Cleaned my pop-top today. Used 3 regular sized bottles of X-14 maximum strength bathroom tile cleaner, a stiff bristle brush on a broom handle, and a bit more than an hour of elbow grease.
The top just sparkles now. It was covered with a layer of grey and black gunk, years of build-up.
I picked up the Bus with its rebuilt engine today. It purrs like a kitten! Great job by Steve and Marco over at Buslab.
The new engine has a 12kmi/12mo warranty, was rebuilt by JCS, and has hydraulic lifters.
Needless to say, I'm pretty happy to have it back and running well. Even the heat is working great! (The heat collectors were disconnected before, because the heat exchangers were totally caked in oil and dirt ... they're still burning off a little oil residue, but that should be over in a week or two.)
A while back, a fellow named G. M. Bulley wrote an article on his project to sound- and rust-proof his wife's 1976 VW Bus. The article was terrific, and had a ton of useful info.
Unfortunately, his Internet domain stopped resolving at some pointer during the period spanning August, 2003 to October, 2003. Thankfully, the Way Back Machine at www.archive.org managed to save a copy, so the pages were not lost forever.
I have archived the article here in the hope that it is still useful to the VW Bus enthusiast community. Enjoy!
I'm trying out some new (to me) web log software to use for documenting the adventures with my Bus.
This is a work-in-progress. Expect it to change over the next few days, and be patient while I do the work to make it pretty (hey, I'm an OS guy, not a web guy!).
Well, the leak-down test turned out badly. #1 - 30% at intake valve, #2, #3, and #4 - 40% at rings.
So, it needs a top-end rebuild, at least. I could skate a long for a while, probably, but then I run the risk of rendering the engine non-rebuildable, thus giving up a core exchange.
Since a top-end rebuild is within a few hundred bucks of a new (well, rebuilt) engine, I'm going to go with the new engine. Buslab's rebuilder is JCS. They have a good reputation (and Buslab swears by them), and all of their Type 4 engines use hydraulic lifters and come with a 12k/12mo warranty. So, I think it's worth the money.
I've basically doubled the cost of the Bus now, but I should not have to worry about anything engine-related for a good long time once I get it back.
The Bus ran well enough to drive it across the Bay to Berlekey today. The guys at Buslab are going to replace the oil cooler seals, do a leak-down test, and replace the fuel pressure regulator.
My friend Glen and I went hunting for the vacuum leak again today, and we found it!
We started by eliminating variables: cleaned the FI electrical contacts, tested the AFM for proper operation, verified fuel pump was running when key was turned to "start" position, still didn't start.
Next, we decided to check the fuel pressure. We popped off the gas cap to depressurize the fuel system, and put a fuel pressure gauge on the tap. Turned the key, and it started up! Ok, fine, we're not sure what happened, but at least the fuel pressure appears to be in spec.
At this point, the Giants/Marlins game was in B9, so we buttoned everything up, and went inside to watch the rest of the game.
After the game, we went back outside (with our heads hung low) and continued our work. Bus now doesn't start, even though it started just 30 minutes earlier.
So, we continue looking. We pull the oil breather off, and notice a lot of oil froth and moisture -- evidence of blow-by. I'll have Buslab do a leak-down test when it goes in for the oil cooler seals.
Put it all back together, and the Bus still doesn't start. The only difference we can think of is that the gas cap was still off when we did the fuel pressure test. So, we pull the cap and viola... the Bus starts up! We can even rev the engine, and it doesn't fall flat on its face.
So, while it is running, we put the gas cap back on, and try to rev it again. Sputter, sputter... It falls flat on its face again.
My thoughts turn immediately to the fuel pressure regulator. I pull the vacuum hose, plug it, and then turn the key. The Bus starts right up, and we can rev it just fine. Timing seems to advance properly, and I now have 17'' of vacuum!
So, I did have a vacuum leak (diaphragm of the regulator!), but the revving problem was a fuel starvation problem, not a timing advance problem!
I do have to replace the fuel pressure regulator; without it, it runs rich, and the excess pressure is not really good for the injectors or fuel system seals. I'll have that done when the oil cooler seals are replaced next week.