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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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 Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2018 5:10 pm Post subject: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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I saw this little booger on facebook marketplace for a song and couldn’t help but bring it home. I got super lucky, the first guy in line passed on it. It also fit on my truck’s bed perfectly.
It runs medium well on a tank of 2 year old gas. The clutch grabs. And it is stuck in 3rd or 4th. I can hear a mechanical click coming from just inside where the shaft/linkage meets the transaxle housing when I try to shift it. Previous owner said his mechanic suggested checking in there before tearing it down entirely.
Where to start? IDing the engine and trans? I know nothing about VW’s, this is the start of my journey. I am already pretty experienced in air cooled engines so it’s about time that I buckle down and learn more about this particular family. Totally open to suggestions on study material.
First pic is from the ad.
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Dale M.
Samba Member
Joined: April 12, 2006
Posts: 20379
Location: Just a tiny bit west of Yosemite Valley
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| Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2018 5:23 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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MY first thought.... Fresh gas and find out whats up with shifter.... First thing I would check is coupler between transaxle and shift rod.. Next would be how actual shifter is adjusted...
If you can get it to shift and go through the gears, then you can evaluate it better....
Dale
_________________
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"Kellison Sand Piper Roadster" For Street & Show.
"Joe Pody Sandrover" Buggy with 2180 for Autocross (Sold)
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All suggestions and advice are purely my own opinion. You are free to ignore them if you wish ... |
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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 4:51 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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Fresh gas for sure. I may clean the carb on principle. Plugs too most likely.
Shifter is all weird. Linkage/coupler feels kind of messed up with tons of play, the shift rod barely moves in relation. If I put some force into it I could get the trans in and out gear(s). The linkage and shifter popped, groaned, and began to deflect. Those joints may have been tight once but it sure isn’t now. Step 1 would probably be replacing all the junk in front of the trans.
Any suggestions on where to acquire a shifter setup?
Edit: Sadly I won’t be able to try driving it until this weekend. It’s way too loud for my boy (21m) and the babysitter (grandma) is going to be busy working. He has a play set of ear muffs that actually work really well. I’ve been trying to teach him to use them but we aren't there quite yet lol.
Edit 2: Here’s the engine code. This is a 1974 donor according to the title. How many cubes has this puppy got?
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SamT
Samba Member
Joined: April 17, 2009
Posts: 1761
Location: Rule, Tx
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 6:12 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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The shifters are always crappy feeling in rails.
See if it’s moving the shaft going into the trans. If it is and it’s not switching you probably have a nose cone issue.
The H case was originally a single port motor, but yours has dual port heads on it. It could be anything really. So it’s most likely 1585cc’s at minimum. But could be larger or have performance upgrades. An H case isn’t considered a good candidate for a performance build, but they are fine for mild stuff if it’s in good shape and perfectly fine in stock form. More normal than not to have a motor that doesn’t match the pan or title.
I like the pickup!
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http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=546712 |
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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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| Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 6:41 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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| SamT wrote: |
The shifters are always crappy feeling in rails.
See if it’s moving the shaft going into the trans. If it is and it’s not switching you probably have a nose cone issue.
The H case was originally a single port motor, but yours has dual port heads on it. It could be anything really. So it’s most likely 1585cc’s at minimum. But could be larger or have performance upgrades. An H case isn’t considered a good candidate for a performance build, but they are fine for mild stuff if it’s in good shape and perfectly fine in stock form. More normal than not to have a motor that doesn’t match the pan or title.
I like the pickup! |
Upon closer inspection, every last thing in the shifter mechanism with room for adjustment is physically loose. It does cycle through gears under duress as is. I might be able to make this junk decent without spending a dime!
The truck is a fun toy. It’s been nothing but reliable since I bought it. Couldn’t resist the 454 and bulldog 4 speed with 4.10’s. Plus it just makes me laugh. I have dreams of installing a 6.5 turbo diesel, NV 4500, and a rollback bed for it. But it’s just so good as it is that I’m in no hurry to tear apart a mostly solid build. |
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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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| Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:46 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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Foot in mouth, I only have two gears-3rd and 4th. The trans will not go into neutral or any other gear. It will only cycle directly between those two without passing through neutral. I also removed the shifter and actuated it by hand. Either way it feels and sounds like there is a physical impediment just inside the front of the trans. Ugh.
Time to go do some learnin’ on these transaxles before I accidentally do more harm than good! |
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SamT
Samba Member
Joined: April 17, 2009
Posts: 1761
Location: Rule, Tx
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| Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2018 7:01 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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Well a bug trans is almost literally a “.dime a dozen” so you should have no trouble finding one.
_________________
Rides:
300HP 900lb turbo VW rail 18/15 travel
Never ending jeep/rzr hybrid build!
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=546712 |
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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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| Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2018 4:35 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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| SamT wrote: |
| Well a bug trans is almost literally a “.dime a dozen” so you should have no trouble finding one. |
True story. Brought home a rolling pan with a good trans today. I didn’t need all the other bits but the price was right and my buddy said he could use the rest of it.
I feel that the buggy trans may have a shift fork issue. What it actually does in practice is to actuate between 4th gear and a “jammed up” state right when it should pop out and hit neutral. The wheels just lock up completely, even with the clutch pedal depressed. I previously misread some of the symptoms. Never seen a trans do this before so. It’s getting swapped soon(ish) anyway. |
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DirtyDYT
Samba Member
Joined: September 18, 2018
Posts: 22
Location: OH
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| Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2018 1:59 pm Post subject: Re: Just brought home a ‘74 buggy |
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Hoping to have my replacement trans pulled and the engine out this weekend. That leaves me Monday to finish up. If I don’t make it that far I’ll be paying a local VW mechanic to finish it.
Couple more shots of the buggy:
Here’s the donor:
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