A 'Thing' learning experience (applicable to all Type 1 VWs)

[Windisch]

Had to share some 'enlightenment' (illumination?) with all of you, bearing on some apparent problems I was recently having with the carburetor on my 1973 Type 181 (or so I thought). You can find the original thread dealing with this here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=669970

At any rate, and to provide some brief context, after having my entire (1600) engine and tranny rebuilt, the shop where the work was done had suggested adding a Type 009 dizzy (it turned out to be a Pertronix 009 clone)...ostensibly to 'improve' performance. Of course, since I was using a 34 PICT-3 carb, this created some idling & acceleration (flat spot) problems, so I returned the car to the shop and had them install what I had determined was a suitable dizzy replacement (a 'Hot Spark' SVDA 034 dizzy with 3BOS4U1 electronic ignition). Hot Spark assures us that they test each of their dizzies for correct advance curves on a dynamometer before shipping out a unit, so I felt very confident about using this unit.

However, when I got the car back with the new Hot Spark dizzy installed, I was still experiencing difficulties with the car idling properly and the jerky acceleration continued, despite some very slight improvement.

"Hmmmm", thinketh I, "It must be the carburetor." Hence I had the shop replace the existing BOCAR 34 PICT-3 with a rebuilt (German) SOLEX, again thinking that I had 'solved' the problem. Nope, things continued pretty much as before, and I was starting to lose some sleep over this seemingly unsolvable dilemma.

That's when I started the original thread, inquiring about any possible VeeDub experts in the Sacramento (CA) who might be able to drop by and shed some light on my quandary.

Gratifyingly, an individual named Koen Kegelaers contacted me to say that he had quite a bit of experience with VeeDub air cooled engines and wouldn't mind dropping by to take a look, if I wished it.

Soon after that, we got together. Koen brought his tools and spent well over a hour or two checking over my engine's operating parameters and making some adjustments to the carb. I, of course, thought that the newly installed carb was to blame for the continued difficulties, but after much further consideration, Koen expressed his opinion that it could conceivably be a distributor problem and NOT the carb's fault.

Of course, having just had a new Hot Spark dizzy installed, I was equally convinced that it couldn't possibly be the dizzy that was the source of my difficulties. After all, it was a NEW Hot Spark SVDA unit, touted as being the perfect complement for an otherwise stock engine set-up.

Long story short, Koen said he might have an original German Bosch SVDA at home that he could install, if I wished to test his theory. Since Koen clearly has considerable knowledge and demonstrated obvious expertise in air cooled VW engine maintenance, I agreed and shortly thereafter we reconvened to install the (German) Bosch dizzy (with standard points and NOT with electronic ignition).

We installed the Bosch unit, fired up my Thing and P*R*E*S*T*O! it was running like a champ. No idling problems, no jerky acceleration difficulties. In short, the smooth 'Swiss watch' operation that I had expected after the original engine rebuild, but not experienced.

I suppose I am posting this here as a cautionary caveat to all who are reflexively convinced (as was I) that the carburetor is ALWAYS the most likely source of problems with any idling and acceleration anomalies encountered in a VeeDub engine. In this case, it was indeed the dizzy that was the root-source of my frustrations! Whoda thunkit?!

I am well aware that others may have installed a Hot Spark 034 type SVDA dizzy on their machines, had no difficulties, and been well satisfied, but the fact that it did not suit my stock set-up should be a useful bit of information worth sharing. NEVER disallow ANY possibilities when it comes to getting your air-sucker to operate smoothly and properly!

As for Koen, who lives in the greater Sacramento Area, I am deeply indebted to him and to his expert VW/Porsche ministrations. Koen is Belgian by birth and has been working on VW/Porsche air cooled engines for more than 20 years in Europe. He is one of those rare and excellent individuals who are not only extremely talented with a wrench, but modest and personable as well. I would not hesitate to refer anyone who has similar seemingly inexplicable difficulties with their VW (or Porsche) to Koen's excellent ministrations. If he had a local VW/Porsche shop, I'd be one of his regular customers in a heartbeat!

As it was, we shared a good Kloster Andechs Hell bier (one of the very best Bavarian beers made and found only at the Kloster Andechsbrauerie, just slightly south of Munich) and had a good laugh at my perplexities, now perfectly resolved!
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1973 Standard Beetle, 1974 VW/Porsche 914-4, 1.8 liter
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Der Volkswagen ist ein Ausdruck der deutschen Kultur der Allrad Art ...

[The only irrefutable evidence we have that intelligent life truly exists elsewhere in the Universe is the fact that so far it has NOT contacted humanity...]

[ALANSD]

Interesting. My Thing now two years in my garage, has a pertronix unit in the size. I find it runs well with missing or bucking, etc.
It came to me with that installed, and I have only cleaned and adjusted the Weber carb, and installed spark plugs.

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I had a very similar experience for the last couple years. Bought my thing in 2010, it had been restored completely, then stored for 17 years. When I bought it, it ran pretty good, but had what everyone at the time said, "was normal", flat spot on acceleration, and would occasionally stall at lights. I screwed endlessly with the carb, and choke, and got it a little better, then just learned to live with it. Last summer I replaced the points, then could not get it to start, so I ended up calling a young guy from around a local club around home here, who was wanting me to go up to the june Jitterbug show at Niagara Falls. So he came to the house, pulled the Dist. out, and said, "this is all wrong". Apparently having worked on these every day in the 70"s, was not enough and I had forgotten a little. Within 20 minutes, the car was running better than ever. I came to understand later that MOST of the problems I was having were related to the Dist., and not the Carb. that I thought. Great lesson learned by me.

[74 Thing]

I suggested on your previous post that it may be that aftermarket distributor you had on your engine. Those are very troublesome.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=669970&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

[Windisch]