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richparker
Samba Member
Joined: November 24, 2011
Posts: 6980
Location: Durango, CO
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norcalmike
Samba Member
Joined: May 14, 2005
Posts: 4784
Location: Marina, CA
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 Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2018 2:10 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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| Cisumvw557 wrote: |
| Update: Bus was running just fine and was parked. One thing leads to another and it just isn’t touched for 20 years. He had no idea where the title is but I imagine that him being the same owner he shouldn’t have too hard a time getting a duplicate. I’ll update if and when I drag it out of the sticks!! Thanks for the encouragement!!! |
One easy form |
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Cisumvw557
Samba Member
Joined: February 18, 2018
Posts: 10
Location: ca
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 12:51 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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So I’ll be telling this story for the rest of my life. . .
A few months ago I went out on a reconnaissance mission to see how hard it would be to pull this bus out. Paying attention to overhead trees On my hour drive from Willits, CA (already on the edge of civilization) i concluded that there was no way I could even put it on a trailer. . I barely was able to reach the bus using a Spanking new big horn 1500 4x4 I had rented from the airport. But since i made it to the bus I cut some of the brush that had grown into the bumper and yanked it out with a chain to get a better look at it. Clueless as to how to get the bus out of its current location I decided to leave and heard back to town. . .
Now this ranch is as rural as you can get in ca that isn’t desert so when I came across a dust cloud on the small dirt road less than a mile from my newly acquired bus that alone was a shocking sight.. as I got closer to the dust cloud the shape of an old vw bus started to take shape. . I was absolutely startled and beyond floored when I realized that the bus wasn’t driving but was being towed by a vintage dodge. . Like seriously my mind was blown. Honking and flashing my lights I got the bus and truck to pull over and then I preceded to blow their minds telling them what I was doing out in the middle of nowhere and showing them pictures of the bus over the next hill. Turns out he bought the bus from a friend and was moving it out with the tow bar he fabricated himself ... what are the odds that two busses sit for 25 years less than a mile away from each other and then on the same day the two new owners bump into each other???
So a few weeks later after another trip to get the rims and coming back with new wheels and my borrowed tow bar we were able to yank the bus about 10 miles up the road where I could reach it with a car hauler ... a few weeks after that I was able to finish dragging it out of Mendocino county and to its new home in Fresno!!
More to
Come!!! |
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Cisumvw557
Samba Member
Joined: February 18, 2018
Posts: 10
Location: ca
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 12:54 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Pictures from the rescue
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Cisumvw557
Samba Member
Joined: February 18, 2018
Posts: 10
Location: ca
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 1:06 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Sooo now it’s cleaning time..
Is the interior wood pieces worth saving at all? I’m not trying to restore to
Stock or anything. Just to putter around comfortably in town.
How can I access area underneath the front seats? It’s
Filled with Debris and hard to get out?
Do I need to remove the windshield to get that crap
Out?
But most importantly, what is this red thing??
I’m a botanist with not many tools or experience but lots of time lol thanks shutdown and eager to get started. Obviously the floors are an issue as
Is the top.
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60vwnewengland
Twin #2
Joined: June 25, 2003
Posts: 1784
Location: District of Columbia & Cape Cod
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 1:27 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Virginia plates... weird.
It's going to take a lot of elbow grease, but it looks like it'll clean up nicely.
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Cisumvw557
Samba Member
Joined: February 18, 2018
Posts: 10
Location: ca
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 2:48 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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| The VA antique plates are off my Toyota I put on over the vintage CA plates I couldn't get off. I had it sitting on the road for a week and it helped it avoid attention for not being registered. |
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Cisumvw557
Samba Member
Joined: February 18, 2018
Posts: 10
Location: ca
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 2:50 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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| Is there a product I can use to start cleaning the outside and inside that is safe for me and safe for the bus besides hot water and soap?? |
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Manfreds78bay
Samba Member
Joined: February 27, 2009
Posts: 754
Location: PNW
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 3:39 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Simple Green is a great de-greaser. It's bio degradable.
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1978 2.0L FI Campmobile
1982 AMC Eagle SX4 4.2L FI |
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SGKent 
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 41031
Location: Citrus Heights CA (Near Sacramento)
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 4:11 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Really happy for you and it will be an adventure. Would be cheaper to sell it once you have the title and put the money towards one that runs. It is really easy to sink $10K into something like that just to be able to enjoy it casually. That or keep that one for parts and buy a similar one in good shape other than needing an engine and trans.
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bigdaveb
Samba Member
Joined: August 13, 2004
Posts: 53
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 6:30 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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| Cisumvw557 wrote: |
Sooo now it’s cleaning time..
Is the interior wood pieces worth saving at all? I’m not trying to restore to
Stock or anything. Just to putter around comfortably in town.
If you are planning to replace things, it would be good to keep the wood pieces as templates. Otherwise, someone else may find them useful...
How can I access area underneath the front seats? It’s
Filled with Debris and hard to get out?
Once you remove the seats, it'll will be significantly easier to get to that debris with a vacuum. When I was cleaning that area on my bus, I found a nice layer of gunk that I was able to remove with simple green - among other things. Just be prepared for whatever lives in there.
Do I need to remove the windshield to get that crap
Out?
It may be a good idea to remove the windshield no matter what. That seal looks like it's seen better days. Very likely, there may be a fair amount of rust at the two lower corners of the windshield.
But most importantly, what is this red thing??
I'm not sure what the red thing is. I'm not quite sure that it's a bus part.
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It may also be handy to find the M-plate to figure out exactly what you have. You may not be doing a full restoration, but it might be good to know what you're looking at. I have to agree with SGKent on the level of expenditures for getting the bus road worthy. Although my bus was a full restoration, just the mechanical components (excluding my own time and labor) exceeded $10,000. But if it's a hobby and something that you love to do, then that's a different story... |
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richparker
Samba Member
Joined: November 24, 2011
Posts: 6980
Location: Durango, CO
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| Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 6:42 pm Post subject: Re: Westfalia potential? |
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Not too bad, the ‘71 westy I recently rescued is in about the same condition. I’m planning on $10-12k to revive it. Good luck and enjoy the time you spend with it.
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