"Buggering" around

[SouL]

No didn’t pay for it...was one of the 1000 he had in is collection, was just something he observed, main problem he thought it was, was the linkage rode which connects the shifter to the gear box was sitting too high to where the shifter connects into it and should be +/-5mm lower and needed to be bent downwards a little...which he said could possibly be the problem...so rushed home and pulled it out and bend it downwards push it back in and still no difference so taking it back today to see what he can do...just very weird and bet it’s something really small that’s causing the problem .. but I think we getting closer to resolving it at least

The EMPI shifter did impress me. Set up correctly, it shifts very nicely, and I think the pull up ring for reverse looks good. I actually liked the long one in the buggy, it was always right there by my hand, but my knees and it clashed a bit too often.
I have several of those spacers hanging of a rafter in my garage, which is the best place for them actually. IMHO...

I thought the spacer would be the cheaper option and work just as well to be honest...was fully willing to buy the trigger shifter like yours...but it was the case of R800 for the shifter or R150 for the spacer. I have actually cut my original shifter to make it shorter as putting in 1st ended up me whacking my hand against the dash...and must say it has made a nice different..so will see if I still want to go the quick shift route or just pay the extra buck and get the trigger shifter as original planned

[SouL]

Well gearing seems to be sorted...
ended up taking it to Joe who runs "vw beetle repairs" at 55 Malibongwe Dr, JHB! all he's relatively a old ballie who only does is VW beetles...not much of a work shop but he seems to know his stuff and recently rebuilt my friends engine for him without any problems. Anyway Joe sorted out my gearing, it was a combination of the gear rod below the shifter needing to be bent further down and the shifting plate needing it's holes to be filed bigger in order to shift the plate over enough that you able to slide into 1st and 2nd smoothly without shoving it into reverse and grating gears! Can tell you the relief of sorting this out
Now I can get back on track with the rest of the project ..pics to come

Motto: Bigger the problem the bigger the hammer!

[SouL]

Well...Yesterday I "buggered" adding a few of the nice and shiny part I had bought for my buggy including installing my new distributor. Next will be fitting new 4in1 exhaust, oil pump/filter and a dual carb setup...just need to wait for pay day

Will have to wait for the oil pump/filter before I fit the new pulley...and need to wait to for all that to set up the timing and try her out. So annoying still living in a complex as I so badly would love to drop the motor out and redo all the plate work, strip her down and clean her up real nicely...but until then I'm rather limited to how much work I can carry out

[Loopy]

Looking good! Seems I'm following you with regards to what you are planning on doing to your buggy, will be watching with interest!

[AirPower]

Buggy is looking good! I'm sure it must be a pleasure to drive already as is, since it's much lighter than a std beetle.

On the ignition issue - electronic ignition only cured one problem for me - the MSD unit I had (still have) was really rock solid under the timing light. What I mean is every single points and condenser unit I checked with a timing light had some degree of movement - 2,3 and some as much as 4 degrees while the motor was running. The timing jumps around and this is only a problem if you need to squeeze the very last HP out of the motor. So if the motor pings at 30 degrees you cannot set it to 29 because sometimes the timing will jump to 31 degrees. The electronic unit did not have any problem like that but it's not for everyday driving. Vacuum advance is your friend.

If I remember correctly, the std dizzy has a builtin retard on the no 3 cylinder to stop it overheating because of the location of the oil cooler, or something like that, which the MSD obviously won't have.

I think you shouldn't worry too much about electronic ignition at this stage, give it bigger lungs to breathe! Only once it becomes difficult to ignite the air/fuel in the cylinder will a MSD really be required (because of it's high voltage and multi sparks).

Just enjoy it as it is.

[SouL]

Looking good! Seems I'm following you with regards to what you are planning on doing to your buggy, will be watching with interest!

Cool I hope I don't disappoint

Buggy is looking good! I'm sure it must be a pleasure to drive already as is, since it's much lighter than a std beetle.

Haven’t turned over the motor yet as I'm waiting for a few more pieces before I bolt it all up again

Basically the motor IMO feels a little tired (but that's my option as I have never driven another bug to compare) as looking to get a little more out of it and thought the electronic dizzy would help along with a dual carb setup. Maybe I thought it would be a decent amount of extra HP...or maybe not either way I thought it was a nice upgrade to go for none the less..almost like going from a generator to a alternator....no performance difference but a nice upgrade to a care free motor

give it bigger lungs to breathe!

You talking about the valve system?

Thanks for all the feed back guys...good or bad I appreciate it as I have a lot to learn..but enjoying the journey anyway

[AirPower]

By bigger lungs I mean an increase in cc's (bigger cylinders).I don't know if you are planning to freshen up the motor, but a sure way to get more
power is more cc's.
Twin carbs sounds good.

If you do want to have work done to the heads (like bigger valves) - make sure to ask if welding will be required. Welding requires a very experienced and knowledgeable welder/machinist.

Mario

[Tony Z]

its not hard to get 100hp out of stock heads without welding or changing valve size....
Yes more cc helps, but a 1600 properly done can also make some seriously fun power in the 80 to 100hp region. 90hp is enough power for most and a damn fun ride.

[SouL]

By bigger lungs I mean an increase in cc's (bigger cylinders).I don't know if you are planning to freshen up the motor, but a sure way to get more power is more cc's.

Are there bigger stock cylinders one could just bang on?

If you do want to have work done to the heads (like bigger valves) - make sure to ask if welding will be required. Welding requires a very experienced and knowledgeable welder/machinist.

Why the hell would there be any welding involved?

its not hard to get 100hp out of stock heads without welding or changing valve size....
Yes more cc helps, but a 1600 properly done can also make some seriously fun power in the 80 to 100hp region. 90hp is enough power for most and a damn fun ride.

New cams, Dual carbs, what else can be done without crewign with the reliability of the engine?

[Tony Z]

I had 95hp with head work, decent exhaust, IDF carbs and a cam change.
I wouldnt build that engine for someone else, simply because I took shortcuts, but it worked until a 30year old lifter broke.

The more money you throw in the more reliable it can become.
Stock engine, head work, IDF carbs and a decent exhaust.... I made 75hp which in a full weight beetle is enough to surprise a few cars. I would call that engine almost as reliable as stock.
95hp will keep a 320i behind you until 110km/h

[JamesD]

I'll give a 320 a try and report back, i should be near 100/95 hp...

[SouL]

Stock engine, head work, IDF carbs and a decent exhaust

Head work as in: gas flow the head, porting, mild cam, new & re-seating valves, new piston & rings...or don't I need to do that much?
At the moment I'm looking at a TnT exhaust system, with dual 32 ITC Webbers with a 009 electronic dizzy...excited to see what that should do unless I should look at other options?

[AirPower]

I'm not sure how far you wish to take this performance increase. There are also many ways to look and plan it.

1) Just get the most out of what I've got.
- For me this means the motor is not opened and all changes are bolt-on. Like what you are doing at the moment, twin carbs, dizzy set correctly, plug wires, check valve clearance, 4 into 1 exhaust, etc.

2) More performance with minimum cash.
- DIY head porting, new valves lapped in, big bore kit, DYNAMIC BALANCING the crank/flywheel/pressure plate, cam change, etc

3) Performance with more cash to spend.
- New heads professionally ported with bigger valves, big bore cylinders, fabricated manifolds, tuned exhaust, aftermarket rods/pistons, counterweighted crank, dry sump, etc. Now we are talking big money. I'm not sure exactly what the price is for aftermarket heads but a quick search turns up "Wedge Port Cylinder Heads - 42x37.5mm valves for 94 cylinder bore" is ...... drum roll $875 which comes to R7000.00 approx.
Check CB Performance (http://www.cbperformance.com ) for some prices. And YES there are cheaper options. At this stage people tend to go "show me your wallet so we can see how fast you can go"

Mario

[SouL]

Thanks Mario! You hit it dead on! No.1 is what I'm going for now...once I have got it running nicely and happy with the change I will then try out No.2 as I want to do one thing at a time.... Once that it done and all the little problems are sorted out I will concentrate on making her look good...new pray joy, sets rims tires etc.

No.3 is definitely going too far for me..it's only a beach buggy for heaven’s sake!

[SouL]

cam change

Seriously playing with the idea of getting a mild cam upgrade which will give me some nice added performance...nothing too hectic which will mess with the reliability of the motor.

What would be recommended?

While I'm in the process of removing the head what would be recommended?:

New:
Valves and lapped in (possibly bigger valves?)
Valve Guides
Springs/Lifters/push Rods (not sure if these are all a must?)
Gas flow the head
Big bore kit (sounds expensive may be just better off re-honing my current sleeves and new rings?)

Not too sure if doing some of the above is necessary or if I have missed out something? Airpower mentioned a few things to do but not too sure which are the main ones which will make a difference. Remember I don't want to spend big money or open up the entire motor apart from the heads.

NB It’s a single port motor