83mm 1500cc piston/cylinder question

[aquifer]

It doesn't appear that you can buy stock 83mm piston/cylinder sets for a 1500 engine. I think my research is telling me that most people go with 85.5mm sets, leaving me with a 1600 sp.

That brings to me to my questions:

1. Would my stock 30 pict 1 carburetor still work?
2. Is the stock, non-doghouse fan shroud adequate for cooling the bigger displacement engine?

I want to keep the engine as stock as possible, but I may have a bad cylinder that I'm investigating. Stand by for more on that, if true. For now, I want to wrap my head around these questions.

Thanks for your help, as always!
_________________
Project vehicles:
1967 Beetle #1. Bought in 2024, mostly original, October 1966 build date. Java Green.
1967 Beetle #2. Bought in the mid 80's, restored myself in the late 90's, June 1967 build date. Java Green.
1998 Jaguar XJR. Bought in 2015, rust free AZ car, refurbished myself. Driven in nice weather.

Parts needed:
Original brown rubber floor mats for a '67
Original gazelle seat upholstery for a ‘67

[KTPhil]

For decades, the answer has been YES and YES.
A doghouse cooler/fan/shroud is a good upgrade, but the stock system won't even notice the <15% increase in displacement.
_________________
Current Fleet:
- '71 Fastback
- '69 Westfalia
Retired:
- '67 Beetle
- '65 Beetle (x2)
- '65 Bus
- '71 Squareback

[matthew henricks]

That is what i run in my bus. Not getting anywhere fast but it works.
_________________
1964 Original Owner build Thread. https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=702135&highlight=

Ambulance Fan's. https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=627707&highlight=

Parts i am looking for:
64 bug nice used front/rear Black LHD floor mat.

[aquifer]

I appreciate the info. I suspected (hoped?) the answers were yes, but I wanted to be sure as I go down the path. I’m finding low compression in all 4 cylinders. The investigation is ongoing. I’ll spend time on it this weekend, planning to put the bore scope in each cylinder to see if I can discover anything obvious.
_________________
Project vehicles:
1967 Beetle #1. Bought in 2024, mostly original, October 1966 build date. Java Green.
1967 Beetle #2. Bought in the mid 80's, restored myself in the late 90's, June 1967 build date. Java Green.
1998 Jaguar XJR. Bought in 2015, rust free AZ car, refurbished myself. Driven in nice weather.

Parts needed:
Original brown rubber floor mats for a '67
Original gazelle seat upholstery for a ‘67

[glutamodo]

Hell I run a 30PICT-1 via an adapter on the 1600DP engine in my Baja bug.

Keep in mind, the 1970 USA Beetle had a 1600 single port and the old style oil cooler/fan shroud. So did the 1968 to 1970 Bus. The offset oil cooler didn't start until the dual port engines of 1971.
_________________
Andy T.

"What is Glutamodo, Horror of Toyko, besides total, fiendish, quality-a-you brain!"

[Bobs67vwagen]

I had a 70 bug brand new and it came with a 1600 and non doghouse fan/ cooler. I have run 30 pict-1s on 1600s since the 1970s

[sctbrd]

Is this what you are looking for?
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2758943

[aquifer]

[glutamodo]

Yeah, there is usually a set of NOS 1500 pistons and cylinders in the Classifieds and on eBay. I started to post about that, but then decided to just answer your question and let it go, thinking you might have already ordered the usual 85.5ers.

Myself, I have a set of NOS aftermarket 1500 pistons and cylinders, mine are COFAP instead of CIMA in that ad, for a project that I never completed. Maybe someday.

Historically, it did not take very long for people and the parts industry to figure out to just sell people the 1600 kit. It was only 1972 when the J.C. Whitney catalog was selling the stock 1500 kit but nearby was a standalone ad for a 1600 "big bore kit" for this engine, and they were the same price! So you can guess what most people bought!

_________________
Andy T.

"What is Glutamodo, Horror of Toyko, besides total, fiendish, quality-a-you brain!"

[aquifer]

Good info, thank you! I'm not quite ready to make any purchases yet, but since we're on the subject, I came across a Moresa cast piston & barrel kit on the CB Performance website. They are 85mm. I'm wondering about the quality of Moresa, and CB Performance in general. There are a lot of topics about CB Performance on the forum, but I didn't see any topics about the quality of their engine parts - just saw mostly suspension stuff.

I'll want stock heads too. Can I reuse the push rods? I'll want new push rod tubes I think, but wondering about the push rods themselves. Is it normal to just replace them? I came across a set of push rods that recommended zero lash for the adjusters, which made no sense to me - but I don't know what I don't know about the subject I guess. I enjoy adjusting the valves, and I prefer stock, but I don't know what to order to achieve that.

Any recommendations for good quality pistons/cylinders/heads when it comes time to buy? The car is mostly retired and I drive it modestly. I'm not interested in performance parts, just good oem quality if possible.
_________________
Project vehicles:
1967 Beetle #1. Bought in 2024, mostly original, October 1966 build date. Java Green.
1967 Beetle #2. Bought in the mid 80's, restored myself in the late 90's, June 1967 build date. Java Green.
1998 Jaguar XJR. Bought in 2015, rust free AZ car, refurbished myself. Driven in nice weather.

Parts needed:
Original brown rubber floor mats for a '67
Original gazelle seat upholstery for a ‘67

[pastellgreen]

[Cusser]

Yes, you can re-use the pushrods. And if the pushrod tubes are OK, you can gently stretch them a little with your thumbs and re-use.
_________________
1970 VW (owned since 1972) and 1971 VW Convertible (owned since 1976), second owner of each. The '71 now has the 1835 engine, swapped from the '70. Second owner of each. 1988 Mazda B2200 truck, 1998 Frontier, 2014 Yukon, 2004 Frontier King Cab. All manual transmission except for the Yukon. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335294 http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335297

[heimlich]

[Cusser]

[aquifer]

I have bought several things from Marcel at VWNOS too, and I agree, great seller. Very knowledgeable & helpful. I hadn't seen his p/c set til now, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy a set from him if I go the 1500cc route. When I get the engine apart I'm going to determine what's in there - 83 or 85.5mm, and go from there.

To follow up an earlier question if I go with 85.5: does anyone have experience with Moroso or Mahle from CB Performance? There's not a lot of difference in the price so I'd like to know which is the better quality set.
_________________
Project vehicles:
1967 Beetle #1. Bought in 2024, mostly original, October 1966 build date. Java Green.
1967 Beetle #2. Bought in the mid 80's, restored myself in the late 90's, June 1967 build date. Java Green.
1998 Jaguar XJR. Bought in 2015, rust free AZ car, refurbished myself. Driven in nice weather.

Parts needed:
Original brown rubber floor mats for a '67
Original gazelle seat upholstery for a ‘67

[Cusser]

[MrGoodtunes]

[aquifer]

[Bobs67vwagen]

My practical mind says quality should be your guiding factor in making your choice. No one will ever be able to tell what your pistons and cylinders are with the assembled engine. So compare quality and price and read reviews of some engine builds with different brands and make your best educated decision. I cannot make any current recommendations as the last set of these I bought were German Mahle in the early 1980s.

[aquifer]

New information:

After removing the pistons from the connecting rods, I can see that the rods, crank, and camshaft are severely rusted inside the case. I’m going to tear the engine down the rest of the way and rebuild it. I will probably have questions, but I am in the process of studying and learning (which I enjoy).

I’ve never actually rebuilt a VW engine myself, but many years ago I disassembled and reassembled a junk engine just to educate myself a little. So I will rely on the forum and other reading materials I’m gathering for this project.

I will have the case professionally checked and machined if needed. The end play is .004”, and the thrust bearing shows no movement, so it’s possible that minimal machining will be needed. The engine was rebuilt prior to my ownership, but the car was stored for many years in a humid and musty environment, which I’m guessing is the root of the problem here. It will need new bearings, crank, cam, lifters and distributor drive gear. I probably will replace the oil pump and the oil pickup too.

The first step is to determine the condition of the case itself and go from there, I think.

Any other preliminary suggestions you have would be appreciated.
_________________
Project vehicles:
1967 Beetle #1. Bought in 2024, mostly original, October 1966 build date. Java Green.
1967 Beetle #2. Bought in the mid 80's, restored myself in the late 90's, June 1967 build date. Java Green.
1998 Jaguar XJR. Bought in 2015, rust free AZ car, refurbished myself. Driven in nice weather.

Parts needed:
Original brown rubber floor mats for a '67
Original gazelle seat upholstery for a ‘67