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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 12:56 pm Post subject: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Hey samba. I'm starting a build log to keep track of some of these projects I'm working on.
I bought the van a year ago, not running. Had/has 60,000 miles on it.
PO is a mechanic and he could not diagnose a no spark issue for about 4 years. It got passed around to a couple VW shops who weren't successful and recommended replacing the wiring harness.
I had seen the van at his shop for a few years while in school. I asked about it last spring after I graduated college and had an income, yay engineering! Told me he would consider $7000 cash.
Very clean van, no rust, and said it ran great up until it quit running one day. The ECU was replaced, coil, and distributor. None of which fixed the problem.
I ended up buying it for that price. A fellow van addict was more then willing to poke around the van and make sure there wasn't something hiding.
chilling at a busy intersection
The problem ended up being the ECU relay contact was dirty, it provided 12V, but not enough current could flow through the contact to run the circuits. Thankfully none of the components he installed were duds. It started after pounding on the fuel pump to unfreeze it and getting the fuel hoses to stop leaking.
Since then I've been going through the basic systems such as replacing the entire fuel system, brakes, fluids, etc. Now I'm to the point of moving onto the fun camper projects. It's a slippery slope folks.
My wife and I wanted to keep food cold, ice cream frozen, warm air when its cold outside, a hot shower, and plenty of lighting. A solar setup would be ideal.
I estimated the usage would require 85 amps for a 24 hour period. Two flooded 6V 200AH GC2 batteries were chosen from sams club. I originally was going to plan on using two 100W panels, but there was an incredible sale on 160W grape-solar mono-crystalline panels. I purchased two of these and we had the basic components to build everything around.
I could have stowed all this under the bench but why not make use of unused space in the vanagon frame? I ended up lower the transmission a couple inches in order to get the necessary clearance for batteries. Also rotated the thermostat housing so the coolant line can be re-routed. I decided to make the box in two pieces for easy access to the starter and cooling tower area.
Measure, cut metal, form metal.
Install rivet nuts for mounting components in the box and frame, then paint
Espar D2 heater installed. Still working on brackets to mount the fuel tank under the van.
Easy start timer & battery monitor
Steel bumper in progress
Small car trans cooler kit
Fluid bundle & gaskets
Insulated the interior. The water tank had a hole in the bottom, so it was a good time to remove the interior and check for rust. Also ended up removing the front interior. Laid down fat mat and new closed cell foam.
Brake work. Replace front rotors and pads, flexible lines, front bearings, wheel cylinders, and shoes. Master cylinder will also be getting replaced when the part comes in, just started to leak out the reservoir grommet.
Wheels & tires, SA 16" wheels, 215/65/16 BFG KA02 tires
A month ago I drove the van for a week. Lunch breaks are best spent napping. Too bad I was working on it.
Sizing of the 160W panel
At some point the galley will be getting modified to fit the TF-65
This weekend I'll be installing the solar panel frame to the roof, and re-sealing the gas tank before I can drive it any further. _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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MidwestDrifter Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2012 Posts: 769 Location: Kicking Around Australia
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 1:10 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Mmmmm, Now I have a legitimate reason to post on TheSamba again. Plus I can scratch my vanagon itch without all the the financial implications of owning one.
I ruined jokeraus's life by loaning him my westy once... Such a devious move. _________________ 2004 Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter (Custom Camper)
2000 Jetta TDI
1982 Diesel Westy W/ ABA I4 hybrid (Sold)
Epic Road Tripping since 08/05/12 | http://VagariesAbound.blogspot.com/
My Current Build | http://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41215 |
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OzzieJo Samba Member
Joined: December 27, 2015 Posts: 251 Location: NSW, Australia
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 1:16 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Nice work...keep it up |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 1:18 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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MidwestDrifter wrote: |
Mmmmm, Now I have a legitimate reason to post on TheSamba again. Plus I can scratch my vanagon itch without all the the financial implications of owning one.
I ruined jokeraus's life by loaning him my westy once... Such a devious move. |
It's literally not my fault this happened.
good times somewhere in new mexico _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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MidwestDrifter Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2012 Posts: 769 Location: Kicking Around Australia
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 1:20 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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jokeraus wrote: |
MidwestDrifter wrote: |
Mmmmm, Now I have a legitimate reason to post on TheSamba again. Plus I can scratch my vanagon itch without all the the financial implications of owning one.
I ruined jokeraus's life by loaning him my westy once... Such a devious move. |
It's literally not my fault this happened.
good times somewhere in new mexico |
Ahh, Nostalgia... I miss Chuck sometimes. But I know he's in a better place (Socal). _________________ 2004 Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter (Custom Camper)
2000 Jetta TDI
1982 Diesel Westy W/ ABA I4 hybrid (Sold)
Epic Road Tripping since 08/05/12 | http://VagariesAbound.blogspot.com/
My Current Build | http://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41215 |
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hans j Samba Member
Joined: May 06, 2006 Posts: 2713 Location: Salt Lake City UT
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 2:04 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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I like where this is headed. _________________ 1986 Canadian Syncro Westy TDI - 1989 Syncro Single Cab - 2001 Audi S4 - 1981 VW Caddy ABA - 1980 VW Caddy EV - 1973 VW T-181 |
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[email protected] Samba Member
Joined: April 29, 2015 Posts: 704 Location: Berkeley Ca
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 2:46 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Great Build love the battery box. Was it welded? |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 7:50 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Yes, the corners were seal welded after being formed. Here's an exploded view.
_________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:04 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Made progress this weekend on harnessing the suns energy.
The model of the frame and roof
The frame set on the van marking 4 places to drill through the top. Should have made my brackets a 1/2" longer on the lower leg to get the holes closer to the center. Came very close to the inside edge of the fiberglass.
Panels in and ready to be connected _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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rmcd Samba Member
Joined: October 29, 2010 Posts: 1348 Location: PNW - its a dry rain.
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Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:21 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Wow great progress! Do you sleep? Thanks for sharing your work.
What material did you put down on the floor? Fatmat or bubble? Can't read the product name in the picture. Please clarify. Thanks _________________ VW LT40 build. Like a Vanagon but 30% larger in every direction and 40% slower even in metric.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=749359&highlight= |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2016 10:20 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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rmcd wrote: |
Wow great progress! Do you sleep? Thanks for sharing your work.
What material did you put down on the floor? Fatmat or bubble? Can't read the product name in the picture. Please clarify. Thanks |
Not much sleep, I've been seeing visions of camping in my near future. So I've been working on van projects before, during, and after work. My wife thinks I'm insane, definitely my neighbors.
On the rear portion of the floor, I did a layer of frost king duct insulation, and reflectix to fill the spaces between raised sections.
On the front floor, I put down fat mat, and polyethylene foam over that trimmed to fit. Held down with 3M high strength glue
duct insulation,
http://www.homedepot.com/p/E-O-12-in-x-15-ft-Self-Stick-Foam-Foil-Duct-Insulation-FV516/100028603
fat mat,
http://www.amazon.com/FatMat-Self-Adhesive-RattleT...dp_product
foam,
http://www.mcmaster.com/#8722k5/=118jxn5 _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Mon Feb 29, 2016 7:49 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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This weekend the fuel tank was resealed with the gowesty kit, installed a pioneer head unit and pioneer speakers all around, and installed the TF-65. Not bad
Head unit,
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_130X560BT/Pioneer-MVH-X560BT.html
Speakers,
http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-TS-D1002R-2-Way-Spea...r+tsd1002R
Had a friend help/do the fridge install who has master cabinetry skills, and has installed one before in the westfalia galley. It really sped things up.
The divider gets cut out, front face panel trimmer 5/8", and divider reinstalled. We chose super glue for its quickness and a couple angle brackets to reinstall the divider.
Width test fit,
Height/depth test fit,
The back panel board was trimmed, and elbow removed on the city water hook up box to get it all the way back.
Cold stuff!
_________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2016 8:42 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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The past week I've installed a new propane regulator and flex line to work around the fridge, LED lighting, finished a bumper that I started 6 months ago, and replaced the master cylinder. Things are progressing.
_________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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MidwestDrifter Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2012 Posts: 769 Location: Kicking Around Australia
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Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2016 2:03 pm Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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With that bumper your van is screaming for a 1" lift at this point. Then you're going to need a 4x2 sticker to stop the endless "is it 4WD!?!?!" queries.
Maybe we should drag you guys to Baja in June. That's as good of shakedown as any.
It's getting warm again. Next month it will be Monstaliner Time!!
Curse you! Building a vanagon cooler than mine was! I would call down the wrath of Karma. But its not necessary cause you own a Vanagon! _________________ 2004 Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter (Custom Camper)
2000 Jetta TDI
1982 Diesel Westy W/ ABA I4 hybrid (Sold)
Epic Road Tripping since 08/05/12 | http://VagariesAbound.blogspot.com/
My Current Build | http://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41215 |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2016 7:26 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Indeed it is, and we've gotten asked that countless times and we're still new to owning a vanagon!
Monstaliner would be a nice addition to the exterior
I'm really liking the idea of shipping it south and driving north back with you guys
MidwestDrifter wrote: |
With that bumper your van is screaming for a 1" lift at this point. Then you're going to need a 4x2 sticker to stop the endless "is it 4WD!?!?!" queries.
Maybe we should drag you guys to Baja in June. That's as good of shakedown as any.
It's getting warm again. Next month it will be Monstaliner Time!!
Curse you! Building a vanagon cooler than mine was! I would call down the wrath of Karma. But its not necessary cause you own a Vanagon! |
_________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2016 8:17 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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We've got the first trip with the van out of our system. Earlier this month we went to Santa Fe NM.
With the last push of getting some camping bits installed like the fridge and heater it was ready, but not without a few issues.
When I dropped the tank to do the reseal, I unknowingly broke the sending unit. Not a big deal I thought and we would just deal with it later keeping track of miles via the odometer. Well a few days before leaving the odometer stopped working, and the new fuel pump was making horrid sounds.
I fixed the odometer and sending unit in the evenings after work, and discovered debris in the fuel pump inlet screen. This must had also happened when I dropped the tank and swooshed debris into the pickup area. I added a pre-filter to prevent further clogging (or so I thought).
I added a jumper wire in the sending unit as the contacts broke. Not very well captured.
Our first night sleeping in the van. We first stopped here with our friends van (Midwestdrifter), Chuck 3 years ago on our grand canyon trip. I like traditions I guess?
Welcome center for Texas along I-40 in Amarillo. Has nice bathrooms, 24 HR security, and nice people inside.
With our van Rocky,
3 years earlier with Chuck,
Getting there was mostly uneventful, the van ran great. Slow but great. Not far out of leaving Amarillo we had a small issue where the van shut off. Turns out the jumper wire I added on the fuel sending unit might have changed the resistance enough to cause an error in the fuel gauge reading. Not a big deal. AAA brought us 4 gallons to get us to the next fuel station.
Approaching Santa Fe.
First night in the wilderness.
We hung around the Santa Fe ski basin area mostly, I wanted to head west out of town and explore an area that has more fire roads and dispersed camping, but we started having issues with the van. It wouldn't start in the morning and fuel pump didn't sound right. Took off the pump and sure enough inlet screen was clogged again. Rinsed it out in a bucket of fuel, reinstalled and worked okat. I found a parts store that had another pump and filter and picked those up while cruising around town.
We spent the rest of the time hiking, walking around downtown, and enjoying the van with its heat, cold food, and cooking abilities. Everything works great!
Warming up fajitas.
Stocking the fridge with beer not found in Oklahoma.
While at a grocery store I spotted a cool van. I hung out with our wild beast while my wife went and picked out a few things inside. Didn't see the owner come out, and I typically don't talk to strangers. But fellow van owners tend to be interested in van stuff and that's good convo.
We left for Amarillo TX Saturday afternoon to start the trip back home. About 30 minutes outside of Santa Fe the van started to hiccup while driving at a constant speed. I assumed the fuel pump was clogged again but while pulled over I got educated on the vanagon syndrome. It didn't sound fun to deal with.
Removing the pump for the nth time, chose a spot with a nice background.
We hit the highway and got going east. By nightfall and a couple hours into the trip, the van began to hiccup again. My heart sank, we kept going, it was dark, windy, and literally nothing around for another 40 miles. The hiccups would come and go, it seemed if I changed the throttle position it would hiccup more often, sometimes slowing us down to a crawl before it would pick back up. My foot became numb focusing on not moving it.
We got to the town and stopped at a McDonalds, good time to grab food quickly and change the pump and filter with the spare I got earlier. I ended up taking my sweet time eating and enjoying not driving or being outside in the cold wind.
Changed the pump and filter, fueled up and everything seemed okay. Not a single hiccup getting to Amarillo, and back to Oklahoma the next day. So success! No tows _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread
Last edited by jokeraus on Tue Mar 29, 2016 8:53 am; edited 2 times in total |
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MidwestDrifter Samba Member
Joined: June 13, 2012 Posts: 769 Location: Kicking Around Australia
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2016 8:36 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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30 year old fuel tanks are brutal. Been there, done that. I trashed 2 pumps before I realized the pre-filter was plugged with some white fuzz...
There was this one fuel station in Guatemala... Well, that's another story...
Doesn't sound like vanagon syndrome though. That is usually cured with a key cycle, and is purely software/electrical related.
Hopefully we can rescue your ECU with a few components. While we are at it adding some filter capacitors to the AFM should be a piece of cake. _________________ 2004 Dodge/Mercedes Sprinter (Custom Camper)
2000 Jetta TDI
1982 Diesel Westy W/ ABA I4 hybrid (Sold)
Epic Road Tripping since 08/05/12 | http://VagariesAbound.blogspot.com/
My Current Build | http://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41215 |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2016 8:44 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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Luckily the later models have the outlet on the tank matched to the inlet on the pump. I get to avoid that oem pre filter issue with small inlet and large outlet, besides it being an original 30 year old filter.
I did get a tantalum capacitor just in case for the syndrome, doesn't seem to be any downfall to installing it if there isn't an actual issue. And the thermistor for the D2 external temp sensor, and now transistors and diodes. Becoming a regular at mouser.com
The ECU is a story for another day, hopefully with a good outcome _________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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jokeraus Samba Member
Joined: May 08, 2015 Posts: 64 Location: Oklahoma
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2017 10:56 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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I'm terrible at keeping up to date with this stuff, I'll do my best to update since my last post.
I accidently toasted the ECU by jumping the wrong pins at the relay. All because the fuel tank was leaking again and I was going to pump the remaining fuel into my car.
The circuit worked after replacing transistors and diodes that appeared blown and were on the circuit line, but it would randomly run rich. After a few weeks of ruling out other possible issues I ordered a rebuilt ECU. Luckily that ended up being the issue.
During that fiasco I installed a wideband o2 and fed the simulated signal to the ECU. I used this as part of testing to make it think it was lean but even that would not actually lean it out. The original sensor was also not plugged in.
Once the van was running well again the next stage was the cooling system. Everything was replaced except the long plastic cooling pipes. Made my own version of a metal expansion tank to replace the plastic tank.
We went on a trip to estes park CO in august with friends drivechuckdrive (midwestdrifter) to run a half marathon. The trip went well and only issue was a new o-ring for the temp 2 sensor leaked whenever cold and a CV joint began clacking in RMNP on a long uphill dirt road to the alpine center. We probably drove around 1600 miles total.
Once home there were a few mechanical issues to sort. The van ran hotter then it use too before replacing the cooling system. The high speed fan would be triggered periodically at highway speeds. No overheating but the AC turns off for this. Bummer when it was 90+ outside and the AC is functioning poorly to begin with.
I replaced the radiator suspecting it was the issue, but turned out to be the new OE thermostat. The "new" part junk pile begins to grow.
I pulled the CV joints, cleaned, inspected, installed new grease and boots. Should still have plenty of life left in them.
This trip gave insight for camping gear. Here's a short list.
- Topper mattress (in progress)
- Exterior lighting (complete)
- Port a potty (in progress)
- More storage (in progress)
- Bike rack (in progress)
- Water system (waiting for funds)
- Leveling blocks (complete)
- High altitude sensor for cabin heater (waiting for funds)
- External temp sensor for cabin heater (complete)
- Rear closet door addition with shelves in closet (complete)
- Foot well lighting wired to door switch (complete)
I ordered a 2" thick LUCID mattress from walmart. This is in progress but after trimming to size and conducting a test, it worked. I dozed off midday. I found a nize zippered cover from foam by mail. Planning on modifying the dimensions.
Exterior lighting: Installed a curved 52" light bar, $100ish from amazon. Replaced the 14 gauge wiring with 10 gauge and wired directly to battery. Brackets were plasma cnc cut and hand formed.
Potty: Installing a thetford 260P, this model has a level gauge and is very compact. Mounting box is in progress. It will attach to the van similar to the go westy box with latch clamps for easy removal. We found ourselves not up for boon docking without somewhere to go.
Water system: Hot water through heat exchanger in cooling circuit, interior shower, custom tank in spare wheel area?
Storage: Planning for a box on the bumper and a box between the frame rails on the passenger side.
Bike rack: I've begun cutting metal for this, the rear box and swing arms.
_________________ 88 Vanagon | Build Thread |
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Vnyd Dog Samba Member
Joined: August 25, 2015 Posts: 384 Location: Napa
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Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2017 11:26 am Post subject: Re: Rocky The Volkswagen, Build Thread |
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jokeraus wrote: |
Exterior lighting: Installed a curved 52" light bar, $100ish from amazon. Replaced the 14 gauge wiring with 10 gauge and wired directly to battery. Brackets were plasma cnc cut and hand formed.
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Oh man, I need more details on this. Wiring path? Mounting? Switching, etc! _________________ '87 Westy 1.8T Conversion, Orignal Owner, European Delivery @ Westfalia factory in Weidenbrueck.
The Story:
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=713391&highlight=life |
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