Cheap and cheerful

[jakethepeg]

I recently viewed a fantastic one owner late bay Westfalia. It belongs to an elderley German lady who imported it ti South Africa in the seventies. Although I tried my best she will not sell it to me this year as her grandchildren will be visiting her and they will use it to visit the Kruger Park. Bother! So in the meantime I have been looking for a cheap VW camper to use as I have put the money aside for the dream machine. Everyone I looked at was full of filler, inch thick paint or just nasty. Anyway I went to the Free State to look at a supposed Westfalia. Horrible, but in the corner of the farmyard was a de luxe microbus minus engine. It was original and had never been painted or molested. It seems it had been attached to a shack in a squatters camp with a piece of tarp as an extra room for the last ten years. Job done and trailered it home the next day. Covered in rust scabs. usual surface rust in the window frames and rain guttering, but virtuallu no perforation

Look at the state of the roof.

No.7 son working hard.

Now to the really difficult bit. I promised SWMBO that I would finish the whole job for less than 2000 pounds, so my work is really cut out! It needs a full respray, but I will do all the prep myself, an engine, roof lining and a full camping interior, and I want it ready for the start of the summer in October. But I do like a challenge.

 

[jakethepeg]

Sorry the pix do not appear, only the links, will try harder

 

[jakethepeg]

Seemed to have sorted out the pix problem, lots more to come. I apologise in advance that I will be doing things that will make the purists wince, but my aim is to use it as soon as poss. Fortunately here in Joburg we have a dry climate, but also being over one mile above sea level the oxygen content in the air is much lower, meaning oxidation is really slowed down. One problem area, as it was a de luxe, is that there is a lot of pitting under the aluminium trim. Lots of grinding and rust neutraliser, followed by copious amounts of high build primer will sort that out

Whoops, found some rust perforation

And some more

But the sills and jacking points etc are perfect

 

[jakethepeg]

BTW, what looks like rust flaking underneath is actually a layer of thick dust. I will get it steam cleaned later and underseal it. This bus was made in SAfrica and they never bothered with niceties like that!

 

[jakethepeg]

Here is one I made earlier.

Seriously tho this is my 1976 Jurgens Autovilla, one of approx 1200 built by Jurgens Caravans in Kempton Park north of Joburg.

I have to decide what engine to fit. It originally had a twin port 1600 and still has the gearbox in, but I have a Type 4 gearbox and drive shafts as well. Any suggestions/advice would be appreciated.

 

[jakethepeg]

200 views and no advice re engine :? Shame. I took it to my painters who have been doing work for me for over a decade, mostly collectors cars. They said I had done a rubbish job on prep and would have to charge me more So the budget will have to stretch a bit!

I thought it was OK myself. Anyway good news is I have been given a good set of tyres by a friend, and also a fridge which just needs a bit of fettling

It always seems to be teabreak w2hen I am there.

Decided to save some time by having both bumpers media blasted.well worth the money

Should be ready for collection in a few days, but I have heard that before

 

[jakethepeg]

Today I am going to look at a 2litre panel van with a view to buying it complete as a donor, will have to see how the engine looks and sounds. Also have been told about another Autovilla with only 17,000kms from new!

 

[sparkywig]

 

[jakethepeg]

Thanks for your support!

 

[68_early_bay]

Good progress coming along nicely

 

[lard]

wow - you certainly seem to have some good contacts looking out for you! - really looking forward to seeing the progress, I too thought your prep was fine! Perhaps they are just perfectionists

 

[dubscum]

cool! nice to see it all coming together!

 

[Danbury Doug]

Your '72 looks to be coming together nicely!

I've always quite liked those Autovillas. A few years ago someone just up the road from us had a couple of them. I'd love to see the low mileage one. I bet that's a real timewarp!

Re your question about the Type 4 gearbox/drive shafts, if you don't get any replies on here, it might be worth asking on the technical section, where I'm sure you'll get no end of advice.

Doug

 

[Eeza]

I saw one (Caravan thingy on a T2) a couple of weeks ago in Bridlington's Aldi Car park... Looked nice in an odd kinda way

 

[jakethepeg]

Bus not back, blast

 

[jakethepeg]

Bus was not ready for collection on Friday, no suprises there. But I have been given a Mobi Jack to use so moving it will be a lot easier. And yes the painter is a perfectionist so I am hoping for a really good job. Decided to sort out the door cards and load bay liners as they are all a bit worse for wear.

Carefully peeled the rotten hardboard and vinyl apart

Made new cards and varnished the back

Not perfect but a great improvement

 

[jakethepeg]

So, as expected the combi was not finished as promised , and so a new deadline for the paint was set. I am going to the States for a week, and really want to get it back and start on the interior and reassembly. I know originally I said there was no rush to finish it, but October is getting closer, and I want to get to the Drakensburg mountains in Lesotho before the snow is all gone! The fridge I was given was deemed to be beyond economic repair as it is an obscure Japanese make and parts are no longer available. So my projected budget is under strain!

On the bright side I sourced a parcel of camper bits , interior lights, water pump and folding tap etc. But the piece de resistance was a fabulous 70s folding gas cooker, virtually unused, with a folding griddle and toaster. The original knobs are missing but I am sure I can find something suitable. I plan to make a unit for it that will swivel out through the door aperture as in the original Devon conversion

Looks like a little suitcase

Partially unfolded

Ready to work

Toaster folded dowm (is it not gorgeous!)

Ready for the burgers, but SWMBO says it is too good to use.

 

[jakethepeg]

I collected the combi from the paint shop, looking very shiny. In fact too shiny in my view, and with a few paint blemishes. Anyway UV the painter said bring it back when it is all assembled and he will flat and polish it and remedy any faults. I had labelled the bumpers and air intake to be painted white, but of course the labels were removed for prep, and he painted them all Niagara blue, but I left them with him and he sorted it out. I am hoping to get new indicators for front and back whilst I am in Texas as shipping stuff to South Africa is fraught with danger!

See what I mean by shiny

 

[67westy]

That cooker is awesome, I need to find one of them! Paint is looking good, a nice transformation from what you started with. Should be a nice van!

 

[jakethepeg]

I was visiting my home town of Ramsgate on Sunday, over from Johannesburg for a few days. In the 60s when I was a kid it was the main port for VW, and the brand new buses and beetles used to be driven on trade plates through the town to the depot near Manston airport. The drivers drove them flat out, racing each other to get the most trips in a day! Lord only knows what it did to the engines! Anyway, back home tomorrow and can crack on with my de luxe crossover, try and make some progress before my 34' motorhome arrives from Texas and I get tripped off