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I’m not certain of this, but I understand that 69 was the first year for the IRS transmission and the only year that has two drain plugs for the shifty box! Mine is a 69.
I had a top with side windows made at a marine upholstery shop. They did not even have my old top as a pattern. We discussed several times concerning an appropriate design. It turned out well and the cost was a little more than what MGMagic charged for a top. Down side was that I was turned down several times by at least 10 shops before finding one willing to attempt it. Also, I had to wait for a slow down in business – just don’t be a hurry! Fortunately, I live near the Great Lakes. Good luck.
GreggMaybe Speedy Jim can help!
https://speedyjim.net/htm/spark.htm
good luck, however, this article is assuming a conventional distributor with points. A solid state distributor would usually have two wire leads that go to either side of the coil. Regardless, Power to the coil goes from battery to ignition switch to coil. May or may not have a fuse in line, depending on the builder.
Gregg
I had that issue with a motorcycle fuse block many years ago. What I eventually discovered that corrosion had built up on the clips holding the glass fuse. That caused a heat build up that loosened the solder inside the fuse and it detached itself! My headlight went out at night on a curve – exciting! The fuse looked good by sight, but nothing was passing. I changed to a blade style and it has worked well since. When I bought my FF TD 10 years ago and several switches were burnt out. I rewired it and installed a block holding 12 fuses, as I considered the FF block really inadequate as well as the total lack of relays and one size fits all wire ! Good luck and remember, it’s always a work in progress! Gregg
I had the same problem with my speedometer and also the oil pressure. I replaced everything with new VDOs and utilized the cable to transducer conversion that Al mentioned. The speedometer was way too bouncy and that made the calibration inaccurate. I suspect something else was going on with my cable. I gave up and purchased the gps receiver from VDO. Rock steady, accurate and comes on almost instantly. Just a thought!
<p style=”text-align: justify;”>Dennis, Check the media under my name for a pic of the newly vented gas cap. I forgot how to post photos in the general forum. The other side of the drilled hole is just inside of the seal gasket and is open to the tank above the internal construction of the cap. I’ve reread your original question and if you are still looking for instructions for the modification of the tank, you’ll find on this sites, an assembly manual in the library for a Fiberfab VW the gives specifications.
<!–more–></p>Good evening Dennis. I live in NE Ohio and my FF TD is in NW Ohio with almost two hours separating us! Regarding your question about the gas cap seal – I think I did to allow air to pass. I’m going to bring the car home this weekend if the weather is good. We had snow on the ground this am and it is supposed to hit 80 Thursday – I love living in place that keeps me guessing! Anyway, I’ll take a good look at the cap and get back to you regarding my vent. I had the car painted last fall and I’m bringing it home so I can get it back together. We are planning to go to Carlisle next month and I’m not even close. I’ve had my car about 8 years and when I bought it, only the brake lights worked and the engine threw a rod 2 weeks later! Fortunately, I enjoy wiring. The car had 5 fuses and no relays and now it has 12 fuses and 14 relays! All the instruments were damaged and most of the switches were burnt. Had a new engine built, did the interior twice, new top, put real seats in, 3 point belts, front disk brakes, new dash with new instruments and finally solved the overheating issue. Life is good – not fair, but good!
If it’s a VW tank, any foreign auto store will carry a VW cap for whatever year you have. Also Amazon and the huge number of VW on-line businesses. Then, there is always MG Magic which has all kind of parts for MG kit cars.
Hi DENNIS, I put a new tank in last year and had the neck cut down as far as possible. Of course, the vent tube is eliminated. The VW’s cap is unvented, of course. I followed my shops advice and drilled a very small hole (1/8”) in the top of the gas cap so air can bypass the seal and I also leave the tank about three or 4 inches low. (I always carry a small flashlight). I’ve never had a problem doing this.
However, you can purchase a kit intended for a trials motorcycle or ATV’s that includes a fitting you could attach on the gas cap or even the top of the tank. It may be possible, room permitting, installing into the neck. Good luck with your lifelong project! GreggEd, I don’t know if I said or not, but my wife Sharon is also coming and we should be there Thursday in time for dinner! Since you’re using a laser for name tags, I’ll leave my sharpie at home…. Gregg Strain
Ed, I don’t know if I said or not, but my wife Sharon is also coming and we should be there Thursday in time for dinner! Since you’re using a laser for name tags, I leave my sharpie at home…. Gregg Strain
I’m registered at Carlisle, however, I’m registered at a different hotel (it’s all about points!)
Gregg Strain
Thank you Ed for the information. We are going to plan on it. However, I think I’m going to choose a Hilton because I have a lot of points to use. If that’s a issue, please let me know! I’ll probably arrive Thursday afternoon also. I live near Akron Ohio, so I will bring a trailer. I’m not built for a 5 hour drive in a TD. I did meet CRASH55 at a show at Jim’s Custom VW near Columbiana, OH last year. Looking forward to the trip. I’m sure I’ll have further questions. Thanks again, Gregg
I’m really interested in the show this year, but I’m a little confused! The show’s website has the event for May 12 & 13th, but the hotel information above says 10 ~ 14th. Is some else beyond the show dates taking place? I would assume there are group meetings, but I’d like a little more info please.
Ive been a member for several years, but finally got my TD almost ready to show it off. I’ve seen the notifications about Carlisle every year, but never felt ready. And now the paints dry! This will be my first big event. Thanks for the help and guidance. Gregg
I’m a little late with my suggestion! I bought a new VDO speedometer and the cable conversion to mate an analog cable to the electronic speedo. It did not go well. The calibration procedure was less then accurate regardless of what method I tried. When I got a reasonable result on the odometer, the needle was swinging all over the place (20 mph swings) and useless!
Finally I gave up and bought the gps module from VDO that was compatible with my digital speedometer. Installation was very easy and I followed VDO’s instructions for the simple setup. It worked great! The result was dead on with the speedometer apps on my phone! The module picks up the satellites very quickly and is ready to go in seconds. I mounted it under the “hood” of my VW Fiberfab. Extremely satisfied – you would be hard pressed to see any difference with a factory speedometer in a new car. All for your consideration. GreggI agree that MGMAGIC is a good source. I considered them for a long time, but I decided to go to a marine upholstery/canvas shop because of their extensive variety of material. However, I live near Lake Erie which has a huge base of suppliers. Also, this time of the year is a busy time. Cost was in the same ballpark as MGMAGIC, I waited about 3 months, but feel I ended up with a top like I wanted it.
I’d like to, but I keep getting a “critical error “ message as you did a few days ago with no reply.
I see you got it figured out, however. The latest instructions I could find did not work for me. I tried to post on an IPad and Windows 10. If I can get it work, I send you what I have.
I had always found my original VW Fiberfab seats uncomfortable. After a few minutes, it felt like sitting on plywood, because I was! I decided to try a conventional VW Type 1 seat bottoms that I found at a swap meet. It took a lot of cutting and grinding to make them fit the narrowed seat pans and a 3 inch high pedestal. I also narrowed the seat back by an inch and half and leaned it back a bit. I ordered new lower seat covers from Sewfine and they made me a matching cover for the seat back and sent enough material for the door panels. Much improved in comfort and looks great. Much easier to get my 230# body in and out, since the seat springs give so much. The only problem I ended up with, the seat was about 2 inches higher and the steering wheel would touch my legs. So I changed the 15” MGMagic wheel to a 13” D shaped one that also a flat dish. Sometime this spring, I can lower the seat an inch by eliminating the sliders, which I don’t use anyway. Expensive solution, but worth it to me.
I’m probably way too late for a timely response. I had the same problem and purchased a VW Bus turn signal. It has a straight stalk. Plenty of clearance. Gregg
Well, I’m ashamed to tell you this and now I can expect some chastisement! When I bought my Fiberfab VW, I knew it had a ton of issues and and replacing the pans was way down the list! (It WAS cheap!) So I took a shortcut that is in the temporary category. The pans had some holes in the seat area, but there was still sufficient good metal. Get the battery out from underneath the seat, if yours is there! I took the seats and carpeting out and cut down new floor pans and installed them on top of the fiberglass, effectively sandwiching the glass between the old and new pans from the petal assembly back to the tranny hump. I would say that the fiberglass body shell in the floor is close to 1/4” and I would not consider taking that structure apart. They were fastened together with a lot of pop-rivets. Then I got some steel flat stock (two pieces) and positioned from from side to side full width and anchored both seats and belts to them.
The only way to do this right is to take the body off, which I think is entirely possible and not the end of the world. This winter, I’m hoping to disassemble most of the body and get new welting and and take the fenders in for paint. That will be my time to do the chassis correctly.
I’ve installed a new engine, rewired everything, new top, new interior and new dashboard. And solved the overheating issue! The body is my last thing on my list. Good luck, GreggHagerty is a good choice AND I love the magazine an all the videos. My regular vehicles are with Progressive. I had my TD first on Progressive and was satisfied until my agent recommended Hagerty which took a reasonable effort from the agent to underwrite, but the savings were significant. They will ask for secure storage and pictures!
Well, I went to my local shop that has done my tires, oil changes and light repairs for many years, for my alignment. Toe in was acceptable as is, but the “technician” and I had a discussion about the camber adjustment. He insisted that the car did not any eccentrics installed and showed me what they were supposed to look like. I informed him that old VWs had them built in and he just had turn this nut on the ball joint to adjust the camber. He laughed at me. So, fortunately I had my iPad with me and brought up a YouTube video showing how to do it. Silence… However, the shop did not have a wrench that was capable of fitting the adjuster. A crescent wrench was too bulky to fit, I guess. When they talked about wrench sizes, he just talked about SAE sizes. I said, “You know that this car is all metric?” More silence….. And of course, no metrics large enough. I think I have one that would work at home. My car was older then anybody working there.
Okay, can you adjust the steering gear box? Yes he can. I know how it is supposed to be done. That’s when I discovered that the builder had ground down the adjusting shaft so the cap he used to cover the hole in the front apron would sit down far enough. So, no adjusting slot! I knew I had a problem, because the gear box is seeping and the access hole is just large enough for the adjustment, not the fill holes. I’ve been thinking of different ways to correct that oversight.In all, a wasted day – so sad…..
”Surprise surprise!”, said Gomer. I never knew shims existed for castor adjustment. I thought that whatever you had, you were stuck with.
Once again, proof that this site is made for VW rookies like me. Thanks Gregg
Thanks for your timely help. Normally, I would be a little apprehensive about accepting information from somebody with a screen name of Crash55, but since you recommended Jim’s Custom VW – I knew you were okay! LOL.
I actually bought a complete new engine from them 3 years ago as well as other parts. I think Jim and Amy are great and caring people with a professional love of VW’s. Prices are more then competitive! I drove my TD to their “Bug-Tober-fest” a week ago Saturday. I live near Akron, OH and it was a 90 min drive at 40F – no top or heater, but I do have heated seats. Great show! I was the only kit car there. Jim has been a big help to me as you are. Thanks again for the response! Gregg
