1970 San Francisco westfalia resto

[K@rlos]

So, as well as sorting my buses teething troubles I’ve also been inundated with customers vehicles...



My friend Darren wants me to do a full rewire, rebuilt 6 rib box and mechanical rebuild on his 1970 westy, he’s had this bus 6 yrs and has been nursing the frankly diabolical workshop ship and corner cutting on this which we can thank the previous owner for (who was a member on this forum) :roll:



Me and Hector sorted the hodgepodge 1968cc stroker 3 yrs ago as it pissed out oil and was rather underwhelming performance wise. Had an Engle W125 with bone stock heads and massive vents in the carbs. Hector Fitted a milder cam, 28mm vents and ported the heads which resulted in more power, torque and better drivability

1968cc, Engle W110, 8.5:1 cr, ported stock heads & twin 40’s. Makes 133hp and has lovely smooth torque from idle to about 5500rpm 8)

 

[K@rlos]

Also been building this for someone, he brought it as a stock shell which had all the metal work done. I’ve fitted a 2” beam, dropped spindles and spring plates all from Transporterhaus with KYB shocks, new loom, brakes, 5 rib 1800cc gearbox and a 1776 Long block build by Hector Howe

 

[K@rlos]

Then over winter I’ve got to ‘hop up’ the girlfriends 1960 Swedish import beetle. Me and hector have decided on a built 1600 twin port, Engle W110 cam, 1.25:1 rockers, 8.5-9:1 compression, twin 36 IDF’s, on short manifolds, 1” 1/2 header, all balanced with a really light flywheel. Should be good for 90hp so plenty of poke to make the little bug fun for her 8)

 

[K@rlos]

Spent another couple hours on the rolling road Saturday morning. Still making fantastic top end power but we had a bit of a play about with the jetting in order to cure a bit of a fat point at 4000ish rpm with was causing bit of a weak point in the mid range. Drilled the air correctors out from 200 to 210 which help so then went to 220 and the dip is gone and it’s actually made the torque curve a lot stronger in that area overall which I’m pleased about. Looking at ordering some of the Gene Berg grooved venturis, read good timings about them so hopefully they’ll give me even more top end as well as a healthy increase throughout the entire rev range

 

[K@rlos]

Since the dyno run I’ve been toying with getting more power from the bus. Don’t fancy turbo as I love the sound of carbs and not feeling the idea of a massive & highly strung N/A Motor as I’ll be giving up too much low end torque and drivability so after some reading And chatting to various people A nitrous wet kit Seems like the way forward. Will give me the power at the strip but can de activate it for regular driving. And extra 50 hp will give it a nice nice too plus it’s A lot cheaper than bigger heads, cc or whatever.



My motors internals are vastly over engineered for a street driven bus due to wanting longevity. I’ve got a decent fuel system to support it and a the Mallory ignition is able to control it as well as retard the timing when on the gas so it should be pretty safe. Winters job I think

 

[gas1man]

WOW!!!!! Things can only get better. :shock: :shock: :shock: 8) 8)

J & P

 

[gninnam]

Waiting and watching

 

[K@rlos]

Dyno pull from Saturday 8)

https://youtu.be/lk1szNvCqrw

 

[K@rlos]

I’ve been chatting with Gary Berg a lot recently regarding carbs, air speed, port velocity etc and he recommended trying some of grooved venturis that Gene Berg Enterprises sell. So i got on the phone to them, spoke to Doug Berg who developed them and suggested the 35/40 size. He says he’s seen Several engines gain more top end rpm and power by 15-20hp when fitting these and having a bit of a re-jet as well as increasing low & midrange torque. Comes to just under $200 but I think that’s money well spent.



Once I get back on the dyno I’ll post some pics of the before and after Dyno graphs. They also do them for IDF’s too.

 

[mike202]

engine sounds great !

 

[K@rlos]

Had a late evening cruise with Nick Rackham whos now rolling a 1961 split screen fire engine. Cool as hell but sooo slow :lol: thankfully it’s getting the treatment, me & Hector are doing a nice 1955cc stroker for it





Bus got a nice drive out today, 100 mile round trip at a consistent 70-75mph in the heat wave Suffolk is currently having but as per it pulled like a train and didn’t really get pass 180f. Not bad for a 10:1 motor in a full weight westy pop top :mrgreen:

Loving having this back on the road sooo much, racked up 2000miles since January. Haven’t really been anywhere in it due to shows but been using it for work, shopping and just ripping about etc. Fuel consumption isn’t great, any where between 18-25mpg average depending on if it’s in town or on a run And how thuggish I’m being but I don’t care about that. It’s fast, sounds amazing and I grin from ear to ear every time I drive it 8) that said it’s probably better than a weezy and gutless 1600 which you have to rev the **** out of all the time

 

[K@rlos]

Been toying with a different exhaust for a couple weeks, looking The CSP python & A1 sidewinder until I had a chat with Gary Berg... He said he doesn’t rate those hideaway systems where the muffler is tucked up next to the 1&2 head as they make it a pain in the arse to lash valves but also raise the head temp for that side by 50 degrees

I want a hideaway header so have spoke to A1 and have decided to go for their ‘race bullet’ muffler. Pricing is superb, A fully polished Header and muffler with a v-band clamp comes in at $780 roughly (£680ish) so even with the postage from the US it will be a lot cheaper than the £1000 odd I’d be looking at for a Python.

seafood buffet in wrightsville beach nc

 

[K@rlos]

Yesterday we had a little trip up to Glemham hall classic car show, nice day and big variety of cool cars. The missus followed me up in her bug too which was cool 8)







And here’s random pic of the bus outside my house just because I thought it looked cool :lol:

 

[matty74]

Superb [emoji106] thanks for sharing.


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[mike202]

Bus is looking [emoji41] and the beetle looks good as well.


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[K@rlos]

Cheers chaps, had a text from Tiger sat A1 exhausts in California today. My new exhaust will be getting posted Friday

 

[K@rlos]

Gave the bus a service and tune up ready for a drive to SantaPod on Friday. Oil & filter changed, valve lash checked and set to loose zero, carbs balanced & tuned and timing checked. I added 2 degrees to the timing, so it’s now 32 degrees at full advance. Took it for a spin and it’s certainly livened it up a bit so will see what it’s like on a run. Hot rod drags will be its last real trip out this year, will get locked away in my workshop till March.

 

[K@rlos]

https://youtu.be/rcNMy0bitdk

 

[gas1man]

Sounds superb. 8) 8)

J & P

 

[gninnam]

Sounds awesome - well jealous