HEy all....
BAd news my bettle died on me today. even worth it's my family car and i got no money to fix it. from my research i think it needs a complete overhaul and new clutch. I'm not a mechanic and don't know anything about it but i'm wanting to learn and that car was suppose to be my project..... but all is too soon i'm broke and so is my partner. can any one suggest anything? i was hoping to do the work myself with some help but i have no garage or tools as i'm renting.

Please ppl help i need a solution soon. thnx

abit more info as to what happened when it died might be helpful

car started playing up :
as i accelerated the car would start to loose power and felt like it was being kicked. then when reached a certain speed with certain gears it would stop.. during it's last breath it just starting doing it all the time and when putting in neutral while slawing down (such as at a traffic light) the engine would shut itself off. from what i have researched sound like the main bearings or rod?

could be just as simple as a blocked fuel filter.

it doesn't start up anymore... anyway i need some suggestions as to what i can check without extensive need of tools as i'm very limited in that

bad bearings etc usually are accompanied with lots of horrible knocks and clunks
it could just be something stupid like coil or fuel pump dying or carb blocking up, tight valves etc
was the engine going fine before that? using oil etc

grab the crank pulley and see if u can move it in and out at all
more than 0.5mm or so ur engine aint looking to healthy

hth
-Joel

if you can afford it, buy some manuals, it will be your best first investment for your project e.g "bentley official service manual", "haynes manual" and "keeping your volswagen alive for the compleat idiot" (that's actaully a name of a manual)

do a search on amazon and you will get details on price, etc

what yr is it as some early ones pre60 had no fuel filters
lter ones have fuel filter in the fuel pump
a 13 mm brass nut should be there and if u take it off u will see if its dirty.

then how clean is the tank ??? these have 4 bolts holding it in and older ones u could shine atorch in the fillr neck and se if clean.

back to early engines with no filter ...mhhh u should find a14 mm brass nut on the left side of the carbie and
a) see if fuel

b) see if dirt comes out.

definiately clean the tank
c)the pump may have a problem esp. if 36 hp (screw in type)
try these things and get back to us fella.
email if u want

if u got a decent set of insulated pliers pull the high tension lead (middle one) of the dizzy cap and hold it about 10mm from the something metal on the engine and have someone crank the motor over
see if u have a nice fat yellow spark
if yes then time to check the fuel system out


-Joel

ok i'll check all that tomorrow thanx you guys. it's a 1969 1500 does have a fuel filter and the car was running fine (but i did push it a liltle this week taking off a bit faster than usual)

one more thing just before it died it smelled like burnt oil.

Ours has always smelt like burnt oil.

What suburb are you in?

ormond
but mine never did smell like it.

mine never smelt like Ormond or Ringwood !!

burnt oil cause maybe drips of oil onto the exhaust
maybe if u were revvin it lots the old seals on the oilcooler cause that.(perished ??)
check for oil marks on the ground. hwere they are left/right/ middle etc

Electrially rotor button may need to be checked.
do it all tomorrow
print this page out and do it step by step.
cheers

Have a look here http://www.vw-resource.com/car_wont_start.html#rotates  luck dude :thumb

ok checked my filter: it's got bit ofd dirt but i think that's over the years. also i opened the distributor cap to find that the rotor tip is burnt and broken (need replacement?) as for the coil it made blueish yellow sparck but not sure if it wasn't too weak due to the rotor? i was wondering what do ppl think of the 009 distributor? i hear good and bads.. but for me i don't know if it will suit my needs. (wanting to convert to baja) but also use it as a daily driver. i heard it wasn't too wise for city driving? anyway car started today and drove fine but stilll had difficulties accelerating. could it be the rotor? carb?\

009`s are fine i have one in my bus and have no probs, and it maybe your coil going west ????? does it breakdown once it gets the car has run for a while??

hm well that was the first time it did i checked the fuel pump and all is good. i'll replace the rotor when i can

so check the oil
and replace the rotor and check the points too.


then u should put a carbie kit* through it.
I had a terrible prob in Mt Isa with a solex carb....always thought it was the heat.
No guts no start .....

when i undid needle and seat i found a piece of clear teflon
had worked its way in there and almost invisible it
was blocking off the fluel flow under strain.
that car was a reborn rocket after the abortion..

ie take top off carbie underneath the top is a brass nut ..remove and it should blow air through only one way.
check bottomm of carb for dirt etc and clean
take care with gasket OR install a new one * (= carbie kit)
take care not to loose any of the float bits
cheers

thanx for the tip!!!

if your coil gave a blue spark then its tip top.....if it was orange or yellow then its on its way out.


get a new rotor button, new points, new condensor, new fuel filter, new spark plugs

check the rob and daves website for instructions on tuning.then....

set your points to .006"
set your points gap at .016"
set your timing to 7.5 BTDC static if you dont have a strobe or 30 degrees max at about 3000RPM


then take your carby off and take the top off carefully without ruining the gasget or else as bernie said u will need a rebuild kit.

drain the float bowl as he has mentioned also and unscrew the main jet which u can see if u look down the plug hole. blow this out and clean bowl with some fuel or thinners and replace the jet. do the same with the idle jet brass thing with a flat screw head at the top of the venturi to the front. and do the same. unscrew your fuel cut off solinoid and clean it up and whack it back in. undo the needle and seat valve from the top peice of the carby and check it like bernie said. then put it all back together and back onto the engine (you were careful with those gasgets werent you? and you can reuse them?)

now screw your mixture screw all the way in and then out 2.5 turns (im assuming you have a 30 pict carby)

now start your engine (i bet it goes now!)

fine tune the carby by listening to the revs raising and falling with the turns, turn it out, then in, then out again untill u find the highest peak in revs and then turn it out a little more and thats about where u want it.

did i miss anything?

Nicko

before doing all that today i cleaned up the spark lpug eccept for the 2nd one on the left as i could'nt get it out... i didn't want to force it too much so i don't breake it i had a test drive and all went well (10 min drive not enough but good enough for me) i still have to get a new rotor and probably check everething that u guys have suggested. coil wise i pprobably will have to change it soon..... are they all the same? what do you guys recomand?

shoot some oil down to nr 2 spark plug with an oil can
or crc/wd40 until it budges
broken ones can come out with an easy out.

ok i'll try that thx

checked carby all was good how can i see if there is a hole in the fuel pipe?
(like air could get in?) and also is there a fuel filter under the fuel tank and at the back with the engine?(i see the one in the engine but i read somewhere that there should be one under the feul tank)

also i dont' know what distributor i have how do i know as i need new rotor?

Learner,
On your dissy there are numbers that are like
231 xxx 034 or something like that. Go to http://www.oldvolkshome.com  and look up the number. That site lists replacement part no's and a VW shop can supply.

Half my post disappeared?

Ctefeh

[ Edited on 6/11/2006 by ctefeh ]

a hole in fuel pipe would mean u smell fuel
even the rubber hose would be damp.
no flter on the tank usually in early mods but it may g=have debri, flked paint, and rust flakes accumulated over 40 yrs so clean it out when low on fuel tip fuel in a bucket and keep rinsing it out with say another litre of fuel
each time you can pour it in the bucky and the slowly save the fuel without debri etc u ma see water droplets also in the biucket bottom...do not reuse that grimey stuff

duh makes sence now thanx heeps guys i wish i could just find as helpfull ppl as you guys in melbourne without paying a Heft price!!!!


aanyway i think i'm starting to build up more confindance now so .... we'll see how i go about doing it all.....
also i got another question......
COils and distibutors.....
I might have to change mine soon as the sparck wasn't that clean ( not so blue) and as the distributor looks like the original..... i don't think i'll replace it just yet but want to do some research on it.. what do you guys suggest i heard about the 009 and the mdf? and another one aswell as pheonix something.... as for the coils there so many... what is suggested? is there one recomanded for off road(though i doubt it as i can alwasy dust proof it myself i guess)

I have always used a 009 + a blue coil on all of my 12volt bugs, on + offroad, both daily drivers (city peak hour twice a day) and weekend fun machines, and have never had one play up! On the manx buggie I had some years back I used a 009 + blue coil + fitted a cover over the 009 cap, its like a clear condom for your distributer and it keeps water and any other crap out of it. They are cheap I think I paid around $10-$15 for the cover so I would think you would get one for less than $20 now. They are a very tight fit but its worth investing in one and take the time to install it correctly, if you intend to do any offroad work.
Jason

[ Edited on 8-11-2006 by jason1957 ]