Do not Do's!

I have come across a lot of things in my type 3 build that i just want to get out in the open...

this is a list of things you should not do when doing a restoration on a car.

i was hoping others could also list no no's on here too. its not about naming and shaming because some of these i have done when i was younger and well lets just say more gun ho.
its all about helping people 🙂

Do not ever put a fuel filter in the engine bay between the fuel pump and carburettor.

making gaskets from regular paper.. seriously dangerous and just dont!

using expanding foam to fill huge holes with a skim of bog over the top!

using silicone to adhere rubber seals

welding stainless steel to steel, they dont like each other it doesnt work.

using silicone to fill a hole then bogging over the top.

using bog as a seam sealer. bog cracks its not flexible enough for a seam on a car, your seam will rust. seam sealer is cheaper and easier to apply i promise!

cutting something out of a car for what ever reason and not replacing it. engineers spend a lot of time working out how to protect the occupants of a car in the event of an accident. if you dont know what something does find out! VW people are friendly and we want to help 🙂

oh yeah and using bog instead of a dolly and hammer! even a block of wood can help you pull a dent and save you money on filler.

Take things written on forums too seriously

G'day all. don't tell the missus
ernie

trying to fit beetle parts.
t1 beam conversions
chopping bump stops
t1 upright cooling conversion
lowering too much
using cheap china parts
fitting incorrect wheels, most that fit beetle, don't work so well on type 3
using castrol GTX 😂

just a few off the top of my head.

Don't be in such a rush when putting your engine back in and forget to connect the fuel line from the
fuel pump to the carb and then try to start it...............WOOOOOOFFFFFFFFFFF and the garage glows brightly.

not lowering

Solid mount a daily driven 1915

use a screwdriver to separate case halves.
forget to put the tin under the cylinders before bolting the heads on.
forget to put the piece of tin under the oil cooler before putting the fan housing on a type 4 engine.
forget to put the pushrod retainer springs in when bolting rockers on yout type 4.
drop the spacer washer from the bottom of your dizzy drive into the sump.
overtighten strainer bolts to fix a leak.
use regular plug leads without the tinware seals.
leave heater box pipes open to the engine bay.
silicone your tappet cover gaskets.
fit a battery without sunken terminals under the back seat.
leave out the lockwasher on steering/suspension components.




put your petrol cap on the pump or roof while filling up. I lost 2 or 3 that way!

painting your engine components multiple bright colours 🙅

h wrote:painting your engine components multiple bright colours 🙅

haha

hmmm? wonder who would do that? 🤓🙄

Do not tell other people what they should or shouln't do. 😏

I'm guessing your car came from qld as I've got a DC here with the same issues ..expandafoam is not structural ha

Expandafoam!!! About to undertake removing a heap from heater channel.
Beginning to wonder if everyone has tried this at some stage. Apparently even some manufacturers did this to production cars at some stage.


Fiberglass is not a replacement for sheet metal.
Don't weld with galvanized metal.

Its your car, do what you feel is correct and within legality!!

Amazed of the comments of the "experts" here that haven't restored their own cars

-Replace Modulator valve, and tighten with Vice Grip on its body, because you don't have the correct spanner.
-Use Penrite HPR 😂

IF you haven't got the money up front to restore a vehicle to the dream,
rather than let it sit in the shed for 6 years demotivating yourself as you drip feed in cash, built it to a state of rwc and drive it. It'll keep you motivated. Then build as you go.

Also, do it right, do it once. There are no shortcuts. You'll find yourself having to repeat the task. This includes rust, paint etc.

Wish i did that 👍

it helps to joint a car club and get it on club plates. The rules atm dont require a rwc, but they are thinking about changing that one will be required, so get on to it soon and you can drive it around!

Don't hack a dirty great hole in your transmition tunnel to put your clutch cable on 🙁 All it takes is a rubber band people
Don't remove tinware and chuck it away it's there for a reason!!

or you could use the access plate on the front of the tunnel to put your hand in and hook the cable on.🙄

😂 did you ever try ?

yeah? was easy, much easier than most other cable operated clutched I changed cables on.

trying to pull though and clip on a cable in a more modern car with it in the dash setup. fark!!!

Always have oil pressure when starting a new engine

Lucky Phil wrote:Always have oil pressure when starting a new engine

Should you crank it with no fuel or spark until the oil light goes out?

helbus wrote:

Lucky Phil wrote:Always have oil pressure when starting a new engine

Should you crank it with no fuel or spark until the oil light goes out?

yep, having the oil pump lightly packed with petroleum jelly helps a lot in case of a rebuild/new engine.

I even crank the engine with fuel disabled if its been sitting for a few weeks as the oil pump likely drained dry. Otherwise I hear the bottom end rattle for a number of sec on dry starts like that.

helbus wrote:

Lucky Phil wrote:Always have oil pressure when starting a new engine

Should you crank it with no fuel or spark until the oil light goes out?

The importance of oil pressure on startup cannot be overstated.
Recently, an acquaintance had a local legend build him an engine and he did not pre start the engine.
The acquaintance did not know about confirming oil pressure, and simply installed the engine and started it up.
The engine had it's guts torn out in the first few minutes of it's life.
Very sad.

I treat a new engine and an engine that has not been started in ages the same.
1/ Disconnect the coil positive wire to disable the spark.
2/ Remove the spark plugs to remove compression. this not only removes stress from the bearings but allows the engine to turn quicker and gets oil pressure sooner.
3/ Squirt a couple of shots of oil into the spark plug holes. This lubricates the bores and helps seal the rings for more compression to help starting.
4/ Wind it over on the key until the oil light goes out.
5/ Put it all back together and fire it up.

If it has not been run for a while, you can simply remove the coil positive wire and wind over until the oil light goes out.
However, the carby will have dried out by then, and by the time the fuel has pumped up to the carby, you will probably have oil pressure anyway.

If you are really keen, oil can be applied under pressure directly into the oil system by removing the oil pressure switch and connecting a remote pressure vessel containing oil.
Building one of these is on the to do list.
You can buy them, but they seem rather expensive for what you get.

^ very well written break down of the procedure.

good point on the plugs being removed. I did this on a recent engine with minor overhaul and mods.

oil pressured remained high for the light to be out for over 3 min after I stopped cranking. was very impressed with my mods/overhaul of the oiling system to hold pressure for that long !

when bolt on clutch to transmission breaks don't rely on one bolt to hold it in place...just saying.....

meisterberginteriors wrote:using expanding foam to fill huge holes with a skim of bog over the top!

using silicone to fill a hole then bogging over the top.

So, using bog to fill holes and covering it with.....more bog is ok? As long as you sell the car before the bog cracks or falls out😂

Seriously though, the last crash repair I did on a little suzuki sierra I owned a few years back (car vs kangaroo at 80kph), I was expecting to use a lot more bog than I did, bought a 1kg can but ended up using about a tablespoon of the stuff, and most of that probably got sanded off anyway. A combination of hammers and dollies, sledgehammers on the driveway and pulling it back into shape using chains connected between the panel and the carport (chuck her in low range reverse and let it rip half a dozen times) and apparently you can do it without much filling at all.

Never tie chains to your carport/patio posts to pull out a panel dent..........
😁

Cutting a hole in the tunnel to change the clutch cable weakens the major structual part of your car, put the clutch cable on as vw intended. i have done it that way for years with out problems.

DON'T put sealant on push rod tube seals , they are made to move around with the ever expanding and retracting movement of an aircooled motor , so all they need is a smear of high temp grease , oh and don't bother using the shitty red push rod tube seals that come in most kits , use only the white silicon seals and you'll have many leak free miles .

Don't give up your long weekend to chase a barn find spare parts haul.
Only to have the door opened on a pile of scrap metal.
(sigh)
Still, we would have kicked ourselves if we didn't go.
And probably would do it again, given the chance.
You never know......

Dont not. lower your vw...

For the old Farts, NEVER leave the tooth paste in the same draw as your haemorrhoid cream
🤪

Sound advice, looks like you have had a experence with that.