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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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 Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2018 3:28 pm Post subject: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Hi, my name is Ian and I have a real problem with Volkswagens.
As of now, I've owned over 30 Volkswagens in the last 15 years. Everything from air cooled buses (here and here) to high horsepower water cooled cars.
Sunday, I woke up at 9am to watch Japan v Senegal in the World Cup. At the half, I went outside to do yard work and fix up a single wheel trailer I bought at an estate sale a couple of weeks ago. Around 3 in the afternoon, I went inside to clean myself up and eat for the first time that day. As is customary, while I cooked, I surfed the Facebook and came across a great deal on a water cooled Vanagon.
By 4pm my wife and I were embarking on a 500+ mile trip to bring it home.
We decided to name the Vanagon "Digilett", which is a combination of "Diglett" and Digifant.
Plan right now is to get it back into full running, driving shape and get it back on the road. I have a collection of Subaru swap parts, including an EJ22, that I'll hang on until the time is right to put it in.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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MsTaboo
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2006
Posts: 4097
Location: East Kootenay, British Columbia
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| Posted: Tue Jun 26, 2018 4:32 pm Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Yep, you've got yourself a project there!
Welcome to Vanagons. After you get that baby fixed up I'm sure you'll begin to love them.
I too had a long collection of various air-cooled buses from Splits tp Bays. My biggest regret was selling the '67 Samba in great rust free condition I had, and my last air-cooled was a '71 tin top camper just like yours. Took me all summer to strip and repaint that one only to turn right around and sell. Oh well, after getting into Vanagons I never looked back.
There's a lot to be said for exhaust free heat, more room, better handling, and a safer vehicle.
Keep us posted!
_________________
Currently:
'90 Syncro Westy 3 knob w/Zetec
The information age has morphed into the age of disinformation and willful ignorance. Agnotology!
Help the fight against Truth Decay.
Defend democracy, support Ukraine. |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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| Posted: Wed Jun 27, 2018 6:50 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Last night, my wife and I worked on the Vanagon for a few hours.
First, I want to post a good picture of what it looked like on Sunday when we picked it up.
As you can see, there is one panel that is shiny, but the rest of the van is pretty faded.
We started by washing it and saw some of the "fade" starting to come off, so I broke out the clay bar and some wax to see if I could get a good shine out of it.
Great news! Looks like the paint may be pretty salvageable.
I also started working on the positive cable setup. The previous owner had done some weird stuff to try to deal with the fact that the owner before him had installed an amp. Now I need to run a whole new positive cable.
Finally, just a cool backend picture.
I'm going to start working on polishing out one panel at a time and see if I can bring this back to its original brown beauty.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2018 9:19 pm Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Went to put the battery back in after it spent a night on the trickle charger. While I was moving around to put it in, I was attacked by one of the hornets that we had to dislodge while cleaning the van. This caused me to drop the battery directly on its top.
So I went from needing to charge a battery to needing to buy a new battery. Finding a battery was a treat, but I was able to find one at a local vendor.
Put the battery in and turned the key. It started right up, so I let it run for a while and started taking a closer look at the electronics.
I’m in for a treat.
As of right now, there are multiple things that don’t work (like the heater fans) and there is a HUGE draw on the battery. To the point that sitting turned off for about 30 minutes and the battery was nearly too dead to start the van again (lol).
I’m going to spend tomorrow with the multimeter trying to trace down the draw and figure out where all of my electricity is going.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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wyldryce
Samba Member
Joined: August 14, 2011
Posts: 83
Location: Annapolis, MD
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| Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 7:18 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Looks like you have the skills and fortitude to see getting the old girl back in shape again. Normal warnings for Vanagons apply here. Keep and extinguisher close by, and make sure the fuel lines have been updated, particularly at the crappy plastic bulkhead fitting. Would be a shame to see your hard work go up in smoke!
Go gettum! |
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Vanagon Nut
Samba Member
Joined: February 08, 2008
Posts: 10379
Location: Sunshine Coast B.C.
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| Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 9:54 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Re paint. Nice to see the transition. That was my first thought; "itll buff right out".
Something ive been meaning to do is install a ground switch clamp at my battery(ies). Maybe something to consider?
It sounds like you already know what youre doing but removing all the fuses then re installing one by one should help to determine which circuit, or ciruits, is causing the parasitic draw or short.
Neil.
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1981 Westy DIY 15º ABA
1988 West DIY 50º ABA
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Ahwahnee
Samba Member
Joined: June 05, 2010
Posts: 9810
Location: Mt Lemmon, AZ
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| Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 12:39 pm Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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| eazyvw wrote: |
| Probably my favorite part about buying old Volkswagens are the MPlates... |
Hey, thanks for suggesting that!
The link (for those who want to do this): http://vw-mplate.com/mcode.php?lang=EN&p2_UUUU..._MMM12=MMM
Also gives the build date and how it was delivered / picked up. |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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| Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2018 7:12 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Yesterday, I got up early and started looking into the electrical issues and I found a lot of garbage.
At some point, probably in the late 90's, a security system was installed. As was a 4-channel amp and an extra set of speakers in the front door. I ripped all of that out. Cheap security systems are the devil, especially since this one wasn't relayed at all so it could just be a little vampire all of the time.
Once all of that was out, I hooked the battery back up and tried to start it. It would turn over, but wouldn't actually stay running. It was at that point that I realized the gas gauge does seem to work, it was just completely empty. I dumped a jerry can in and it fired right up.
Let it run for a bit and decided to take it for a little drive through the neighborhood to diagnose any other potential issues.
Ended up throwing a couple more gallons of gas in, just to be safe.
Next project is the brakes. There is little to no fluid in the reservoir. The brakes still work, but it's definitely not a great feeling. I also need to finish making reflectix covers for the windows. It gets dang hot in there while I'm at work and makes it miserable to work on in the evening.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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ALIKA T3
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Joined: July 30, 2009
Posts: 6360
Location: Honolulu,Hawaii and France
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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| Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2018 7:31 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Now that I'm registered and insured, I really wanted to start putting some miles on it just to kind of shake things out and run some crap out of the tank before I replace the fuel lines.
My friend Jason and I took an evening trip up over the foothills and got a pretty cool sunset picture.
This morning, on the way to work, the water temperature light started flashing even though the gauge was about a quarter through it's motion. I pulled over at an autoparts store, turned it off, and turned it back on again and the light didn't come back on. That was weird. Just to be safe, I topped up the overflow.
Today I'm going on a 30 mile round trip to pick up my grandfather, so I'm hoping it doesn't become a bigger problem.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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bokonon42
Samba Member
Joined: December 20, 2016
Posts: 106
Location: Bay Area, CA
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riceye
Samba Member
Joined: March 09, 2006
Posts: 1661
Location: Caledonia, WI
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| Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2018 12:46 pm Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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The light could also have been triggered by the coolant level sensor in the pressure tank. Could be low on coolant or the sensor may be wonky.
_________________
'87 Westy Weekender - daily driver on salt-free roads
There's gonna be some changes made.
“I find that things usually go well right up until the moment they don't.” - Ahwahnee
"Quality isn't method. It's the goal toward which the method is aimed." - Socrates, later quoted by R.M. Pirsig |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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| Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 8:25 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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It's still mega hot here, but I managed to finish mounting my roof basket last night.
The rack came with the van, the basket was made by a friend for his new beetle.
I've driven it to and from work every day this week. Aside from a couple little hiccups, it's doing okay.
Going on a long high way drive on Sunday to really shake things out.
_________________
- Ian
'71 Tin-Top Camper - "Wilford" (SOLD)
'77 Tin-Top Camper - "Tom Hank" (SOLD)
'86 Transporter - "Diglett" (FOR SALE) |
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eazyvw
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2014
Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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Stuartzickefoose
Samba Post Whore
Joined: February 07, 2008
Posts: 10350
Location: SoCal for now...
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| Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 10:05 am Post subject: Re: Digilett (a build thread) |
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Sweet van!
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Stuart Zickefoose
2011 Jetta Sportwagen TDi 6 speed manual
206-841-7324
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bokonon42
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Location: Bay Area, CA
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eazyvw
Samba Member
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Posts: 64
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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