I sat down with my daughter tonight (who just got her L Licence) and started to explain the basics of how the bug works, before we take to the road tomorrow. That way she has a rough idea of why things happen, over 'just do it this way'.

I was doing OK.....brakes, clutch, engine....and got to the end, trying to explain how the car starts. Then...it happened...she caught me out!

I tried to explain that the ignition turns the starter motor, which cranks over .......and then I hit problems. I always thought the starter cranks the gearbox, which cranks the engine. Never having fiddled with a starter, I was caught in an obvious error - how do you start the car if the clutch is on, if the gearbox turns the engine?

OK, so the starter can't be on the gearbox, so it must be on the engine?

Strike one for all-seeing, all-knowing Dad......

Help please!

The starter turns the engine. Specifically the flywheel which is a large
heavy steel plate that is the thing the clutch bolts to.

The clutch turns as you turn the starter whether in neutral or in gear.

The starter is actually bolted to the gearbox but it turns the engine.

The starter engages on the fly wheel

buy the 'book' the complaet idiots guide to volkswagens

Thanks, now I'll go back to her and try to regain some of her confidence. Phew!

If she asks me about how relays work, I'm sunk! Thats fine, I just won't tell her the car has relays........or 2 speed wipers......or grounding cables....or valves.......or automatic chokes...or anything else I don't completely understand.....

Have a good weekend all.

Explaining how the doors work always gets me in trouble...

[Edited on 25-2-2005 by HotRodMatt]

You'll be stuffed if she asks you what the muffler bearings do.

So will most of us come to think of it.

Geez I thought teenagers knew everything, she should have been able to tell you!

Well she thought she knew everything until the first lesson today, when she found out how often she has to use the clutch! She did very well though, apart from mounting the gutter and just pulling up before that tree....

Looking forward to lesson 2...and 3...and...

There are many people driving out there that don't know how anything works.....
Only what they have been told....
like turn the key to start the engine etc....

As someone else said, the starter motor IS bolted to the gearbox, so if You have a beetle engine out of the car, You need a gearbox to bolt the starter motor to, so it can be started ....

2 things most VW owners should know how to fit and should carry a spare - Condenser and Rotor Button [inside the distributor]
The Condenser can be either mounted outside or inside the distributor and can fail at any time.....
The Rotor Button - in a VW - can burn out... [I know of no other rotor that has a resistor in the top of it...] at any time..

Best to replace both condenser & rotor button & Distributor cap every few years... and keep the old ones for spares....

A faulty condenser can cause the points to burn at the contacts... a points file should be carried for this job....

Everyone should carry a points file... if the engine stops, run the file thru the points about 10-20 times... this should widen the gap of the points enough to get You going again....


I had a non vw car in which the condenser failed every 6 months, I used to have a spare bolted to the side of the distributor.

If You need more information... just ask....

Lee

[Edited on 26-2-2005 by 68AutoBug]