Another poor sap with Bus fever

[KentABQ]

That’s a great idea. I hadn’t thought of that.
I’ll pick up one this afternoon.

If I were closer, we’d never get any work done, and the beer cooler would always be empty.
_________________
-Kent-
1976 Riviera, 1.8l FI chrome yellow VAN - "Chloe"

"I must say, how can you be in a bad mood driving this vehicle full of vibrant color.
Cars of today are so bland in comparison. It's like driving a celebration!" ---WildIdea

Bus ownership via emoticons:
---williamM

[KentABQ]

I found this pic posted by Aeromech in a different thread:

[KentABQ]

It's hard to believe, but it's been two years since I bought my Chloe and joined The Samba. And a great two years. Lots of ups and a few downs, but overall this has been the greatest hobby ever.

Here's the latest on The Old Girl:
I lucked out and found a running 1.8l engine on Craigslist, and bought it last week. The seller still had it in his car, so I got to hear it start and run, and it sounded pretty dang good to my ears.

I've torn it down to the long block and cleaned it up a bit, although it's pretty clean and only a little oil leaking from one push rod tube.

The PO of this engine had it in a dune buggy, so it had a bit of sand to be cleaned off, but not bad. There were not many tins, no thermostat, and the alternator bracket was broken. But I'm in the process of using all my parts to build it back up. The plan is to run it for a few months while the current engine is being rebuilt (taking my sweet-a$$ time!) and then put the rebuilt one in. Once that is running well, I'm thinking I'll take the engine I just bought and build it into a 2.0, if it's in decent condition inside. Still thinking about that though.

I'll be working in Florida again for the next week or so, so won't get a chance to work on it. But as soon as I get back, it's going to be a priority of mine. I miss driving the old girl!
_________________
-Kent-
1976 Riviera, 1.8l FI chrome yellow VAN - "Chloe"

"I must say, how can you be in a bad mood driving this vehicle full of vibrant color.
Cars of today are so bland in comparison. It's like driving a celebration!" ---WildIdea

Bus ownership via emoticons:
---williamM

[Xevin]

[KentABQ]

[airschooled]

Kent, the spring loaded selector shaft and corresponding brackets were instroduced in 1976 with the 091. You shouldn’t have them in your three rib 002. You shouldn’t have them in any bus, really, as the spring action makes any slop in the shifter mechanism worse, ergonomically.

Brian and I went so far as to do a nosecone pull on Buddy without removing the engine just to get that damn bracket and spring set out of my old transaxle. (VW of Canada rebuilt the thing and thought it would be cute to instal the spring set in my 002...)

Happy two years!
Robbie
_________________
Learn how your vintage VW works. And why it doesn't!
One-on-one tech help for your Volkswagen:
www.airschooled.com

[KentABQ]

Baby steps...

Ive been doing a couple dozen upgrades to Chloe while the engine is being swapped. High on that list was removing the windshield and see how bad the rust was. Luckily, it wasn't too bad, so I cleaned it out, prepped, primed and painted. Unluckily though, the windshield cracked while trying to put on the new seal. It had a rock chip directly in front of the driver's eyes which is where it broke, so replacing it wasn't a bad thing...

Watching the guys do the install makes me glad to have paid them to do it. They worked great as a team and had it done in less than a half hour. It sealed great, and no more chip.

Next on the list: Replace the nose cone gasket that's leaking...
_________________
-Kent-
1976 Riviera, 1.8l FI chrome yellow VAN - "Chloe"

"I must say, how can you be in a bad mood driving this vehicle full of vibrant color.
Cars of today are so bland in comparison. It's like driving a celebration!" ---WildIdea

Bus ownership via emoticons:
---williamM

[SamboSamba22]

Coming along nicely, Kent!
Clear view, gas in the tank, with some juice to bounce you along before you know it.
_________________
The Bus Barn Ltd. Co.

Oct. ’67 Double Cab (’68 Crew Cab)
[url=http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-44412.png]Click to view image[/URL]
March '69 Delivery (Panel Bus)
[url=http://www.vw-mplate.com/mplate-44414.png]Click to view image[/URL]

[Stuartzickefoose]

Maybe I should make sure I plan to stop in on my way north...I wanna go for a ride!!
_________________
Stuart Zickefoose

2011 Jetta Sportwagen TDi 6 speed manual

206-841-7324
[email protected]

[KentABQ]

[airschooled]

[Spike0180]

good to see chloe back on the road! Nothing wrong with a mystery motor. Check it over, if all looks good it could last a long time!
_________________
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"

[KentABQ]

[andrewtf]

[airschooled]

[KentABQ]

[wcfvw69]

[KentABQ]

Chloe and I had our first road trip with the new 1.8l mystery engine. She drove I-10 at 65mph with no problem, and even had a little extra power to accelerate while driving up the hills. That never happened with the old engine. Oh, and passing cars on the freeway is a new experience for me in Chloe.

We drove to Conemac in Canoga Park to pick up the machined parts that will go into the new engine...

Those are CarloZ's donated heads that have been welded and rebuilt by Rick at Conemac. Both Carlos and Rick are super nice guys. Rick rebuilt Carlos' current engine and has been very happy with it. So he introduced me to Rick who has great knowledge about type 4 engines. This will be my first engine build, so he gave me some good tips on what to watch for. Tommu has also been helpful in giving advice, as he's meticulously going thru his rebuild process. I can only hope to be half as meticulous.

But now I'm reconsidering this rebuild, since the "temporary" engine is running so well. The only issue discovered by Robbie during the install was #1 exhaust valve stem sticking a couple mm out from the others following their adjustment. If it continues to be a problem (Robbie said to check valve adjustments every 500 miles for a while), I could just replace the heads. On the other hand, I'd really like to take my time and learn how to build an engine.

Anyone have any thoughts? Insights? Recommendations?
_________________
-Kent-
1976 Riviera, 1.8l FI chrome yellow VAN - "Chloe"

"I must say, how can you be in a bad mood driving this vehicle full of vibrant color.
Cars of today are so bland in comparison. It's like driving a celebration!" ---WildIdea

Bus ownership via emoticons:
---williamM

[wcfvw69]

I'd run your mystery engine and enjoy your bus. Robbie has a good suggestion to watch what that one valve does for the next few thousand miles. If it keeps changing then you know a head change is coming.

I'd continue forward with rebuilding this new type (4) engine you have the parts for. Take your time. Use all your VW buddies on this site to assist. I even suggest starting a rebuild thread for that engine. Many expert builders will chime in and offer advice. Plus engine building threads ROCK! Get the how to rebuild you engine book. Get the Jake type 4 engine build video.

To me, this is a perfect time to carefully and thoughtfully rebuild that engine to super anal standards. You're not in a rush for this engine so that allows you the time to build this one right.
_________________
Contact me at [email protected]
Follow me on instagram @sparxwerksllc

Decades of VW and VW parts restoration experience.
The Samba member since 2004.

**Now rebuilding throttle bodies for VW's and Porsche's**
**Restored German Bosch distributors for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored German Pierburg fuel pumps for sale or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche fuel pumps or I can restore yours**
**Restored Porsche distributors or I can restore yours**

[Wasted youth]