Buggeee's Topless Bunny

[oprn]

As he should. That is a beautiful car!
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Our cars get old, we get old but driving an old VW never gets old!

[Buggeee]

[Synergy Solutions]

Any updates?
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Im a Mobile Aircooled VW mechanic, and work on old and new cars alike. Specialty in Camper busses/Vans, TDI, and FI diagnosis and repair.

(206) 841 7324

[Buggeee]

The front struts, and one of my front wheel bearings, were completely shot and it was much more cost effective to get a set of four adjustable struts for some reason so here we go...

I've gotten the front done so far. While I was in there I replaced, on both sides:

wheel bearings
hubs
strut tower bearings
control arms
rubber bushings for the control arms
rubber bushings for the stabilizer bar
complete axles with cv joints

With an automatic transmission the driver's side control arm bolt is trapped by the transmission.

So the transmission and engine need to be raised a little bit with a floor jack to clear a path for the bolt.

The rear transaxle mount to the floor loses a nut.

The front engine mount to the bumper loses two bolts.

And the whole driver's side transaxle mount comes off the transaxle and the car.

The bolt is free.

You don't have to do any of that to replace the struts, just the control arm on a automatic car.

And the wheelwell is cleeeeeaaan. (metaphorically speaking)

Nobody in town had a shop press in stock so here I am hobbling together some jig with angle iron on my bench vice in order to pound out the old bearing with the Thor Hammer. The old bearing is destroyed upon removal, per Bentley.

The new bearing got pressed into the carrier with a ball-joint press/air impact gun and then pounded onto the new hub on the vice with the Thor Hammer (being careful to only persuade the outer race into the carrier, and the inner race onto the hub).

Here's everything in place.

And with the old brakes (still with much life, somebody has been in here before)

These adjustable struts do not have a bump for the cam to ride on, although there is room for camber movement in the hole, so setting the camber will be an adventure.

The struts came with these wrenches and they can be adjusted while the strut is still on the car, which is nice.

I just guessed at a level for the adjustment and got lucky first try. I like the stance and nothing rubs!

The car drives great, as far as front suspension is concerned! Tracks pretty straight for not yet getting the alignment, which it needs now.
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Big Time 1988 Vanagon Westy
Release the Krankenwagen! 1966 Sportsmobile Camper
Dr. Kompressor 72 Super Duper
61 Turkis Pile (adopted out)

[Buggeee]

[Butcher]

Missing bolt on that PS bracket.

Looking good with no oil leaks too.

[Buggeee]

[kamzcab86]

[Buggeee]

Almost there! This dash is tedious business. It's given an opportunity to handle some miscellaneous nonsense though.

In playing with the heater controls I noticed that the little mechanism for the AC had slipped out of its groove some long time ago, judging by all the dust in it. I cleaned it up, lubed it and put it back where it belonged, flexing the metal controls back in place with some pliers so it would all stay together as designed. I wonder how much head scratching went on before they gave up and just lived without the AC?

Replaced the melted defrost switch and added a missing delete panel to close up a hole.

Here she stands tonight, waiting for me to return the glove box door and knee pad panel.

If anyone is out there and knows... I'm wondering what these wires are for in the shifter box? My guess is seat belt alarms? They were loose like this so someone disconnected them at some point.

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Big Time 1988 Vanagon Westy
Release the Krankenwagen! 1966 Sportsmobile Camper
Dr. Kompressor 72 Super Duper
61 Turkis Pile (adopted out)

[Buggeee]

[Butcher]

Is the heater valve you swapped out the same style? The new one may cause the lever to be really hard to move. If that is the case, you can use the 'Porsche' type valve. Much easier on the lever inside the car.

[Buggeee]

[Lingwendil]

Man, that is a lovely car!

Great score, and I don't think that was an unfair price, those things go for twice that around here not even running.
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73 super beetle thread http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=649622 Back on the Road!

Modify your Kadrons for SVDA http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8115884#8115884

Cast iron VJU4BR8 SVDA reference thread- https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...mp;start=0

Need replacement filters for original Kadron aircleaners? WIX #42087 is a perfect fit, as is Napa Gold #2087!

[Buggeee]

This is the moment at the crossroads. Teetering on the edge of regretting my impulsive habits, foray into the world of H2O cooled MK1, and addiction to Craigslist, I'm staring at a dashless mess and I'm not even halfway to retrieving the heater core that is made partly out of degrading plastic, and partly out of unobtanium.

Here is the new one, which cost me One Hundred and Sixty US Dollars ($160.00). I was glad to pay it. "Out-of-stock" seems to be part of the specs for a MK1 heater core when your car has air conditioning. By comparison, the non-AC heater core is sixty bucks shipped everywhere you look. Because you will never have one of your own, this is what the new AC equipped heater core looks like.

Whereas Bentley teases of a core that slides right out of the box on "some models", mine looks like this - trapped in a sealed box:

Which is why I tore my dash apart, in a quest to ultimately remove the huge plastic box that houses the heater core. It's a big clamshell centered squarely in the center mass of the dash like my grandma's sausage stuffing secured in the heart of a Thanksgiving Turkey.

Having surrendered to my nature, and newfound journey, I committed one hundred percent to finding the remaining inaccessible screws that would release the box.

Then I saw this.

That's the airconditioner, which is also in the box. I am absolutely not ready to unpack that box of worms. So I quit for the day.

I returned after an evening of some very promising research on VWVortex forums. Over there, I saw someone cut two slits in the side of the box with a hacksaw blade. Brilliant. Two minutes later, the old heater core was out.

I put some foam window insulation on the ends of the new core to seal airflow and avoid rattles (I've used this successfully around Type 1 oil coolers on multiple engines).

Then I slid it into place and returned a little removable panel to its home.

Once the new rubber hoses were attached, I screwed on the hose cover, which held the makeshift hatch in the closed position against the foam, sealing it up.

On a related matter, one of the heater hoses has a plastic connector that can't be found (at least by me) so, at the suggestion of my new MK1 friends stopped by the hardware store for a brass garden hose repair kit. Here's a side-by-side of old and new.

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Big Time 1988 Vanagon Westy
Release the Krankenwagen! 1966 Sportsmobile Camper
Dr. Kompressor 72 Super Duper
61 Turkis Pile (adopted out)

[Buggeee]

[Zeitgeist 13]

I don't know how much Digifant II info is out there, but the diagnostics are virtually the same as found in the Vanagon 2.1 WBX, which uses Digifant I. That automatic portion of the transaxle is also the same as found in a Vanagon.

I've long wanted a Cabby kitted out exactly like yours
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[Butcher]

https://www.pexsuperstore.com/product/1-2-pex-coupling-splice-crimp-brass-fittings/

I'm not certain if it's 1/2" but you have two heater hoses that attached to the two heater core hoses. One hose attaches to the heater valve and the other one is attaches to a splice [similar to the one above]. The newer VW's used a plastic fitting and the older ones were steel.

Like all materials, they eventually fail. Plastic or steel, they both last a certain amount of time and then expire. Most, if not all the plastic pieces under the hood have last 30+ years so they are past their expiration date. When one fails, it's best to replace all of them.

[Buggeee]

[Butcher]

Do not forget about the plastic coolant housings located at the back of the head as well as the one between #3-4 cylinders. The thermostat housing would be wise to replace also. There is a fitting between the heater hoses that you should replaced. If you go to the hardware store, a pex pipe slice works really well. Made of brass and has the perfect diameter to splice the hose. I believe VW used plastic in your model.

Do as you wish, but if you do not replace most/if not all of the coolant components, you will be chasing coolant leaks for a while. Do it once saves you a lot of time and money. It also gives you the confidence that you will get home.

If I did not mention it, stay away from Meyle and URO parts. They rarely last long especially the plastic/electrical ones.

[Buggeee]

Well, it seems the earlier comment from our ranks about going through the brake system (which is due to the fact that rubber deteriorates even while a car is sitting), applies equally to the cooling system on these water-cooled servants.

Idling the car while chasing down vaccum leaks, and replacing little cloth braided hoses throughout the engine bay, let me witness a crack, and utter failure, of what I now know to be called a coolant hose flange.

So, while the air-cooled Beetle may have less convenient spark plug access, it never sprays green piss all over my shop.

I'm assuming that it was a stuck thermostat, but honestly can't say I remember hearing the electric fan running at the moment of failure.

Anyway, a thermostat, plastic fittings and rubber hoses are on their way in trucks that will excite the dogs in a few days. Then I can restart the car and cycle the fan to see if the sensors and relays or whatnot are functioning.

In the meantime, she's being rolled outside to make room for other meditations while we wait for parts.. She has a place in the barn for the winter but for a few days she'll be just fine under a spare Beetle car cover. For those that didn't know they were curious, like myself, it turns out that a Beetle car cover fits a Rabbit pretty decently.

All said, my experiences with this little car so far reflect the charmed nature of some VWs. This one has started when needed, run only long enough to accomplish the task at hand, and suffered catastrophic failure in the safety of the driveway. Some Beetles have been like that, and I have loved them for it. Timing is everything.
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Big Time 1988 Vanagon Westy
Release the Krankenwagen! 1966 Sportsmobile Camper
Dr. Kompressor 72 Super Duper
61 Turkis Pile (adopted out)