1.8T DIY Conversion Stephans Auto Haus Kit 1985 Westy

[Bills85Westy]

Thanks for the well wishes. Will post more details tonight after work! (with a beer)
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89 Tristar Syncro Doka - White
85 Westfalia Syncro (conversion)
SAH 1.8T Conversion - 2005 AWP
Engine Conversion Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=612144&highlight=
85 Doka L345 Grey - 1.9L

[Bills85Westy]

[BlueGrasser]

I thought the anti-theft required the non-California compliant ECU chip and cruise control.

[BlueGrasser]

Sweeeet!

My van is still there (Also an 85'). Apparently the transmission rebuilder is really backed up. I'm going nuts trying to be patient so I can finally try out that 1.8t with a healthy transmission.

*Edit to remove my transmission rebuild question....I should really read the whole post before responding*
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Going to where the grass is bluer...
1985 Vanagon Westfalia Camper with 1.8T

[TequilaSunSet]

Cool... I was there Weds scheduling more surgeries on mine (R&P)

Looking forward to watching your progress... and welcome to the SAH 1.8T Family
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Don't harsh my mellow...
1985 Hightower Vanagon 1.8T- Gone
1972 Panel Bus- Gone
1967 Bug- Gone
1964 Euro Sunroof Bug- Gone
1969/72/63 Sunroof Bug- Gone
1975 Brazilian Bug in the Philippines 🇵🇭- New to me

[nacradriver]

Bill....

+1 on posting this... This is the conversion I am leaning towards...

Would you mind sharing what your donor engine & components cost?

Good luck on your conversion....
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Güdrun -1989 Westfalia - 2013 - 2018
Petra - 1985 Vanagon - 1985 to 1991
Zisa - 1974 VW Van "Bus" - 1974 to 1985

[unibagel]

Love this!! Soon....

[ledogboy]

Hey Bill-
Thanks for starting this thread. I don't think anyone has done a start to finish DIY SAH 1.8 thread, so I am anxious to see how it goes for you. His kit is my long term plan for my '86, so I'll be following your journey closely!
Cheers,
Ryan
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1986 Westy Weekender
Now a full camper
1.8t Syncro conversion
Some people call him Maurice...

[Bills85Westy]

I went up and visited Stephan's Auto Haus on Monday to pay for the conversion & he generously spend about an hour with me giving a tour of the shop, looking at a Westy with the conversion in for adjustment / service.

My favorite thing was a visit to the "wiring room". A space over the office dedicated to building the wiring harnesses. I knew they were complicated, but I have a new found respect for the work involved. Especially considering that the Vanagon wiring changed from year to year & they've worked through each of these scenarios to provide a plug & play conversion kit.

Here is a link to his website for the conversion
http://www.h2ovanagon.com/H2oVanagonConversions/EngineConversions.aspx

Here was the view pulling up. There were at least 20 Vanagons in the vicinity.

Here are a couple of shots of the wiring room.

I've opted for the following options as part of our conversion:
-Air Conditioning
-Stainless Steel Exhaust Kit for California
-Anti-theft
-Scan Gauge
-Raised Deck Lid Mattress

I opted out of the cruise control (always have had it & have never used it - even on long long trips), heavy duty clutch (Stephan said I probably didn't need it), & the turbo boost gauge.

I had Daryl at AA Transaxle rebuild our transaxle in 2010 (RIP Daryl) so hope to be good there for some years to come unless we decide to send it back for a lower 3rd & 4th gear.

Bill
_________________
89 Tristar Syncro Doka - White
85 Westfalia Syncro (conversion)
SAH 1.8T Conversion - 2005 AWP
Engine Conversion Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=612144&highlight=
85 Doka L345 Grey - 1.9L

[Bills85Westy]

In addition to Stephan's kit, there are a number of parts needed either to be used in the conversion or as core parts to return to Stephan to be modified for another kit.

Stephen put me in touch with Austin Imports who supplied the following:

Here is the list of part included in this swap as discussed over the phone.
Swap List:
1.8T AWP Complete Engine with accessories (ac compressor, alternator, power steering pump, turbo intake ext...)
Gauge Cluster
ECU
Gas Pedal
Combination Switches (Wiper, cruise control stalks)
Down Pipe (cat converter)
O2 Sensors
Evap charcoal cannister
Intercooler and hotside/cold side piping
Maf Sensor with housing
Motor Mount
ac hoses running from ac compressor
full chassis wiring (3 sections: engine harness, bay wiring, interior wiring)

The donor is (or was) a 2005 Jetta GLI with an automatic & 97,000 miles.

They offered to send a video of the donor car & here it is:
http://vid87.photobucket.com/albums/k126/bbbbkl/engine%20start_zpsgy26fxil.mp4

We will do a thorough inspection of the motor when it arrives & do everything necessary to make it maintenance free for long into the future.
_________________
89 Tristar Syncro Doka - White
85 Westfalia Syncro (conversion)
SAH 1.8T Conversion - 2005 AWP
Engine Conversion Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=612144&highlight=
85 Doka L345 Grey - 1.9L

[Bills85Westy]

Hi all,

I debated whether or not to keep a journal of my conversion & share here on the Samba, but figured that either A) I might get stuck along the way and need some help, or B) something I share here might be helpful to someone else.

We've had this 1985 Westfalia since early 2009. It is a tourist delivery which spent the first year of it's life in Germany & France then shipped here to California in 1986. The original 1.9 was stroked to a 2.1 in 1997. It has 154,000 miles on the body. It's got a "slightly" blown head gasket that loses a little water into cylinder 3. I've been driving it this way for 9,000 miles expecting a failure, but it just keeps going & going.

This is not our first VW Bus. My wife had a 1971 Tin Top Westy, a 1984 Westy, we had a 1995 Eurovan Camper, I had a 1985 Doka, & this 1985 Westy. I love these things, but as they've gotten older, i've become less confident in long distance trip reliability & less confident driving with modern traffic on I80 & I5 here in California.

I started researching conversions soon after we got this Westy & settled on Stephan's 1.8T conversion last year. My primary reasons for choosing the 1.8 were:
1. Power output
2. Stephan's conversion has the California Executive Order for smog
3. Its a VW
4. Based on the reviews i've read, the feedback has been very very positive.

I've finally saved enough pennies & started the process last week with Stephan to purchase his kit for me to install.

Stephan spent a bunch of time on the phone with me answering questions. He said that right now he is doing about 3 conversions a month in house & selling about 2 kits per month to customers. He also was kind enough to put me in touch with the supplier who sells him the engines and necessary VW components for the conversion.

I am expecting the engine & used components to arrive next Wednesday 11/19 & Stephan's kit to be ready sometime the week after.

My goal here will be to keep a photo journal of my progress along with some other improvements to get ready for the 2015 season.

Here are some photos of the Westy last year in the Sierras

Bill
_________________
89 Tristar Syncro Doka - White
85 Westfalia Syncro (conversion)
SAH 1.8T Conversion - 2005 AWP
Engine Conversion Thread: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=612144&highlight=
85 Doka L345 Grey - 1.9L