how to install the gearshift Bushing

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 8 May 2010, 11:20 pm

#777460

Hi Everyone,
Im a new VW owner and im starting a resto.
The car is a 1968 chassis and a 1964 body
I will be starting with the running gear first
I'm swapping the 1500 motor with a 4 speed gearbox to a 1600 and a 5 speed box from a 70's model vw

1.What i would like to know is there anything i need to look out for or would it be just a straight forward swap.

2. what should i change in the suspension other than the shocks to get a smooth and firm ride

3. where is the best place to get full new ready made interior

Im in the liverpool area in sydney, is there anyone around this area that works on VW's.

*not sure if i posted in the right section

thank you

Craig Torrens 6 times Australian, 7 times State Hillclimb Class Champion

8,040 posts · joined Jan 2003 · 8 May 2010, 11:30 pm

#777463

Vw didnt have a 5 speed.

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 8 May 2010, 11:32 pm

#777465

sorry 4 speed (typo error)

bajachris88 The international telephone dialing code for Antarctica is 6

6,661 posts · joined Apr 2005 · 9 May 2010, 12:15 am

#777469

Straight swap as the 1500 is a 12v motor (12v flywheel into 12v gearbox, as they are so 'labelled' coming from a 12v volt car as opposed to the 67 and earlier 6 volt models)... Just make sure the 1600 has a generator rather than an alternator, as the voltage regulator setup would be ready to go, unless u wanted to upgrade, then its a little more work (nuffin to get frightened of). Mind you, the 'alternator' issue shouldn't be a prob unless the engine has been changed, as they had not released alternators as a stock thing on 1600's in 1970.

You can just use ur original 1500 gearbox. its bellhousing and input shaft will happily take your 1600. HOWEVER! If its a 1500 gearbox, it will be 'swing axle' rear suspension. If the gearbox is from a 1970 super bug, which, being a 1600 i'm pretty sure it will be otherwise its a 1300 late bug, (have i got this right guys?) then the gearbox will be rear trailing arm suspension and as such, ur chassis will need an irs conversion. (messy). Not really necessary, unless ur pro racing, or wanna do some serious offroading.

If u want your suspension to handle good, restore/replace any sus components. Worn bushes, ball joints (being 1500 pan), shocks and steering damper will all make it an interesting ride from what i have heard on avd. If u aren't familiar in all of them, take it to a vw mechanic and get them to overlook it all, particularly it being a safety concern.

full interior? we talking headlining, carpet and seat covers? OR we talking upholster?
All those components can be bought from ebay, or ur vw parts supplier.

Parts suppliers include:

www.classicveedub.com.au (NSW based)
www.mickmotors.com.au
Theres a place called vintage vee dub which i believe is south too... (google is ur friend)
www.cip1.com (which is from the u.s.a, and are not bad in price but postage can sometimes be a killer, not all the time. Really you get the savings if u are buying a good lump sum from them )

(ô_!_/ô) (ô_!_/ô)
69' baja: kombi box, thing spindles, irs, disc front, type 3 rear drums, 2 inch lift kit, 31x10 rears. 👍
New engine in process: 94mm p&bs, 74mm C/w chomol Crank, 35.5x39 SP heads, turbo. Wierd combo, hopeful torque monsta!

68AutoBug Beetle Restorer - Experience over 138\% - YIKES --

11,654 posts · joined Aug 2002 · 9 May 2010, 12:23 am

#777471

Chop Top VW wrote:Hi Everyone,
Im a new VW owner and im starting a resto.

The car is a 1968 chassis and a 1964 body
I will be starting with the running gear first
Im swaping the 1500 motor with a 4 speed gearbox to a 1600 and a 5 speed box from a 70's model vw

1.What i would like to know is there anything i need to look out for or would it be just a straight forward swap.

2. what should i change in the suspension other than the shocks to get a smooth and firm ride

3. where is the best place to get full new ready made interior

Im in the liverpool area in sydney, is there anyone around this area that works on VW's.

*not sure if i posted in the right section

thank you

You used to be able to buy moulded carpets for beetles..
but I haven't seen them advertised in the past few years..

but because the beetle interiors changed a lot there is no full kit that I know of... You have to buy bits & pieces..

or get the carpet made for Your model...
seats reupholstered or seats from another car.. etc...

You need to remember that these cars are over 40 years old... and parts will getter harder to get as time goes on...

cheers

LEE

PS: If You order from the US or UK... be careful what You order... and LHD in the USA...

there are no problems putting a 1964 body on a 1968 chassis... one of the locals has a 1976 chassis with 1965 body.
there are a few people who work on beetles in Sydney...
plus the VW shops down there usually do them too.

buy a copy of VWAustralia magazine .. new one out now...
has lots of info on vw shops etc... LEE

- Helping keep Air Cooled VWs on the road - location: SCONE in the Upper Hunter Valley - Northern NSW 320 kms NNW of SYDNEY---

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 · 9 May 2010, 8:55 am

#777484

Chris spotted the problem.
your 1500 will be swing axle
all the 70s 1600 boxes were IRS which means major surgery to fit

the only swing axle boxes in the 70s were from the 1300 pov spec bugs and they;re geared very low for the 1300 engine

is there a problem with your existing 1500 box?
that would be the choice one to use
73 on use different nose cones too which would need swapping

pod i`ve got to finish this thing one day

4,980 posts · joined Dec 2003 · 9 May 2010, 9:10 am

#777487

for your interior you could try Cruisin car carpets and upholstery at Smeaton Grange 0400 996 855 he did my 61 bug a couple of years back 👍

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waveman1500 Also rides a Honda

1,346 posts · joined Dec 2009 · 9 May 2010, 11:58 am

#777503

As others have said, the engine is a straight swap, and you're best to leave the stock gearbox in there. There is a carpet supplier on eBay who does moulded carpets for Beetles, and I would imagine that most moulded carpet manufacturers in Australia will still have the moulds for them somewhere, even if they don't advertise Beetle carpet. Try some VW parts shops for interior kits.

1972 VW S-Bug - For Sale!
1968-onwards Beetle panels and glass for sale

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 9 May 2010, 12:11 pm

#777506

Thanks guys for the info, the only reason im changing the engine and box is that I already bought them. They are fully reconditioned by vintage vee dub.(i just checked the paper work it is an IRS)
The gears on my current box are very loose, changing from 1st to 2nd is a pain (it can go into reverse and crunch if not carefull)
Sorry for the ignorance but what does IRS stand for? is it Independent rear suspension ( thats whats on my car now)

HOW DO I ATTACH PHOTOS TO THIS THREAD ??????

11CAB If ya got it....Baja it

4,674 posts · joined Aug 2002 · 9 May 2010, 12:46 pm

#777509

If you replace the gearshift coupling & adjust the lockout plate under the gearstick, you'll probably find the current gearbox fine. There is also a bush under the gearstick in the tunnel that needs checking

65 Meyers Manx
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Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 · 9 May 2010, 4:51 pm

#777525

if its just sloppy and hard to get in gear its usually just the bushings and couplers are worn out like 11cab said
if its grabbing reverse on 2nd downshifts the lock out plate needs adjusting

if the gearbox is bad you'll get crunching and noises, popping out of gear etc

are you sure its actual IRS? cos technically speaking all vws are independant rear but the actual fully independant wasnt seen in aus bugs till 71 except in automatics,

if its double jointed IRS then its a converted swingaxle or auto

just use the attach box at the bottom of messages and make sure its under 100kb

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 9 May 2010, 7:18 pm

#777572

Hi Joel,

My VW is IRS, but not sure what you mean by fully independant, how can I tell (very ignorant when it comes to mechanical)
The current box is ok when driving, only when changing to 2nd that it has to be done slowly so that it wont go into reverse. very sloppy
How do i attach a photo that way i can photograph it and post it.

bajachris88 The international telephone dialing code for Antarctica is 6

6,661 posts · joined Apr 2005 · 9 May 2010, 8:13 pm

#777607

Both the early type and later type rear suspension are forms of IRS, but the late is 'slang termed' IRS suspension, and the early is simply called swing axle.

Easiest way to tell if you got the later irs is if you have CV joints or not. If you got cv joints you will see 8 bolts connecting each axle to the gearbox and to the hubs. And of course, normal cv boots.

irs later rear suspension also has diagonal arms from the chassi at front of the gearbox to the rear brake assemblies, as well as.

swing axle don't have these arms, just axles coming from the centre. there are no cv's, and no 8 bolt setup or boot of any kind on the outside of each axle on the brake side.

pics:

later 'irs':

(Note the diagonal arms, the box however appears to be a kombi box adapted to a beetle chassis, but ur arm setup will be the same if its the later irs setup.

earlier swing axle:

(note there is no diagonal arms)

(ô_!_/ô) (ô_!_/ô)
69' baja: kombi box, thing spindles, irs, disc front, type 3 rear drums, 2 inch lift kit, 31x10 rears. 👍
New engine in process: 94mm p&bs, 74mm C/w chomol Crank, 35.5x39 SP heads, turbo. Wierd combo, hopeful torque monsta!

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 · 9 May 2010, 8:20 pm

#777612

what Chris said
but easy check is, if u can actually see the axle shaft and rubber boots at either end its IRS

if theres just a tube there with the shocky bolted to it and only one rubber boot at the gearbox end its swingaxle

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 10 May 2010, 3:45 pm

#777772

Thanks guys for all your help , you have saved me a lot of time and hassle.
I have the swing axle (photos attached) I will have sell the gearbox and then see if my original can be fixed.

One more question😂 the new motor has the clutch fitted would that still fit my original gearbox.

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waveman1500 Also rides a Honda

1,346 posts · joined Dec 2009 · 10 May 2010, 10:22 pm

#777871

Chop Top VW wrote:One more question😂 the new motor has the clutch fitted would that still fit my original gearbox.

The answer is: Sort of but not really! Technically the pressure plate for a swing-axle box is supposed to have a flat metal face for the clutch throw-out bearing to press against, like this:

IRS transaxles have a special central shaft with a different type of throw-out bearing, which doesn't need the flat metal face, and their clutch pressure plates look more like this:

Having said that, I ran a Superbeetle/IRS type clutch in my swing-axle 1500 for a while and didn't notice any problems, apart from having to adjust the clutch up a long way to compensate for the different shaped pressure plate. Hopefully someone who actually knows what they're talking about will be along soon to tell you whether this is okay to do or not.

1972 VW S-Bug - For Sale!
1968-onwards Beetle panels and glass for sale

68AutoBug Beetle Restorer - Experience over 138\% - YIKES --

11,654 posts · joined Aug 2002 · 11 May 2010, 12:12 am

#777896

Chop Top VW wrote:The current box is ok when driving, only when changing to 2nd that it has to be done slowly so that it wont go into reverse. very sloppy

YOU CAN FIX THAT QUITE EASILY...
or I should say someone who has it done it before can do it easily..lol

You should have to push the gearlever down to select reverse..
if You don't.. the base of the gearlever needs to be adjusted..
there is a lockout plate under there too..
its job is to lock out reverse....

sometimes these can be broken...
but usually its just an adjustment....
I have done many beetles... as just about every one I have driven, reverse could be selected without pushing the lever DOWN....

You can also fit a quickshift kit under the gearshifter...
these are very inexpensive.... and makes the gearshifting much better..

cheers

LEE

PS: there is a small nylon bush in the tunnel below the gearshifter base.. that may be worn out...
these are also very inexpensive to buy...
but a pain to replace...

many years ago... someone held one of these bushes and the car was built around it... lol.... LEE

-

- Helping keep Air Cooled VWs on the road - location: SCONE in the Upper Hunter Valley - Northern NSW 320 kms NNW of SYDNEY---

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 10 Jun 2010, 7:38 pm

#784058

Hi Lee,
I see what you mean by very hard to replace lol
mate we have cut the tunnel to get under the gearshift, but could not find where the nylon bush goes, do you have a picture of where it fits

thanks

Bizarre Moderator The artist formerly known as blue74l

12,789 posts · joined Aug 2002 · 10 Jun 2010, 10:33 pm

#784104

have a click here and you will see the shift rod bracket

http://www.vwdcqinc.org.au/insidea71bug.html

and here

http://huelsmann.us/bugman/ShifterTech.html

Futue te ipsum!!!

hellbugged 48's and straight cuts

5,080 posts · joined Apr 2003 · 10 Jun 2010, 10:53 pm

#784112

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=68078

Chop Top VW Slammed & Awesome Dubber

91 posts · joined May 2010 · 16 Jun 2010, 7:05 am

#785102

changed the shift rod bushing today, and wow what a job. (but i enjoyed it as it gave me a look at how things fit and work) 3 hrs later and the bush, bracket (it was broken as well) and a new quick shift were fitted and fells much more firm.
thanks to everyone for making it easier for me.