Hi!

I finally got a Kombi, after years and years of wanting one, the Volvo was finally broken enough and the kids enormous enough for the better half to agree.

So! It's a 1974 microbus, 3 rows of original (if munted) seats, leaky but sound 1800 donk, godawful gearbox, and no apparent rust. I looked hard, but there's truly bugger-all. I suspect bog in the guards because they fluoresce differently under artificial light, and because of the I Love Frankston sticker on the back window: I too love Frankston, spent many a halcyon hour there as a little tacker, but the salt wind off of Port Phillip Bay isn't going to let a bus alone.

Right then. The plan, such as it is:

Big Chief Kim Garland at Indian Automotive will be lowering it in a couple of weeks. I want to drop it as far as I can without causing myself wheel change problems in case of a flat. How far is too far?

I like widened standard rims. I like the old chrome dome caps. I want that look. Why are widened standards often spoken of with disapproval? Is the welding required to create them regarded as unsafe by the wise? (I speak here having lived through an alloy Volvo rim turning to shrapnel at 110km/h on a dirt road in central Queensland with 3 kids on board. I do not wish to try my luck repeating this experience.)

How would widened rims affect the lowering project? Is there a limit to the possible drop if I want those rims?

I hate the unsafe lack of headrests and the miles of gaffer tape in the existing rear seats. Is there a solid reason I should not get custom mid and rear seats made with lumbar support and headrests, considering I can do it for about $1200 per bench?

Kim reckons the clutch cable needs replacing, and the Bowden tube is visibly barely even curved, so I would guess this is why changing gears is goddamn near impossible. When I can manage it at all it requires force, there's a loud CLUNK if it works and a grind if it doesn't. Finding second is the most difficult of all them, Kim says that's a design fault in the box and I ought to consider looking out for a 2L box and starter motor (something about the starter motor from the 1800 not fitting with the 2L box installed). The bus is going to Kim in 2 weeks. Ought I be trying to find a box now, and has anyone here got one to sell me? Or is the clutch cable replacement likely to solve the problems?

I've pulled a muscle in my back changing gears, I lost 10L of fuel onto the road when the fuel lines failed after I'd owned it 4 days, I got petrol in my eyes replacing the lines, but I'm so goddamn happy I barely feel any of it. Here's a picture of the new love:



Suggestions, commands and slaps upside the head will be joyously attended.

Lovez yr wk

k

I understand cutting and welding wheels is illegal, if you have an accident the insurance assessor may pickup on that, and leave you without any coverage. That is of course a worst case scenario. You are trusting in the ability and workmanship of the person doing the job. If a quality job with support pieces put in to strengthen the wider section, shouldn't be unsafe after all there is plenty of other welded sections in a car,

Wow.... if there's a design fault in the transmission for selecting 2nd gear, its amazing they sold millions of Kombi's...

Think someones telling porky pies.....

Don't go the split rims,there are plenty of good one piece rims available,as for lowering,consider the ride as you say you have 3 kids to think of , if it's too low it will ride like a bullock dray,but look really cool.Whatever you do get an engineers certificate to cover the modifications as it will save you a lot of grief with insurance companies and the RTA. Kim is good at his job ,let him advise you and work from there.

Pretty much same as our Microbus.

You can fit a 2Litre box to the 1800 bellhousing, clutch and flywheel. I do have that setup bolted in our bus and the 1800 clutch is slightly smaller, but I havent broken or burnt it even with the Subaru engine running twice the horsepower of the original 1800. Then you can also use your 1800 starter, which is easy to get. 2L starter much harder to get. I was lucky to get a 2L box for free when they all seemed to be about $1000 second hand. I did however have to get it fully rebuilt at a cost of $1500.

If you go too low, you will drop more with the 8 seats filled, even with 6 of them filled, just a point to consider. Indian can certainly guide you.

I think what Kim meant about the design fault was specifically the 1974 box - he said they only used that box 2 years, and changed the design after 1974. The lowlights had a different box and the 2Ls had a different one again. I doubt he's fibbing, his reputation is for honesty and knowing his stuff, and he's been around for decades. I could always have misunderstood, of course: I went to visit him with an epic hangover.

I also think that the clutch on my bus is unhappy though, which is probably the greater part of the problem. I hope.

Regarding rims, I see heaps of Kombis and beetles around the Inner West with what look like standard rims, but wider. I can't find reference to these ever having been made by Volkswagen, and the word around the Interwebs seems to be that they were made by cutting and welding standards.

Does this honestly mean that there are a good dozen vehicles in my local area driving around on illegal, insurance-voiding rims? Seems pretty weird. I mean, if there are third-party wider wheels about that can take the VW hub caps, please tell me all about them, I'd love to hear it!

Helbus: the most people we've carried so far is 7 adults, and yeah, I'll be listening real closely to Cap'n Garland on the day regarding max drop, but it never hurts to be over-informed so I'm interested in any and all opinions. And yeah, that seems to be the price point for used 2L boxes of uncertain condition, seems a lot for a gamble. I'm hoping it's mostly the clutch cable.

Hey, has anyone got a gearstick extension they want to sell or swap? I have a box of bus bits I can use in trades...

your right with what youve seen re. the rims

it was the "in" thing in the 80s and early 90s to cut the original 15x4" bug rims down to 14" and fit wider rims

theres still heaps driving around like this
its easy to pick on late bugs cos cutting the hub down to suit 14" rims cuts halfway thro the brake cooling slots

i widened my own wheels ages ago when i still ran steelies
i wanted 15x7 but with an offset to specificly suit my bug

so i got some police pack commodore rims and fitted vw centers
i did all the fitting up and measurign but a mate who's a boilermaker welded them for me
he welded them alot better than what the stock vw rims are

never had any issues