My 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, A Love Story

[notchboy]

Good job brother
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[Bleyseng]

yay!
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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

[RONIN10]

Thanks for the support guys. Kim and I drove from S. Seattle to Carnation to visit Jubilee Farm then to Kent for dinner with her folks and back to S. Seattle today. Engine ran great the whole time. It's still quite loud, but I don't know how much of that is the break in process and how much of that is that I've been borrowing modern vehicles for the last month or so.

The leak from the oil pump is still there and significant enough to warrant a deep dive to solve. There is another smaller one from between the engine and transmission, but those will have to wait until the weekend after next when I can pull the engine again. Next weekend, I'm going hunting (first time out) so it'll get a good runout to Twisp and back. It'll be great to go camping again.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[RONIN10]

This year, I went deer hunting for the very first time and took the bus. I was definitely the oddball amidst all the 4x4 trucks. I didn't get a deer, but found conventional hunting culture to simultaneously meet and break my expectations. Anyway, this was going to be the first major outing for Oscar and it's new engine. I hooked up the AFR meter and was happy with the settings. Upper 13s to mid 14s during freeway cruise depending on the terrain.

The engine ran great, but I discovered an annoying non-engine issue. Earlier this summer, I replaced the seal on the luggage rack and purchased the Bus Depot seal kit for the whole pop top. Unfortunately, the luggage rack seal doesn't have a bulb on it and as you might have read elsewhere, it leaves a gap between the roof and the bottom of the seal. The principle consequence of this - for me - was a nasty vibration around 60 MPH, give or take 5-10 MPH depending on the winds. So I ordered a replacement seal with the bulb. Hopefully that will be in place before elk season starts next weekend.

Anyway, we got to our camp outside of Twisp, WA and set up. Being a backpacker and a bus pilot, I tend to camp on a much smaller scale than other hunters and my hunting partner. I spent about 40 minutes setting up everything on my end of things and another hour helping my partner get set up. Our camp was composed of my bus with the Bus Depot awning, a Vietnam War area "cook tent", and my partner's tent trailer.

The thermal mats were a must. Overnight temps were in the 20s. My bus also has a catalytic heater in it and that helped a lot when it was working. The first night, I only ran the heater for a few hours (along with a lantern) to get the bus reasonable warm, turning it off right before bed. I have a nice 20 deg F sleeping bag and even though my body was warm, my face and head was freezing. I woke up around 1 AM and had to put a beanie and cinch up the neck the mummy feature of my mummy bag. The second night, I attempted to run the heater all night, but my propane tank ran out around 2 AM. The third night, I just bundled up and was okay. We refilled the propane tank during the afternoon of the fourth day and that night, I was absolutely toasty warm. It helped that I figured out to unfold my upper bunk to capture the heat better and that there was some cloud cover to keep the temps from getting too low.

On the way home, I stopped for lunch in Leavenworth. I should have gotten some photos of the bus amongst the Bavarian architecture, but was too busy enjoying beer and Debreziner sausage to remember. We should do a cruise there for lunch and brews...a GSBG field trip so to speak. The trip home through Eastern WA was really hard to go any faster than 50 MPH though due to the vibrating roof rack and the obscenely high winds buffeting that big broadside of the bus. I was getting thrown all over the roads.

The bus ran flawlessly the whole time so I was quite happy overall. This weekend, I'll tackle the oil leaks. I ordered several different oil pump gaskets and a Sabo rear main seal, though I don't see the thickness difference cited in other threads between it and the Victor Reinz seal I ordered separately and is installed on my current engine. They also claim the spring is stronger, but I don't know a good way to test that without potentially ruining the seals. The good reputation of the Sabo wins out so it'll go in.

On a down note, I drove into work today and the bus was subjected to blustery winds and substantial rain for the first time since the nose was replaced. I came out from work and found my carpet on the driver side saturated with water. I haven't pinpointed the leak yet, could be the headlight bucket, could be the turn signal lens, could be the windshield seal.
Regardless, I let WBL Automotive know and I'll have to take it in to them sometime in the coming weeks to address the issue. Annoying to deal with because they are so far away.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[Bleyseng]

Yeah, I have seen you driving around Seattle twice now.
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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

[notchboy]

Ive been wanting to have a GSBG at the KOA there. Good to see you back on the road.
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[RONIN10]

Since getting my bus back from its nose job, I've had some issues with the nose leaking water. Originally, it appeared to be from the windshield seal so I took it back to WBL Automotive and had them reinstall the windshield with the new seal I had previously provided to them, but they had overlooked using when they farmed out their glass service. They also took the time to add some butyl to the areas beneath the wiper shaft nuts and around the turn signal lens housings. That reduced the leakage, but didn't eliminate it. They were very attentive, accommodating, and I continue to like them, but like all vendors working on our old vehicles, you have to stay on top of them and make sure you yourself have thought every aspect of a job through.

With some time off over the holidays, I dove into the task of replacing the wiper shaft grommets and sprayer nozzles to see if they were allowing water to pass. I figured while I was in there, I'd refresh my wiper motor per Amskeptic's Tutorial. It wasn't a complicated job conceptually, but I made it worse by losing the springs for the carbon brushes. Turns out these are an unusual size, but I was finally able to locate replacement springs at Stone Way Hardware in the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle, easily one of the best, legitimate hardware stores left in the greater Seattle area. For anyone else needing to do this, the springs are 5/32" OD with a 0.011" thickness wire; that's 4 mm x 0.03 mm for us metric loving folks. The overall length was a little unclear since I had lost them, but I'd estimate it to be 30 mm; 40 mm was certainly too long and 25 mm seemed too short. I do have extra springs at home (Stone Way only had two packages so I cleaned them out) as a backup. When I measured the brushes themselves, they measured out at 3.85 x 3.85 mm x some unknown length due to wear. They're probably called 4 mm nominally, but I'm not going to gripe about 0.15 mm difference. The wire mounts to the top, but it doesn't look like it's soldered in there, almost like it's crimped somehow. I want to source some spare brushes to have on hand, so I'll have to figure that out.

I'm pretty confident I have the leaking issue sorted as the wiper shafts didn't actually have the grommets installed and my old sprayer nozzles would rotate easily in place. I did a water hose test with no apparent leakage, but it'll take one of our winter days of solid rain before I'm convinced.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[RONIN10]

Over the years, I keep promising myself that I'm going to be more diligent with these updates, but yeah, not doing so well on that front.

Anyway, I continue to fight the good fight on getting the bus to a top notch state. The leaks from the nose are mostly gone, but I had to replace the turn signal housings and seals. The closed cell phone seals with the adhesive backing just weren't cutting it. I went with these seals from EIS parts as well as their turn signal housings. I was presently surprised with the housings as they're very well made for aftermarket parts and I didn't have to eliminate functionality by going to a two-wire setup. There seems to be just a little bit more leakage coming through, but I'm guessing that's due to not really cinching down the lights out of fear of breaking them.

I also tackled getting my rear defroster working again. Should've been a small job, but my wire from the switch to the rear grid was cut partway down the roofline so I spent a couple hourse working a replacement wire through all the little obstructions. A whole lotta work to get that little light to glow:

On the upside, last weekend we took the new pup and the bus out camping. Good times:

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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[Spike0180]

Love it! use that bus, enjoy the good times because that is what you bought it for.
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Brutis Patches Izabich: 1970 VW Transporter - 1776cc DP
Current State: Projects never truly end...
Location: Grosse Pointe, Michigan
Other cars: 2003 F150, 2003 Jetta GLI vr6-6sp

Sambastic: adj; the quality of being nit picky, elitist, expecting everyone to do things the way they believe is best with no regard to situation, "sambastic"

[RONIN10]

Little projects this week.

On Friday, the lower speedometer cable broke in the bus so I replaced that this afternoon removing the CA odometer counter and using the single speedometer cable I had sitting on the shelf. Unfortunately, my formerly rock solid speedometer needle now shakes so I'll be pulling the cable again and getting some cable lubrication in there to see if I can improve things.

I also adjusted my Konis based on the input from Amskeptic over at the IAC website. O.M.G. My bus runs so smooth now. For anyone else that has Konis on their bus, adjust them to full soft on the front, 1/2 turn from full soft on the rear. Down right silky. If only Seattle streets were in better shape.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[RONIN10]

I've been focusing on the sliding door a lot the past few weeks, trying to get it into near top notch state. Stripped it fully down, cleaned the rollers, replaced the guide block, lubed everything, etc. You know the drill. But man, the door closes a lot better now. I added sound dampening and new NLAVW panels to both the slider and rear hatch.

The sliding door panel arrived with a slight contour to it and only got worse once I let it sit. I spray it down with some water and laid some blanket and the dog kennel on top of it for a few days to get it flatter then sprayed it with some Thompson's Water Seal before installing it. It still has some pretty substantial tension on it, but the new plugs help (courtesy of NAPA) and it should relax over time as it heat cycles while in place.

The one on the right is an original panel clip. They don't reuse well and I can't tell the different between the new clips and the old when installed. Go NAPA.

One gripe about the panels, both on the sliding door panel and on the rear hatch panel is that some of the pre-drilled holes don't perfectly align with the door. I doubt VW changed their tooling so I'm going to call this a bit sloppy on the door panel manufactures part. Otherwise, the laminate is a perfect match.

Other than that, I picked up one of notchboy's Essen trailer canopys after a deal fell through on one I was looking to get from Europe. It needs work, particularly the whole stitching it back together thing, but it'll do in the short term. Once I get my shop air hooked back up again, I'll blast and powder coat the poles.

Lastly, remember that the next GSBG is next Wednesday, 2 May, at my house. PM me if you need the address. Even if you don't need the address, let me know if you're coming so I can get the appropriate amount of pizza.

Cheers.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[Stuartzickefoose]

Heat cycle? You don’t have heat and you live in Washington...


I’ll try and make it but my Wednesday evenings are precooked through August....what time are you starting? I’ll need to leave your place by 4:30.
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Stuart Zickefoose

2011 Jetta Sportwagen TDi 6 speed manual

206-841-7324
[email protected]

[RONIN10]

[RONIN10]

Went east to Moses Lake on Friday afternoon for a Saturday dog training course. It was a nice trip out and Juno particularly enjoyed the fresh air vents since I wouldn't roll down the window for her without someone there to restrain her puppy impulses:

It took about four hours to drive out with a stop in Cle Elum for gas, some ridiculous winds, and to replace one of the tubes on my Essen trailer which had gone flat somewhere between Seattle and Cle Elum.

We got to Moses Like around 7pm and setup camp right in the field where the training was happening. We ended up having the place completely to ourselves which was great for the pup and by the time I was setup, the timing was perfect for great photographs:

Made a late dinner of Jambalaya in the Dutch Oven which was fantastic:

The Dutch Oven is quickly becoming my favored way to cook in the field.

The evening brought in some rain and wind, causing me to drop the top in the middle of the night to keep things from shaking too much. It helped settle the pooch down too. We woke up to much less beautiful scenery and Juno was a little put off:

After the training, I opted to come home instead of camping another night to take care of some lingering to-do list items. I stopped in Cle Elum again to gas up. Did the math and the Cle Elum - Moses Lake - Cle Elum run netted 19 mpg. Not bad. The only concern I had with the bus' operation was the pitch of the exhaust dropping a bit after the long run. I think my new exhaust valves are still settling in so I'll do a valve adjustment today and see if that perks it back up.

Next weekend: camping at Capital State Forest.
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[RONIN10]

I received an e-mail this past Monday that my sliding windows were ready, about 3 weeks earlier than anticipated. I was out of town on business and unfortunately, didn't have them ship the windows since I was going to pick them up on my way to the RendezVW. Long story short, I got home on Friday morning, drove to Vancouver and back and got it installed tonight after a little rust cleanup:

I really like how it looks with the all black frame and it should seal substantially better than my older, rattling jalousie windows:

In other news, parts are starting to arrive for my Itinerant Air Cooled day with Amskeptic. We'll replace the brake booster and master cylinder, overhaul the front brakes, and get my front suspension in tip-top shape.

These ATE Classic brake boosters look like the real deal and cost about as much as rebuilding your booster.

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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[Viking Funeral]

[RONIN10]

[RONIN10]

This past weekend, the family and attended the Deschutes River RendezVW in Maupin, OR. As usual, it was a great weekend, highlighted by Amskeptic, asiab3. Xevin, 71whitewesty, StuartZickefoose and others attending as well.

Our aim was to make it there Friday evening before the potluck dinner. We left Seattle around 11:45 since my wife had work commitments she couldn't avoid. We stopped for lunch, gas, and ice in Renton so didn't really get moving until 12:30 and suffered through traffic because of the delay and route choice. We really wanted to go over Chinook Pass since it only recently opened and is a really beautiful drive through Mt. Rainier NP. From Renton, we should've driven out to Maple Valley instead going down 167. All in all, an unpleasant slog getting out of the Puget Sound basin. Still, Juno didn't seem to mind and really appreciated the new sliding windows:

From Chinook Pass, we drove into Yakima, gassed up again since it was opportune, and then headed south on Hwy 97. We were cruising along merrily, but I began to feel a slight loss of top end power, but attributed it to the altitude as we climbed the mountains south of the Yakima Nation. It wasn't until the engine died when I came to a stop at the Columbia River that I knew there was an actual problem. The engine would restart just fine, but it wouldn't sustain an idle at all. It was highway the rest of the way into Maupin and since the engine was running fine other than the no idle situation, we soldiered on with my mind running through the potential causes. Two options seemed most likely. One, there was a vacuum leak that developed somewhere in the system or two, the FI harness had backed off the AFM (the connector is worn).

We arrived in Maupin around 6:45. The engine died as we pulled into our spot and since the potluck was winding down, we went ahead and prepared our own meal for the evening. After dinner, I took a cursory look at the usual vacuum leak locations, but nothing really seemed out of sorts so I decided to let it be for the evening. After 7 hours of driving, I just wanted to relax and enjoy the night.

One of the highlights of the RendezVW is the generally chill, hippie commune vibe you get from the campout. A big part of that is the focus on music. On Friday night, they have an open mic where mostly musicians perform, although the opportunities for spoken word, poetry, storytelling, etc. is still there. This year, there were a couple of teenage girls who performed with a ukulele and voice. They were phenomenal. Apparently, they have been coming to the campout since they were just a couple of years old. Their family as a whole was very musical and since we were camped near them, we could here them singing some classics together after dark once the open mic had wrapped up.

Saturday, was filled with a whole lot of just hanging out. My son and I did take advantage of the short river rafting trip in the morning. It was fun, but nothing too sensational in terms of rapids. After that, I came back and dug into the no-idle issue, visually inspecting the FI harness connector and each of the components in the vacuum system to see if anythign was amiss. I was briefly able to get the engine to idle when it was cold, but it still wasn't great and stopped idling altogether once it was warm. (you're getting a big clue here).

At some point, 71whitewesty (Sean/Shawn?) stopped by and said hello. He and I had never met in person so it was a good time chatting with him on a face-to-face basis. He lives in Hood River, a place I've thought about moving to myself, if only there was meaningful work for me in the area. Later, Xevin and asiab3 stopped by and chatted me up on the bus issue (Robbie would later divine the solution to my problem). I had never met Robbie in person, so it was another good opportunity to get to know him better in five minutes than you'd get in numerous exchanges on the web. They departed to drink more beer while I toiled away at the engine. After lots of head scratching and a few breaks, I hadn't come up with a silver bullet and began consulting the Bosch FI manual for trouble shooting help. Robbie swung back by later and dove into the problem with me, resolving it within 10 minutes. IIRC, the aha moment came after Robbie had inquired about the last time I had adjusted my idle, which had been done last night and early in the day and had found the idle screw ineffective within a turn or so of adjustment. I checked how far out it was and found that it was only 1/2 a turn out from fully seated. Robbie commented that he had never seen one that far turned in. I didn't really remember what it was set to previously so we backed it out to 3 turns out and tried the engine. It idled nice and easy, sounding very happy with the setting. The idle screw was really smooth in it's adjustments with little to no resistance which is not how it's supposed to be. There should be some decent friction in there. I'm not certain how it got to be so loose, but with all the vacuum of freeway driving coupled with the vibration, the screw had worked itself inward from it's usual idle setting.

With the problem solved and my mind at ease, I was really able to settle into the weekend. We enjoyed the barbecue in the evening and another musical performance from local musicians in the evening. On Sunday, we more or less got, ate breakfast, said our goodbyes, and hit the road. It was another long drive with some construction traffic on I-90 between Ellensburg and Snoqualmie summit. We got home in the early afternoon and I washed and waxed the bus. The idle screw had worked itself inward about an 1/8th of a turn, but was still idling good. I checked the throttle body on my old engine and the adjustment screw is nice and tight so I'll clean that up and install later this week.

All in all a good weekend, but next year, I'm going to try and leave either early on Friday or even late Thursday and camp around Yakima. Getting there early on Friday makes a big difference in feeling like you are really unplugging as well as getting a decent camping spot. Coming back, it might be nice too to have Monday off fo work and do the same thing: drive part way Back later in the day and camp halfway home. Really slow down the pace of things.

I was pretty poor about taking photos this trip, mostly due to the idle issue occupying my mind for half the time I was there, but I did get a few. It was a very Vanagon heavy turnout this year:

Coming up this Saturday, Amskeptic is here for my annual IAC day and I'm hosting Zelten for his IAC day on Sunday. We'll be working front brakes and suspension stuff and Mitch has a very hot running engine that concerns him. If you're in the area, feel free to stop by.

Big thanks to Robbie for helping me resolve my idle issue. You can get his help too at AirSchooled.com .
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Andrew

Oscar: 1976 Westfalia Deluxe Camper, 2.0L FI, Manual Transaxle

[Stuartzickefoose]

Don’t forget to plan on Sunday night after the camp camp out. Contact Sean for details. Camping just north of maupin in the Forest right on the river in the hills.

Good to see you, bus sounded great!
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Stuart Zickefoose

2011 Jetta Sportwagen TDi 6 speed manual

206-841-7324
[email protected]

[Abscate]

I see you, Buddy
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.ssS!