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Sonya,
It is soooo nice to see such enthusiasm! I'm glad you're happy with your
new family member :)
You didn't mention if your FB has a sunroof -- I'm assuming it doesn't.
You can get a ragtop for your baby. I have one on my Squareback from
Street Beat ((602)254-4332, Arizona) and I'm very happy with it except...it
doesn't have a 'real' handle; you have to use an Allen wrench (which is
supplied) to turn a nut to un/lock it (they call it theft deterrent, I call
it lazy engineering, and I hope to make my own handle). But like I said, I
am glad I have it on those rare occasions we get sunshine up here in
Oregon. There are other manufacturers who make sliding ragtops, so shop
around (I had to use Street Beat because they were the only ones at the
time who made a full length Squareback rag). I won't lie to you, it's
expensive, but in my humble opinion damn worth it (my total cost was just
under $1800).
There were two red flags that I saw when you were describing the rebuild of
the drive train that you need to be aware of: the freeway flier tranny and
the full flow oil system. I don't want to scare you or deflate your new
found joy, I just want you to keep this in the back of your mind just in
case.
1) The transaxle is geared to match the hp and torque curves of the
engine. The cooling system varies directly with engine rotation (RPM)
which is why the fan is designed the way it is. If you change the gearing
of the tranny you change the RPM of the engine and thus change how the
engine cools itself. I know this through several sources: Transform
Transmissions warned me when I insisted upon the gearing of my current
tranny they built for me; Gene Berg talks about it in his tech manual; I
see it via my oil pressure gauge when I take trips that use a lot of 4th
gear (my ring & pinion is 4.375 and 4th gear is 0.821). Yes, I can reach
110MPH, but the engine runs hotter and this ultimately lowers its
longevity.
2) The oil system. You said a full flow was *installed*.
If that means you can see an external oil filter:
A. For the T3 vehicles that means you should see the oil filter on a mount
directly to the lower left of the fan housing OR (more likely) you should
see two oil lines coming from (what looks like) behind the lower left of
the fan housing that connect to the oil filter (which is probably mounted
to the body). This type of set up is safe, effective and easy on the oil
pump (and basically the engine).
B. If you see two oil lines coming off the top of the engine then you don't
have an effective full flow oiling system. From the after-market systems I've
seen you will not always have oil flowing through the oil filter and/or the oil
cooler. For complete effectiveness the oil filter on an air cooled engine
(T1-T4) must come straight from the oil pump, not later down the line where the
oil cooler connection is. Even if the oil MUST go through the filter before it
can go to the cooler the system is NOT effective because back pressure of the
oil entering the filter can bleed off through the oil pressure relief valve,
thus dumping uncooled oil back into the sump. It's kinda hard to explain
(especially via email) but you have to think about how the oil system works and
what happens to set procedures when you mess with it. One source of information
is the Gene Berg tech manual.
C. What can also be part of a full flow oil system is that the engine builder
had internal parts of the engine specially machined to allow a more complete and
encompassing flow of oil. This is good! But, it costs more and since it is
special you would see it on your bill.
D. Don't put a filter on the suction tube of the oil pump (the suction tube is
the tube you see hanging down when you change the oil screen). CB Performance
sells this type of oil filtering system and I don't agree with it at all. It's
harder for a pump to suck than it is to push (which is why you put the oil
filter at the oil pump).
One addition that I personally think you need is an electrical (NOT MECHANICAL!)
oil pressure gauge. It is just as informative as a tachometer. Like I said
above in the tranny section, it lets me know how hot the engine is (the hotter
the engine, the thinner the oil becomes and the lower the oil pressure is). I
have a small VDO one in a mounting cup mounted to the speaker grill, though you
would probably want yours mounted somewhere under the dash (due to my bigger,
and hotter, engine I really keep an eye on my gauge so I have it in a
easy-to-view-hot-rod-style position :)
I'm glad your husband is enthusiastic as well and I hope you have many miles of
smooth driving and cool air!
Toby Erkson
air_cooled_nut@pobox.com
modified '72 VW Squareback 2.0L
stock '75 Porsche 914 1.8L
______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Our Fastback saga [VERY LONG]
Author: type-3-errors@umich.edu at SMTPGATE
Date: 11/6/96 9:55 AM
...
Husband has gotten carried away!!!! Completely stripped the '70 for useable
parts...Had a new tranny on it (w/receipts) Pulled engine on '71 and ordered
a rebuilt one...Ordered new tranny for freeway driving...completely cleaned
out engine compartment...primered it...undercoated complete underside and
wheel wells. Rebuilt axels, replaced cv boots, repacked U joints(?) 6 of 8
were good (using both '70 & '71 parts)...replaced starter...replaced gas
hoses...bought new oil full flow system...new muffler...new
shocks(front&rear)...obtained missing heater parts...rewired
completely...pulled all exhaust and remaining stuff and sandblasted and
coated with special heat resistant paint...new clutch...Checked gas tank and
it was rusting on top...removed rust and painted...checked under battery
which was also rusting, scrapped and cleaned out rust, placing a special mat
under battery...redid fuel injection. I know I'm leaving some stuff out,
can't remember it all.
...