Aaron's VW-1500 Blog

2012 - Bring it on!

2012-01-01T04:15:00.000-08:00

Happy that 2011 is done and dusted...

Wishing everyone a fantastic 2012. Lots of projects to finish this year now that things look to be settling down including:
- install CB throttle bodies once they have been reduced in height by 1 inch onto the 2028cc engine in the black car
- finish match porting the manifolds for the throttle bodies (it's too hot at the moment for this sort of work)
- replace the fuel lines in the black car
- drive the black car and enjoy it - as was the intention all along. 250 miles in 10 years? Not good enough! People need to see the car out and about and I have a burning desire to drive it now
- perhaps (!) dismantle the green notchback and think about the restoration requirements after 22 years of ownership...

All the best people. 2012 is looking great already. Enjoy your VW's but enjoy them with the right people.

Engine updates - 2276 cc & 2028 cc

2011-10-20T03:03:00.000-07:00

The 2276 cc is looking better now. Merged exhaust (1 - 7/8) got here from Vee Dub Parts Unlimited last week and fit perfectly.

Good silver ceramic coating job too.

Thanks Ralph!

As you can see, I also got the Gene Berg pulley bolt & washers so the JayCee pulley is now fixed to the end of the crank good and proper.

This is a nice little piece I bought out of the UK from Neil

(http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=968666)

Perfect bit of machine work.

Nicely anodised grey too!

Sorry about the shadow in the photo...

I don't think an oil cooler is going to be much of a concern on this engine.

Last job on the engine will be to fabricate the oil and fuel lines because I don't know where we are going to mount the oil filter until we get the engine into the car. I didn't disturb the brass fitting in the case from when it was in the black VW.

Looks a little out of place but it isn't leaking so why mess with it?

A good view of the oil cooler block off.

The 2028 cc is also coming together quite well.

The short IDF manifolds are temporarily bolted on (still to be match ported) and I have borrowed a pair of IDF throttle bodies while I arrange for another set to be sent over from CB Performance.

I will get a set with the injector bosses drilled however and then get them cut down about 1 inch once they are here as there isn't a great deal of room under the Type 3 engine lid.

Similar to the oil cooler block off on the 2276cc, I had this oil cooler block off made by Vintage Vee Dub Supplies about 10 years ago.

It routes the galleries out to the Earls oil cooler which is mounted near the gearbox and also cooled with a big thermo fan.

Works perfectly and keeps the engine looking good with minimal crap on top of the engine.

Time and time again I see that Type 3 engines when altered generally look like arse unless you do a bit of thinking.

I also route a small line to the mechanical Auto Meter oil pressure gauge as you can see.

Yes an MSD distributor will fit under the lid of a Type 3 but you will have to run 90' ends and alter the engine lid ribbing.

I also ceramic coated my engine lid to dispense with the factory insulation while I was at it.

The stock breather also looked out of place on this engine so I had the top of the original breather tower welded up and then I tapped it 3/8 NPT to enable a hose to be connected off to a breather mounted elsewhere.

Looks excellent when it's all connected and in the car.

If you use the MSD as the maximum height, you can see why I will be cutting down the throttle bodies - not much room to play with.

More photo's soon. Hope you like them thus far.

October - Better late than never

2011-10-03T05:53:00.000-07:00

So sorry for lack of updates - have been busy with house renovations - relocating water, gas & electrical as well as a lot of digging, drilling and general stuff. Not what I want to do however it has to be done.

What of the VW projects?

The 2276cc from the black VW is now sitting on the bench ready to fire up with new 48 IDA's and with some luck, the new exhaust from California will be here in the next couple of weeks. I removed the engine from the car a month or so ago, dismantled the top end to see how it was looking, soda blasted the combustion chambers, raised the CR to just shy of 10:1 and re-assembled with a host of JayCee odds and sods.

The 2028cc has now been assembled out to the heads. I got my dad to assemble the bottom end of the engine just so he can say he built it. Cool. Engine contains Scat 78.8 mm crank, Scat 4340 lightened flywheel, Berg 90.5 mm pistons and cylinders (dyke's top, total seal 2nd), Eagle 136 mm rods, Engle K8 cam & lifters, Magnum straight cut gears, new AS 41 magnesium case, Berg sump, Berg pump, o'Berg filter, Jaycee push rods & tubes, Scat 1.4:1 rockers, CB wedge port heads, CSP rocker covers, MSD distributor. CR is about 8.6:1 from memory. The engine is awaiting the short IDF manifolds from California (same box as the exhaust for the 2276cc mentioned above) and then once I have mocked up the throttle bodies (2 x dual throat IDF) that I have grabbed from Greg, the tin ware will be altered to suit the engine and then sent off for paint etc. This new 2028cc engine should prove to be a reasonable daily driver type deal, especially with heads that contain some decent cooling fins, plus the cam is somewhat mild (boring?). Exhaust is the 1 7/8 unit that was on the 2276cc previously.

Greg's drag car - I have purposely not mentioned this project yet and certainly not shown photo's as it isn't my car however the photo's aren't far off from being shown. Engine: 88 x 94 mm; front narrowed 4 inches; frame head laid back 10'; rear end narrowed 4-6 inches (I forget how much I cut out of it!) and raised 4 inches; rear fenders raised about 5 inches; fuel cell up front; 1 piece fibreglass front; billet pedal assembly; Kirkey racing seat; raised transaxle & engine (2-3 inches adjustable); Ron Lummus wheelie bars; Ron Lummus roll cage (with extra supports everywhere); Ron Lummus flush mount windows. From what I can gather, this might be a rapid car once it's all together. Funny because it hasn't been much of an effort, what with Greg paying the bills and me cutting, welding & assembling the car. Nice not to have to pay for a project for a change.

The MK twice GTI is all happy and repaired after the idiot smashed the front. The engine might have been replaced while it was being repaired... Also must thank Rhys for the front end work- replaced the struts, tie rods, all mounts, ball joints and while we were there threw away the sub standard MK 2 brakes in favour of some MK 3 disks, callipers & hubs. The car stops now like it should which is good as the engine does crank along. Almost forgot - replaced the front tyres with some directional semi slick type tyres to sharpen it up around the corners. Magic daily driver and what is most unusual for a VW - I hardly have to work on it because of a failure. Reliable car considering it's 20 years old.

The 1602cc is still on the back burner until the panel van gets the new 2028cc engine re-installed and Greg's transaxle is finished along with my 2276cc running again. I just don't have the room right now (hence the work on the house renovations...).

Okrasa 1500 'S' ??

2011-05-21T21:48:00.000-07:00

With the 40hp Okrasa heads back from having been wet blasted, new guides fitted and the original seats re-cut, plus of course being machined out to suit the 83 / 85.5 mm cylinder OD, I thought why not install them on the 1500 'S' bottom end I am building?

As you can see, the heads are only bolted down for measurement purposes.

The bottom end of the 1500 'S' engine is all together now based around the original panel van crank case (60,000 mile case). About the only thing I did to the case, 20 years ago, was to align bore it 0.50 mm. Otherwise it's unmodified.

The crank is a later model 69 mm unit ('X' drilled) and has been balanced along with the NOS alloy and steel fans, flywheel and clutch. The crank was also ground 0.25 mm by the local crank grinding man that has done all of my cranks for the last 15 + years. Lets just say the con rods are also updated...

The pistons and cylinders are NOS KS 83 mm domed 1500 'S' units that I bought years ago from New York. The pistons have been balanced of course and the cylinders have been high temp VHT painted black just because I hate the look of rust.

The distributor is an original 1500 'S' ZV/JCU4R3 unit that was restored a couple of years ago using NOS parts.

The oil cooler is a reco unit I found also many years ago and is a small gallery unit, correct for the engine.

The oil pump is an NOS German unit also found about 10 years ago.

Next up with the engine is to get the valves, check the chamber volume's, fabricate some manifolds to suit stock 32 PDSIT Type 3 carbs (currently being rebuilt), and once that is done, remove the heads from this engine as they will be bolted onto the original engine currently residing in my 1964 1500 'S'.

That engine already has a 74 mm SPG roller crank and 83 mm bore so these heads should wake it up a bit.
While that engine is out, the flywheel will also be replaced with an NOS crown alloy one that I have had the ring gear changed out to an NOS 6V unit. Still a lot to do but moving forwards.

I wonder if the NOS Abarth exhaust will be here in time as well, just to finish the engine off?

No H2O, GTI, 1602cc, 2276cc, 2028cc & 36hp turbo...

2011-04-18T05:36:00.000-07:00

A busy weekend just gone. Simon from WA managed to get a lift to Adelaide from Melbourne (long story) and lobbed at our place Friday afternoon. Been a few years so it was good catch up and have a chat.

Saturday came and with Sime in the old GTI, we went for a quick trip to the local fastener store to collect some hardware for the NOS Crown flywheel that is about to be installed into the 'S' (onto the SPG crank). With that out of the way, we got home just as another friend- Finn lobbed in his T34. I left the boys to it and while I was painting some NOS 90.5 Berg stroker cylinders (Dykes 1st, Total Seal 2nd) in VHT paint, the boys struck a deal and the T34 became Simon's. Excellent stuff.

Once Sime dropped Finn home and came back, we got on with the task of sorting through the urgent works bearing in mind Simon was going to be driving to Perth on Monday morning. Lots of electrical works managed to get the headlights almost all working (earthing was crap, bulbs were blown), almost got the indicator's working properly (this is an original 6V car too so had to dig through some spares I had in the garage). We then drove it and found the gears were a bit naff- popping out of 1st and 2nd was difficult to engage. Awesome! So off we went to Bob's workshop in the afternoon and bought some spares for the car- fan belt, throttle cable and a few other odds and sods. While we were there, we put the Crown flywheel back together with new rivets, which was a 3 man job to heat the rivets, hold the oxy and bang the rivets. Bugger of a job, but I now have a flywheel that has almost zero run out and uses std VW 'O' ring. This flywheel has been huge undertaking and is worthy of it's own story.

So off we head back to my place where we replaced the shift coupler on the T34- the old one fell to pieces which wasn't surprising. That helped the gear selection no end but I noted that all the engine & trans axle mounts were stuffed, so I wasn't expecting a miracle. With that done and a bit more engine tidy up we called it a day and caught up with Greg at the pub for a few drinks and dinner.

Sunday morning and we got energetic, moved the gear shifter (stock) over to the left as much as possible and messed around with the linkage which was binding. Starting to drive okay now. As it was my wedding anniversary, I left Sime with it for the day and he went and did some more work on the car with B4. When we caught up last night, Sime was pretty pleased with himself- the gears were now sort of okay due to some clutch adjustment and a new Black Mamba shifter. Nice shifter and not too badly priced for what it is. Of course the gearbox isn't perfect due to the lack of love this car has had previously but it is good enough to drive to Perth. I believe that Simon is going to put some shorter axles on when he gets home anyway, so I can see the car being semi dismantled soon. A good idea that will enable a few other things to be sorted out like the engine mounts etc- and get rid of the funky old muffler etc.

Simon hit the road this morning as I left for work and it sounds like he made it to Ceduna which is a good effort in a 1964 1500 'S' T34 I think. If it has made it that far, I am sure it will make it all the way to Perth without a drama.

So what else has been happening? Loads to be honest but not too many photo's have been taken.

First of all the MK 2 GTI has a new engine now- a MK 3 2.0 is now running perfectly and providing me with daily transport. I can't believe what a great engine upgrade this has been and apart from the nightmare of the wiring to integrate it into the MK 2 fuse box, it went very smoothly with no drama's and started up first go. An excellent conversion. But as the car is completely reliable, I am starting to get bored with it already. Perhaps it is time to look for another car...

The Okrasa 40hp heads are now ready to be installed onto the 1602cc engine which is in the Velvet Green Notchback. I bought the heads late last year out of California and in that time have had them sand blasted, then wet blasted, then machined to suit the 83mm cylinders, had all the guides K-lined and also had the seats cut (originals). The heads look fantastic now and when time permits, will find their way onto the 'S' engine. While I am at it with that engine, I will install the newly refurbished Crown flywheel. I bought this flywheel last years as well (NOS) and was advised to check the run out at the clutch face as they were known to be a bit ordinary (sometimes) back in the day. So I checked it and of course it was completely out of whack. Why oh why did the Crown people rivet the hub to the clutch area on the piss and then tack weld it together? The hub (heat treated) was cracked due to the welding so I had to have a new hub fabricated. I cut the center out of an old (but perfect) flywheel and handed it to Bob to finish the machine work off- drilling for 10 x rivets, drilling for SPG pattern and generally altering it to reflect the original Crown one (which is now just a paper weight...). Anyway, the flywheel is perfect now so justified the work required to correct it. I sent the flywheel off with a clutch for balancing today and expect it back this week. I also sent off some other engine parts for balancing such as a 69 mm crank that I had ground to 69.10 mm as well as a pair of NOS Type 3 fans (steel and alloy). The crank and fan assemblies will end up in an NOS 1500 'S' engine I have been gathering parts for over the last 20 years. Apart from NOS single port heads, I am just about ready to assemble this engine now. Some of the goodies put away for this engine are quite hard to find now including NOS 83.50 domed 'S' pistons and cylinders machined to suit, a choice of either a ZV JCU 4R3 distributor or a 311 905 205 D distributor (early or late 1500 'S' only) (both restored to perfect condition), a pair of very first production run 1500 'S' carburettor's with the small venturi's etc (restored to perfection of course). I have avoided using the original crank and rods however, and gone with a later crank and brand new rods in an effort to maintain some long term life and reliability. Once I have all the parts in one place, I intend on taking some photo's of it spread out.

And the panel van engine... I have been thinking about the engine in the panel van for a long time now because it concerns me that the cylinder heads have minimal cooling (competition eliminators). I have decided to remove the 2276cc from the car this year and install a smaller engine with heads that have cooling fins! The engine is currently in the engine stand and is based around a new AS 41 case, a new Scat 78.8 mm crank and new Berg stroker 90.5 mm pistons & cylinders. I still need to get the heads from the USA, along with the cam and lifters, but I am getting closer all the time. The engine will retain the current EFI ECU, tin ware, MSD ignition and exhaust systems. I am contemplating converting the engine over to dual IDF pattern throttle bodies as part of the build. Still not sure about it but it is likely to occur. As for the 2276cc engine, this will end up in another car, along with the close ratio 4.375 based trans axle but more on that another time.

As for the 36hp turbo motor, I won't post up anything about that until I get a little more progressed because I am at the mercy of the owner of the car that the engine shall reside within. It could prove to be a very interesting build!

MK 2 GTI update

2011-01-03T00:56:00.000-08:00

Forgot to mention that the GTI should be back home in another week.

As you can see from the image, the GTI copped a bit of damage when some dick reversed into it a while back. I think on reflection it was for the best though as I have replaced the front hood, the GTI grille, headlights, the radiator support panel, all the wheels (Polo 15 inch alloys with low profile Michelin's), and the windscreen seal (there was a small spot of rust under there that required attention). I can't wait to see the car all freshly painted (the front half anyway...).

One of the reason's I have been busy of late is the fitting of a low mileage MK 3, 2.0 ABA engine into this car (while it's been getting the panel work completed). The original 1.8 GTI engine had a head gasket failure anyway so it was an easy decision. Not a straight forward conversion by the way!

A big thanks to Rhys for the good work on the engine installation thus far.

2011

2011-01-03T00:41:00.000-08:00

Happy new year all.

2011 looks to be a busy one for us here.

The bay window van is ready to roll out of our property and onto the next place to have the interior stitched, and the exterior slapped with filler and painted. So long as it stays out of the elements it should stay reasonable for a good amount of time.

That will clear the driveway of other people's cars for a while and will enable me to get back onto my own cars. I was looking at the panel van only this week (while polishing the chrome work) and thinking it needs to be taken out in the fine weather and enjoyed. A bit easier to do that with dead cars out of the way now. Looking forward to starting it up and perhaps giving the EFI a few tweaks as well now that I have another wide band A/F sensor (I always suspected the A/F sensor in the car was a bit off but had no way of proving until recently).

And of course the parts continue to roll in for the 1500 'S' notchback. I am awaiting a delivery of Okrasa 40hp cylinder heads at the moment which, once they arrive, will be machined out to suit the 83 mm cylinders and then installed onto the engine in that car which currently has a 74 mm SPG roller bearing crank, 83 mm P&C's, and various Berg internals. Looking at the engine externally you would have no idea this is inside and that's the way I intend on keeping the engine.

As for the intake system- I am undecided but am leaning towards either some altered stock 32 PDSIT's or some Zenith's on some short manifolds. Either way, the standard air cleaner assembly will be used to keep it looking standard.

I just remembered, I have an NOS crown aluminium flywheel for that engine too which is off at the machine shop right now being balanced so that will complement the SPG roller crank perfectly while I am at it. The flywheel on the engine is currently a 200 mm 'O' ring, 6V ring gear unit drilled to SPG 8 dowel pattern and lightened to 12.5 lbs. This will end up on my 'restored' spare 1500 'S' engine in the engine stand as we speak... but more on that later.

All the best for 2011 folks. I promise to do more updating of the blog too!

Bay Window Resto...

2010-10-31T02:16:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is. One of my friends bought this 1971 panel van a couple of years back, perhaps not knowing the extent of the rust lurking but anyway, it is a panel van and there aren't many here to choose from now.

With the body condition in mind, most of the money has gone into the mechanical's on this beast. The front suspension is now adjustable and dropped down, and I have dropped the rear end to match the desired front height. Not as low as some out there for sure but it does look okay and should provide a degree of comfort when belting down the road.

While the front and rear suspension's were being reset, I dropped the trans-axle out for a tidy up and replaced the CV's with new ones, new CV boots of course and ran some new wires down the guts of the chassis to enable the electric fuel pump and tach to operate.

Also just had new battery cables made up today.

The engine mount is off being powder coated at the moment after being altered to clear the merged exhaust. I expect I will see that this week. Then I need to make some mounts to hang the engine and it's all good to go.

Yes that's a solid tail gate from a German fire car or similar we think. Apart from the slight dent on the right side, it's a perfect original lid. Nice score.

I built this engine about 5 or so years ago now. 1776cc, with counter weighted crank, Engle 120 cam, 8.5:1 compression, new dual port heads with larger valves (forget the sizes after all this time), Berg wide deep sump, 26mm Berg pump, Berg relief valve pump cover, alternator, 36hp dog house shroud, dual 40DCNF's on god knows what manifolds (alloy but can't remember if they were Scat perhaps?), merged exhaust, pertronix pick up, MSD coil, new everything else where it matters.

I have only run the engine for about 5 minutes previously on the floor of my garage to get the timing and carbs running close to correct, so it will be good to see the thing on the road and get it running spot on.

I had a similar engine in my own 1977 Bay Window panel van about 15 years ago and it was no problem getting the van side ways. Surprising how easily these old van's can be made to do burn out's!

With a load of filler and some primer, plus the BRM wheels installed, this old van will live to see another day.

And now for the car...

2010-09-24T17:10:00.000-07:00

With the engine installed and running okay, it went for it's maiden voyage.

Not a bad looking original paint car hey?

After giving the car the beans around the local streets, I checked the distributor advance and found it was not as consistent as I would like on my own car's so I removed the 010 and put the 009 back in (temporarily). This solved the advance problem for now even though it looks like crap. The 010 rotor isn't as tight on the distributor shaft as I would like so need to get that sorted out and install another day (good thing I have a few 010's on the shelf).

As for the linkage, I have had to revisit that a couple more times. The main problem with this wonderful CSP linkage is that the right side linkage arm hits the underside of the generator slightly and at full throttle, it hits the generator stand as it comes around to the most severe part of the arc. I have gently filed the underside of the generator to clear the rod and also done a bit of work to the generator stand casting to clear it but it's now only got a bee's dick of clearance. I suppose if it clears, it's good to go.

Also, I believe there is a fault in the design of these carbs. The throttle's don't return to the closed position 100%. You get perhaps 97%. Yes this is with the linkage disconnected!

As I don't have any other Wolfsburg West carbs for reference, this might be something not common to all of the carbs, but rest assured this is a pain in the arse. The linkage does indeed have the return spring in the middle, however when the engine is warm, I thinks that due to the slight thermal expansion, we are going to have a slightly elevated idle on 1 x carb and un-synchronised carb's. That's just my thoughts now and I could be wrong, but I am not sure that a push-pull linkage is the way to go. Good in theory but not so good in practice.

With the car now back with the owner, I can get back into my own projects (yippee!).

Some of the fun stuff going on right now in my garage:

100% visually correct 1500 'S' engine assembly and parts gathering (bottom end assembly won't be far off now)
steering wheel alteration- I am looking to reduce the diameter of a standard VW steering wheel slightly but retain it's original look
MK 2 GTI body work- some f^%k wit reversed into my daily driver GTI recently, so I am now in the middle of repairs to get that car back to original. Not something I wanted to do but since the car is a low mileage beasty, it's worth the effort to keep it on the road
Chrysler work- I have a 1966 Chrysler Valiant (AP6) Utility (or pick up as the Americans would say) with a nice 318ci V8 and it needs some minor repairs to get back in order. The car was restored about 10-15 years ago and just parked. Some of the works already have involved the fuel system- clogged filters, torn Holley diaphragm, fuel pump, and now the fuel tank resto (so much crud and rust inside). I am now at the point where it's cosmetic work such as relocating the alternator to where I want and that sort of work. A neat old car and I think it's good to have an interest in non VW's to help you keep across what the rest of the car fraternity are up to.

WW Dual Port 36hp up and running

2010-09-11T23:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday was busy, I installed the engine into the client's car and after messing about with all sorts of bits and pieces, got the engine fired up. Virtually first crank of the starter too!

I have some final details to do- the generator pulley is still at the paint shop so installed a temporary unit.

The wiring needs a bit more tidy up but is all connected and working- I think some black outer sheathing to protect the regulator wires is in order.

The heater boxes are installed but with out the flaps- the ones on this engine were damaged and missing pieces so for now there is no heat. The owner needs to dig up a new heater cable for the car anyway so that's not a show stopper.

The coil needs a paint job and a new decal to be applied and then that will look the business.

The oil pressure switch was wrong (later type) so I installed my last NOS early screw type which is correct for this engine. Looks all the better for it too. There is nothing worse than a 36hp engine with all the wrong details like later oil pressure switches, 009 distributors and especially 13mm ATF hardware. But anyway....

So what problems have I encountered with the WW kit? The CSP linkage does slightly touch the generator stand which is sort of okay- it's just grazing it. The air cleaners hit the deck lid when it's up- we are only talking about 1 mm but it's enough to rip the paint off slightly. I think the deck lid should be slightly power filed back to clear (that's what I would do if it were my car). Apart from those small things, I think it's a great kit for the money. Even without driving the car (the brakes are suspect), I can tell the engine has more response and wants to rev up.

Who would have thought that here in 2010, we would still be messing about with these old VW engines and new products would be available for them?

Sneak peak. Non Type 3 content warning....

2010-08-24T02:11:00.000-07:00

I don't get too involved with T1 engines anymore, but... I was approached to install the new Wolfsburg West dual port engine kit onto an old 36hp engine recently. Why not?

With a thorough cleaning of the old engine, I have now performed the installation of the dual port heads and sundry bits & bobs. Everything worked out okay to an extent. The CSP linkage still has a minor rubbing issue to contend with (hitting the generator stand) and I now have the 'OT' pulley for the engine so that is a step in the right direction (so the Taiwanese cracked pulley used to turn the engine over can get the flick).

The 009 is only there to ensure the engine turns over okay (if you leave the distributor out, you can possibly have the drive lift up slightly and screw the brass gear up- always have a distributor in place when turning over an engine!! I agree that 009's suck especially on 36hp engines!

I have a restored 010 ready to go for this engine now so that is sorted. I had the fuel pump rebuilt too while I was at it as the old diaphragm looked crap. Not good enough to supply fuel to 1 x carb, let alone 2.

Next on the agenda is to get the tinware sent off for some semi gloss bake enamel and then re-assemble all that with some of the original clamps and bits to attempt to retain some originality with the engine. I don't mind slightly worn original items on an engine if it looks period correct.

I must post up some pictures of my 'new' notchback too. Damn I am slack with the camera of late. Sorry about that.

NOS RHD Berg Signature Handles - a bit special

2010-08-04T19:12:00.000-07:00

I am stuck at home with a cold so thought I would post up images of some odd parts I have bought over the years.

These are the last numbered RHD Berg signature shifter handles that were made for each year.

I spoke to Gene about the 1995 handle while he was still alive and from memory he wasn't around by the time the 1996 handle was produced so I did some fast talking to secure that one when it was produced.

Not sure what I will ever do with them or if I will ever bolt one onto a shifter, but they are from an interesting time in VW history. The Gene Berg name was everywhere at that time and many parts featured on some of the best VW's produced and featured in magazines.

It is my belief that in time, some of the best early Berg parts will end up commanding original DDS and EMPI prices. It will be interesting to see if that's correct in say 15 to 20 years.

NOS 1500 'N' Single Carb Air Cleaner

2010-07-23T23:46:00.000-07:00

Just some simple images of an NOS 1500 'N' air cleaner I have stashed away to show the location of factory applied decals and red paint.

As you can see the red arrow on the top is a bit of a poor job but it is there and lines up well with the lower arrow which is pressed into the housing.

Also note that as this is a later 1500 'N' air cleaner and not an early VW-1500 air cleaner, it does not use the large flat washer below the plated wing nut / bolt.

Notchback air vent trims

2010-07-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

Here is a set of front intake trims to suit early Type 3's (recessed air intake grille).

Interestingly, they were made in Germany, put into the small cardboard box, then re-packaged in Australia into the larger VW Australia cardboard box.

I once sat them on a notchback for a photo but decided I didn't like them as much as I thought so they are now up for sale.

Still sort of NOS and un-bent.

This is the set for the rear air vents on a notchback (all years).

These (from what I can gather) are genuine German trims as well (happy to be corrected) and have been re-packaged recently (within the last 10 years) by a chap in Victoria, Australia to look like original packaging.

Also only sat on a notchback for a photo, I don't think they are the right look for either of my notchback's so they are up for sale too.

Mail me if your interested- aaron@vw1500.com

NOS VW 1st Aid Kit

2010-07-08T00:50:00.001-07:00

This is a very hard to find item. An NOS 1960's VW (Australia) First Aid Kit.

I managed upon this over 20 years ago while working at a VW Workshop part time.

I believe that VW sold a lot of them back in the day and they were a popular item, however I have only heard of a couple others in all the years since, with this kit being one of the best known.

This will end up in the 1500 'S' glove box along with the original owners hand books.

One of the more practical accessories offered by VW and a prime candidate for reproduction.

NOS Fog / Driving Light's for the VW 1500

2010-07-08T00:42:00.001-07:00

Here's a nice option for the early Type 3's.

An NOS set of fog or driving lights for the VW 1500.

These do turn up every now and then and I don't consider them overly rare - What is rare, is to see them mounted to an early car!

I don't have the balls to drill either of my good T3's to install them so these will likely remain in the box as they have done since the mid 1960's.

WOB-A 961

2010-07-03T22:55:00.000-07:00

While in Germany, driving through Wolfsburg, I wondered if it would be possible to have some replica plates made in honour of some of the original prototypes.

I found the local registration department and posed the question. 10 minutes later, I walked out with as accurate a pair of replica's as you are likely to get. And they were made in Wolfsburg too!

Give away - original near perfect all white VW-1500 gear knob!

2010-07-03T22:51:00.000-07:00

That's correct - if you want this original all white knob as removed from a 1962 VW-1500 notchback many years ago, you can have it if you give me an early NOS white / grey gearshift knob that I require for my 1964 1500 'S' Notchback.

This could be a very good deal for you?

No the white knob is not for sale.

NOS T3 Full Circle Horn Ring

2010-07-03T20:22:00.000-07:00

There are now reproductions of this much sought after T3 accessory. Very good ones at that!

This one is a little bit special as I managed to purchase it from the VW Museum in Wolfsburg back in May 1997 while on holiday. I was told by Paul Medhurst that if you ask the chap within the office to the side of the museum nicely, you would possibly be let loose in the NOS section of the museum. This I did and wow was I impressed. Wall to wall NOS goodies! I don't believe a lot of people knew about this part of the museum back then.

It wasn't long before I found this sitting on the shelf and to say it was a bargain is an understatement.

I intend on installing this onto my restored original 1500 'S' steering wheel at the right time in the future.

MK 2 Golf Panel Van - ring any bells?

2010-07-01T01:46:00.000-07:00

Interesting to note that the MK 2 Golf was offered with a Panel Van option, much like our beloved Type 3's back in the 1960's and 1970's.

Also the pressings around the edge of the panels are just about identical in profile to the Type 3 version of 20 years + earlier.

DKP Squareback

2010-07-01T01:37:00.000-07:00

A neat 1500 'S' Squareback amongst the DKP cars at the VW Classic 2010.

Not much more needs to be said.

Sold to the highest bidder!

2010-06-30T06:00:00.001-07:00

I just sold my last complete set of spare genuine M265 Type 3 Panel Van window panels to another dedicated early Type 3 guru.

These were removed as 2 x pairs from 2 x seperate panel van's over the years that I found and I hope they find their new home soon, spot welded into another early squareback.

I also supplied the new owner with genuine Australian only long and short hinges for the cargo area and some of the luggage protector strips so he is on the right track with an accurate replica now.

You wont see these panels turn up very often it has to be said, and no I don't have any more.

The only spares I have now are 1 x long hinge and 4 x short luggage protector strips. If you need these, send me an email and we will do a deal.

Green Walls?

2010-06-28T05:13:00.000-07:00

Now these are rare!

NOS in the box set of green 15 inch inserts in a colour that will match my velvet green notchback. Yes there are 5 of them.

I also had a set of red inserts that ended up in the UK many years ago - destined for a split screen deluxe microbus.

I foolishly turned down the set of blue ones... Each set was only about $50 back 15 years ago too!

Goodies at Bob's house, June 2010

2010-06-28T05:02:00.000-07:00

NOS pair of push button assemblies. Nice work Bob.

It's a good thing that all 3 of my 1500's use the later model push / pull type switches or I would be mighty tempted to make you an offer on one of those.

Some of the 1500's at Bob's house June 2010

2010-06-28T04:43:00.003-07:00

Just a quick tease of some of the cars that showed up at Bob's house, on the Thursday just before the VW Classic in California this year (2010).

For more images, check out www.thesamba.com in the Type 3 pages.

Welcome to the 1500 Notchback blog

2010-06-28T03:00:00.001-07:00

My first post on this blog.

The plan is to keep you across the restoration of my 1964 1500 'S' Notchback and to also tell you about the things going on in my VW world, here in Adelaide, South Australia.

Make this a favorite in your VW's folder and check back often. As this is new to me, it's going to take a little while to determine how I will do this but rest assured there will be plenty of material coming up and you will enjoy.

Thanks.