do all 71s have a seam between arch and b post?

[Small Face]

Hi,
Can you tell me if all 71s (rhd) are supposed to have a seam between the front wheel arch and the Bpost, as some i look have have one and some i look at dont (ie on photos) and i wondered if it was a 'asthetic' improvement by diy-ers with poly filler or a change in that year by VW?

 

[Araon]

Hmmm an asthetic improvent with poly - filler :lol:

You should on an unrestored / repaired bus expect to see the seam......

 

[andewilson]

i would give vans with skimmed seams a wide birth. anyone who doesnt car enough to maintain a seam really probably doesnt care about the bits you cant see. even the ones with a seam can be full of filler, mine was. full seams entirely cut in filler. take a magnet ( weak fridge magnet ) with you when looking for van.

 

[61 stu]

yep mine does and its 90% original paint work

 

[ProfessorWheeto]

Your not going to find a van with no filler in unless you buy it in bare metal. (To be perfectly honest you'll be suprised at the amount of brand new vehicles sitting on dealership forecourts with filler in )

What you have to look for is if the filler has cracked or started to bulge out as this shows there is moisture behind and therefore rust.
It's also common to see a crack running horizontally above a wheel arch, this is from a replacement arch being tacked on rather than properly seam welded.

Probably worth having a real close look around the rest of the van paying extra attention to the bottom 12 inches and around windows for signs of other repairs.