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Thu Mar 06, 2025 7:46 pm

Gotta love 36 hp Buses.

I see that you are running a vacuum advance VJU 4 BR 8 designed for the lighter Beetle. You will be happier from my experience, with the mechanical advance only Vj 4 BR 8 designed for the heavier Bus.

Fri Jun 27, 2025 7:00 pm

Nice to see this bus end up in the right hands.

Fri Jun 27, 2025 8:23 pm

Crofty hey man yes it was originally 6 pop out. So i put safaris in already and drove it to octo and met a bunch of cool people, it was great. ill get some pics up soon.

Mtnbus, dadadventure thanks man!! Ddutch thanks yes i agree the color made me love it fully, mango i love too. its been buffed out in most places ive got some blending to do but after i get this middle seat done.

Tasb thanks so much!!! i didnt know that, ill look for one.

Rpattee do you know this bus? I know it came from Alaska, and has the black undercoating still looking good.

Fri Jun 27, 2025 9:13 pm

Ill get better pics of them..

The seat section left on is the only section without rips so that stays on, the rest I'll have to stitch and glue with new beading in spots.

Fri Jun 27, 2025 9:32 pm

Also put a new battery tray in..

And a pic from last kelly park

Fri Jun 27, 2025 9:42 pm

Yes, I know a little about the bus. It was driven to Alaska in the late 60's. It sat for years along the side of the Parks Highway South of Nenana. There's pics of it in various threads here on TheSamba. I tried to buy it. Several of my friends tried to buy it. A few people outside of Alaska tried to buy it. The answer was always "no." A couple years ago the niece of the woman that drove it up sent me and several other people a text message saying she was ready to let it go. It was on my trailer within an hour of her making the deal with me.

Once I got it home I decided to let it go because I already have a 57 pgsg. If it weren't for that I would have kept it. She really cleaned up nice. I hope you have it a long time.

Fri Jun 27, 2025 10:01 pm

Thats so cool to hear more about the bus, id love a link to other photos of it. i met the guy you sold it to Esgar at kelly park who is nice & did a really great job doing so much of the work. Im really just nit picking it gathering missing parts and perfecting its potential look. I loved it as soon as i saw it spend all my money knowing id rather live in it if i needed to, keeping it forever

Sat Jun 28, 2025 6:05 am

great story and excellent work. keep it up

Sat Jun 28, 2025 8:44 am

61karmann wrote: Thats so cool to hear more about the bus, id love a link to other photos of it. i met the guy you sold it to Esgar at kelly park who is nice & did a really great job doing so much of the work. Im really just nit picking it gathering missing parts and perfecting its potential look. I loved it as soon as i saw it spend all my money knowing id rather live in it if i needed to, keeping it forever

I sold it to Esgar after bringing it down from Alaska to Montana.

Sat Jun 28, 2025 9:15 am

Awe that's awesome 58euro! Thanks man. Getting some of the history of the bus is part of why i started this topic. Let me know if you had done things to put it back together after it sat

Sat Jun 28, 2025 9:37 am

61karmann wrote: Awe that's awesome 58euro! Thanks man. Getting some of the history of the bus is part of why i started this topic. Let me know if you had done things to put it back together after it sat

I didn’t get to do much of anything to it, would have loved to keep it and build it but had too many projects to take it on unfortunately. Planned on keeping it and building it but I’m glad that Esgar was able to, he did a good job on it it looks like.

Here’s a video of it coming down from Alaska to Montana.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qHWyFmxluL4?si=ofFY1JD-fwlZHJ05

Mon Jun 30, 2025 1:54 pm

58euro wrote:
I didn’t get to do much of anything to it, would have loved to keep it and build it but had too many projects to take it on unfortunately. Planned on keeping it and building it but I’m glad that Esgar was able to, he did a good job on it it looks like.

Here’s a video of it coming down from Alaska to Montana.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qHWyFmxluL4?si=ofFY1JD-fwlZHJ05

Thanks for doing whatever you did to get it to me! Lol
And yes Esgar is an awesome guy he made all the right moves with this bus.
Also for the video. So it would have had overriders, & it looks like it had an eyebrow decklid, i suppose i dont feel too bad about the safaris. Maybe the topic should not be called og pgsg. The appearance now though looks good to my eyes.

Mon Jun 30, 2025 2:06 pm

61karmann wrote: 58euro wrote:
I didn’t get to do much of anything to it, would have loved to keep it and build it but had too many projects to take it on unfortunately. Planned on keeping it and building it but I’m glad that Esgar was able to, he did a good job on it it looks like.

Here’s a video of it coming down from Alaska to Montana.

https://youtube.com/shorts/qHWyFmxluL4?si=ofFY1JD-fwlZHJ05

Thanks for doing whatever you did to get it to me! Lol
And yes Esgar is an awesome guy he made all the right moves with this bus.
Also for the video. So it would have had overriders, & it looks like it had an eyebrow decklid, i suppose i dont feel too bad about the safaris. Maybe the topic should not be called og pgsg. The appearance now though looks good to my eyes.

No the Decklid on it now is the original, it’s a December bus so it wouldn’t have had an eyebrow Decklid. And the overriders Mcode as far as I know doesn’t apply that would be a recycled code and actually means something else.

Mon Jun 30, 2025 3:52 pm

Could you tell us about the bumpers? Where did you get them and are you happy with them?

Tue Jul 01, 2025 6:48 am

61karmann wrote: Crofty hey man yes it was originally 6 pop out. So i put safaris in already and drove it to octo and met a bunch of cool people, it was great. ill get some pics up soon.

Mtnbus, dadadventure thanks man!! Ddutch thanks yes i agree the color made me love it fully, mango i love too. its been buffed out in most places ive got some blending to do but after i get this middle seat done.

Tasb thanks so much!!! i didnt know that, ill look for one.

Rpattee do you know this bus? I know it came from Alaska, and has the black undercoating still looking good.

Safaris look great, OG or?

Tue Jul 01, 2025 8:42 am

61karmann wrote:

Engine and trans is rebuilt and original, i really want to cut out that broken fuel tank sender and replace with a non tube style so i dont have to take out the engine.

this engine is not original right? My Aug 58 bus originally had engine number 2494512 and was built much later...

Wed Jul 02, 2025 10:06 am

perello wrote: 61karmann wrote:

Engine and trans is rebuilt and original, i really want to cut out that broken fuel tank sender and replace with a non tube style so i dont have to take out the engine.

this engine is not original right? My Aug 58 bus originally had engine number 2494512 and was built much later...

Bastard air cleaner

Fri Jul 11, 2025 5:46 pm

perello wrote: 61karmann wrote:

Engine and trans is rebuilt and original, i really want to cut out that broken fuel tank sender and replace with a non tube style so i dont have to take out the engine.

this engine is not original right? My Aug 58 bus originally had engine number 2494512 and was built much later...

Yea by the code it looks like a 59 36hp was build for it, im looking at the numbers and it falls into the bastard timeframe. It doesn't have a bolt on generator stand, but does have that air cleaner. Thanks Crofty ill have to look for an earlier one. Just put it the correct mechanical br8 and did notice more power, big improvement

Bumpers are nice steel reproductions that came on the bus when i got it, id love to swap them for ones in original paint

The safaris frames are C.Engineering i matched patina on, and hardware pieces have been various patina originals, always hunting to complete a set so everything's original

Sat Jul 12, 2025 11:36 am

36 hp engines with integrated engine stand continued into the 1960 model for the Beetle.

The VJU 4 BR 8 distributor is mechanical advance too with the vacuum advance added. The mechanical advance is identical for both distributors. The idea that you have “more power” is actually misleading. The vacuum advance delivers too much advance at the lower rpm range for the heavier Bus. Your bus feels sluggish. By removing the added advance from vacuum the engine has better throttle response making the heavier Bus feel like it has more power. The lighter Bettle feels peppier due to the vacuum advance.

Years ago I tried running a Beetle VJU 4 BR 8 in my 1957 Kombi. I lived at nearly 7,000 feet above sea level and it was a real slug when I was “climbing the hill”. Kinda explains why running a Porsche distributor in a stock VW is not going to give you more power. Too much of a good thing.

Mon Jul 14, 2025 6:44 pm

tasb wrote: 36 hp engines with integrated engine stand continued into the 1960 model for the Beetle.

The VJU 4 BR 8 distributor is mechanical advance too with the vacuum advance added. The mechanical advance is identical for both distributors. The idea that you have “more power” is actually misleading. The vacuum advance delivers too much advance at the lower rpm range for the heavier Bus. Your bus feels sluggish. By removing the added advance from vacuum the engine has better throttle response making the heavier Bus feel like it has more power. The lighter Bettle feels peppier due to the vacuum advance.

Ok cool so my engine was for a beetle, that makes sense now. drives like a dream.
Its fun to learn things thank you. And excited for the 010 in the mail from you, thats for my ghias 1776 i took the br8 from. Looking forward to what the difference feels like in that. Any ghia lovers if youd like to see that: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...p;start=60

As for the bus, as soon as i trade mine for an earlier air cleaner ill feel better. Wondering if the jetting was different for a bus, ill check on that..
on to handling the fuel leak that keeps happening from these copper ww lines im buying. The brass ferrule is stronger than the copper and makes a pinch in the tube. Maybe its nickel copper? Well whatever vw had steel lines copper anodized, so i just ordered steel & sst lines and plate & bend them.