The mania deepens: 1991 Full Westy rescue

[mainstreetexile]

That looks familiar! I saw that on facebook marketplace and had messaged the seller about it, he sent me a few videos of it running.

I'm in northern PA, if it was a closer tow for me, I would've been more eager to get into it. Still can't tell whether I'm jealous or relieved...

Did you end up paying the asking price?

[dabaron]

[dabaron]

today's update... i hope you are sitting down.

i think i might get what i paid for the Vanagon in scrap copper once i get it all out! the red tape mess is 2 capacitors and 2 relays. i found a few hidden switches but none of them let me start the engine from ignition, still have to screw driver the starter.

no clue what these are or where they are going, yet. tomorrow the front seats and carpet comes out so i can find all the rabbit holes.

this was hidden in the dash along with 4 ink pens, a half dozen sweet and low packets, and dirt, lots of dirt. at least i found the cap to the brake fluid reservoir in there too.

everywhere i look i find duct tape.

i have no words for this discovery.
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[dobryan]

Indiana Jones would be proud...
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Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[kamzcab86]

[dabaron]

[dobryan]

🤣🤣
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Dave O
'87 Westy w/ 2002 Subaru EJ25 and Peloquin TBD

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive." Robert Louis Stevenson

MD>Canada>AK>WA>OR>CA>AZ>UT>WY>SD
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=620646

Building a bus for travel in Europe (euroBus)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=695371

The Western Syncro build
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=746794

[djkeev]

It looks exciting!

Focus though, don't overwhelm yourself.

Get the interior out, ignore the wires for now. Get the cabinets and seats into the garage for cleaning and rehab during the snow storms and harsh March days.
On the nice days, pull the dash top and heater assembly.

Now you can do something with those wires! Get back to factory, it may be in surprisingly good shape.

Broken antennas and fog lights are minor.

In my opinion duct tape should be banned! I HATE the stuff! It has uses....very few legit uses and one of them is NOT for heater ducts! There are way better products available for duct work.

Duct tape rolls do make a dynamite cup holder! Stays in place no matter how sharp the turn.

Take photos, lots of photos to help in reassembly. Also Zip Lock freezer bags.... not sandwich bags. Bag and tag everything.
Do NOT throw ANYTHING AWAY YET! Keep it all until reassembly, you just never know what you might need from that pile of trash. An odd clip or screw, maybe even something significant that you cannot buy and need to rebuild or reuse as is.

Dave
_________________
Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[GreggK]

I second that Dave. Lots of photos and bag n' tag with sturdy bags. It sure made things easier when searching during the rebuild phase. Memory isn't the best insurance.

[dobryan]

[GreggK]

HA HA!

[dabaron]

had a pretty full day of Westy cleanup yesterday. i first started with a trip to the coffee shop and then the PA tag/title agent. i applied for an antique title/registration so that will take 4-6 weeks. no hurry, this isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

once home and with another cuppa, i donned the mask. the air quality in the cabinet with the dead mice was pretty bad, and even with the mask, i knew something had died in there. i pulled out 6 dead mice, thankfully none had started to decay. i kept the mask on the bulk of the time.

all this was under the bench seat. for the most part it's junk. i kept the jack and what appears to be a CV joint.

there was stuff all over the floor after i pulled out the larger crap that got forwarded along for me to deal with. i decided to throw down some cardboard and just sweep it all out on to that instead of trying to use a dust pan. yes, more f'n duct tape.

i put all the hardware back on the doors and put the door cards in the garage. i might try the wet and flatten trick, but i'm not sure i can save them... worth a shot. with the seats removed and all the crap cleaned up, vacuuming really started to make a difference. maybe this won't be as bad as i thought. the carpets will need a serious scrubbing.

i then moved to the top bunk and swept up a nasty mouse nest. then i pulled the mattresses.

the mattress covers in the washing machine and wow, the water is disgusting. they came out looking great, stains i thought were not gonna come out are gone!

next i pulled the curtains out, except for the one behind the cabinet. i ran them thru the washer and again, yuck. i let them air dry and they came out really well.

with the mattresses, curtains, and junk out, it was time to start with the camper section. lots of shop vac action. i was getting tons of crap out of the void between the wall and the bench when i made a discovery!

i found a key to the doors! the ignition cylinder was drilled out since they could not find the key. had they simply cleaned up a little they would have been rewarded. oh well.

i ordered a replacement skylight from BusDepot, the full kit including hardware. the hardware is backordered 4-6 weeks! i wanted to at least get this sorted so i was going to reuse the hardware on the new fixture and brackets. WRONG. the new brackets simply are unusable.

i did manage to get it installed, thankfully before it started to rain. i'll post more on that later.

and what is a post without some more f'n duct tape? this was on the back of a very worn out floor mat. why?

the Vanagon looks and smells 100 times better now. the major stuff moving forward will be pulling and rehabbing the kitchen and cabinets, sorting out the dash wiring, and of course the engine.
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[dabaron]

i done did it, the dash is out and Medusa is in full effect.

i figured a 2x8 was easier to sit on than the seats. i need to pull the heater box since the fan does not work and honestly, it needs cleaned. it's gross. yes, i cut the wires for the cigaretter lighter. it simply would not come off, until i had the dash out, then it slid off with ease. oh well, it's getting a dual USB/volt meter installed in it's place.

the alarm system was an Ungo Box. wires running to all the door switches will have to be pulled.

the mysterious black box in the cluster had no markings on it, so i popped the top. i'm guessing it's a remote start/keyless entry system. the wiring might not be so terrible once i start eliminating the splices to the header for this.

i gave up for the day, it's snowing and sleeting. it's supposed to be nice all week, so i'll pull out the kitchen and see what horrors await me there.
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[vfour]

Awesome thread... thanks for sharing the gory details!

[djkeev]

Awesome progress!
My weather Forecast is for a wet crappy week!
I guess Pennsylvania paid their weather tax and Jersey didn't!
_________________
Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[dabaron]

[campism]

When you pull the sink cabinet you'll have to lift it over the propane lines to get it out. Once it's out I recommend slotting the holes in its floor so when you reinstall you'll be able to slide it into position instead of having to lift and drop. Much easier. Sink drain does not need this treatment because you can unplug that easily.

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'87 Westy in Wolfram Grey Metallic

[fxr]

[Eric_Taylor]

Just saying thanks for doing this and keeping us up to date. I'm really enjoying this. Mine was a driver when I got it, with a solid drive train, but good lord all the cleaning and little things ever since..... Also a 91 fully westy. This all looks super familiar. It's really satisfying to see how well these interiors come back! Keep at it!

[dabaron]

i managed a little more progress after the sleet/rain stopped for a bit.

pulled the carpet and the pad. i think the carpet will clean up real nice. of course i found more duct tape - the hole for the carpet peg at the driver's door was torn out and tape was used to fix it. i'm going to use velcro instead.

the added wires from the dash go everywhere. here a bundle of 5 wires (red, black, brown, white and pink) goes thru a grommet in the passenger side floor.

so far i've found 19 cents, maybe i'll find a bunch more when i pull the cabinets. i sure hope it's enough for a Subaru swap!
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC