Well after the complete inspection by Classic Camber here's the mechanical list....
Engine
Valve Adjustment
Oil & Filter Change
Fuel System
Remove Tank, Evaluate for Rust. Install New Inner Bladder
Install Fuel Sender Unit (Yea, gas gauge will work)
Exhaust
New Tail Pipe
Clutch
Adjust Clutch
Replace Clutch Cable
Replace and Adjust Shifter Rod Bushings
Transmission
Remove Engine and Transmission
Replace Transmission with Rancho
Suspension
Adjust King and Link Pins
Install Rear Sway Bar
Front End Alignment
Brakes
Install Dual Circuit Master Cylinder
Upgrade Brake Lines to Braided Stainless Steel
Complete Restoration on Drum Brakes
Misc
Correct Drivers Door Strike Plate & Lock
Replace Passenger Safari Latch
Install Proper Middle Seat Hardware
Fix License Plate, Speedo Dimmer Light
Ground Passenger Headlight. Align head lights
Fix front dome lights
Just under 6 grand for the works.
Will still need some cosmetic work as well.
Should be back in the driveway by June.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Update
Met with Joe the mechanic over at Classic Camber today. Cool dude. He drives a 67 smaba. Good news is up on the rack the bus looks really solid. Nothing "scary" at all.
It's a big nut stock tranny, with standard gearing and the reduction boxes are in good shape. She does have a front sway bar and the shocks are KYBs.
Here's the revised list:
The link pins need some adjusting to tighten up the steering.
Drum brakes all around and they are in need of a rebuild/restore.
Replace the master cylinder with a dual unit.
Upgrade the brake lines to braided steel.
Possibly upgrade the fronts to disk but may not be necessary even with a full load.
Replace the frayed clutch cable
Tranny
Hard to tell without driving her. Fix the brakes and then do further diagnosis.
The mounts are pretty shot and Joe thinks its still leaking.
Maybe nothing, but then again it may need replacing with a Rancho or rebuilt again right.
If the tranny needs pulling then fix the mounts and install the fuel sending unit
Engine
Sweet shape. Ready for adjustment after the break in.
Exhaust
Needs a pretty pipe end. Mounting Brackets need tightening.
Misc
Driver Door Alignment / Closing & Locking
Headlight Alignment
Safari Clip - Passenger Left Inner. Nuts & Bolts
Not importante at the moment
The driver's side rocker spear trim is too high
Front and Back Roof Racks (vintage)
Chrome Passenger Step
Jack Point Mounted Chrome Plugs w/ Hub Cap Removal Tool
Back Seat Luggage Rack / Jail Bar
Middle Seat - Hold Down Brackets
Trailer Hitch
Paint Repair, Buff & Clear Coated
It's a big nut stock tranny, with standard gearing and the reduction boxes are in good shape. She does have a front sway bar and the shocks are KYBs.
Here's the revised list:
The link pins need some adjusting to tighten up the steering.
Drum brakes all around and they are in need of a rebuild/restore.
Replace the master cylinder with a dual unit.
Upgrade the brake lines to braided steel.
Possibly upgrade the fronts to disk but may not be necessary even with a full load.
Replace the frayed clutch cable
Tranny
Hard to tell without driving her. Fix the brakes and then do further diagnosis.
The mounts are pretty shot and Joe thinks its still leaking.
Maybe nothing, but then again it may need replacing with a Rancho or rebuilt again right.
If the tranny needs pulling then fix the mounts and install the fuel sending unit
Engine
Sweet shape. Ready for adjustment after the break in.
Exhaust
Needs a pretty pipe end. Mounting Brackets need tightening.
Misc
Driver Door Alignment / Closing & Locking
Headlight Alignment
Safari Clip - Passenger Left Inner. Nuts & Bolts
Not importante at the moment
The driver's side rocker spear trim is too high
Front and Back Roof Racks (vintage)
Chrome Passenger Step
Jack Point Mounted Chrome Plugs w/ Hub Cap Removal Tool
Back Seat Luggage Rack / Jail Bar
Middle Seat - Hold Down Brackets
Trailer Hitch
Paint Repair, Buff & Clear Coated
Thursday, March 8, 2007
The Restoration
The previous owner of the van burned me a bunch of pics that he had taken at various stages of the restoration process. Unfortunately many of his pics were lost to a computer crash.
The history of the bus as I can gather is that the bus was owned by Carrie A. Golen and registered at 1 Old Ashby Road in Manchester, NH. I'm guessing they did the body restoration work in 2003 - 2004.
Paul Sofranac, the fellow I bought the van from purchased the body via Ebay for $5,500, transfered the title in Concord, NH on 9/10/2004 and transported the shell down to the Florida Keys at that time.
Here's a few pics....
Neeekid 2003 - 2004
Navy Blue 2004
Ready To Go
The history of the bus as I can gather is that the bus was owned by Carrie A. Golen and registered at 1 Old Ashby Road in Manchester, NH. I'm guessing they did the body restoration work in 2003 - 2004.
Paul Sofranac, the fellow I bought the van from purchased the body via Ebay for $5,500, transfered the title in Concord, NH on 9/10/2004 and transported the shell down to the Florida Keys at that time.
Here's a few pics....
Neeekid 2003 - 2004
Navy Blue 2004
Ready To Go
Sunday, March 4, 2007
Look Ma No Brakes...
Well I decided to take a little spin this morning in the new bus. The local air cooled club, S.P.A.C.E, was holding a VW exhibition over at a baby boomer collectibles swap meet.
Long story short the brakes gave out just as we were about to hit 275 South. Fortunately it was Sunday morning so traffic was pretty light. I called Mom and Dad on the cell.... Hey wanna have breakfast?
We nursed the van over to Classic Camber and parked her. I was planning to take it over Monday anyway so it's all to the good.
Mom and Dad to the rescue. We went over to the swap meet and met the S.P.A.C.E. dudes. Saw some sweet Vee Dubs and met some cool folks, Sven and Jeni in particular.
So here's my to do list and stuff for Classic Camber....
Brakes, Front Right Leaking Brake Fluid, No Pedal.
Clutch Cable - Frayed and Rusted. Replace.
Shifting into First Grinding Sound
Transmission issues. On the road plug replacement Ok?
Engine 500 Mile Adjustment. Remove Heads, Tighten up. Adjust Valves
Install Fuel Level Sending Unit for Fuel Gage
Muffler - Mounting Bracket / Tail Pipe
Driver Door Alignment / Closing & Locking
Headlight Alignment
Safari Clip - Passenger Left Inner. Nuts & Bolts
The driver's side rocker spear trim is too high
Front and Back Roof Racks (vintage)
Chrome Passenger Step
Jack Point Mounted Chrome Plugs w/ Hub Cap Removal Tool
Back Seat Luggage Rack / Jail Bar - Like this one...
Condition of bus in general. Anything not on list?
Source for Middle Seat - Hold Down Brackets
Paint Shop Referral - Repair, Buffed & Clear Coated
What would it take to significantly improve braking, shifting and acceleration and keep her rock steady at speeds up to 65?
KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks, Anti-Sway bars?
Should I stick with Stock or go custom?
Long story short the brakes gave out just as we were about to hit 275 South. Fortunately it was Sunday morning so traffic was pretty light. I called Mom and Dad on the cell.... Hey wanna have breakfast?
We nursed the van over to Classic Camber and parked her. I was planning to take it over Monday anyway so it's all to the good.
Mom and Dad to the rescue. We went over to the swap meet and met the S.P.A.C.E. dudes. Saw some sweet Vee Dubs and met some cool folks, Sven and Jeni in particular.
So here's my to do list and stuff for Classic Camber....
Brakes, Front Right Leaking Brake Fluid, No Pedal.
Clutch Cable - Frayed and Rusted. Replace.
Shifting into First Grinding Sound
Transmission issues. On the road plug replacement Ok?
Engine 500 Mile Adjustment. Remove Heads, Tighten up. Adjust Valves
Install Fuel Level Sending Unit for Fuel Gage
Muffler - Mounting Bracket / Tail Pipe
Driver Door Alignment / Closing & Locking
Headlight Alignment
Safari Clip - Passenger Left Inner. Nuts & Bolts
The driver's side rocker spear trim is too high
Front and Back Roof Racks (vintage)
Chrome Passenger Step
Jack Point Mounted Chrome Plugs w/ Hub Cap Removal Tool
Back Seat Luggage Rack / Jail Bar - Like this one...
Condition of bus in general. Anything not on list?
Source for Middle Seat - Hold Down Brackets
Paint Shop Referral - Repair, Buffed & Clear Coated
What would it take to significantly improve braking, shifting and acceleration and keep her rock steady at speeds up to 65?
KYB Gas-A-Just Shocks, Anti-Sway bars?
Should I stick with Stock or go custom?
ZOMG Hi2U VW Bus...
The requirements we're well defined... a solid split window in drivable condition on the East coast, preferably Florida. After about three years of scouring Samba.com, the de facto site for VW freaks such as myself, I finally found the bus I'd been looking for...
She's a '66 21 Window Samba. Paul, the most excellent dude we bought her from down in the Keys tells us that the body was restored by a Navy welder up in New Hampshire. Evidently he lost her in a custody battle with his wife. The shell ended up on Ebay where Paul picked it up. He towed it down and performed the restoration work. It's the cleanest bus I've seen. No significant body rust.
We bought her on March 1st and drove her down to Key West where we spent the night celebrating. The next morning we headed back to the main land and made it the 150'ish miles on US 1 back to Miami without incident.
When we stopped for gas I checked for drips and noticed a few small puddles. Since a new dual port 1600cc engine has just been installed before we picked her up I didn't get too excited. About 30 miles down the road I noticed the engine sound changed and pulled her off in Doral.
A quick look under revealed a significant amount fluid around the transmission. We made some calls... "puedo pedir prestado por favor el amarillo pages" and fortunately found a VW specialist, Ken's VW repair, not too far away.
We headed back South 15 miles or so taking it really easy and located Ken's place without any trouble. They took great care of us locating a tear in one of the axle boots and also figured out that the transmission plugs hadn't been replaced when it was rebuilt. By some crazy luck they happened upon an old tranny they had laying around and hooked us up.
Ken also noticed some issues with the shifting and clutch cable. The cable is frayed and a bit rusty and it's a bit dicey getting her into first.
Well off we went on our way. She made it back all the way to our house in Florida without a bit of trouble. 275 miles 4-5 hours on the road. Thought we might have trouble getting over the Skyway bridge but it was smooth sailing.
She's a '66 21 Window Samba. Paul, the most excellent dude we bought her from down in the Keys tells us that the body was restored by a Navy welder up in New Hampshire. Evidently he lost her in a custody battle with his wife. The shell ended up on Ebay where Paul picked it up. He towed it down and performed the restoration work. It's the cleanest bus I've seen. No significant body rust.
We bought her on March 1st and drove her down to Key West where we spent the night celebrating. The next morning we headed back to the main land and made it the 150'ish miles on US 1 back to Miami without incident.
When we stopped for gas I checked for drips and noticed a few small puddles. Since a new dual port 1600cc engine has just been installed before we picked her up I didn't get too excited. About 30 miles down the road I noticed the engine sound changed and pulled her off in Doral.
A quick look under revealed a significant amount fluid around the transmission. We made some calls... "puedo pedir prestado por favor el amarillo pages" and fortunately found a VW specialist, Ken's VW repair, not too far away.
We headed back South 15 miles or so taking it really easy and located Ken's place without any trouble. They took great care of us locating a tear in one of the axle boots and also figured out that the transmission plugs hadn't been replaced when it was rebuilt. By some crazy luck they happened upon an old tranny they had laying around and hooked us up.
Ken also noticed some issues with the shifting and clutch cable. The cable is frayed and a bit rusty and it's a bit dicey getting her into first.
Well off we went on our way. She made it back all the way to our house in Florida without a bit of trouble. 275 miles 4-5 hours on the road. Thought we might have trouble getting over the Skyway bridge but it was smooth sailing.
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