My new 77 VW Bus...Top 10 problems: updated with PICS!!!

[pinkcrowes]

So I bought a 77 VW van. I am very green with VW's. I know nothing about them but I hope by the end of my relationship with this one (if that comes:) ) I will speak fluent Volksese. This van has lots of problems, a few major ones, some minor. The seller hid things from me very well and as I found out a day later, it wasn't the van I thought it was. But that is ok, I love a challenge and can't wait to get it up to par. I am sure some of these have been asked before, but I figured I would try and give my top 10 problems that I know of thus far in one fell swoop. So here we go:

1.) It had an exauhst leak. The cab would fill up with smoke while driving. I got that fixed, along with an oil leak. It went from sounding like a lawnmower to sounding like every other van I have heard. It is missing the heater blower that mounts on the top of the engine and has the hoses connected to engine. I think this part if just called the heater blower??? You can see how stupid I am on the subject of vans, but don't worry there is more to come.
2.) I had it tuned up. Twice. The valves adjusted, compression checked, etc. It ran rather well for a few days but then started acting up again. Once I get it started it runs well. I was told by the mechanic that I need a new distributor for it and I should see a significant improvment. Where can I get one? How much are they? are they easy to install etc? He said the compression was good. "The engine is tired but not as bad as most. It still has a lot of life left in it. The compression is good." is what I was told.
3.) The battery tray is rather rusted. Is there a remedy for this? A Fitting that can be popped in there? It still has enough to hold the battery, but I don't want it to fall out while I am driving down the highway.
4.) The sliding door falls off if you are not careful with opening it. This was not pleasant to discover on my own. I opened it before buying it, the seller opened it before buying it, and it seemed fine. Not sure how to fix this. It falls off, but you can just pop it back in. I want it to be to the point where I don't have to pop it back in because it doesn't fall off.
5.) There is a crack in the fiberglass of the pop top. it is located on the back driver's side corner. As a result, the top doesn't sit right and I have the inside bungee corded around the brackets to make it sit flush. Other wise it sits crooked and air flows in from the top while driving blowing the canvas around. Where do I begin with fixing that? I don't think it is feasable to replace the whole thing. Any thoughts? Prices from past experiences?
6.) I have no glove box. I have the face, but no actual box. Actually there is nothing under there. Just the face of the dashboard. The fuse box hangs down. I need to mount that back up in there.
7.) The "wood" paneling is peeling off the face of the interior. Replacments for this? better ideas for a replacement?
8.) The Speedometer is broken, as is the odometer. The odometer appears to have not been running for some time as it is miles exempt. I don't really need the speedometer as I don't think I could get a speeding ticket if I tried, but I do want that to work at some point.
9.) the overhead interior is peeling off, I would like to replace that with something, just not sure what.
10.) And now the biggest problem: When I bought it I was told it had a new starter recently put in. I have the receipt. However, as I am finding it doesn't always start. I have plenty of battery power as I have put in a new one recently and I get all my lights and radio functions working. It just makes a clicking sound and then nothing. However, I have recently discovered that if I go back and jiggle the battery and the cables attached to it, for some reason it fires up. So the connections are good enough to run the lights and radio, but not tight enough to start it? I don't know. I would like it to be a turn key start up van obviously, but so far I haven't gotten that. This was something that was hidden from me, because everytime I or he started it, it had no troubles. It wasn't until about a week later that I started having the start up problems. I am not sure what the root cause of this problem is.

This is my list of the top ten problems (that I know of) so far. I am a brand new VW Van owner and know absolutely nothing about them. As I said though I am hoping to change that and what better way to start than to get advice from the most knowledgable people on the subject? I have tried to give as much information as possible, but if you feel like tackling the challenge of helping an idiot novice like me and want more I can certainly try to give you whatever information you need. Thanks in advance!

Cory

[david_594]

[Wildthings]

If you have got good compression you are way ahead of many new owners. My first bus was pretty iffy when I bought it but time and a lot of busted knuckles set it right and it gave me years of trouble free service. I own a pile of manuals for these things. An Idiot Book, a Haynes, and a Bentley and others, between these these and the internet the answers are out there.

Your last problem may be several things. Start by cleaning the battery terminals and posts well and using some kind of dielectric grease on them to keep them from corroding again. I just use Vasoline though there may be better products out there. You are going to want to loosen, clean, and reinstall all the connections in your starter and charging circuit: Battery to body, battery to starter, body to transmission, etc. Also make sure that the battery cables are well crimped into their terminals, sometimes the terminal of aftermarket cables are not well attached and don't make good contact, I have even had them pull out. If you have the junky replacement style terminals on your cable throw them out and buy new cables with crimped on terminals and save a lot of future headaches.

If all this doesn't work you can buy a kit to install a starter relay to provide more voltage to the solenoid.

As for the battery tray there are several solutions. As a temporary measure just cut a piece of plyboard to fit the outline of the tray so the battery is less apt to fall though. If the tray is not too bad I like to just coat it with multiple layers of fiberglass, but if it is badly rusted then buying a new tray and welding it in is the way to go. Unfortunately the welding will burn your paint.

If you are buying new cables anyway you could just move the battery to the other side and start anew. Buy one of those anti corrosive mats to sit the battery on, and when and if you buy another battery get a sealed one to cut down on acidic fumes.

[Liveonjg]

Cory,
Welcome to the world of VW ownership. You've come to the right place with your questions and you will probably get many responses from those far more knowledgeable than I. My initial advice to you is to first purchase a Bentley manual. After you've read through that, then get John Muir's Idiot's guide, and read through it. Things will begin to make sense, and you'll be better equipped to decipher the advice you get here. You now own a VW BUS it should be your, not your mechanic's, responsibility to keep it running. Good luck on your journey.
-John
_________________
Keep it acoustic.

77 FI 2L Westfalia - Ripple
77 FI 2L Westfalia - Althea
62 Dual Carb Single Cab - Lou

[typesoneandtwo]

Welcome to Type 2 ville. As for the slider, they usually start to fall off when the lower track rusts through. The only solution for that is to weld in a new slider channel.
I suspect that if the battery tray and slider track have rot, there's a lot of other rust that needs addressing. I think a new welder may be in your future, unless you have a lot of money to pay a professional welder.
I think the best starting point was discusssed above, books and tools.
You should own and read the Idiot's guide for basic philosphies and the Bentley book for detailed pictures instructions and specs.
As for tools, refer to the idiot Guide first, Phase 1 tool kit and up. Without proper tools you are bound to be frustrated and even break something.
Do a serious frame rust inspection. Look around the rear torsion tubes.(just in front of transmission you'll see a large metal tube 5" diameter)
Poke around at the rust gently with a screwdriver. Does it cave in or is there still a lot of strength?
The bottom line is that if you find any serious frame rot, holes or fatigue you should not drive the Bus until it is fixed. It is a safety issue.
Good luck!
_________________
Each day is precious.

[jtauxe]

Very cool. New bus ownership. The fun begins.

Seriously -- all the problems you discuss are minor, typical things. Well, the door falling off is a problem that I have not encountered, but all these issues are eminently fixable.

Poke around on the classified on this site, and you will soon find (it may take a few weeks or months -- be patient) a glovebox insert, and a new speedo if necessary. But as the other poster said, do check the cable first. That is suspect since both speedo and odometer are not working.

The fiberglass top is probably best remedied by a replacement, though this could involve replacing the canvas as well. Do you have a junkyard nearby? Start scouring yards for old Westies. Parts of Washington state are thick with these, but I don't know about around Spokane.

One other piece of advice for you, and I cannot overstate the need for this:
Get and install the fuel line replacement kit from German Supply. Scott sent me one for my '77, and all the various pieces fit great. It seems a bit pricey, but the lines and clamps are top quality, Scott is a great asset to the community worth supporting, and you will have great peace of mind having fresh fuel lines.

Welcome!
_________________
John
"Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippie trail, head full of zombie..." - Colin Hay and Ron Strykert
http://vw.tauxe.net
1969 Transporter, 1971 Westfalia, 1976, 1977, 1976, 1977, 1971, 1973, 1977 Westfalias,
1979 Champagne Sunroof, 1974 Westfalia Automatic, 1979 Transporter, 1972 Sportsmobile, 1973 Transporter Wild Westerner, 1974 Westfalia parts bus, 1975 Mexican single cab *FOR SALE*, 1978 Irish 4-door double cab RHD

['79jw]

When my slider kept falling off it was because my plastic guide was missing
http://www.busdepot.com/details.jsp?partnumber=211843368
_________________
'79 westy
'74 trans

[EZ Gruv]

[willsmith2]

A web page that also is super helpful is www.ratwell.com it has a variety of excellent information and step by step instructions.

Start looking around in junk yards around spokane to find a bus. You usually can get things like glove boxes and all other small items, and maybe even a pop-top (or try fiberglass repair tape from home depot or the like). I would try the tape first, just use clamps to make sure the crack is even and follow the instructions, then sand and paint the top.

The interior wood panels were 3 mm baltic birch and you can use a "door skin" from the hardware store for about $7 for all parts except the headliner where it requires a wider piece. Just becareful in the removal of yours so you can trace them then cut with a jigsaw with a sharp metal blade and pick out what ever screws and washers you want to install.

The list can go on and on and can get very expensive so pick your battles accordingly, get a good set of metric tools, manuals, and do the best you can.

these vehicles become more than a car, they become an addiction!
have fun

[pinkcrowes]

I gave my post a little while to grow and man did it! Thanks everyone for the advice, I am sure that I will need more and possible even keep having to bring up old topics! I appreciate all your wisdom and you will be hearing from me again to pick your guy's brains again!

Cory

[1FUNBUG]

Regarding starting issues, you may also have a bad ground strap. There is (or should be) a ground strap on the left side of the transmission that goes from the transmission to the body. I bumped mine and it fell off!

Also, if you're going to drive it while fixing it up then YOU MUST REPLACE YOUR FUEL LINES! I'm referring to the rubber ones. www.germansupply.com has great kits that come with everything you need. Make sure that you know what your Bus has. There are several flavors of kits to choose from. Some Buses came with several sections of metal lines with only a few inches of rubber hose between them. Others did not. Also, if your fuel injection was replaced with a carb. Germansupply has a kit for that as well (I think). When you get a chance, post some photos of the concerns you have. We like pictures!

Welcome aboard Bus Pilot!
_________________
1FUNBUG

71 Beetle, 1776, dual Kadrons
77 Westy, Camper Special 2.0 F.I.

[pinkcrowes]

[Randy in Maine]

Here is your glove compartment

http://www.busdepot.com/details.jsp?partnumber=211857101A

[pinkcrowes]

[Earl 78 westy]

problem #1. you called it a van.
_________________
Just another VW girl driving a bus....
78' Westy named Feo.
04' Jetta TDI

check out my stuff on ebay....
http://www.ebay.com/sch/simplefundesigns/m.html?_n...ksid=p3686



.

[ccpalmer]

[pinkcrowes]

This is me and my new friend

My sliding door Mechanism...anything look unusual, other than the fact that it pops off:)

The outside of the sliding door

Another Outside shot, we just got a shitload of snow!

From the outside again

The passenger side

The steering wheel, speedo doesn't work

the back seat, with the kings of leon riding:)

This is what I have to do to keep airflow from getting in through the pop top while driving. It doesn't sit flush

The headliner

My fuse box hangs

No glove box

Interior cabinet

The engine

My cracked pop top. This was cracked the day I bought it so I am not sure if this is why it is not sitting level. Is this repairable without replacing the whole thing?

Underneath the battery tray

And a picture of chris robinson I took 2 years ago. What the heck?

Hope those provide help to my issues, or feedback. If you want a picture of anything else on the bus let me know and I will get it up ASAP!

Thanks again

Cory

[VDubTech]

[Bleyseng]

Looks good!

Fixing the fuse box is easy, just find two screw that fit to reinstall it.
Good to see the FI is there!
The top can be fixed with fibreglass but I would wait until spring as its better to do with the top off.
Time to weld in a battery tray...
The sliding door hinge is missing the plastic block to hold in on....
_________________
70 Ghia Black convert-9/69 build date-stock w/133k 1600 SP-barn find now with a rebuilt tranny and engine
77 Westy 2.0L w/Ljet, Camper Special engine-95hp and with LSD!(sold)
76 Porsche 914 2.1L L20c, 120hp Djet (sold)
87 Syncro Westy Titan Red 2.1L 2 knob 100k miles

[VDubTech]

I wouldn't try to fix that top, it's only going to keep breaking in the same spot. I would replace it myself....too bad you're across the country, I've got a complete top sitting right in the backyard.