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bmwloco
Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2006
Posts: 1093
Location: Asheville NC
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 Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 11:22 am Post subject: |
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I worked with scientist, real, honest to Gawd PHds from Ivory Tower universities from the US, Europe, and NZ and Australia.
All worked on the issues of climate change.
10 years ago I got the best explanation of "what to expect" from a very respected scientist. This was before "global warming" or "climate change" was hammered in the media.
He basically said "get ready to enjoy the ride". Weather patterns for the next 100 years being up, down, high, low and different. Then, he said, you'd see a stabilization.
"Stabilization" being climate shift. He pointed out that melting glaciers putting water into the gulf stream would alter the gulf stream. Europe and Northern North America may well see a cooling effect. Cooling in terms of damned icy.
What'll happen? Dunno. Can't worry too much about it, either. 100 years is probably 40 more than I'll be sucking air on the planet, give or take.
In the mean time I'll live life a day at a time, try to convserve, re-use and re-cycle and find fun where I can. I also have a good hat and wear sunscreen when I drive my Thing with the top off.
And if I could, just because I'm a frugal bastard, I'd put a diesel engine in my thing. My father in law did it in a camper van before VW ever put one in a Vanagon. He saw fuel mileage go from 18 to 36 mpg. He's still got the engine, and he's offered to help me put it in my Thing.
Maybe I will... once I wear out my stock engine.
YMMV and Que Sera
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'85 Vanagon Westfalia |
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Captain Spalding
Samba Member
Joined: February 19, 2005
Posts: 2519
Location: . . . in denial.
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 11:45 am Post subject: |
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Diesel! Yeah! 
Last edited by Captain Spalding on Sat Dec 29, 2007 3:26 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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GSD_Master
Samba Member
Joined: March 20, 2007
Posts: 138
Location: Arkansas
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 11:58 am Post subject: |
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| Captain Spalding wrote: |
I don't listen to Limbaugh, but Bill Nye the "Science Guy" is my neighbor. Does that count?
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Seriously!!?? That is awsome! There arn't too many celebrities out here in good old Arkansas. You should have him sign VW t-shirts and sell them in thesamba classifieds.
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Is that the new Hummer! |
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npconnor
Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2007
Posts: 194
Location: Central Texas
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 12:18 pm Post subject: |
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If global warming is happening, why are people getting all upset? People whine and cry about how humans are making all the problems, yet do these people realize that the world warms and cools natually? It does that every few hundred years, Vikings put livestock on Greenland, there was a mini ice age in the Middle Ages.
but that's when I ask myself: "what do I know?" Older people snub me *usually* (there have been some pretty neat instances)
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'73 Thing
Austin Air-coolers Gang |
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Fun 181
Zu Geil!
Joined: October 20, 2006
Posts: 1003
Location: Connecticut
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 2:00 pm Post subject: |
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This is turning out to be the greatest thread ever.
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| Ian Epperson wrote: |
| Holy poop, that's full of awesome! |
Last edited by Fun 181 on Sat Dec 29, 2007 3:15 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Ian Epperson
Samba Member
Joined: January 12, 2005
Posts: 2262
Location: Alameda, CA
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 2:30 pm Post subject: |
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| npconnor wrote: |
| If global warming is happening, why are people getting all upset? |
Well, for one thing, if the predictions are anywhere near accurate, in a few years my house should be underwater. I'm a bit concerned about that.
Ya see, when they say the average global temp goes up by 1 degree, that means that in some locations the temp doesn't change (like near the equator), but in others it changes by quite a lot (near the poles). So, the polar ice melts, so what? Well, the only reason northern Europe isn't as cold as northern Alaska yet at the same latitude is because of the Atlantic ocean currents which bring heat north and cool south. Warm water rises in the tropics, cold water sinks in the north, and this cycle moves. Well if you dump in a bunch of fresh water (like, say, the north pole) then it doesn't sink and those currents stop until all that water mixes properly with the sea - which'll probably take a long time. That current is now almost stopped, and over the next few years it's going to get a lot colder in Europe, and a lot hotter in north Africa - without any resulting change in the average global temperature.
Back at the Antarctica, the ocean ice melted last summer - which hasn't happened anytime in recorded history - and was only in the worst-case prediction in 50 years from now. Why should I care? Well, that ice was helping to keep the ice on land nice and frozen - now that it's gone, that ice will also begin to melt. When the ice on land melts, the sea level goes up. If it ALL melts then the sea levels will rise world wide by about 20 feet. None of this is certain, it's hard to predict, and predictions can be wrong. But my house is in Silicon Valley - about 10 feet above sea level. What kind of gamble should I take? Say a big chunk of that ice melts next summer and sea levels go up 5 feet - is the government going to build sea walls around all cities near the coast... with little to no pre-planning? When a few million people file insurance claims because their home disappeared, what's going to happen? Insurance companies stop paying out, then the government passes laws shielding them from lawsuits?
If the housing market wasn't so horrible just now, we'd sell and move into the foothills.
So, is this a man-made problem, or "just" natural? People a lot smarter than me generally agree that we had a lot to do with creating this problem, and they're not sure we can fix it or how. But we're not even talking about fixing it, we're still so-called "debating" whether it's a problem at all!
As you point out, Vikings had livestock in Greenland. So who cares? There were ice ages before, and they'll be ice-ages again. So what? Well, we've developed a society and system of government with the current climate setup as a model - and we don't realize how fragile it is. If Florida disappears, what do you do? What does it mean to vote in a Florida election if there's no Florida? What happens when our current arid farmlands become a desert, and areas that aren't currently arid are the only places we can grow food? What if we can no longer grow food in the US? The "great dustbowl" lead to the great depression.
We're not preparing for the change, but it's coming.
Feh! I doubt this thread is going to change anyone's mind. I'd like to lock it, and maybe even delete all these off-topic posts. My next major engine change will be to electric and charged using solar cells mounted on my house. A coworker has done that and doesn't pay a dime to fuel his car.
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VW-181 shirts and stickers.
http://ian.epperson.com/vw |
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Captain Spalding
Samba Member
Joined: February 19, 2005
Posts: 2519
Location: . . . in denial.
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 3:22 pm Post subject: |
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| Ian Epperson wrote: |
I'd like to lock it, and maybe even delete all these off-topic posts. |
Good idea. I'll start . . .
[tap tap tap, click, paste, click, paste . . . ]
Ah. Back on topic. |
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npconnor
Samba Member
Joined: February 13, 2007
Posts: 194
Location: Central Texas
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| Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 3:46 pm Post subject: |
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That's cheating Spalding!
I see your point Ian, but it happens naturally, there isn't anything to be done. Except those wackos that want to make machines that conver CO2 into other forms. It doesn't seem like a good idea to mess with the enviroment.
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'73 Thing
Austin Air-coolers Gang |
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Shamu63
Samba Member
Joined: August 04, 2006
Posts: 83
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| Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 11:41 pm Post subject: |
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| "The true environmentalist doesn't care what damage we cause, because ultimately, the earth will erase all trace of us." Something I made up while drunk on rum. |
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Pierre G
Samba Member
Joined: April 28, 2007
Posts: 1771
Location: New Caledonia
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| Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 12:58 am Post subject: |
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Personally, I really don't like diesel engines. Unless most of you guys in the U.S, I have owned some diesel cars, I drove some (other than mines), I see them, hear them, smell them, they're part of my environment since I was a kid. I did maintenance on them (yuck). To me they're heavy, slow, they stink, they produce smokes, they pollute much more than our old ACVW's. I'm not talking about the latest ones like Tdi's, Hdi's, Common Rail, etc...with particule filters, catalytic, etc... I'm talking about the good ol' ones we could fit in our VW Thing/181, like rabbit diesel or vanagon diesel. Don't see how they could fit without cutting a lot in the rear tough. Maybe a subaru H4 diesel like it's been said...  BUT I'm definetely OK with an idea like this one. I love it  :
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| Feh! I doubt this thread is going to change anyone's mind. I'd like to lock it, and maybe even delete all these off-topic posts. My next major engine change will be to electric and charged using solar cells mounted on my house. A coworker has done that and doesn't pay a dime to fuel his car. |
Ian, your coworker is a true environmental caring person and I wish I wouldn't pay anything for fuel like him.
Just my 2 pennies...
Pierre
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1976 181/Thing, 1967 fastback, 1973 squareback, 1964 microbus, 1967 Double Cab, 1969 westfalia (currently under resto), 1972 LM1C dune buggy, 1974 jean's bug, 1974 1303 (super beetle, currently under reassembly after new paint). |
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ryan sullivan
Samba Member
Joined: January 20, 2008
Posts: 4
Location: simsbury ct
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| Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 12:14 am Post subject: diesel thing |
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| i bet i could put a diesel in a thing. as a matter of fact, i think i will,why not? |
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Towel Rail
Horizontally Opposed
Joined: April 15, 2005
Posts: 4622
Location: SE CR IA US NA PE
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| Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 1:05 am Post subject: Re: diesel thing |
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| ryan sullivan wrote: |
| i bet i could put a diesel in a thing. as a matter of fact, i think i will,why not? |
Do it! There's lots of talk and big ideas around here, but very little action.
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1974 Thing -- under the knife
1967 Beetle -- spring/summer/fall driver
1996 Subaru OBW (EJ22, 5-speed, AWD) -- winter car, 3-seasons "don't feel like biking today" car
049 > 070 > 053 > 009 |
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gfw1985
Samba Member
Joined: December 24, 2003
Posts: 948
Location: Raphine, VA
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| Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 3:19 pm Post subject: |
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| I think it would be easier to take a Rabbit and adapt it to a Thing body. |
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Ferretkona
Samba Member
Joined: December 03, 2005
Posts: 1306
Location: Columbia, CA
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| Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 3:40 pm Post subject: |
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| gfw1985 wrote: |
| I think it would be easier to take a Rabbit and adapt it to a Thing body. |
VW thought so as well. Thus the 183 Iltis 4 wheel drive. Rabbit motor gas or diesel. For some reason the diesel can be hard to register in many states.
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74 181 Thing
2008 Ford Sport Trac V8 4x4
2008 Ford Escape V6 |
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mrafindley
Samba Member
Joined: December 29, 2007
Posts: 642
Location: miami Florida
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danfromsyr
Samba Member
Joined: March 01, 2004
Posts: 15141
Location: Syracuse, NY
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| Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2008 11:07 pm Post subject: |
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man what a nearly useless thread..
a good initial question, followed by a few poor negative answers then a few pages of political tirades.
Diesel not possible  so there are NO Things with H2o engines
sure there are...
the VW Diesel would be a fair engine with near stock power and driveability, but a TD would certainly wake it up..
don't expect the 50+ mpg with the TD.. your foot in the throttle wouldn't let you maintain good mpg habits.
KEP has been making a VW I4 to beetle/bus trans adapter for a long time now. and the I4 fits very nicely in the engine bay.
where to put the Rad.. thats up to personal creativity. some would hack the nose and fab some sort of grill.
I'd lean towards replacing the engine lid with a louvered rad housing.
since once it's in the back and tuned you'll only have to check the oil if it leaks.
Dan
with too many irons in the fire
but will someday drive my TD thing project.
already enjoying my TD westfalia.
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| Abscate wrote: |
| These are the reasons we have words like “wanker” |
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nemobuscaptain
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Joined: March 07, 2002
Posts: 3874
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