Bus Nose Cone in my '59 bug

[fl59bug]

I have a '61 trans in my car, and currently use this for the front mount:

https://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ACC%2DC10%2D4749

There are some documented issues with running this mount, but the biggest one for me is that it puts an angle on the engine/transaxle to the point where the pea shooter tips nearly hit my rear bumper.

I have decided its time to look into using a bus nose cone, and I bought and just installed the following:

http://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/DetailsList.cfm?ID=211301205H

http://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/DetailsList.cfm?ID=211301265a

What is other's experience with using this setup in a '58 - '60 car? I have another question: it looks as though the trans bell housing extends about an inch into the engine bay, instead of sitting more or less flush with the firewall like it did with the above adapter mount. Is this normal? Just looking at it I wonder if the already tight as a mouse's ear engine bay is going to be even worse now?

Thanks for any feedback.

[Casting Timmy]

I'd rather have the bus nose cone and rubber mount than the steel adaptor plate.

I'm really not into swing axles, so I couldn't tell you if there was a length different between the split cases and the tunnel cases or not. Might help to post that question in the forum section for the early beetles instead.
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T1 IRS Rebuild Book on Lulu.com
http://www.lulu.com/shop/tim-marshall/t1-irs-transaxle-book/paperback/product-24055997.html
As seen in Volks America Issue 14 Page 11 (Full page review)

[fl59bug]

Ok thank you. I bolted an empty AH case into the bellhousing, and it looks like there is still good clearance for all the peripherals (crank pulley, etc.) so I may be okay.

I also verified the 27mm rear carrier bolts are all the way up to the frame horns, so the transaxle positioning must be correct.

[EVfun]

[fl59bug]

Thanks EVfun. I will double check the clearance under the rear-seat area.

I recall seeing in another post someone had to dimple the sheet metal. On my car it "seems" like I'll be okay but again, will double-check.

[VWwerks]

Same problem here on a 58 bug. CIP should have a disclaimer on that saying this mount will cause the pea shooters and air cleaner hit the body/decklid by raising the engine.

My question is, has anyone swapped the nose cone with the trans still in the car?(with engine removed). I would like to avoid pulling the whole thing out. I'm wondering if the bolts are accessible and there is enough backward play to get the new NC in?
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www.VWwerks.com

[HBRag]

I have the bus nose cone and hockey stick on a late trans on my '59. Everything lines up, including rubber seal around engine. It's been a while, I think I had to drill a new dimple for the shift coupler on the hockey stick.

[b-man]

[RandyV]

[b-man]

[RandyV]

Ya, I see it now. My mount is a direct match to the WW stuff. My nose cone is filthy, but I can see the 2 diagonal holes match up. I also see that large plug stuck in the upper right of pic #1. I believe that's to omit reverse lights, yes?

And awesome pic of back in the day. Used to drag race a bit myself (Firebird, Bakersfield, Vegas) & hung out with a few fast boys.

[EVfun]

In 1960 VW decided to lower the axles to reduce the camber. They did this by reshaping the frame forks to lower the rear of the transaxle some. At the same time the front of the transaxle was lowered slightly more than the rear so the rear of the engine ended up in the same place as before. So, up through 1959 the engine and transaxle sat level, from 1960 on the engine and transaxle sat at a slight angle with the front lower than the rear. You can see this change because the shift rod had to be moved so it still exits into the tunnel. This change was not made to the VW Bus.

This picture shows the 2 shift rod positions, the 2 transaxle front mount heights:

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