Hi guys.
After having some trouble with cooling and exhaust leaks in Katoomba on one of the hottest weeks on record, I headed down to Melbounre. I had a great
time and ventured out to the Murray River and back. I noticed that one of my valves was sinking dramatically after that. It was my exhaust valve in
cylinder 3. I was keeping an eye on it for the whole trip home. At this point I also sprayed the bottom of my heads with degreaser and gave them a bit
of a scrub after dust and oil leaks had turned to mud on the heads.
After leaving Melbounre I drove to the ACT, spent the night and checked it again in the morning. All my valves needed adjusting slightly, and cyl 3
exhaust valved was hard up against the tappet. I believe the gale force headwinds and high temperatures had a lot to do with this. Even though I was
travelling slow, 700km of driving proved to take it's effect. Knowing this I spaced out my trip to Lismore over 300 km intervals. Having naps in the
back while my engine cooled enough to inspect the tappets again. I had some spark issues and replaced the plug for cylinder 3, it was caked with
carbon. It turned out to be my Pertronix Flamethrower coil, which I replace with a generic coil of similar description. The brand of my coil is
'Super' and is a 12v oil filled, non-resistor, thats all I know about it.It's the most dodgey coil I've ever seen, but it got me home.The valve
way pretty far gone, even after my temperature sender was reading only 105'C maximum temp for the 700 kms. There were a few big hills which showed a
warmer temperature but I choose to look at that as normal. I stayed at a rest stop 80kms south of Grafton
Checking the valve this morning, after a further 700kms I could see some wear on the spring retainer. I know that this is a considerably bad sign, but
I still had a little bit of clearance, and decided to run the gauntlet. I drove 180kms to visit a friend in Lismore, and I noticed on the hills on the
way in that I was running at about 50% power. I blame my blatant and deafening exhaust leaks for that, and realise that by that time cylinder 3 was
pretty much out of order.
Despite the bad condition of my engine, and all the warning signs I used the logic that has brought me to this point in my life. If I would need to
replace the cylinder head to fix the problem, then the head is broken. If the head is broken, there is no point in trying to save it. So I ran the
gauntlet even further. I was dreading an explosion, and stopping regularly to check my oil for volume and traces of fuel. I have never seen a cylinder
head in worse condition and had a profound fear of what bad things could happen. I can't afford to get my van towed home 200kms from Lismore, and I
didn't have the parts to fix it.
With the low pressure system bringing down the rain, so too came low temperatures. With lots of rain I could drive at 80kms/h just like every one else
on the highway. I made it home with no further issues. My engine got me and all my things home. Despite the heat of summer, gale force headwinds, and
downpours, my van made it. I will not be driving it again until I fix the exhaust, replace the head, and give her the service and clean she deserves.
In closing, I am very happy to own my air cooled Volkswagen. I got it home, and it did not explode. I did not need a tow, and I had all the spares and
tools I needed in one small box.
To be clear, the engine was on it's way out and I did not expect much of it. I have a new engine on the way, but was still curious as to what a
clapped out old type 4 engine could do. I put it to the absolute test and I think it performed very well. If you have any questions about specific
statistics, please ask them.
Put it in the history bank mate.....one day youll be sitting back
telling all your grand kids about this trip and how the little red bus that could just kept on chugging along, Zombie cats that you used as a pillow,
and all the rest of the tales.
Good see you back safe mate.
Not many other vehicles could gloat such dependability. vw for the way
great adventurer .enjoyed your story.thanks for sharing.
Cannot fault your logic and you made it home.
As THAT astronaut (buggered if i can remember his name) said,
"It's not an adventure unless you live to tell the tale"
Fantastic.....enjoy the journey