engine stalling when I press on the brake went away.

When I was about to test drive the bus, I again noticed that the two wires of the ignition becomes very hot whenever I step on the clutch and the engine stalls. “Darn, what is this now?!”, I said to myself. I went underneath the bus then discovered that one of the ignition wires that connects to the coil travels underneath the clutch pedal. Whenever I press the clutch pedal that wire is stretched and part of the wire coat had been stripped causing a short. The previous restorer who probably forgot to add the check valve also forgot that this wire connection will create a short problem. I decided to route the wire to a safer route.

When I was about to back out of my driveway I just realized something--my westy is still on a non-operational status and I don’t have any insurance. I became nervous because that is a huge fine if the police spots me. I figured a short drive down the street won’t hurt anybody. I quickly backed out of my driveway and drove the bus down the street like a stole it. I turned around and drove back to the safety of my driveway. The bus sounds like it wants to stay on the road.

I will check the wiring some more because I am sure there are more wiring problems that the previous restorer has set up and it is just waiting to spark a short.

Sat Apr 29, 2017 10:23 pm

So PO's don't deserve such kind words. Today, I started a bus that had a solenoid held together by zip ties. Yeah, nothing like unfused battery current held together with craft supplies… :evil:

Good job finding the safety hazards; no use in VWs burning off the road for the sake of stupidity. Get it registered and get it driving! I'm current on my reg, but my stickers are two months expired because of the "safety nuts" on my license plate frame making it harder than eight bitches on a bitch boat to remove. :wink:

Robbie

Sun Apr 30, 2017 7:55 pm

Mon May 01, 2017 8:35 am

Your rubber steering coupler has a small cut in it.

Mon May 01, 2017 11:50 am

lil-jinx wrote: Your rubber steering coupler has a small cut in it.

Thanks Lil-jinx for pointing that out. I just added that to my parts shopping list .

Mon May 01, 2017 11:52 am

22manybugs wrote: Check all the vacuum openings. It looks like there are rubber plugs on the vacuum ports on the carb, check that the plugs are good and not cracked. Also, I can't tell for sure on the port in the manifold under the carb,and on the dual port end on the left side. Are those connected or plugged? Check there are no leaks in those areas.

Try adjusting the accelerator pump for more or less fuel. Look down the carb throat with engine off and make sure the fuel pump is squirting when you give it gas.

I am amazed with all the body work you did. Thank you for posting all the work you've been through.

The vacuum outlet underneath the carb is connected to a hose that goes to the brake booster. While I was replacing the hose, I discovered that the previous restorer did not put a valve check. I don't know why I missed that..The hose had some cracks in it.

I checked the throat of the carb with the engine off and I saw some fuel dripping & fuel mist inside the throat.

Mon May 01, 2017 11:56 am

wcfvw69 wrote: It almost sounds like that POS 009 distributor is not advancing. Are you sure your accelerator spray nozzle is clear and is flowing a good stream of fuel to where BD already mentioned? Also, as mentioned, rule out any vacuum leaks w/a can of carb or brake cleaner sprayed at all the junctions and especially the throttle shaft area.

If you want the correct distributor for that engine (205Q), check out my ads. I have a couple for sale. :wink:

I sprayed brake cleaner in the intake manifold and found a few leaks on the gasket where the carb sits. I also discovered a leak in the diaphragm of the carb. I replaced the diaphragm.

I took note of your offer for the distributor and will definitely contact you if I need to order it :-)

Mon May 01, 2017 11:59 am

busdaddy wrote: Woooo....., this is getting exciting, finally time for a drive!

That 009 isn't helping any of your hesitation issues, set the acel pump stroke on the rich side, make sure the nozzle is aimed directly at the gap in the butterfly when if first opens, set the idle mixture on the rich side and maybe even bump up the idle/pilot jet size a few numbers. You may have spotted a trend in the recommendations with the word "rich" used alot, sourcing the correct distributor will make your slight acceleration performance much smoother and will pay for itself after a few tanks of gas. 009's are great for drag racing or sand cars that require dramatic pedal action, but not so much for slow cruising and traffic. In the mean time put a few drops of oil down the shaft under where the rotor goes, that mechanism needs to work smoothly and freely.

Thank you busdaddy for this tip. I will make the adjustments that you pointed and also lubricate the shaft under the rotor.

Sat May 06, 2017 11:01 am