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Clatter
Samba Member
Joined: September 24, 2003
Posts: 7762
Location: Santa Cruz
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 Posted: Tue May 13, 2025 9:52 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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WHoo! Where to start?
SO glad to see another one of your builds on display.
Whatever happened to Blue Ray?
I'm guessing that, like other show-quality builds,
It gets squirreled away forever to avoid damage or hours of cleaning.
All it takes is one drive in the rain for a show car to be forever no longer a show car.
BTDT.
911 powertrain conversions weren't all that rare around here back in the day.
I've seen maybe a half-dozen and even ridden in one.
Avoid piling tons of needless luxury shite in your bus,
And it drives almost like a 911.
"like a 911 with a big guy in the passenger seat"...
Jake Raby did a 915 trans/bus conversion that i used some ideas when putting a 915 in my Fastback.
Specifically, mil-spec sealed steering joints to solve shift rod alignment.
Worked well in the end.
You might find that on his old forums if you use the wayback machine.
FWIW.
Unless you have the transaxle swap already sorted and are holding out on pics!
Please post more.
Even the rust repair pics are refreshing to see.
So many here get JB Weld and Por-15.
Busting your stones about calling it a van... 
Next thing you'll be reprimanded for calling a Vanagon a T3! 
_________________
Bus Motor Build
I have excellent news for the world...
There is no such thing as patina.
It does not exist! |
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Wed May 14, 2025 2:36 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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Great to hear from you!
You guessed it, BlueRay is still in my garage, driven rarely and still looking good.
So the van project started straight after BlueRay won volksworld back in 2014 so I am dripfeeding updates. The pics just posted are from about 6 years ago but wanted to show the amount of work that goes into this kind of project.
The 911 engine is already mated to its rebuilt 915 transmission and using the same kind of solution you mentioned for the shifter.
Will keep doing updates until we get up to date which is basically, rebuild of the bus following paint! |
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Clatter
Samba Member
Joined: September 24, 2003
Posts: 7762
Location: Santa Cruz
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| Posted: Wed May 14, 2025 7:18 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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Edit - There’s one in the classifieds right now.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2717206
Tried to link your Squareback build here,
But Photobucket phucked it up.. 
_________________
Bus Motor Build
I have excellent news for the world...
There is no such thing as patina.
It does not exist! |
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Wed May 14, 2025 8:55 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| Very nice! I am trying to go further than engine. We have Porsche brakes (Boxster) porsche 911 dash! never seen that before. electric handbrake setup, air ride, stupid I know.... |
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jjvincent
Samba Member
Joined: January 11, 2016
Posts: 1418
Location: Bethlehem, PA
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| Posted: Wed May 14, 2025 6:15 pm Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| dpetteng wrote: |
So.. let's start talking about putting a flat 6 in a VW van.
Some people tell you it is 4 bolts, really easy - they are idiots.
A few challenges are - dry sump so you need an external oil tank, cooling a big flat 6, and that it is about double the weight of a VW engine. That would lead you to ask "why bother?" and the answer is, because its hard!
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It's actually not that hard. I know. My 68 Bus has a 911 engine in it. It's mated to a bus transmission. Installed back in 1977. My dad did it and just with basic tools and no over the top fabrication. For example, the rear engine mount is literally a piece of angle aluminum and bolted to the chassis of the bus. Really simple. No rubber mounts either, just solid.
Oil tank. Sits where the battery used to. He cut out the profile of the tank on that sheetmetal. Put some sliced fuel hose around it (so it doesn't chafe the tank). Then the tank is held up with threaded rod and if you know about old 911's, the slider used for the air pump (the emissions one).
Bumper mounts were slotted and found out the Ansa muffler fit perfect (the bumper gets really hot though). Sides of the bumper use more 911 air pump brackets to mount it to the body. Heater boxes are from a 914 (they clamp right onto 911 heat exchangers). Has two oil coolers in the middle of the bus along with a Troutman thermostat housing.
Here we are 48 years later and it is still going strong. Back then he did it because he wanted to. Plus we traveled the US in the summer camping out in it. In addition to that, we were doing SCCA Club racing with a 1957 Speedster. Thus it made many trips to races and the Runoffs in the late 70's and early 80's.
Back in the day there were lots of busses out there. Thus he loved to stalk them, wait for a long hill and then go blowing past the other busses. He really loved doing it to Vanagons.
Only real change was in 79 when he put in a brand new 79 Bus transmission. He got it from the dealer he used to be a service manager at and we did all of their cylinder head work. Thus, I was doing that cylinder head work for him (child labor at it's best) and he bartered out head work for the transmission. The transmission came out of a 79 camper that fell off the car carrier, thus totaled. The motor from that bus went into another one that was in for a 1K inspection but someone stole the engine out of it the night before (stealing engines out of busses and beetles was common back then).
See, my bus comes with many stories as I grew up with it. |
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Thu May 15, 2025 7:12 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| Good to see it has been done and works for years! |
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jjvincent
Samba Member
Joined: January 11, 2016
Posts: 1418
Location: Bethlehem, PA
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| Posted: Thu May 15, 2025 11:25 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| dpetteng wrote: |
| Good to see it has been done and works for years! |
Only thing I really hate is that it has carbs. Not that I can't adjust and work on them but at least with your 85, it'll run great with the injection on it. Plus run in all sorts of temps and weather conditions.
I did put on a hand throttle (like on an old 911) that is actually a choke cable. Thus when cold, it won't be idling at like 400 rpm. Porsche put that hand throttle on them for a reason. We all know why they did for the MFI ones but for the carbs, it's just to get it to idle when cold. I'm that oddball that will drive it when it's like 10 degrees out there.
Also, the original air cleaner housing pretty much did not fit (you had to hammer down the top a bit). So, it got a set of K&N filters on it. Obviously, they do last a long time. |
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Fri May 16, 2025 3:06 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| Interesting! I retro fitted PMO carbs on it so I may live to regret that! |
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jjvincent
Samba Member
Joined: January 11, 2016
Posts: 1418
Location: Bethlehem, PA
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| Posted: Fri May 16, 2025 9:30 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| dpetteng wrote: |
| Interesting! I retro fitted PMO carbs on it so I may live to regret that! |
Don't throw away the injection. I'd suggest finding a harness and the motronics box. Then you never have to do any adjustments on that thing. I remember in 1984 when they finally got rid of CIS, that new system was like a dream come true. No more adjustments for the CO, idle or timing. For what it costs to install PMO's, it blows my mine why people do it. I guess if you are looking for ultimate power but I believe you already will have plenty with a bone stock 1985 motor. |
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jjvincent
Samba Member
Joined: January 11, 2016
Posts: 1418
Location: Bethlehem, PA
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| Posted: Fri May 16, 2025 9:45 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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Here's a pic of the motor install and when I had to get it up and running after 12 years of sitting. My dad had dementia and so he tinkered with it with not so great results but it gave him things to do. As you can see, it's not show quality at all. Just for function.
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Thu May 29, 2025 5:55 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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So, a little sneak peak of the current rebuild and the start of the interior...
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dpetteng
Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2006
Posts: 389
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| Posted: Thu May 29, 2025 6:20 am Post subject: Re: Long running Custom Bay project - the Rebuild |
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| and before people ask, the interior is templated... final colours to come! |
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