water conversion parts list

[charleslabri]

Heyo!
Time off, gonna convert my 81 airhead to water.

What am I going to need? What radiator should I slap in there? I have a metal shop at my disposal, so custom mounting for a nice rad is totally an option.

thanks!

[danfromsyr]

as few custom parts as possible. as if/when you need to service it you don't want to make it custom again..

I went the OEM vanagon radiator. and if you can't find a oem fan & shroud then that can be off the shelf hot rod shop bits.

the water lines, well you can use oem plastic or stainless replacements or DIY marine exhaust hose.

for in dash heat you can source OEM or small car makes some nice AC upgrades available.

in the engine bay, well that depends on just which water cooled motor you're going to use.

[Vanagon Nut]

consider using a different heat control valve; quality of some aftermarket VW valves may not be great. Some here have used a Ford heater control valve, IIRC.

There was a thread here discussing quality of current Vanagon rad offerings. The Behr South African ones are ok.

If you're on a tight budget there is also a thread here discussing other lower cost options for the heater core.

Neil.
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1981 Westy DIY 15º ABA

1988 West DIY 50º ABA

VE7TBN

[markswagen]

heater box and ALL it's clips clamps pipes tubes hoses, heater matrix, fan motor, resistor switches and wiring, the hole where the hot air pipe, and on water cooled heater pipes go, are different shapes, i used an aluminum plate to make up the difference, there's a metal valve, i think maybe ford, that either lets heat through the heater matrix, or diverts it back, seems a better idea than the stock on off valve.
upper mount for radiator, radiator, fan wiring resistor etc etc {i did an aircooled to subaru conversion, and use a 70amp fan and wiring etc, rather than the earlier fan} it wouldn't hurt to get some of the deflector things GW sells.

i would use RMW stainless coolant pipes front to back, you will need 5/8'' heater hose, about 20'
rear heater box and controls, if you are in a climate where you'd need it, and the trim plate and cover for it.
then depending on your choice of engine, which ever hoses are necessary.
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markswagen {mobile mechanic} san diego area all early VW's cared for.

619 201 0310

[charleslabri]

Ok, this is good info.
I wasnt thinking about the heater core and all that.

I recently purchased this vanagon, and someone has replaced the dash with a waterboxer dash, so ill yank that apart and see what the heater core in there looks like.

[Tbob]

I did a couple of homebrew radiator/ coolant tube solutions, which worked, but left me with compromises that I felt for traveling,(such as having to modify parts somewhere in a campground, etc). would not be ideal. I used a Pugeot(sic) 505 radiator (with the outlets moved to the ends by a radiator shop, remember those?)/ copper tubing for the first go around, then a Dodge Dakota(I may not be remembering this correctly) radiator with 1 1/2" marine coolant hose. Finally, the last incantation was to duplicate what the factory did with the Waterboxer, using a 1984 waterboxer as a donor. Had to cut the upper radiator mount bracket off the donor, and although it was originally welded in place, I drilled and bolted it to the air-cooled. The lower radiator mounts work as if the watercooled was designed for them, which it probable was. The only other mod I remember was to a crossmember which had to be opened up slightly for the new 1 1/2 pipes to go through. I bought 2 piece stainless pipes for a 1986 from Van Café, used all stock hoses until back in the engine compartment, where my selection of engine meant custom work. If you have the later heater box, then you can run 5/8 heater hose up to it through the place where the old air heater tube was. A grommeted plate works well here, and it still had to be homemade. Pretty straightforward that way. Oh originally I used electric aftermarket fans, but I went factory with the last version. Obviously, new wiring had to be added to the fans, with some sort of switching device( first a manual switch, then an aftermarket thermostat, the the factory temp switch in the radiator.
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1969 Deluxe, owned since 1973
1973 Westfalia, owned since 1983
1980 Westfalia, watercooled conversion
1985 Westfalia, stock!
1986 Westfakia, Audi I-4 conversion
A couple of trucks and a couple of Jeeps

[Vanagon Nut]