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Mon Nov 14, 2022 12:20 am

well the good news is that by April all the little mice will be done with winter nesting, out of the bus and into the fields. Who knows what new problems they will add to this year's unsolved ones.

Mon Nov 14, 2022 10:47 am

Pull the disy & send to Bill @ Sparx Werks for a rebuild,it will come back looking and working like new. I did and it’s perfect.
Don’t be a fool & wait till spring as he will be even more backed up then.

Mon Nov 28, 2022 5:16 pm

Hi All,

This will be my first attempt at posting a question and I appreciate any guidance you can provide. I am an inexperienced VW owner, and I've been tackling increasingly challenging jobs, usually relying on Thesamba, Bentley, or youtube. So far so good.

She is a VW Bus, 1972, 1700, with more or less stock engine stuff.

I find diagnosing engine sounds very difficult to properly search for so I'm stumped and now engaging the support of this awesome community to see what you think and how I might approach figuring out if my engine is near death or needs to be pulled out (I haven't done that yet).

There is a louder-than-normal knock on one of the cylinders, I think cylinder one and I think it's gradually getting louder.

I took a video and have slowed it down, with iPhone and now Windows and I have uploaded it to Youtube (as suggested by the forums).

https://youtu.be/02tV0eP81jY

Could you suggest the next steps for diagnosing the issue or whether I should even be driving it?

Thanks in advance,

Lee[/youtube]

Mon Nov 28, 2022 5:36 pm

Also, if this isn't the right place to post please let me know and I'll repost in the main thread.

Mon Nov 28, 2022 5:41 pm

I would start with the free/easy causes... valve adjustment, tightening up of exhaust manifold nuts.
I would not drive it until these checks are done.
After this things get expensive!

If this isn't resolved with the checks above, I'd start a new thread as it would then no longer be a "sound" issue, but a "repair" issue.

Mon Nov 28, 2022 5:46 pm

also listen to Richard Atwell's accumulation of sounds. At the bottom also click on the links to Muir. https://ratwell.com/technical/EngineSounds.html

One important question - have you had any instances of the oil light coming on more than normal?

Last, do a cylinder balance test to see if one of the cylinders is dead or has a lot less power. The whoosh makes me wonder if you may have a loose head but my hearing is bad these days.

Mon Nov 28, 2022 6:03 pm

Hey SGKent - thanks for the quick response. No issues with the warning light and I verified that it's working.

Please forgive my ignorance, how do you do a cylinder balance test? Any links would be appreciated.

Mon Nov 28, 2022 6:06 pm

Hey There KTPhil!
I recently, under 1000 miles, did a value adjustment and it didn't strike me as a ticking type sound that I would have thought a valve might make but now you've mentioned it, I will certainly check those this week.

I haven't gone looking for the exhaust manifold nuts - I assume these aren't the nuts on the main muffler but on the engine itself?

Mon Nov 28, 2022 7:23 pm

Correct. The manifold is the fancy name for the pipes that take the exhaust from the cylinder head back to the muffler. When the nuts vonnecting it get loose, it gets loud

Mon Nov 28, 2022 9:30 pm

you remove each plug wire at the distributor gently with a rag while it is running. It is an auditory test. You compare the ROM drop each time. All 4 should be about equal. If one cylinder barely drops the RPM, that cylinder is weak. Then you will do more troubleshooting from there. But if they are all about equal then all 4 cylinders are running about the same. Also if the "knock" goes away when you disconnect 1 of the 4, that is the affected cylinder.

Tue Nov 29, 2022 12:30 am

First, I’d like to say that what you did with the sound in your video was neat. I’ve never seen that done before. Next, California is a big place. Putting your location in you signature line is a good thing. Lastly, did you take those pics in Del Mar near the racetrack?

Tue Nov 29, 2022 7:04 am

Hi Areomech - you are spot on - Del Mar Dog Beach. It’s our favorite destination for the bus when it’s out of the summer season. Great off leash dog beach when there aren’t too many kids running around.
I wish I could claim the slo-no video was an original idea, I got it off of a Facebook post I read a few months back - a video showing the valves adjusters with the valve covers off. Pretty cool.
I’ll update my profile with San Diego. Thanks for the feedback.

Tue Nov 29, 2022 7:10 am

Hi SGKent - thanks for the quick explanation. I get that done and see if I can hear or see a a drop with my tach.

I’ll be back to the thread tonight or tomorrow.

Tue Nov 29, 2022 9:36 am

Go visit Gary, (Aeromech) in Mission Bay Hills / Pacific Beach. See if he can tell you what it sounds like. That is what I would do, and I would not think twice about it.

Tue Nov 29, 2022 4:56 pm

It seems that I have stumbled upon some locals - awesome.

I am looking for a shop to address some rust forming at the bottom of the windshield. I hear that should be addressed quickly if I want to avoid a full front-end replacement :evil:

Do you have recommended shop near Miramar or central SD? Looking for an honest (as I have no clue how much it would cost) and reasonable quality. Not sure I have a budget for the best of the best with prices to match so reasonable is good for me!

Tue Nov 29, 2022 5:30 pm

It is usually a major repair where a new piece gets fitted in as long as it doesn't turn out a PO used bondo on the whole area and the inside piece is rotted too.

I'd talk with Gary but I think he will tell you about the same thing, that there are no "bus" shops in San Diego who are happy to take in that type work. It took me about six months to find a shop here in NorCal that would even touch my bus for under either an open checkbook agreement, or a $20K deposit into an escrow account. That was 2009. I was looking for a repaint and some minor dings and dents repair. I finally found a guy who did an Ok job for about $10K.

No one wants that type work.

Tue Nov 29, 2022 6:51 pm

SGKent wrote: It is usually a major repair where a new piece gets fitted in as long as it doesn't turn out a PO used bondo on the whole area and the inside piece is rotted too.

I'd talk with Gary but I think he will tell you about the same thing, that there are no "bus" shops in San Diego who are happy to take in that type work. It took me about six months to find a shop here in NorCal that would even touch my bus for under either an open checkbook agreement, or a $20K deposit into an escrow account. That was 2009. I was looking for a repaint and some minor dings and dents repair. I finally found a guy who did an Ok job for about $10K.

No one wants that type work.

Oh boy - The inside looks okay but I'll study it closer.
Bummer on folks not doing this type of work anymore.
Maybe ill have to figure it out myself, at least until I find someone - I want to stop it from getting worse.

There is a book on Amazon, maybe I'll have to learn a new skill. It's front page is a windshield install!

Everyday Modifications for Your VW Bay Window Van: How to Make your Classic Van Easier to Live With and Enjoy.

Christmas gift idea!

Tue Nov 29, 2022 7:01 pm

I broke the first one putting it in. Wasn't the best brand. We got it in, I patted it gently to say good job and it rebelled by cracking. The next one was a PPG one, very well made, and it went in fine. Too bad the PPG ones are NLA. Spooky job though because it bends a little going in. Lots of folks pay a glass shop to do it. Getting the old one out is easy because you just cut the rubber on the inside, but if it has any pits or chips, it will often break going back in. This is especially true if there has been a repair and it is not perfectly done.

The issue for you is the bubbling, and the rubber pushing outwards near it. That says there is a good amount of rust there. Your paint job is too nice to be something 50 years old I think, so likely someone has painted the bus before - you may be looking at a repair that was just a quick fix and not a lasting one.