1968 Bug 1600SP winter refresh/rebuild

[Z33_Taxi]

Good morning, I'm Phil. I have recently purchased a 1968 Bug w/ a 1600SP. This is my very first beetle and its everything I wanted it to be. My best friend has a 66, but its slammed and that's cool, but not exactly my taste. I've always loved the look of rally cars and especially the long distance cars like the Peking to Paris or the Panamerica. That was always the idea I had for my beetle. At first I thought it would just give it the aesthetics, but then....my motor went. I was having a great day cruising around lake George and the Adirondacks when I noticed the car was not accelerating anymore. Pulled over and saw some smoke, I turned the car off and it stayed that way. Car wont turn over, can't turn the crank. So I got it towed down and now I'm diving in.
They day I took delivery



Next to the DD


That time I "totally" beat a shelby in a drag race



Downtown Ballstion spa,NY show


how she sits now


was my first time pulling a motor. Did it by myself. It went east until the valve cover latch snapped up and cover flew off mid drop.



Here is a list of things I want to get done this winter; though it is doubtful I will get to finish them all:

enigne
Rebuild engine
-Look into DP set up
Doghouse oil cooler
Full flow oil system
Remove heater tubes. Car will never be driven in cold weather.
Interior
POR15 the pans. Top and bottom
Carpet/sound deadening
Convert to all metal dash
Gauges: Oil temp/oil pressure/volt/tripometer/map lights/fuel
door cards/window scrapers
exterior
Fog lights
-Cibie
kamei spoiler
roof rack
new rubber seals
suspension
LSD
wheels/tires
drum to disc
skid plates
drop spindles???

some inspirational beetles:

[Z33_Taxi]

My yoke just came in the mail, so that's good news. Tomorrow I will pick up an engine stand from Harbor F. I understand I will have to do some drilling to make it spin and whatnot.

Soon it will be time to tackle this little fella.


I'm really hoping this becomes somewhat therapeutic because I really need it. Burning the candles at both ends just isn't working for me anymore.

[Z33_Taxi]

Started to tear my carb down tonight. Overall it looked decently clean, there was some small traces of rust/browning. It was my first time tearing down a carb and it was overall a fun time. Learned a lot about how they work and have a much better understanding about them.

Good carbs vs bad carbs


Bought a rebuild kit and J bugs and it came with a nice tear down schematic for both the 30Pict/1 had the 34 series.


SO many tiny pieces. I actually managed not to drop or lose anything


It's currently soaking in a gumout carb bucket. Will let it stew for a day and see how it turns out





I picked up the sweet enamel sign off ebay from a man living in Ukraine. It's repainted but I love how it looks.
[/b]

[valimihairo]

That's a nice and clean bug.. how people manage to find these gems?
The red one is a very nice inspiration,take your time and this will turn awesome.
Subscribed

[I_Haz.:R32]

This looks like a good start. TYBG.

[Z33_Taxi]

That's a nice and clean bug.. how people manage to find these gems?
The red one is a very nice inspiration,take your time and this will turn awesome.
Subscribed

I was looking for quite a bit before I found this. I was really looking for a 66, but with the condition this was in I couldnt give it up.

This looks like a good start. TYBG.

OMWTFYB

[Z33_Taxi]

Not a beelt, but kind of what I'm aiming towards. I don't know of any dirt rallies or if I've ever do one, but maybe if it was light dirt or a back path I'd consider it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQxD0E62m7s

[Z33_Taxi]

Small updates. Took the carb out of the cleaning bucket and I'm proud of how clean it came out. I'll still hit it up with some q-tips and some spot cleaning, but other than that the body came out really nice


Ran into some slight hiccups getting the rear seat removed, the previous owner did some questionable fixes, but I sorted them out and got it out with an issue. I don't know if it'll ever go back in. The rust is mostly surface and I plan on taking a wire wheel to it before priming and applying the POR15


I was nervous about the battery tray area. When I purchased the car the battery had clearly leaked and during my initial inspection didn't see anything, but when I removed this beat up piece of mat I was surprised to see that it wasn't rusted through at all.


This is from a porsche, but sort of what I plan to do. Might keep the rubber dash mat up top, but have the rest of the dash painted to match the body. I want to keep everything period correct. So Im thinking Tag Heur stopwatches, map lights, period vw/porsche gauges....wont be using a cage either

[Z33_Taxi]

I've made some pretty good progress on the beetle. Its going a lot slower than I'd like, but life tends to get in the way. I started taking the motor apart and for the mpst part it was super easy. The heads and jugs came off super easy and so did pistons 1&4. However, I cannot get 1 and 3 off though. I cannot get the wrist pins out. When its on the stand or off I cannot get anything in there to push them out. ANy suggestions? Can I split the case with the piston still on? The main issue is that i cannot fully get the pistons to push out with the crank.



[b]Pulled this nice little piece of shrapnel out of the case. I think its a bearing.


[b]Another reasons things are getting done is a rescued a little hound pup. She isn't behaved enough to be in the garage to supervise yet.

[Z33_Taxi]

Wow. I haven't posted in a very long time and up until recently haven't touched the beetle in about the same amount. However, I have made large strides in the last few days.

One of the main things giving me an issue was the seized wrist pin. I tried using a slide hammer, threaded bolt and nut to back it out, a torch to heat up the piston and pull the pin out. Nothing worked, but what did was a metal cutting wheel and an angle grinder.



With that finally taken care of I was finally able to split the case. It was my first time ever opening a VW engine and it was a great experience.




This is where I got to see what happened the day the motor stopped spinning. There is evident wear and copper showing on one of the bearings.




If you look close enough you can see a piece of metal sticking in the crank/rod. This rod does not move at all.




Cam and crank put aside for now





From everything I've seen I plan on replacing the:
Pistons- Forged
Rods, Forged are very pricey, but are an option
Crankshaft. Is it ok to go with a counterweighted crank on a stock engine?
bearings

I will have the flywheel resurfaced and will more than likely replace the clutch/pressure plate.


Is there anything else that I should inspect/replace since the engine is already apart? The car will be a weekend driver and then hopefully I can pick up another case and start a 1776 build

[Z33_Taxi]

Found the cause of the seizure and all the metal particles, #3 rod's bearings decided to disintegrate

[Z33_Taxi]

Ordered bunch of parts ordered today. Mostly crank parts. Still have to measure out the bearings, which is giving e a huge headache

POLISHED STAINLESS STEEL PUSH ROD TUBE SET - FIT ALL 13-1600CC BEETLE STYLE ENGINES - SET OF 8

VW JOURNAL 5.394 INCH CHROMOLY FORGED I-BEAM CON-RODS W/180,000 PSI BOLTS -
BEETLE STYLE PERFORMANCE ENGINE - SET OF 4

GENUINE ELRING BRAND - MADE IN GERMANY - ENGINE GASKET SET - 1300CC-1600CC AIRCOOLED ENGINES

- X-CROSS DRILLED CRANK - BEETLE STYLE 13-1600CC ENGINES - STD-STD BRG JOURNALS - (A20)

New timing gear/dizzy drive gear/ timing gear/slinger/ woodruff keys

SET OF 8 - STOCK CAM FOLLOWERS - LIFTERS FOR 40HP 12-1600CC - SOLD SET OF 8

GERMAN MADE - SET OF 16 PUSH ROD TUBE SEALS - ALL 12-1600CC - (ALSO VANAGON 83-92 OUTER SEAL) SOLD SET OF 16 - DOES 1 ENGINE

MAHLE / CIMA (FORGED)GRAPHITE COATED 85.5MM X 69MM - 1600CC PISTON & CYLINDER (COMPLETE SET FOR 1 ENGINE) - (A20)

[Z33_Taxi]

Shop supervisor approves of new pistons/jugs

[Z33_Taxi]

Big(ish) update

I've gotten a lot done on the bug done recently, a fire as definitely been lit under my ass.

Had my flywheel resurfaced. It's so fresh..so clean..so shiny


Washing all the metal shavings out of the engine after a line bore. The thrust was spot on, but needed a .2 cut elsewhere. Took several passes in the car wash pay and spray and some wiping down at home. I used a 1:3 ratio of simple green HD and water as a degreaser.


Started and finished my heads

Getting acquainted with the pain that are spring keepers. Push down and give it a whack. Take them out was easy


A cardboard box makes for a cheap and simple solution to keep the valves in order and with the correct head


Washing and cleaning everything. Not pictured was washing out the heads in what Im pretty sure was liquid cancer, but it got all the gunk off. Also took the valves to a hard wire wheel to remove all carbon. They came out nice and shiny


Putting the valves back in


Putting the springs back in. Getting the keepers in took some getting used to. Luckily nothing when flying. I am now on the hunt for a spring press tool like the one I used. I know newer ones are available, but I like the look of the older one


The finished heads. Finishing it off with chrome paint isn't my style, but I was advised it would be better to prevent any rust, so I went along with it.


Cams of all flavors. I've decided to go with a Eagle 100.




This is Bob Hackel of Hackel's VW in Albany NY. In a previous post I started talking about him and how he has offered to help me. I have spent 3 days at his shop and he has done more than I could ever have hoped for. He shows me how to do something and then let's me do it. He has his own work to do, but has taken almost a total of 8 hours to mentor me on how to do things the right way. I told him I didn't plan to take the heads apart and he said "that's not the right way and in this shop we only do things one way." So obviously we took the heads apart. Later today I am going back to finish my crank/cam. He constantly reminding me to " take my time and use my head before my hands." Before pairing up with him I wasn't confident that I could finish the beetle due to being anxious, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.



Address: 1372 Central Ave, Albany, NY 12205
Phone: (518) 458-2897

[190Evan]

This is an awesome thread man, really good info here and I've torn down a few VW engine but never had to do internals. Those inspiration pics got me really excited to see what you have in store, I'm subbed for sure! As you said previously you were kind of new to carbs, if you're trying to get some performance out of this thing why not opt for dual Weber's? I know the price is a little high on the but from what I remember of my stepdads old 68 the thing almost did wheelies and was super fun to drive.