New owner, 1978 Westfalia

[Coffeycreek]

Hello,

I’ve been reading an learning here since acquiring my new bus about a month ago. I purchased it after the po put a rebuilt motor in which currently has 500 miles. I have all reciepts an it appears to be in excellent condition.

I have lots a questions not ever driving let alone owning a vw aircooled vehicle.
It has a type 4 motor with the original fuel injection. While driving up a fairly steep grade (i live at 7,000ft) I pulled over to check my 12inch candy thermometer an it read 220 degrees F. The ambient temperature was 45 F an I shifted down to 3rd as soon as my revs dropped and was unable to hold a steady 55 mph. All of my tin wear appears to be in place an I assume working although I can’t confirm because of the metal covers on top of the heads but mist herein say if not working they’d only be stuck open anyway. I’ve scoured these forums an found some info but theres as many that say drive an don’t worry about high temps as there are peeps watching it closely an wanting it to stay under 230. My fear is with 220 F at 45 degrees, what will it be like this summer when its 95 degrees?
Thanks for any feedback.

[timvw7476]

You can trust the dipstick, ifit can be held for three seconds, engine oil temp
is just fine. Modern 10W-30, 10W-40 oils work fine in temperate conditions,
thicker oil is great for a tired engine in summer heat climbing hills or running
the highway, not much else use for thick lubes.
The other two things are the engine compartment foam perimeter being in
place, & the thermostat,cable &flaps functioning. Look under the right side
cylinders, there should be an accordion looking thermostat there,a tin
should also be blocking it but if you look from the rear, it will be bolted
to the engine case. Must have thermo & foam gasket in place to keep temps
down.

[SGKent]

[Wildthings]

The oil cooling system on an ACVW is based on oil viscosity and engine speed and has no way of sensing actual engine temperature. A thicker oil and/or an increase in engine speed will lead to higher oil temps.

As others mentioned you need all the tin in place and in good condition, a good foam seal, and the flaps need to be in the "hot" position once the engine warms. Note that the operation of the flaps is not intuitively obvious. The flaps should be failsafe to the "hot" position, but that depends on nothing being jammed and the little spring being in place that twists the cross rod for the flaps to the "hot" position. If someone totally removed your flaps you will get less than normal air flow through the oil cooler. You can inspect the top of the oil cooler for blockage using a fiber optic camera fed down through the hole in the tin for the #4 spark plug, you need to have the flaps held in the "cold" position to do this.

Also close off any extra openings in the engine compartment like holes where A/C hoses once ran, and make sure the engine compartment door seals well.

I ran 30wt in the summer and 10w30 in the winter for years and 15+ years ago swapped over to a 5w40 synthetic year round. Either a straight weight oil or a synthetic can handle more heat than a dino multigrade.

At 7000' you can set your timing at 32° BTDC @ 3500+ rpms, hoses off and plugged.

[Abscate]

Remember that the jump from 45 degrees to 90 degrees isn't a 2x jump, it's a 10% bump


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.ssS!

[richparker]

I love reading “rebuilt 500 miles ago by the privious owner.” That statement sounds like a scam to me. If it was truly 100% rebuilt, new engines do run hot until they are broken in. This could be 1000-1500 miles depending on how good the rebuild is.

Or...the PO could have cleaned the engine, tins and engine bay really well and advertised it as a rebuilt engine. When actually it’s a worn out POS. M

Being able to touch the dipstick is always a argument on this forum. Metal conducts heat, so if the oil is 220* the dipstick willl be too cause it’s in the oil. I can’t touch something 200* without a rag or gloves on, can you? And yes, I've texted this theory with my IR gun and my dipstick is always the same temp as my oil (usually 180* for my engine).
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’71 Westy build
Adventure thread
’65 Deluxe Build
’63 Deluxe Build

[Spike0180]

Welcome! And rich hit it the head I think. When I was breaking in my engine, I was seeing temps as high as 240 (though I learned to back off and keep oil temps in check). New engines cause hot oil because of the low tolerances within the engine and just a lack of the metals having mated together yet. If this was a good grade for an extended period, I wouldn't be worried about 220F. Hopefully by summer it will have broken in and when it's 90F out you'll also be seeing 220F, and that would be a good cooling engine.

Overall, as you stated in your first post, there is a lot of debate about oil temps and what is safe what isn't... keep an eye on it. Oil starts to break down around 240-260 but does maintain lubricating properties (assuming you maintain oil pressure) at the temp usually. It'll just need changed sooner. Keep an eye on it as it gets warmer in a few months.

[Globespotter]

Welcome!

I wouldn't spend too much time worrying about and checking the temp. They run hot like most engines.

Also, almost all ACVW's will not run a steep grade like a modern car. Not unusual that you might not be able to hold a steady 55 mph if the grade is steep.

Good advice from the others about checking the foam seal, and you should check/replace the fuel lines.

Other than that, enjoy your ride!
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1977 Westfalia - October 2015 - Current
1971 Super Beetle - May 2012 - Current
1979 Westfalia - 1986-1991
1971 Super Beetle - 1977-1980

1971 SB Survivor Story: https://globespotter.com/
Road Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=511800&highlight=
My 77 Westy Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=647114&highlight=

http://vw-mplate.com/mcode.php?lang=EN&id=30990
https://vw-type2-id.xyz/mplate/72067382

[Wildthings]

The dip stick on a Type 4 engine doesn't get as hot as the dipstick on a Type 1. The dipstick tube is actually exposed to the cooling air in the shroud, so much of the heat the dipstick picks up from the oil is dissipated before it reaches the handle.

[JaimeH]

[Coffeycreek]

Thank you all for taking the time to offer your help. I failed to mention that the po has the engine made to 2.1 liters an between that an the tight new tolerances, it makes sense that first it needs to be broken in.

[Abscate]

[Gregg in the 603]

I'm skeptical too. Why rebuild and turnaround and sell right away? Unless it was a quick flip, which means quick and dirty 'rebuild'. Who did the work? Any receipts for that?
Also, the too-hot-to-touch dipstick trick is for early bays using the Type 1 motor. Yours being a Type IV it is totally different.
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1979 Mexico Beige Westy auto
Dirty Dover, NH