Air-Cooled VW

There are three sets of bearings in any engine--main bearings, which center the crankshaft in the block (or engine case on a VW); camshaft bearings, which center the cam in the case; and rod bearings, which hold the rods to the crank. Remember where the bearings fit in the engine; you will also need a copy of the Bentley manual for 1971-1979 VW Beetle.

You start by tearing the engine down. You've got to take the crank and cam to be resurfaced, the rods to be straightened and bored, and the case to be checked to see if it is possible to line bore it. (If it CAN be line bored, which makes the bearing surfaces perfect and ready for new bearings, make sure they use a line-boring machine and not this weird thing that fits in a cordless drill.) And while you're at it, live it up and have the heads done too.

Once all that is done, the machinist will measure your parts to see how "oversize" they are. They cut metal off your parts, and this measurement will get you the right size bearings.

Of the three sets of bearings in your engine, pay particular attention to the camshaft bearings. There are two kinds: single thrust and double thrust. This refers to the bearing pair at the front of the engine--the end where the flywheel is. The "thrust" bearing looks like the edges are bent over--trust me, you'll know what I'm talking about when you see the bearing. The non-thrust bearing doesn't have these. A single-thrust bearing set gives you one of each; the double thrust gives you two thrust bearings. Your engine will last a lot longer with a double thrust set and it's about five bucks more. Well worth the money.

You'll need a bunch of other stuff too: a set of pistons and cylinders, a new oil pump, a new oil cooler, a gasket kit, a main seal, a new gland nut, a tube of Yamabond to glue the case back together (DO NOT USE SILICONE SEALANT TO DO THIS!)...also, do yourself a favor while your engine is at the machine shop and have the guy remove the oil strainer studs and drill & tap the six holes for larger bolts. This will cut down your leaks considerably. Make sure to buy the new bolts and spring lockwashers from the machinist, so you know you got the right size. If you REALLY want to be nice to your engine, get him to drill and tap for a full-flow oil filter. There will be two holes coming out of your case. You then order from one of the online VW parts houses an oil filter adapter plate and hoses.

Once everything is home, just follow to the letter the instructions in the Bentley for reassembling your engine.

You first remove the engine.

Next, jack up the car and put it on stands. You've got to drain the transmission, remove the axles, front transmission mount, backup light wire, ground wire and shift linkage from the transmission.

Lower the car to the ground and put a transmission jack under it.

There are two bolts holding the back of the transmission to the car. Remove them, and the transmission will come out.

The BEST way is to buy a VR6 VW that was rolled, rear-ended, T-boned or otherwise wrecked in a way that didn't mess up the front of the car, and swap everything in front of the windshield between your car and the wrecked one.

The best way that doesn't require you to be an ASE Master Technician is to change the chip in the ECU and replace the exhaust system.

Rich is cool.

What they're talking about is your fuel-air mixture.

Volkswagens need to run a slightly-rich fuel mix--more fuel in the mix than you're "supposed" to need--because the excess fuel lowers combustion temperature. Believe it or not, the leaner the mix is the hotter it burns, and if it's too hot you'll overheat the engine. If it's WAY too lean, it's possible to raise the cylinder head temperature above 350 degrees F, the temperature the valve seats are pressed in at. If you get the engine that hot, you risk dropping a valve seat into the combustion chamber. A valve seat is a big hunk of metal that will put a big hole in the top of a piston if it falls into the combustion chamber. Do that and you need to just buy a whole new engine.

You would have to replace the grill there is aftermarket ones available. the rear is much harder and would require re locating the door latch and welding and painting would be required

With great difficulty.

No, seriously, you do them one at a time. Pull off the boot for the plug wire and you'll find the plug inside a hole in the tin. Unscrew the plug with a wrench and remove it. Gap the new one to 0.030", apply antiseize to the threads, screw it in and torque to 25 lb-ft, then put the wire back on. The number-one plug is kinda tricky to get in, but it will go.

Driver, Purchase an alternator for the aircooled engine. Usually a new alternator stand and fuel pump are also required. The stand is the piece that bolts to the engine and has a saddle for the alternator to sit on. The fuel pump is angled to provide clearance for the alternator as it is usually a larger diameter than the standard generator. The voltage regulator is removed from under the rear seat and the sires are taped off. Follow the wiring diagram with the alternator to complete the wiring. One wire comes from the dash light (small wire) and the heavy connection bolt goes directly to the plus side of the battery under the rear seat. Check www.thesamba.com for kit availability. Good luck..

it could be a heater core leaking, or the seals around those windows, or maybe a windshield seal leaking

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This is an aircooled VW question so we know it's not a heater core--aircooled cars don't have them. My first guess is holes in the floorpan.

depending on RHD / LHD

i assume your car is left hand drive,

thake the cap of the wheel ( small black cap ) behind it is another black cap with a square hole and the speedo cable sticking through,

take the clip off.

now go into the dash, if its a 73 standard you shound be able to get it from the trunk and just unscrew it.

if it's a super then take the panel with the headlight window defroster and emergency flasher switches of by taking the smaller pannels out on either side, and a screw in the middle,

you now have a hole to stick your hand in and unscrew the cable,

also you can push the speedo out if u like, it doesnt bolt on to anything, it just sits in the rubber grommet

A 1974 VW has an alternator, and it's pretty easy to change:

buy a rebuilt one

unhook the battery

remove the carb, hood and fan belt

unhook the wires going to the alternator, and the strap holding it to the alternator stand

remove all the screws holding the fan shroud on and lift the fan shroud out of the car

there is a nut on the front holding the fan on, and a nut on the back holding the pulley on. Remove both nuts, then the things they held on. Don't lose any of the washers under the pulley cup!

There are four bolts holding the alternator backing plate to the fan shroud. Take them off, then lift the alternator away from the fan shroud.

There are four MORE bolts holding the alternator to the backing plate. Remove them too, and separate the alternator from the backing plate.

Once this is done, bolt the new alternator in place and "installation is the reverse of removal."

2500ml, or a bit over 2.5 quarts.

No, a 1967 Beetle hood will not fit a 1974 Beetle without modifications. The body design and mounting points of the two models differ, particularly due to changes in the front end and the shape of the hood over the years. If you want to swap hoods, it would require adjustments to ensure proper fitment.

One end of the cable runs through a hole in the left (driver's) side spindle and is attached to the wheel bearing dust cover, the other end is attached to the speedometer.

That would require some serious machining. Far easier simply to get an alternator to install instead.

I don't know what year, But I can give this info.:

'H' is A 1500 motor single reliefe.

It can be made into any size motor from 1300 to the 1600 even with big bore kits like 1770.

The oil reliefe is single as opposed to dual on later models. That's fine for normal or even A little hot rodding, But not too much,

It is A good basic VW engine if you are wanting A good dependable daily driver or A off road ride that will be used with care and not trying to see how much abuse it will handle.

It could be a few things.

The first thing I do is turn the car on and look at the two idiot lights in the speedometer. If they didn't both come on, your problem is somewhere between the battery and the coil. The electricity to power the coil, which is where your spark comes from, comes out of the battery, goes through a 40-year-old piece of wire, a 40-year-old switch, a 40-year-old fusebox with possibly a 40-year-old fuse in it, then through ANOTHER 40-year-old wire (which is running past the transmission so it gets nice and hot all the time, which damages wire) through the firewall to the coil. There are LOTS of points of failure there!

If you have voltage at the coil, there are not many things it could be:

The condenser could be fried.

The rotor could be dirty.

The coil could be bad.

The points could be misadjusted.

The wire from the coil to the distributor could be bad.

Or, best of all, the distributor could be loose and popped out so it's not making contact with the distributor drive.

up until a few years ago you could buy brand new air cooled bugs in Mexico.

now you can only buy a restored one.

i dont know of any engines that started with AD

however

type1

AE 1971/72 1600cc - dual relief, dual port AH 1973/74 1600cc - 8mm head studs with case savers AJ 1975-1979 1600cc - fuel injected type2

AW 1973/74 1800cc - dual carb. AW 1975 1800cc - fuel-injected AP 1974/75 1800cc - European only

type 3

AN 1974 1800cc - 8.6:1 compression AT 1974 1800cc - European only, dual carb.

If it's NOT a Super Beetle (struts) then just search for - lowered front end for Beetle - and you should get alot of hits for parts and info on exactly how. Depends on how much you want to spend and and "how low ya wanna go". Don't forget to tell them what Wheels and Tires you want or have as there is only so much room under the fenders unless you want to buy wider fenders. www2.cip1.com Toplineparts.com (for Super Beetles) mamotorworks.com/acvw and a lot more...

Wanted to add: Super Beetles can be lowered also, suggest using lowering struts and springs although it is possible to modify the original struts if you are a good welder/fabricator. There are numerous narrowed beam type setups for using wider wheels and tires and give room for turning the tires when the car is lowered. There are adjusters which can be welded into the original beams that is the easiest way, again requires a good welder fabricator. There are also lowering spindles which will add disc brakes at the same time, be aware that they can widen the front track a little. A combination of a narrowed beam with adjusters and lowering spindles seems to be the popular setup.

The first beetle arrived to the American soil on January 1949. It was delivered to a

a Dutch businessman named, Ben Pon Sr, who eventually became the world's first official Volkswagen importer.

Should be a 1971 Type 3

No, it has an automatic choke.

For this you don't have to unhook the battery! Step 1: jack up the left side of the car. Crawl under, find the clutch lever and remove the clutch cable adjusting nut. Step 2: open the hood and unhook the accelerator cable. Step 3: remove the two bolts holding the pedal cluster in, and extract the pedal cluster from the car. You will find one of two things: that the clevis on the end of the clutch cable wore through (it's made of pot metal, so it happens), or that the hook on the end of the clutch pedal wore through. The odds of either happening are about equal. If it's the pedal hook, stop what you're doing. Take the pedal cluster away from the car. The hook is pushed into a tube and secured with one small bolt. Remove the bolt, stick a metal rod of some sort on the end of the hook rod that's shoved into the tube, and whack it with a hammer until it comes out. Push a new hook into the tube, align the hole in the tube with the hole in the hook, and install the bolt. Then check the end of the cable just to make sure. If the cable is broken, grab it and pull it out. Take the new cable out of the bag. Dunk it in Rustoleum paint, then hang it up to dry. When it does, thread it into the tube the old one came from, put the clevis on the clutch pedal hook, and reinstall the pedal cluster. Step 4: Crawl back under the car. Thread the end of the cable through the clutch lever, and get the adjusting nut (1966s didn't have wing nuts, but I'd get one when I bought the new cable--they make adjusting the clutch SO nice...) started on the cable. Step 5: Have someone go into the car with a ruler. Press the clutch pedal in about half an inch. When it's down, you screw the adjuster nut down until it touches the clutch lever. Step 6: let the car back down and hook the accelerator cable back up. You're done.

Being old is usually what does it.

If new headlights burn out, do a voltmeter check. If the voltage is much over 14, your voltage regulator is fried.