Another FAS Conversion

[Robsmaze]

First off - thanks to littlebluetruck and enochramal for their excellent posts on their conversions. after reading them, I decided that - yes - this is probably something I can do.

My 2WD '87 that had sat for 17 years between 2003 and 2020 had slowly been getting worse and worse. MPG had dropped to about 12 from an original 17, The exhaust reeked and I had some minor head gasket/water jackets leaks. I tried new injectors (Mansi), new rockers (mansi) and had slowly upgraded everything I could lay my hands on without dropping the motor (water pump, thermostat housing, coolant tank, almost all the old coolant lines, new grounds, etc...)

But she was dying and I want something that doesn't leave me and the kids on the side of the road anymore!

Ordered the FAS kit mid-december and it showed up in early February:

(The tortoise shell is Ella and the tabby is Vader)...

Finally got a free weekend to start work - here is the van loaded up with tools on the way to a more amenable space to work than my cramped garage!

The standard checks were performed:

Fuel supply - 650mL in 16 seconds (Bentley calls for 500mL in 30s)

Didn't check the soundness of the cooling system for two reasons
1) I've replace almost every thing myself and I have an intimate familiairty with the drips. They all come from the engine right now and that will soon no longer be a problem. I've had a drip from each head for months.
2) I replaced the old plastic tank with a Gowesty aluminum one and I couldnt find an adapter in my kit for it..

Finally - just for fun I checked compression. Oh my - I guess this is why the old engine was a dog!

When I first got the engine - everything was up above 140.

On to removal of the old engine! I was a little intimidated by this, but it wasn't that awful.

Drained all the fluids. I forgot how wonderful a little splash of collant in your mouth tastes.

I also think that I may have filled my power steering with power steering fluid instead of ATF a few years ago. Anybody have any ideas about how to flush it? I thought I could just put one hose end in a bucket up high and the other in a bucket low, pour some ATF in the high bucket and start turning the wheels back and forth...

almost there:

Out!

Engine:

Rusty but in great shape trans:

The interesting part was that I finally figure out what the component mounted near the D-Pillar is:

ZEMCO cruise control!

When I first got the van I though it might have cruise control because the turn signal switch had the option - but it was disconnected and the switch itself was broken. I had found the sensor on the CV joint and some vestiges of wiring, but I guess, even though I spent 100 hours in the engine bay, I never questioned what that little device with a cable connected to the throttle was! Doh!

Next I made the suggested cut to the rear seat to ease removal of the existing wire harness and ease intallation of the FAS harness:

before:

after:

Finally - as my weekend time was running short I started to mock up the new mustache bar. The channels where it mounts were coated with 37 year old unercoating and getting it removed was an exercise in patience. I only had to grind one little block off the mounting holes:

At that point I ran out of time to get the blocks mounted - cleaned up and will wade in again next weekend!!
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[trihartsfield]

Having just mocked up a FAS cradle for a 1Z/AHU, if you have problems, after drilling the hole in the frame rail for the bolts that go into the block, lining up the holes I recommend loosening the bolts that holds the block to the bumper bracket. That is how I got mine lined up. After talking with FAS about this it is unusual that lining them up is an issue. Just passing on info.

Chris
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1971 Transporter-SOLD
1982 Westy Will grow up into a TDI

[khughes]

Beautiful Furballs!

Have fun with the install - you're going to feel like you're in a rocket coming from that tired WBX! Enjoy
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'86 Westy FAS GenV Turbo (Marvin)

[MsTaboo]

Nothing quite so satisfying as dropping that old lump is there?

Good luck with the install!
_________________
Currently:
'90 Syncro Westy 3 knob w/Zetec

The information age has morphed into the age of disinformation and willful ignorance. Agnotology!
Help the fight against Truth Decay.
Defend democracy, support Ukraine.

[GreggK]

Good luck and good choice! I'm a FAS owner as well and can't say enough good things about them.
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'86 2wd Poptop transplant
FAS TDi engine swap. Peloquin LSD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=692188&highlight=slow+but+steady

[mike boland]

Good luck on your Install

I also bought FAS kit, but mine is a FAS Gen. V TDI, came in Agust, but I had make room in garage and remove old engine and transmission, so I stored kit in my aircraft hangar for 5 months, now I'm working on it
My Transmission is at Matt Steedle In New Jersey being rebuilt, hes booked up, but thats ok, I'm busy removing old plastic coolant lines, A/C lines Fuel lines, fuel tank &Radiator/ condensor and fuel tank, with new.

Been slowed down a bit as Westy wont fit in garage, bit too tall, and its winter here, but supposed be 67 and 69 here next few days, and spring just around corner.

FAS kit design, engineering, materals, and everything is top notch in Quality.

Mike

[VicVan]

Exciting! Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.

(I guess I'm littlebluetruck, that made me smile).

Any "while I'm in there" stuff? I'd definitely change the torque converter seal (with the good seal, some crap out early).
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'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[Robsmaze]

Vicvan,
Jeez - I guess the little blue truck comment from your post must have stuck in my head after reading it to my kids 100 times!

TC seal is going in my GW shopping cart tonight! I presume it’s a pretty easy swap…

Nothing else “while I’m in there” besides engine bay clean up, add some soundproofing and try to do a better job on the heater box when I pull the dash (I assume the FAS wiring is way easier if the dash is pulled!)

Probably also change the Speedo cable cause I keep thinking I hear it spinning, but it could be tire noise!
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[VicVan]

What a great book!

I pulled the dash because my heater core was leaking, but you don't have to. All you do is pass cables from behind the glovebox to the dash cluster area, nothing crazy.

Upgrade your grounds, add one at the starter as mentioned in other posts.
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'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[Robsmaze]

Managed to squeeze a few hours in to keep some progress going.

First - test fitting the engine cradle!

Had a little misalignment on the mounting blocks and wallered out the holes to get it right.

Got the engine cradle mounted, but needed to trim a little for fit…

Mounted

Interference on driver side:

Interference on passenger side:

Interferences trimmed and engine cradle set aside:

Next I needed to ensure I had good air flow up the D pillar, pulled the snorkel and the old dryer vent I had jammed in there and replaced with the GoWesty ribbed vinyl alternative - should last 40 years!

Next, I pulled the dash. As VicVan says, probably not completely necessary, but I wanted to give the heater box a better sealing job, swap out the front heater core with an original I got my hands on (the aftermarket one just doesn’t seem very warm) and fix a couple of hinkey things I’ve done over the last few years!

I repainted the engine bay after pulling all the old crusty soundproofing from above the trans and will give it a couple more coats over the next week. I’m presuming that Kilmat is totally acceptable over the transmission area - anyone have any input on that?

I also checked the old TC seal while I wait for the new one from GoWesty - maybe I jarred it when I was pulling the trans - but it definitely needs to be replaced!
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[Vanagon Nut]

This likely won't be an issue but be sure the join between corrugated hose and intake snorkel won't let rain water into the hose.

Nice to see the progress.

Neil.
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1981 Westy DIY 15º ABA

1988 West DIY 50º ABA

VE7TBN

[skills@eurocarsplus]

[Robsmaze]

More progress, I got some decent block of time…

I prepared to rebuild the heater box and put my new to me heater core in and immediately broke a tab.

A few hours and judicious use of super glue, it seems to be repaired. But I was reminded how delicate this old plastic is getting and slowed down even more.

Here is the heater core I got from GoWesty a few years ago compared to the original I got. The number of fins in comparison is crazy, there must be 3 times as many!!!

Heater box reinstalled!

Next I gave the engine bay a couple of quick coats of spray paint

And finished cleaning up my old transmission and changing the TC Seal

And finally mounted the coolant bracket.

Last for that day, I changed out my speedo cable. I had been hearing the start of the whirring noise from it and figured- while I’m in there I may as well…

But what does everyone do with the wiring to the OXS sensor reset thingy? I was just going to tape it up and shove it behind the headlight I guess…

More to come shortly…
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[VicVan]

Nice! Did you get fireflies in your belly when you started mounting some of these sweet stainless steel new parts?
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'90 Little Blue Truck, 2WD auto, FAS GenV 2.0 NA (AVH)

[Robsmaze]

I was actually just relieved to finally get to the point where I was opening boxes and installing stuff! The next couple days had their puzzles though!

I gave the PS reservoir its first good clean in 37 years and mounted it!

Then I broke into the wiring harnesses and started the ‘to dash’ harness. The FAS instructions were not totally clear about where the hole should be - when I drilled a test hole next to what looked like the right spot from underneath, I came up underneath the rear heater! Broke out the tape measure and ended up with this hole right where it should be…

And looking up from the bottom:

I like the label on their harness wire too!

‘Your bus will like us!’
While I waited for paint to dry I drilled a hole in the crossmember right behind the gas tank. The hope was to feed the harness through without dropping the tank.

Well no such luck - of course. The tank drop is one of my least favorite chores. I only had to lower it and didn’t have to disconnect the filler and crossover hoses, but I’ll have to go back and make sure all those annoying fittings are still inserted into the tank. Finally got the harness fed over the tank and routed up through the passenger headlight and drilled my final 1.5” hole…

Harness in run from the back seat to the front, still need to tie wire it appropriately…

Next it was time to wrangle the engine harness through the original engine harness hole. I had already trimmed the bench but it could not get the harness to fit. I finally, delicately trimmed some of the wood off of the cabinet with the water tank behind it. I was terrified I’d hit the tank the whole time, but I was successful and the whole harness squeezed through!

Moved on to some more work - mounting the new coolant pipes! I still have to flush the system..

Next I mounted the trans to the engine. Pulled the engine out:

I spent an hour struggling and trying over and over again until I realized the torque converter was not all the way in! Here’s a pic of an improperly mounted torque converter:

The Bentley says the TC should be 10mm inside of the edge of the bell housing. I wiggled a little and -“clunk” it inserted.

Everything was going smoothly until I realized that the bolt for my starter (a GoWesty kit?) was a little too long. I thought the instructions said I would get a bolt with the kit, but I found nothing. I think I needed a m10x125mm bolt, ACE didn’t have it, so I built a little spacer. I also had to buy an m10x90 bolt for the other side trans to engine mount!

With the trans mounted I went to install the torque converter bolts. I spent 30 minutes looking for the hole to install them! Finally found it, bottom left side of the engine!

Everything together, I did some more cleaning and then put the engine on a pallet jack (hopefully it will have enough lift). I had to jack the van up a few more inches to slide it underneath and then lowered it back down. The engine isn’t bolted up yet, but it’s at least underneath the van!

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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[Abscate]

Thanks for keeping the air clean with the dual cat version
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.ssS!

[Robsmaze]

Well back to it!!!

It was finally time to get the engine in! A few hard lessons were learned.
1) make sure you have thought through your rigging if you are lifting it up into the van. I had to pick up, lower, pick up again, block it up, and pick up a final time before I got it right. I honestly wish I had bought the lift I saw on Facebook marketplace. It was hard work.
2) double check everything is clear before you lift the engine, it’s easy to break things!

Rigging attempt one looked like this:

This got it close but it was too rigid. I lowered it and rerigged with some ratchet straps which seemed to work a lot better. I was frustrated and got no pics of the ratchet strap setup. I also removed the coolant reservoir and power steering fluid reservoir to give me more clearance and room to see what was happening.

They also instruct you to keep everything loose until you are bolted up. That means the little blocks that the cradle mounts to also. I had them cinched down and had to loosen everything.

Also, during all the mayhem I snagged the hoses coming off the power steering pump and SNAP.

The inlet fitting for the power steering pump broke off. Dammit. I emailed FAS to see if I can buy a new fitting, but haven’t heard back.

Does anyone know if that fitting is available or do I need to buy a new pump? Also - my presumption is when I’m buying parts for this engine I’m looking for parts from a 2004 AVH Jetta???

Everything finally went in and I adjusted alignment. The mounts were clear…

And after a little wiggling I was within 1/16” from the bolt in the rear trailing arm to the center of the bell housing. Tightened everything up, checked again and it was on to the next frustrating task!

At this point I needed something easy so I decided to assemble the air box. Gave the filter housing a nice clean:

Then went to put the new gasket in. IMPOSSIBLE! I spent an hour trying to get the gasket (which is just an O ring, not the square gasket that came with the original connection) to stay on. I tried gasket maker, hylomar, screwdrivers, stretching. I could not get it. I finally fished the old gasket out and installed it.

I then went to install the intrepid overland from heater valve I had sitting on the shelf for the last several months, that went smoothly, but it sure is a tight squeeze…

Of course, I had help the entire time!!!

Now for the most embarrassing moment of my weekend. As I started hooking up the coolant hoses I realized there were three hoses that could join with my two heater hoses. Two in the back of the engine and one on top coming out of the oil cooler. Well, I stared at this for at least an hour. Poked around under the van for another hose I knew didn’t exist. I even sent an email to FAS.

When I woke up the next morning I smacked myself in the head - one of the hoses goes to the coolant reservoir that I took off earlier in the day to give myself a little more room. Just goes to show that sometimes you need to step away for a day or two - I didn’t even go near the van the next day - just decided to clear brush and put together a trampoline for the kids!
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)

[mtnhome]

Threads like this were a great inspiration to do my own conversion.
Nice to see owners doing their own conversions.
Your build is looking great. You'll be on the road soon and enjoying traveling with the van.
I still get a smile everytime I drive my van.
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'84 Westy, '93 Subaru ej22 and Subarugears 5speed
Build thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=763098&highlight=

[VicVan]

[Robsmaze]

Vicvan,
I’m 85% certain I have it correct, but if you have already done the research I would love to check out your diagram to see if I’m right.
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‘87 2WD 2.1L Westy
‘87 2WD 1.7L Diesel Doka (euro spec)