Itinerant Air-Cooled

Kind list,

No photos, but a brief report of another productive IAC visit.

We accomplished much:

Sliding door troubleshooting and lube
Fuel filler neck and vent lines replaced (PIA)
New fuel lines and fuel filter
Plugs and points replaced
Value adjustment
New Rear hatch striker plate rubber
Clutch cable adjusted
Accelerator cable adjusted (more power!)
Back up lights wired and housings replaced
Idle adjustment
Test drive
Diagnosis and laundry list for the spring

The bus runs superb!

To get to the fuel filler neck, we removed a BH4 heater from the engine compartment. All the parts are intact. If anyone is looking for some heat this winter, I'd be open to selling the unit.

Thanks again Colin.

James

appetite wrote:Kind list,
No photos, but a brief report of another productive IAC visit.

"As long as my fingers don't bleed," I said, "sure I'll do another visit." I had only recently rehabilitated from the April window installation marathon.

This time, my fingers do not bleed, but my hands are done tore up anyways. We decided to do the fuel tank fill pipe hose and vent hoses without removing the engine, the Type 1 engine with that big old shroud and dog house cooler making it far more difficult than a Type 4 engine.. We were only able to pull this off because the left side of the fuel tank bulkhead had been shortened by the presence of the BA-4 heater, so we were able to slide it sideways just enough to access the . . . foam? Spray foam? Spray foam all over the top of the tank, blocking access to the filler pipe hose and clamps. We had choice words for this PO engineering, mainly, "why why WHY." That was the first hit against my hands. I had to do a totally blind new hose install without ever seeing what I was doing. The bulkhead could not move more than an inch or two, so it decided to saw against my wrists as I finagled the hoses on.

It took quite the while. Therefore, I pretty much compelled appetite to install his own reverse light circuit from A to Z. And they work. After years of being on the list.
I got to drive his bus, finally. It has the comfortable driveability of a daily driver, and it made me miss Chloe. Don't tell the BobD. It has been running flawlessly with no input from me.
ColinJustRecoveringFromTheWedding

I'm kinda curious as to why you chose to perform this operation without yanking the engine, considering how quick and easy engine removal is on the type 1 busses. Were there extenuating circumstances, or were you just being ornery?

We didn't pull the engine for a couple of reasons. First, we could actually access the vent hoses and the fuel neck hose, albeit with some cursing and struggling, because we could slide the firewall by taking out the BN4. And second, I was wary of pulling the engine and suddenly finding a laundry list of tasks to perform. Call me chicken, but I wanted to enjoy the autumn driving months without the engine on cinder blocks in the basement!

To round out the fuel smell drama, I got a new cap from Wolfsburg West, delivered this morning. I also ordered a gasket to see if I could revive the old cap. The new cap fits snug. Later, I'll take her out for a drive, make some hard turns and see if the cap is sealed properly.

Alas, the new cork gasket will not fit the old cap, which has what I think is the original rubber insert. The circumference is not right. Maybe I had the wrong cap on there the whole time?

Does anyone have a photo of their gas cap from a 69 bus, just out of curiosity?

appetite wrote:We didn't pull the engine for a couple of reasons. First, we could actually access the vent hoses and the fuel neck hose, albeit with some cursing and struggling, because we could slide the firewall by taking out the BN4. And second, I was wary of pulling the engine and suddenly finding a laundry list of tasks to perform. Call me chicken, but I wanted to enjoy the autumn driving months without the engine on cinder blocks in the basement!

To round out the fuel smell drama, I got a new cap from Wolfsburg West, delivered this morning. I also ordered a gasket to see if I could revive the old cap. The new cap fits snug. Later, I'll take her out for a drive, make some hard turns and see if the cap is sealed properly.

Alas, the new cork gasket will not fit the old cap, which has what I think is the original rubber insert. The circumference is not right. Maybe I had the wrong cap on there the whole time?

Does anyone have a photo of their gas cap from a 69 bus, just out of curiosity?

Samba ad, I don't have one of Chloe's.

SlowLane wrote:I'm kinda curious as to why you chose to perform this operation without yanking the engine, considering how quick and easy engine removal is on the type 1 busses. Were there extenuating circumstances, or were you just being ornery?

Ornery?
It was really greasy under the engine.
So there you have it.
Not ornery, just OCD.
Colin

appetite wrote: Does anyone have a photo of their gas cap from a 69 bus, just out of curiosity?

Blurry pic from two years ago, but here's what I think is a genuine VW cap. I'm not sure if it's 100% correct for the year, but it does seal well and I never have smelly or leaking issues. I can get better detail and a shot of the inside when I get home on Tuesday. The small circle in the middle is a VW stamping just like on most OG metal parts:

asiab3 wrote:

appetite wrote: Does anyone have a photo of their gas cap from a 69 bus, just out of curiosity?

Blurry pic from two years ago, but here's what I think is a genuine VW cap. I'm not sure if it's 100% correct for the year, but it does seal well and I never have smelly or leaking issues. I can get better detail and a shot of the inside when I get home on Tuesday. The small circle in the middle is a VW stamping just like on most OG metal parts:

Strip that puppy and get a nice galvanized finish.
Colin100PointersCount
(achtung! and get ze oktane dekal schnell!)

Amskeptic wrote:

asiab3 wrote: Blurry pic from two years ago [img]

Strip that puppy and get a nice galvanized finish.
Colin100PointersCount
(achtung! and get ze oktane dekal schnell!)

Aye- I have the octane sticker in there now, as well as rubber stops that were neither over-sprayed nor age hardened.

Galvanized finish? Is that a shade of engine enamel? The cap paint is chipping and peeling currently. I'm making a paint order for the new engine/compartment tomorrow; I'd love to tack on a few more item$.

Robbie

Thanks for the photos.

There seems to be endless aftermarket iterations of the gas cap. The one from Wolfsburg West seems to sit and seal fine.

I'll let you know how it goes (smells) on the next fill up.

James

appetite wrote: I'll let you know how it goes (smells) on the next fill up.
James

Please do.
My car smells like gas right this minute after I was subjected to a golden shower of sparkling gasoline that coursed over my glistening skin as I lay half-naked on a towel toying with a firm nipple and a very naughty hose.
Colin

I think I saw a porn movie with that theme, during my misspent youth, long ago (8mm).

now that's an image that my take a while to pass...
jeff

Believe it or not, given the short distances I drive, I just filled the bus up today before putting it to bed for the coming winter.

No discernible gas coming from cap, even after some hard turns to test out the seal, so I think I can give the Wolfsburg West cap a seal of approval (pun intended).

Throughout the last couple of months though, I still detected whiffs of gas from the engine compartment. As I mentioned in the original post, we changed all the fuel hoses and vent line. I realize this may be a dumb question, but could it be that there is gas that sits in the carb that causes that smell? I'm being paranoid, right?

James

appetite wrote:Believe it or not, given the short distances I drive, I just filled the bus up today before putting it to bed for the coming winter.

No discernible gas coming from cap, even after some hard turns to test out the seal, so I think I can give the Wolfsburg West cap a seal of approval (pun intended).

Throughout the last couple of months though, I still detected whiffs of gas from the engine compartment. As I mentioned in the original post, we changed all the fuel hoses and vent line. I realize this may be a dumb question, but could it be that there is gas that sits in the carb that causes that smell? I'm being paranoid, right?

James

Hello James,

I think your windowless bus in April somehow loosened me up. Chloe now looks almost as stripped. Installing a headliner in a seven passenger bus is a big job.

Anyways, yes, the engine gives off some fuel smell too. Next time you shut it down after a warm run, go back and sniff near the carburetor. Look for dampness near the throttle shaft. Pretty much normal for those of us without the proper original fuel pump that shuts down the fuel expansion to the carburetor.

You 1969 people also have to realize that your gas tank vents to the atmosphere. It vents to the atmosphere. That's how we did it back then. When you fill the tank, you displace the same amount of air as the quantity of gas you just shipped in. On a hot day, gas vapors in pre-1970 cars just waft on out . . .
Colin