Refurbishing my '77 Westy Campmobile

[notchboy]

It is what you make of it. When I bought my 77 - see the link in my sig - it was a plane jane PO modded bus. Ive since added and or fixed lots of things on it that have been well received. I hope for it to last another 40 years if possible weather under my ownership or anothers.

Your original pics no longer exist in this post. You should put them into the samba gallery so your story and pics will live on.

Now go buy a tent and camp with VWTech



Link

_________________

[Cap10323]

[notchboy]

After a certain time you cant. Just put them in the gallery, post up a statement here saying they are there, or did I just do that for you
_________________

[Cap10323]

I've uploaded the original set to my gallery, is it possible maybe to have an administrator insert them into the original post and remove the old dead links? That'd be awesome.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

Got the rear apron buttoned up today, Looks pretty good if I do say so myself.

I'm really awful at Bondo work, so my technique is to just get the steel as perfect as I can and then use 3 coats of filler primer to get all the fine details filled in. It works decently.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

I've managed to get a date set up to get my bus re-inspected for a rebuilt salvage title. The date is May 17th, so the rush is on (so to speak) to get it finished before then.

So, with that in mind, I started on the left side.

This was really the worst of the 'rot' so to speak, A couple of pinholes in the fender liner.

I started tearing into the rocker next, my original plan was to just cut out the bad areas, vacuum all the crap out of the inside, and treat the rust before welding patches into the rocker skin. Just like I did on the righthand side.

The problem was that the rocker skin was so rusted from the outside, that it was just paper thin under the paint.

Upon cutting off the whole rocker skin, I discovered the inside of the rocker was basically brand new.

Treated the inside of the fender with a rust neutralizing acidic solution, and then POR-15.

I picked up a replacement rocker skin from JustKampers in the UK (by way of Busdepot) and it was fantastic, perfect fit, really well made with good metal thickness, and it went in flawlessly.

I then moved on to the fender, using a Klokkerholm piece I had purchased from WolfsburgWest. Absolute. Fucking. Garbage. I had my welder on the lowest setting and couldn't stop it from crinkling up like a styrofoam cup the second the heat it. It was awful, start to finish the rocker skin took me half an hour, the fender patch took me 4 hours of screwing around to make it strong, throwing aesthetics to the wind.

I've learned my lesson, spend money now to avoid aggravation later.

I guess filler hides all danish sins.

In other news, I picked up an extra spare for the bus today. Found it on craigslist for $20, what a deal.

_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

It was 87º here in Ohio today, too hot for bodywork, but the perfect temp for cleaning the interior.

I bought a carpet extractor a couple years ago when I was potty-training my puppy, and had never actually used it, so it was put to good use today.

I just used cold tap water, some color safe soap, and just went over it all several times to remove all the dirt. It didn't seem that dirty before but, Holy crap does it look good now. The color just pops.

_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[mcdonaldneal]

Those bright '70's colours sure do come up nicely!
It just keeps getting better, well done! I'm impressed with your body work.
_________________
1978 marino yellow Bay Dormobile camper
1969 signal orange Karmann Ghia convertible
1976 martini olive Bay Dormobile camper

Stop dead photo links! Post photos to The Samba Gallery!

[Cap10323]

Bought a new decklid off of the classifieds, It's Marino Yellow, not Chrome, But it looks a hell of a lot better than the old smashed to shit, rusted out one.

Unfortunately, the small hinges/brackets are bent, so the panel gaps around the outside of the door are inconsistent. I'll have to address this in the future.

We're coming down the home stretch to inspection.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

PO got in touch with me today, Said he found some stuff that went with the Bus he wanted me to have.

He found the spare rim, a brochure about tires, a bunch of vintage road maps, an extra key, and...

The CB radio he bought for the bus in 1978!!

He had predrilled the dash, then glued a piece of wood behind it, so reinstallation was incredibly easy.

The wiring wasn't hacked in either, He simply used the radio power/ground, as well as the Bus's standard antenna.

After it was all hooked up, I turned it on and it seemed to work well. I need to get the antenna for the front of the bus though, the reception is pretty weak.

I was actually planning on picking up a nice vintage CB for the bus, so this is just that bit more awesome.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[WildIdea]

It's cool to see you getting after it. Sometimes all you need to do is some cleaning. Looks great!

[cmonSTART]

Looking good!

That CB radio is great!
_________________
'78 Bus 2.0FI
de K1IGS

[curtp07]

How's the rear bumper mount? I'm working on mine...
_________________
Subaru

[Cap10323]

[Cap10323]

The 17th was the Bus' big day, off to get an inspection and new title/plates.

I was worried the Bus would break down, catch on fire, or some other calamity, but everything went flawlessly. The bus drives well with a couple of annoyances, mainly tires and exhaust.

It also passed the inspection without a hiccup, however our salvage inspections are an absolute joke... They didn't even start the bus, Literally just checked the doors, checked the brake lights, and printed me a new Title. I was tickled.

I then drove the bus to the DMV, got some plates on it, and went out to get some breakfast. Drove the Bus about 30 miles in total.

The biggest issues I need to address right now are:

The exhaust, which is loud and basically just needs complete replacement. The PO replaced the Heater-Boxes about 5 years before the Bus was parked (With OE, German ones thank god) but the rest of the exhaust is very likely original, and rusted to shit. I'll probably just glom some exhaust gloop on there while I collect parts to replace the whole thing.

The tires:
Which are ancient, under-rated Michelin Rain-Force radials that make the Bus feel like it's walking on water balloons around every corner. They're not that worn, but they're dry-rotted to hell. So if the under-rating wasn't enough to warrant replacement, the rot surely is. I'm thinking about some Nokkan all-seasons since I don't plan on ever driving the Bus during the winter, but I may just see what my friend at the local tire place has that's properly load rated.

_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

Thought I'd keep you all posted with what's been going on, I've started a full time job, so progress on the Bus has slowed a small amount, but it's still going great guns.

I got some new, properly load rated tires on it and just sort of started driving it around. Slowing taking longer and longer trips over the last few weeks.

The bus drives very well, and cruises at 65-70 comfortably on the highway with the gas pedal not even halfway down, the brakes are sufficient, but I'm going to be getting the rotors at least turned and a new set of front pads, as well as getting the rear drums off and getting the shoes adjusted.

I picked up a new shifter bushing and will be installing it, since the shifter vibrates in an extremely annoying way at highway speeds, and generally feels a little big ropey.


I'm still working towards piecing together a complete exhaust minus heater boxes. I've sourced a good used muffler, and am just looking for a couple good U bends before I drop the entire engine and rebuild the exhaust.

Other than that, I'm really impressed with the Bus. It's genuinely a really lovely vehicle to drive and I expect I'll drive it a lot over the summer. I plan on keeping my progress well documented on here as well as on my YouTube page.

Keep On Bussin'
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

The time has come to rebuilt the exhaust system. My heaterboxes are fine (and German OE, thank god) But my Muffler, U pipes, and flanges are rusted out crap.

Where's the best place to get good quality exhaust components, I don't mind spending $$$ if it means I won't have to worry about it for a decade.


Picture above is during an impromptu 'Bus party' while I was at my friends house attempting to start their 76 Westy ( Thread about this Bus here ) When this gorgeous Bali Yellow '75 saw us and stopped. Chatted VW's and ended up getting an interior table top off of him. Great guy.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[Cap10323]

So I'm building up my new exhaust, but I cant find the U bend section that goes between the heater box and the header anywhere. [Fig E on the diagram above]
I've checked the usual channels to no avail.

Also, anybody have experience with the 'Complete extractor exhaust' [P/N: 352000] that Busdepot sells? It looks exactly like what's currently on my bus, and I like how unobtrusive it is compared to aftermarket setups like the EMPI and 'GT' Style with the quad tips.
_________________
-Ian

'77 Westfalia - 2.0 F.I

[notchboy]

[Abscate]