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On 10 May 99, at 13:58, Tim Manwell wrote: > Saw the many pics of VW tyÂù( on the website. Looks great. I know > zip/zero/nadda about old VWs.........including type IIIs. What prompted me > to seek out the website on them (you just know there has to be a website on > EVERYTHING) is that I recently saw a type III squareback on the campus > where I attend school. It looked to be in mint condition. No idea of year, > etc., all I knew is that it was an old VW. I believe another one of our listees also goes to Concordia. Charlie? > This kindled an interest in me, however, so I started doing some looking on > the 'net. So first of all, super dumb question, *where* is the engine in > these things? I don't see how it could be in the rear, especially in the > squareback, but with VW you never can tell... Second, why in y'alls > opinions, Like all aircooled VWs, it is in the rear. Yes, it's pretty interesting how they did it. > did VW dump the air-cooled engine after so many years of dedication to it? > I'm not mechanically inclined at all, so don't know, but are they harder to > work on? less reliable? poorly designed? It was a fact that the handwriting was on the wall for aircooled engines. Their higher operating temperature produced more NOx output than the new emission regulations would allow, plus the sales had been falling off for several years. These were the days of nearly free gasoline (although it is even cheaper now, in constant dollars) and few auto purchasers were interested in economy cars. If the oil embargo of 73 had come a few years earlier things might well have been different. These cars were well designed. Plus VW's lack of pressure for constant cosmetic overhauls left them free to concentrate on refining and improving a sound design. As to these cars in general, > what's the scoop on the type III? Do you have to be a hobbyist/mechanical > genius in order to own one or are they nice reliable little cars? What > about price? If I wanted to buy one that was in excellent condition (not > necessarily "mint" but excellent interior, body & mechanics) how m5,˜ d > it set me back? You have to be somewhat dedicated because there are few people out there who will do the work correctly for you. In other words, it's just you and us, and most of us are a long ways away. Still we are always here to give advice of various degrees of quality. "Perfect" cars are almost non-existant. Expect to pay $3-5k for a very good one IF you can find it. That may seem like a lot, but it's cheap compared to what it will cost you to get a typical rustbucket restroed to prime condition. Jim - ******************************* Jim Adney, jadney@vwtype3.org Madison, Wisconsin, USA ******************************* ------------------------------------------------------------------- Too much? Digest! mailto:type3-d-request@vwtype3.org Subj=subscribe