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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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 Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2021 9:17 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Silicon replacement hose from vancafe came yesterday and went in first thing this morning. All in all, was one of the easier things I've done on this van so far. The old hose clamp on the rear heater tee did put up a bit of a struggle, and the clamps I got with the hose were both one size too small, but I had appropriate ones in my critical spares.
I also installed new 3.5" door speakers behind the factory grills.
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'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2021 10:53 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Well, I'm 0 for 2 on the van returning home under its own power after leaving the neighborhood. 
I tried to drive to my friend's house to get some measurements off of the rear seat in his westy for my rear seat fabrication project and everything was going great right up until I went to merge onto the New Seward Highway (what passes for an interstate up here) and heard the cars behind me honking because I was belching huge clouds of blue smoke! I quickly pulled over and shut the engine down and grabbed the fire extinguisher just in case. However, nothing looked out of place and there were no apparent leaks. When I tried to crank it back up though, all I got was the sound of the solenoid clicking but the starter didn't spin. Well, I had read about them acting up when hot, so I gave it a few minutes to cool down, but only got more impotent clicking. After a half an hour (and seeing three other Westies drive by) I called my friend who came and gave me a tow back home.
Further investigation found that the solenoid is not making contact between the posts and not energizing the starter motor. It also seems that the smoke was from oil in the intake since there was maybe a couple of tablespoons that poured out of the intake boot when I pulled it off to access the 17mm nut holding the starter on. If its not one thing, its three others.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Tue Jul 20, 2021 9:43 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Yesterday I finished "rebuilding" the old starter (took it apart, cleaned it really well including making the contacts in the solenoid and the commutator nice and shiny, and put it back together) and put it back in and now it works great. This morning I installed a new horn contact ring in the steering wheel and figured out why it would only work if the button/pad wasn't actually in the wheel. Cleaning the contact points fixed that and now it meeps like its supposed to.
Last week I also bought a 46mm socket to take off the rear axle nut to do the brakes but mistakenly ordered a 1/2" drive.
My trusty breaker bar was no match for 360 ft/lbs and a 6' cheater bar. Good thing its a Craftsman! Anyway, I sent that socket back and ordered a 3/4" drive version and was able to finally able to properly utilize the giant ratchet a friend gave me years ago.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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Abscate
Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014
Posts: 22670
Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 3:32 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Last week I also bought a 46mm socket to take off the rear axle nut to do the brakes but mistakenly ordered a 1/2" drive.
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I can’t fathom why anyone would even make this product. Nominal torque on a bolt that size is 750Nm, and a 13mm breaker won’t touch that.
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.ssS! |
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alaskadan
Samba Member
Joined: January 09, 2013
Posts: 1858
Location: anchor pt. alaska
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 8:55 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| Good work man. I saw that van on Craigslist, good to see you are getting it back up to snuff. Earlier while reading your fuel issues I was wondering if you have replaced the fuel filter under the van? I had picked up a running parts van that would face plant at 2/3s throttle. Fuel filter was loaded with crap. What about that oil in the intake? I've read of brake boosters failing and brake fluid making into the intake. Maybe check brake fluid level? |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:28 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| alaskadan wrote: |
| Good work man. I saw that van on Craigslist, good to see you are getting it back up to snuff. Earlier while reading your fuel issues I was wondering if you have replaced the fuel filter under the van? I had picked up a running parts van that would face plant at 2/3s throttle. Fuel filter was loaded with crap. What about that oil in the intake? I've read of brake boosters failing and brake fluid making into the intake. Maybe check brake fluid level? |
Thanks! Yeah, I feel like this van had been driven hard and put away wet for a while, but I'm slowly getting all the wrinkles ironed out. The wide open throttle issue was from the WOT enrichment switch at the throttle body having a loose contact. Made that a little more secure and now no more face planting or missing when accelerating! And yeah, new fuel filter (and pump, and hoses and lines, too  )
As for the smoke, I'm reasonable certain its engine oil from seeing and smelling what was in the intake boot and throttle body. Why it happened is still unclear. Yesterday I pulled the crankcase breather tower off and the inside was totally clean, no milkshake/pudding or anything like that. The hose to the intake boot was also clear. I read on here that some folks have used steel wool to help prevent oil from traveling into the intake, I stuffed a couple of pads of extra fine stainless steel wool into the tower and reinstalled. There was still some blue smoke from the exhaust even after letting the engine run for about ten minutes but it seemed to be decreasing in intensity. Maybe there's just still some residual oil in the intake and/or exhaust that has to finish burning off. I did note that before I changed the oil last week, the level was at or just above the "full" mark on the dipstick. Hopefully it just had a little too much oil in the crankcase.
What I really hope isn't happening is what happened to the old engine in my beetle before I built the 1776. Being a dumb teenager, I had ran the very tired 1600 pretty hard and after one particularly high speed (for it) jaunt down the interstate, the engine started a bad habit of puking oil out of anywhere it could. Long story short, when I took that engine apart, most of the piston rings had broken all to pieces and it was experiencing massive blowby. <fingers crossed>
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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mikemtnbike
Samba Member
Joined: March 26, 2015
Posts: 2797
Location: North Carolina
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:38 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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You don't need to take the axle nut off to re-do the brakes, so I'm guessing you're going to do the rear wheel bearings while you're in there? (good idea)
_________________
1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled  https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:44 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| mikemtnbike wrote: |
| You don't need to take the axle nut off to re-do the brakes, so I'm guessing you're going to do the rear wheel bearings while you're in there? (good idea) |
Um.... yeah, I'm totally only taking that nut off to check the wheel bearings and not because I assumed it was like my beetle and that the castle nut was what holds the drum on... yeah, that's the ticket 
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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jlrftype7
Samba Member
Joined: July 24, 2018
Posts: 3582
Location: Chicago
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 10:38 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| TomInAlaska wrote: |
| alaskadan wrote: |
| Good work man. I saw that van on Craigslist, good to see you are getting it back up to snuff. Earlier while reading your fuel issues I was wondering if you have replaced the fuel filter under the van? I had picked up a running parts van that would face plant at 2/3s throttle. Fuel filter was loaded with crap. What about that oil in the intake? I've read of brake boosters failing and brake fluid making into the intake. Maybe check brake fluid level? |
Thanks! Yeah, I feel like this van had been driven hard and put away wet for a while, but I'm slowly getting all the wrinkles ironed out. The wide open throttle issue was from the WOT enrichment switch at the throttle body having a loose contact. Made that a little more secure and now no more face planting or missing when accelerating! And yeah, new fuel filter (and pump, and hoses and lines, too )
As for the smoke, I'm reasonable certain its engine oil from seeing and smelling what was in the intake boot and throttle body. Why it happened is still unclear. Yesterday I pulled the crankcase breather tower off and the inside was totally clean, no milkshake/pudding or anything like that. The hose to the intake boot was also clear. I read on here that some folks have used steel wool to help prevent oil from traveling into the intake, I stuffed a couple of pads of extra fine stainless steel wool into the tower and reinstalled. There was still some blue smoke from the exhaust even after letting the engine run for about ten minutes but it seemed to be decreasing in intensity. Maybe there's just still some residual oil in the intake and/or exhaust that has to finish burning off. I did note that before I changed the oil last week, the level was at or just above the "full" mark on the dipstick. Hopefully it just had a little too much oil in the crankcase.
What I really hope isn't happening is what happened to the old engine in my beetle before I built the 1776. Being a dumb teenager, I had ran the very tired 1600 pretty hard and after one particularly high speed (for it) jaunt down the interstate, the engine started a bad habit of puking oil out of anywhere it could. Long story short, when I took that engine apart, most of the piston rings had broken all to pieces and it was experiencing massive blowby. <fingers crossed> |
Oil level is kind of critical on our engines at preventing the oil smoke out of the exhaust.
Aim for 1/2 way between your two marks on the Dipstick as a normal guide. Drain a bit of oil out from the engine now, and get to the ^^^ level, then try driving again and see if you stop putting out the Blue Oil Smoke. Some of the WBXer's are fussier with this level than others.
I've overfilled the engine in ours, so don't feel bad. I just ended up 'misting' the street with smoke as I slowly reved the engine up and down until I stopped, sighed, went and checked the oil level on my fresh oil change, and um, adjusted it.... 
All good after that.... 
_________________
'68 Westy- my first VW and vehicle/Bus- long gone.- sold it to a traveling Swiss couple....
'67 Type 3 Fastback, my 2nd car- gone
'69 Semi-Auto Stick Shift Beetle-gone
2017 MINI Coopers, our current DDs
‘84 Tin Top - Hilga....Auto |
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4Gears4Tires
Samba Member
Joined: October 08, 2018
Posts: 3054
Location: MD
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 10:42 am Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| TomInAlaska wrote: |
| mikemtnbike wrote: |
| You don't need to take the axle nut off to re-do the brakes, so I'm guessing you're going to do the rear wheel bearings while you're in there? (good idea) |
Um.... yeah, I'm totally only taking that nut off to check the wheel bearings and not because I assumed it was like my beetle and that the castle nut was what holds the drum on... yeah, that's the ticket |
As someone who just spent 4 hours doing the 2 rear drum brakes, taking the hub off made your job a lot easier. That damn thing was in the way so much. I hate drums! I told myself I'd never replace them on the van, even though they shuddered coming to a stop, but then they started making a woowoowoo noise while driving and well.. yeah. And then the wheel cylinders would start leaking everywhere and I had to bleed both rears. Stupid POS design!
Next time... there won't be a next time. I'm converting to rear discs. It does brake very smoothly now though.
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'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition
Last edited by 4Gears4Tires on Wed Jul 21, 2021 12:15 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 12:12 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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| 4Gears4Tires wrote: |
Next time... there won't be a next time. I'm converting to rear discs. It does brake very smoothly now though. |
I'm with you. Next time the drums have to come off, they aren't going back on. Disc brakes or nothing!
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Aug 11, 2021 2:45 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Since I have been working on the van but haven't updated this in a few weeks:
Got the new z-bed/rear seat fabricated, cushions are being sown and should be ready soon:
Stuffed 6.5" speakers in the doors when I determined that the 3.5"ers just weren't going to cut it (those got attached to some hacked together little brackets at the rear until I build or buy an overhead storage cabinet):
Started working on the floor. Put down some heavy rubber mat on top of reflectix. I will probably end up putting a layer of thin plywood on top of the reflectix or another type of insulation that doesn't crinkle when you walk on it. Also used some remnants on the rubber mat for the walkway between the seats:
I also finished replacing the rest of the brake hoses and rear brake hardware and shoes. The pedal is kinda low but good and firm, I suspect the rears just need to be adjusted or allowed to self adjust more. (no pics of that). The thermostat also got changed to fix an overheating issue. It failed almost completely closed!
Next up is (finally) changing the transaxle oil and hoping against hope that the gear whine (all gears, only under load) gets better,
On the bright side, I was able to make a short trip last week to a local bakery and returned home under my own power! Temps were great, engine ran good and strong, handling feels good and it tracks straight and true so the alignment must be pretty good. Really the only complaints were that the shifter is a little vague and the aforementioned gear whine,
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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Jake de Villiers
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Joined: October 24, 2007
Posts: 5911
Location: Tsawwassen, BC
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Thu Aug 12, 2021 12:58 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Today I got the transaxle oil changed and was very pleasantly surprised by the lack of swarf on the drain plug. Only a few slivers, but otherwise just metal dust:
Refilling it took over an hour via gravity and very cool temps in Anchorage today. The old oil seemed thinner than the 85w/90 I put back in. That along with the fact the van was nose and passenger side high due to the slope of the driveway which let me put a whole gallon in have me hopeful that the gear whine will be improved and that the transaxle isn't in danger of exploding at any minute.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Fri Aug 13, 2021 8:42 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Started working on my house power setup:
Those rubber grommets are some extras I ended up not using when I sealed the fuel tank. I think they are for the balance tube elbows. Anyway, they are a perfect fit for the 1ga wire I used. Overkill for that short of a run? A bit, but I'm ok with that. 
Juuuuuust enough room for that inverter!
110v/USB outlet and inverter remote control mounted in the stock panel until I get around to either buying all ABS panels or making some out of wood.
Tomorrow I'll procure a deep cycle battery and a few more terminals to hook it up and then finish wiring in the inverter and, using left over wires already in place from the defunct air conditioning system, run house power to the dash for the stereo and a 12v/USB outlet.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Sat Aug 14, 2021 7:48 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Got the biggest battery I could find that would fit, and got everything wired in and working:
I used what must be a seatbelt mounting hole (it fit one of the 7/16" threaded bolts I took out of the rear seat) for the ground.
I also added a switched USB/12v/ outlet with voltmeter to the dash powered by the house battery. There's another at the rear seat but I didn't get a pic of that one.
I also ran house power to the stereo (still using a gowesty style 3-way toggle, btw)
As far as I can tell, everything works like it should. The charger/isolator indicates that its charging when the engine is running, the inverter powers up with the remote in the side panel, and nothing has caught on fire yet! I can't wait to try it out on a real camping trip!
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Aug 25, 2021 6:15 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Welded up a 2" receiver hitch to the angle iron ball hitch a previous owner bolted to the bumper:
The welds aren't perfect and could've been hotter to get a little better penetration but not terrible for a little 140amp MIG cranked al the way up. (I did 4 passes on the sides with .030" flux core) I wish I had a buzzbox to really burn it in but you use what you've got. I'd be comfortable pulling a small trailer but this will almost certainly only ever be used for a bike rack or one of those cargo carriers for hauling campfire wood; we have a 2010 F150 for truck stuff.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Thu Aug 26, 2021 2:41 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Adjusted the angle of my hitch, painted it, and got it bolted on:
Although its tough to see in the pic and it won't do much good for another month or so when it actually starts to get dark at night, but I also added a couple of LED lights under the dash and wired them into the dome light system (tapped the 20ga red positive wire at fuse 8 and the brown/wht wire running between the two front door switches):
I added an aluminum angle as a threshold between the seats and strapped on some back-of-seat storage/organizers (forgive the stray wire and flapping piece of carpet, I'll clean those up, I promise!):
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Thu Aug 26, 2021 5:46 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Well, I guess I was due to find more gremlins lurking in the van. I bought an alternator bracket support from GoWesty, but when I went to bolt it in place, I discovered that there weren't any holes for the bolts!
Seems that the last yahoo to build this engine put the heads on the wrong side (the bosses for the power steering pump / the GW extra support bracket are at #3 cylinder).
In the middle of installing a new coolant level sensor (the light keeps flickering while driving), I also discovered that my pressure tank has a very ominous crack. Something else to add to my next order.
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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TomInAlaska
Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2007
Posts: 386
Location: Anchorage, Ak
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| Posted: Wed Sep 08, 2021 5:32 pm Post subject: Re: Had to change my username ('84 GL build) |
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Got a fresh coat of Timor Beige sprayed on today just before it started drizzling again.
Its not a perfect job by any stretch of the imagination with several small runs and a few bugs and spruce needles. But its a helluva lot better than it was and not too bad for a quick and dirty driveway paintjob. In any case, I am very pleased with how it looks all one color!
_________________
'73 Super Beetle (resto-mod/rally look, 1776)
'84 GL adventure van project (1.9L, 4speed) https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=755844&highlight= |
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