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Most of the stuff we do on the VW based cars has “How To…” You Tube videos too.
I’m building a straight axle “Volksrod” now and used this bushing, the “Bigfoot” pedal conversion and also their accelerator pedal. Best aftermarket stuff I’ve bought for a VW to date. http://unique-parts.com/
It is imperative when you reinstall the shifter that it is perfectly perpendicular to the tunnel when in neutral and viewed from the side. If not, it will be difficult to find either first and second or third and fourth (depending if the shifter is tipped forward or rearward). In a TD Replica, this happens when the shifter shaft is cut too short or too long. It’s got to be spot-on.
I had a bad experience with Grundy after years of using them. I wrote about it here.
Their underwriter used to be Chubb Insurance Company. Grundy got a new underwriter (I don’t know why) and that’s when my problems started. The new underwriter is Philadelphia Indeminty Insurance Company as Ed noted.
Halfway through my policy period, I got a letter from Philadelphia Indemnity that they were not going to renew my policy. I had two claims, one from a damaged windshield and the other for towing damage. Both were minor settlements, under $1,500 total.
I called Grundy and was told “no need to cancel and go elsewhere, we will rectify this”. For the next 6 months they dicked me around until the policy lapsed and never did squat. I called them at least 10 times during the last month of the coverage and they never returned ONE call. So, Grundy got their commission for my policy until it lapsed and I was left looking for another insurer.
IMHO GRUNDY SUCKS
If you haven’t noticed, SPEED TV also cancelled “My Classic Car”, the Grundy mouthpiece on TV just after Grundy got the rug pulled out from under them. What’s up with that?
Pink MG40852.4526388889
Thanks guys…”this too shall pass” and “one day at a time” come in handy at times like this.
All this will settle down in a month or two. Then on to some serious “playing with cars”
I vote brake hoses…the most overlooked thing in a brake job. A good idea to install new springs/hardware when you do drum brakes too. Rock Auto sells VW brake hoses (there are 4) and brake shoe spring and hardware kits cheeep! Pink MG40767.4673263889
Paul, try to disconnect relating Fan Speed to MPH. It’s all about engine RPM to Fan Speed. Again, the engine has no idea how fast it’s going down the road. The most important ratio is between the crank and gen/alt pulleys for cooling, not the transaxle.
The Super Beetle’s had a higher ratio ring and pinion. That actually lowered the RPM’s in all gears when you ran the same MPH as the Standard Beetle with the lower ratio ring and pinion.
The two Freeway Flyers that I’ve had only lowered the RPM’s by about 350 RPM (ring & pinion and higher 4th gear) and 250 RPM (ring and pinion only) over a standard transaxle. That isn’t the drastic, 500-700 RPM drop like today’s Electronic Automatic OD with locking converters in our daily drivers.
VW designed the fan to turn a certain RPM at a certain ENGINE RPM, not MPH.
Note about VW cooling fans: Ever see one “explode”…it’s gnarly
. If you ever have your turbine fan out, check the hub area under the large nut for hairline cracks. Sometimes there won’t even be a warning vibration, a run up to higher RPM’s and WHA-BANG!!!Pink MG40767.4643402778
Paul…can’t figure where I posted against using Freeway Flyers. Using one in these little light cars, IMHO they are GREAT! The first Pink MG had one and I plan on using one in the very light Volksrod I am building.
A “Freeway Flyer” usually has a higher 4th gear and higher ratio ring and the pinion from Super Beetle transaxle. Some builders just use the higher Super Beetle ring and pinion (3.88:1?)
Faster/slower fan speed is directly related to engine RPM’s not MPH. The engine doesn’t know how fast it’s travelling down the road.
A power pulley and missing engine tin indeed does heat damage to a street VW. The power pulley messes up the fan speed to RPM ratio and the missing engine tin screws up the cooling air flow.
At any ambient temperature, RPM’s (friction & faster combustion cycles) makes the heat…more RPM more heat. More RPM, more fan speed. So, the engine gets the correct amount of cooling air no matter what the mph in theory.
Other mitigating factors are short-shifting, vehicle gross weight, etc…stuff that labors the engine. In fact, my experience is no higher temps using the Freeway Flyer in the first Pink MG…even when I short shifted it.
These little boxer’s don’t spin up like a water cooled V6 or V8. IMHO, 4,800 with a stock mill is pushing it. They are louder too because they are air-cooled, solid lifter and aluminum/magnesium alloy. No water jackets or hyraulic lifters to absorb the engine sound. Plus, as previously mentioned, nothing but a thin fiberglass firewall and we sit in the former back seat location.
Don’t feel bad…I did the same thing and bought 4 of those “1157” LED bulbs. Still have them in a cabinet drawer…in the dark
Paul…as usual, you are the MAN!!!
I had Grundy for years and they sell only Agreed Value policies. The rep at Grundy told me that Stated Value in most cases is an “ACV” policy.
You are indeed correct that the “daily driver” companies do not offer Agreed Value policies and the bulk of them are “ACV” coverage.
I now use http://www.classicins.com for my ’40 Ford, ’69 Beetle and ’74 Beetle. The coverage is Agreed Value for all 3 vehicles and they offer different mileage limits (less mileage = less premium). My premium is just over $300 a year here in NJ.
Bill, I am in NJ and my buddy moved to DE a few months ago. I am not near the car any longer.
I’ll see if he can get me some pics.
However, I can tell you that the single port VW mill had all ALL the stock tin, to include the tin that sits vertical over the “bell housing” area of the engine block.
This tin and the cylinder covers were flush up against what appeared to be stock VW rubber gaskets that line the bottom edge of the Beetle engine bay.
You want Agreed Value, a not Stated Value collector/specialty car insurance. Agreed Value reimburses total loss for the value the car is insured for.
IMHO, NEVER use a “daily driver” company to insure these cars.
Paul, you used the LED bulbs that just screw into the 1156 or 1157 sockets correct? They are indeed junk and not designed to shine through red or amber lenses like a clear 1157. They are also extremely “directional” and have a built in resistor that creates amp draw for the stock flashers.
Larry and I are talking about complete LED assemblies and they are indeed WAY brighter than incandescant bulbs.
Larry, I plan to use rodworx LED assemblies on my Volksrod build. I’ve seen these on street rods and they are BRIGHT.
Amen Paul…he meant “engine tin” in VW talk.
BTW, my buddy’s Lafer has a pretty good seal around the engine compartment, almost like a real Beetle.
Pink MG40759.5181134259
The car bidding started at $10,000 are you kidding!!!
He also said it has anti-lock brakes, a leather interior and it is correctly titled as a 1936???
I do not recall any air-cooled Beetle donor that came with anti-lock brakes or MG making a TD in 1936. I’ll bet this guy also doesn’t know the difference between vinyl and leather.
Reminds me of the a guy at the Atlantic City Convention Hall Car Auction/Show a few years ago. There was a poorly built VW based CMC TD titled as a 1952 MG-TD that he won the bidding on for $14,000. They had actually auctioned it as a real 1952 MG-TD based on the title.
He had it in the car corral the following year trying to sell it for $15,000 or he was headed to divorce court. His wife told him don’t bother coming home if he didn’t have the cash!
I guess I qualify too. Paul, may remember that guy I loaned it to. Quite a character.
The red book is the orange book. The VW crowd in the club I joined call it the red book. Technically it is orange though.
Larry,
As long as the LED’s are wired into the same circuit as the incandescant bulbs, the amp draw is still there for a standard flasher to operate both sets of lights. In other words, you are just splicing them into to existing tail/stop/turn (1157) bulbs?
It’s when you use LED only that causes the need for the electronic flasher.
A special flasher may only be the electronic style that cost about $12 versus a $3 standard flasher.
http://www.rodworx.com were at the York PA NSRA Nationals I attended June 3rd this year. I bought LED parking/blinkers and “Chevron” taillights from them for my ’40 Ford. They sell “special” 2 prong and 3 prong flashers and 3 to 2 prong adapters for about $10.
Pink MG40759.5038310185
Try contacting Billy, the proprietor of Foreign Car Werks in Bound Brook. He’s just off I-287. http://www.foreigncarwerks.com/
Tell him that a fellow CJVWS http://www.cjvws.com member told you to call him.
I am sure he can help you out.
And for older VW based kits, the Bentley “Blue Book” VW manual is a “sister” to the Bentley Red or Orange book.
I have an extra Red Book if anyone is interested. Unfortunately, I loaned my Blue Book to a fellow NJRC member and never got it back.
He is long gone out of NJ…last we heard he had bought an old church in West Virginia that he turned into a house.
Keep in mind that you CANNOT use a regular flasher with LED lights. They don’t draw enough current to make the conventional flashers work.
You need to buy an electronic flasher, some of which actually have a ground wire pigtail attached. http://www.rodworx.com
Paul, is it the site’s software or the server we use that lets the SPAM get through? If we got an new server provider would we be able to avoid this PITA???
Thanks for posting those pics to illustrate what I tried to explain.
IMHO, wheel adapters are just as bad…great to get those “cool” wheels mounted on a “trailer queen” show car, but not the ticket for a driver that I am riding in.
Tim Smith has decades of experience and is a true expert. He was worth every penny I spent on his work.
I had two steel Baja Bug wheels (10 spoke OEM VW) made 8.5″ wide. No leaks and less than .25 oz. weight on one wheel…no weights required on the other!
Pink MG40752.6521296296
Stay away from re-drilled rotors and drums. The VW 4 bolt disc and drum has a “cross” pattern cast into the drum/rotor on the back side that makes the drum/rotor more than twice as thick where the log bolt holes are drilled and threaded.
If you buy redrilled drums/rotors, the threads are MUCH TOO THIN to safely secure the wheel because the lug holes are not redrilled through that thicker “cross” area on the backside of the drum.
I found a local place called Wheel Works in Burlington, NJ. I had a set of OEM VW steel wheels made into the width and offset I needed. He also does aluminum wheels. There are surely more such places that may be able to help you out.
The 4 lug VW pattern is unique at 4 x 130mm. There are still aftermarket wheels with that pattern, just not a great selection of them.
Maybe the shock bodies have a part number or manufacturer’s name stamped on them?
If you know the shock dimensions and an get the car “scaled” at a race shop, there are many “coil over” shock manufacturers and a “zillion” spring rates to choose from to “dial in” your car’s ride and handling. Most of these are adjustable for ride height or “wedge” too.
IRS eliminated extreme camber changes in the rear suspension verus the Swing Axle design. on VW’s.
The first Swing Axle designed 1960-64 Covair is what Ralph Nader based his famous book “Unsafe at Any Speed”. Later corrected in 1965, they were actually great handling little cars, but Nader had already killed them.
VW’s are easy to spot the IRS/Swing Axle difference…count the lug nuts….wide 5 is Swing Axle, 4 lug is IRS.
Pink MG40750.4769560185
