Pokey the Wunderbus!

[Achiii]

This thread makes me miss my 79 westy. Same horrid plaid interior. It was my only vehicle through college and a little while after. I put 3 motors in it, and when the 3rd had too many problems it sat at my parents house for several years. I eventually sold it and that funded a replacement 70s vintage german vehicle: my /6. The /6 has carried me way further than the westy ever would have again, but I still miss the bus.

[Keith]

Originally Posted by Inane Cathode

Now entering: Head gasket land!

progress?

[Inane Cathode]

Originally Posted by Keith

progress?

Yes!

A much needed poke. Been meaning to update my build thread but i havent had any spectacular pictures to update it with so my words will have to do.

So. Head gasket!

Yes, the head gasket set fixed my overheating problem. As odd as it sounds, the left hand head (i know this, because the right hand head stuck to the gasket like it should, whereas the left hand head immediately began puking oil and coolant as soon as i cracked the bolts loose) was leaking.

Leaking just barely enough to allow high pressure combustion gasses (not enough to be immediately obvious) into the cooling jacket, without leaking enough to actually intake coolant and burn it.

The result was a perfectly cooling engine when you first fill it up, that deteriorates after a day of driving into a sporadically and violently overheating engine due to the gas buildup in the cooling system vapor locking the water pump.

After replacing the head gaskets, i hooked up a 12 foot aluminum fishing boat, motor, gear, camping gear, coolers full of food, and drove for four hours at 90 degree temperatures up a mountain pass and back with not a single hiccup. A risky test drive, but it paid off :)

What was no fun, though, was driving all that with a half functional braking system. I hadnt really realized what was going on until i paid more attention coming to a stop a few weeks ago. When you first go to stop, it has high pedal, and normal feeling brakes, if not extremely weak stopping. If you jam hard on the pedal there is a tactile and audible pop/clunk after which it stops MUCH better with ALOT of metal on metal grinding coming from the rear. I figured the rear brakes needed attention.

And boy did they. The rear shoes had evidently been replaced some time ago, and never adjusted (I tried and only succeeded in bending the backing plate). No problem, i'll just replace the adjusters, and shoes.

Well, my parts list grew from that into new brake hoses, backing plates, brake cylinders.

Also like most projects, 40 years of neglect and corrosion scope creeped itself into a nightmare project. Stuck adjusters turned into rust welded adjusters that twisted a very large welded-on nut in half, and at least one destroyed pair of vice grips.

So, after learning that you can only replace the bolted on adjuster holder with the backing plate, i went to get the backing plate replaced. Well, that only comes off if you take of the 46 by god millimeter axle nut that was torqued to redonkulous torque 20 some odd years ago by whoever serviced it last. Needless to say, i have a half inch drive breaker bar that is now a very long paper weight.

I wont leave on a sad note though, i got a hold of the oft prescribed 3/4" breaker bar, a 46mm socket that i will use precisely 4 times, a 3 foot piece of black water pipe, and twisted them damn nuts free. They didnt snap, screech, or catch, just calmly loosened their death grip on the wheel bearings like nothing special.

There will be much more pictures to follow the more i get into these damn brakes. Then its on to shift bushings, fuel sender, carpet, seat, heater, stereo, disco ball, and wet bar.

[madeouttaglass]

You'll use that socket again when the axle splines start wearing and clicking. Ask me how I know.......

[Inane Cathode]

Perhaps. I'm hoping the cv axle like clicking i was hearing one day was just latent hearing damage, or a rock stuck in the tire

[Speedo66]

Just curious, do they still use the axle splines to turn the brake drums to propel the car forward? That's the way it worked in my '68 bus.

Great van, unless you wanted to actually do highway speeds. If there was a child screaming somewhere, that was enough wind to prevent that. How about 45 MPH floored going DOWN the Rockies because of a head wind?

Good move changing the engine.

[Inane Cathode]

Originally Posted by Speedo66

Just curious, do they still use the axle splines to turn the brake drums to propel the car forward? That's the way it worked in my '68 bus.

Great van, unless you wanted to actually do highway speeds. If there was a child screaming somewhere, that was enough wind to prevent that. How about 45 MPH floored going DOWN the Rockies because of a head wind?

Good move changing the engine.

Yeah, for sure. It's bitchin mega fast now. Well, self limited to 65 mph, but it gets up there fast. The issue so far, is the trans is still geared for the wimpy wimpy type IV powerplant. Now that it actually is receiving power, all the gears are *way* too short. The fastest i've gone so far is 80mph, feels stable, but the engine is absolutely screaming, so i keep it around 65 to keep things copacetic.

My sorta solution to that, is to outfit it with larger wheels and tires. I'm ditching the goofy 14" wheels (btw, ever see a D rated 14" tire? Neither have I, cept what's on the bus already) and upgrading to 15s. Nothing to write your homies about, but it'll get me in to the adult sized tires. I'm planning on some 205-75-15s in a winter tread for the winter.

I've got a huge to-do list for pokey, and work is sucking up so much time. I'll have an opportunity at the end of the week to take some enthralling and informative pictures on boring drum brake stuff :)

[Keith]

Originally Posted by Inane Cathode

Yes!...There will be much more pictures to follow the more i get into these damn brakes. Then its on to shift bushings, fuel sender, carpet, seat, heater, stereo, disco ball, and wet bar.

Coool

[1Gopokes1]

my 69 DC

how do I post a picture??

[CHANGELING]

I had 205/ 15s on my '73 type 2 and she did a fair old 90mph on the motorway, standard twin port 1600 engine too!!

Man, I miss my bus too.

[Inane Cathode]

Originally Posted by CHANGELING

I had 205/ 15s on my '73 type 2 and she did a fair old 90mph on the motorway, standard twin port 1600 engine too!!

Man, I miss my bus too.

How's that even possible? The 2.0 type IV was a total dog, i cant imagine the 1600 breaking 55mph

[Speedo66]

Originally Posted by CHANGELING

I had 205/ 15s on my '73 type 2 and she did a fair old 90mph on the motorway, standard twin port 1600 engine too!!

Man, I miss my bus too.

I think 90kph might be more like it.

I used to have to draft trucks to make it up hills. It wouldn't pull 3rd gear in the Rockies.

[CHANGELING]

No way, 90mph I'm sure, I spanked mine downhill, it was very light, ran on unleaded till it bent a valve, but kept on running for another two weeks with increasingly poor performance until I replaced the valve. It was sprayed matt black had two sliding doors in the sides "arab stylee" and it was a hoot to drive. Oh on hills it was not so hot. Porlock Hill in the UK has a reputation and it damn near killed my bus going up it!!!

[a1fa]

[Inane Cathode]

Pics! Uninteresting pictures. But still pictures.

I got the nuts from hell off with this bad boy


Got the right side apart, new backing plate, cylinder, shoes, adjusters, all that. Took a while, but easy. The left side came apart a lot easier.

The left side, naked!


All back together, slathered in anti seize. If i have to do this job over again i'm pushing the whole thing off a cliff.


Brakes ALOT better now. No more ka-chunk with the rear brakes coming on, and metal on metal noise, and the front end locking up on gravel. Ended up just gravity bleeding things, seems to be sufficient at this point. I did plan on replacing all the brake hoses, but i lack the right wrenches to get at it without rounding everything off, that and it was getting dark.

I also put in a new shift rod bushing for the front shifter rod. Totally eliminated the spaghetti shifter am-i-in-second-or-fourth effect, and along with generous greasing the shifter is smooth and quiet. Not quite snick-snick though, hah.

I cut a hole in the trunk deck and replaced the fuel sender as well. Not sure if its accurate or not, sure looked like it had more than half a tank when i had it open, but thats what the gauge says. Oh well, better than it showing empty unless its almost overflowing.

More exciting pictures and commentary when i scratch together my interior materials!