|
A few months ago I bought a '71 VW Westfalia Bus to be my main driver whilst my other car was under restoration. It was a camper, had a fold-out bed, seats, and a reasonable interior.  Put some nice hardwood flooring in, a mat, and made some curtains.  It was awesome. Ran great, and the only part that really needed replacing was the steering box which was easy enough. I went through the fuel lines as well, replacing them all the way back to the tank. A month ago this happened:      That was a pretty poo poo day. Buy multiple fire extinguishers everyone, as the big one I had barely touched the fire. After inspecting what was left, it appears the part to blame was most likely the barb on the carb itself. When we replaced the fuel lines, we weren't aware these can be removed, and it most likely loosened this barb which eventually came out, spilling fuel everywhere. At this point I was ready to throw in the towel and let the insurance take it away. However, that night a friend I had met at a few VW shows contacted me about cleaning the bus up. I gave it a good amount of thought, and the next day we brought it home from the tow yard and dropped it off at their workshop  We waited until the insurance documented the state of the bus, and then started tearing it down. The engine thankfully still turned over as we drained the small amount of water out of it when it came back the first night.  The fire melted the intake manifold and all of the carb.  Tore it down to the longblock, drained the oil, and ran a fair amount of gasoline through it to clean out any crap that went inside. Kept turning it over for the next couple days, and everything still sounds fine on the inside. Should fire up again to power the bus another day.   That weekend they called upon the local VW community to host a "Burned Bus Party" to strip it down and clean the soot and ash out of it           The Cleaning Crew  Nothing was really savable from the inside and most ended up in the dumpster. Kept the frames from the Z-Bed to remake, along with the wood to use as a template. Put the bus back away for the weekend and picked up some metal to start patching the bus with. First up was welding the rear engine hatch back in. The previous owner had cut open the back to make an access port akin to the 72-79 VW Bus, most likely to adjust the carbs on a bigger motor. However, he put it back in with pop rivets before he sold it to me, and when the fire started, these popped out and dumped the bed mattress into the fire, starting the interior fire.    Patched the hole cut open for a rigged external oil cooler  Picked up a new set of engine tin and bits    Big chunk of melted carb I found down the intake  Primered the engine bay   We cut the wiring harness 3/4 of the way back where the wires were unaffected by the fire and plan to extend them back out. Most of the wiring runs underneath the car away from the main fire, and the interior wiring was protected by the dashboard. After checking out most of the wiring in the bus, the only ones that need to be replaced are the interior lights, and the engine area harness. The only real body damage caused by the fire is a 1 foot by 6" indentation on the roof in the rear of the bus. Luckily the fire was put out before it reached temperatures hot enough to warp the body. And that's about where I'm at with it. I have a new front windshield, dash seats, rear hatch, side windows, and various other bits already. The plan so far is to do as much of the bodywork as we can, patch the few spots of rust, and get the engine running again. Once that's done we'll send it off to a body shop to put it back to a factory condition primered body. From there, we'll paint it ourselves, reinstall the interior, engine, and the rest of stuff.
|
#
?
Aug 19, 2014 05:27
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:21 |
|
|
Id be seriously concerned about the fire damage weakening the integrity of the chassis 
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 00:39
|
|
|
OFFICER 13 INCH posted:Id be seriously concerned about the fire damage weakening the integrity of the chassis but its an old VW bus. Was there ever any chassis integrity to begin with?  but in all seriousness I am so glad to see this thing getting a new life. I remember when you posted the burning van pics. It was a sad sight.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 00:53
|
|
|
Old metal gets brittle when cooked hot enough to melt a carburetor. These things were unsafe brand new, I had two of them myself so I know, but Id honestly worry about metal fatigue with a fire that bad. I hate to sound like a downer but i really do love ACVWS and im just bei g cautious.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 00:58
|
|
|
I suck at reading sometimes and noticed now that there's a few pictures of hardened liquid carb. It could still be a nice show car/ sit in the backyard and do drugs in kinda car.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 01:01
|
|
|
It'll live, the only points I was really concerned with were the engine mounts and the transmission. The points where the mustache bar (The big bar that holds the engine and transmission up) mounts on the body made it out fairly unscathed, with most of the paint still intact. In fact, the rubber on the end of the mounts are still fine and unmelted, although I do plan to replace them. The area around the transmission was fine as well, so, I'm not too concerned about that. Since the rear hatch collapsed when the pop rivets came out, the engine bay was completely open and most of the heat went up towards the roof, hence the indentation created. The whole engine bay appears to be just fine with no visible warpage either, so, I'm really not too concerned about metal fatigue. We'll see once it goes back on the road though.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 02:29
|
|
|
I'm amazed how good the car still looks after a fire. I dunno how you'd even tell if the metal has been fatigued, obviously the big heat dent in the roof isn't a good sign. I probably shouldn't be surprised that the engine worked fine after being caught on fire: its job is to catch stuff on fire, just usually on the inside. Do we have a single ACVW thread on AI that hasn't had a car fire in it yet?
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 16:09
|
|
|
Seat Safety Switch posted:Do we have a single ACVW thread on AI that hasn't had a car fire in it yet? You shut your whore mouth! E: and I'm legitimately interested in this thread. I always wondered how you properly recover from a car fire in these old buses, and I was very sad to see the fire when you posted about it a bit back. Queen_Combat fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Aug 20, 2014 |
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 16:13
|
|
|
While the entire first page of that thread is us talking about ACVW engine fires, I admit that your car has not had an engine fire. I hope that it never does, because it owns.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 16:16
|
|
|
So glad to see that resurrected. I'm really impressed with the community rolling in and helping to tear it down and ID what needs to be done.
|
|
#
?
Aug 20, 2014 16:28
|
|
|
Mixed up some paint that's a pretty close match to the original "Pastel White" and sprayed the engine bay Plan to put the engine back in and have it drivable by next weekend. Still have all intentions of restoring the rest of the body, but, going to make it a driving project.
|
|
#
?
Aug 22, 2014 02:35
|
|
|
That's pretty awesome and I wish you the best of luck. Really cool that the local fans turned out to help, too! I strongly recommend replacing that flywheel though. No telling how detempered or warped it is, and flywheel explosions are no laughing matter. And they're under $70, from what I'm seeing... It would really suck to lose the engine and transmission housing+input shaft to a flywheel explosion because you skipped it.
|
|
#
?
Aug 22, 2014 23:17
|
|
|
Fired the engine up today https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPzot8e-PfE Runs just fine, no scary noises still. Plan to buy a rebuilt carb with a threaded barb so it will never burn up again. kastein posted:That's pretty awesome and I wish you the best of luck. Really cool that the local fans turned out to help, too! Swapped the flywheel from the donor motor, but, if the fire was hot enough to warp the flywheel, the engine would most likely have been toast too.
|
|
#
?
Aug 25, 2014 05:04
|
|
|
I wouldn't worry about warping so much as detempering or metallurgical changes - flywheels experience some pretty obscene G forces. Around 900G at the outside edge of your flywheel at redline, for example. If the metal is weakened by being heated up and not properly retempered (not sure how much a cast iron flywheel can lose, but…) it can make a pretty serious BANG. And I've had friends lose everything to an almost brand new flywheel cracking before, too, without it having been in a fire. e: if you're saying that flywheel wasn't in the fire, carry on, no further questions your honor! kastein fucked around with this message at 05:18 on Aug 25, 2014 |
|
#
?
Aug 25, 2014 05:15
|
|
|
Wait, that's the same engine?  "Yeah, had an engine fire, which also burned up the interior. Still runs fine after a few new parts." randomidiot fucked around with this message at 05:30 on Aug 25, 2014 |
|
#
?
Aug 25, 2014 05:17
|
|
|
kastein posted:I wouldn't worry about warping so much as detempering or metallurgical changes - flywheels experience some pretty obscene G forces. Around 900G at the outside edge of your flywheel at redline, for example. If the metal is weakened by being heated up and not properly retempered (not sure how much a cast iron flywheel can lose, but…) it can make a pretty serious BANG. And I've had friends lose everything to an almost brand new flywheel cracking before, too, without it having been in a fire. The installed flywheel came off a running beetle. I didn't think mine was damaged, but, high velocity fiery metal bits didn't sound appealing. some texas redneck posted:Wait, that's the same engine? Same engine, has all new gaskets, ignition and intake bits now though. VW engines are incredibly hard to kill apparently.
|
|
#
?
Aug 25, 2014 05:38
|
|
|
some texas redneck posted:Wait, that's the same engine? Air cooled engine briefly exposed to external combustion? Replace wires and plastic parts, drive away.
|
|
#
?
Aug 25, 2014 11:59
|
|
|
Reinstalled the engine today  Picked up new gauges, oil bath, a nicer dash, brake light assemblies, torsion bars, louvre windows (Both sides), dash knobs, and engine/engine lid seals at the local swap meet. Also of note, the torsion bars which hold the rear hatch up are absolutely terrifying to install. They're huge 5 foot long steel bars that need to be twisted around each other like a spring and stuck in place. There is an amazing amount of potential energy stored in them when installed, and they almost took our hands out when we made a mistake. Don't want to ever replace those again.
|
|
#
?
Sep 7, 2014 02:49
|
|
|
PhoenixWing posted:
I don't know if mine was missing parts but the hatch would always make a hell of a clunk when the hinge assembly struck the body if I opened the hatch too far. Those adhesive soft rubber feet made the act of opening the hatch completely so much nicer. Just thought I'd throw that one in. It's great to see this coming back from the dead so effectively. Keep it up!
|
|
#
?
Sep 7, 2014 10:02
|
|
|
Sprayed the interior today back to it's original white colour. Masked off most of the exterior as we only wanted to spray the door jambs & around the windows on the outside.         Plan to paint the flooring matte black this week and refinish the pedals/hand-brake. We realised the overspray would get them, but, they were already smoke damaged and needed to be resprayed, so, didn't care to mask them. Then, next weekend we should have all the glass reinstalled par the rear hatch.
|
|
#
?
Sep 8, 2014 04:50
|
|
|
I never realised the front seats were structural!
|
|
#
?
Sep 8, 2014 10:11
|
|
|
Wow - the speed with which you have gone from "oh, it's on fire," to "like it never happened, and probably better" is dazzling. Reminds me - I need to get back to the garage!
|
|
#
?
Sep 8, 2014 12:42
|
|
|
What's happening with the saggy roof bit? I couldn't tell from the photo if it's still not right, been beaten back into shape or had the section replaced.
|
|
#
?
Sep 8, 2014 22:33
|
|
|
General_Failure posted:What's happening with the saggy roof bit? I couldn't tell from the photo if it's still not right, been beaten back into shape or had the section replaced. The biggest bit popped back into place when we used some wood and a floor jack. There's another baseball sized spot near it that pushes back and forth without much effort. Was going to take the bus down to a body shop eventually and have that fixed along with some other dents that existed before the fire. Finalised everything with the insurance. Had to argue with them, as the initial value they gave was less than half the market value. Brought in a 3rd party classic car appraiser which gave a real value which the insurance accepted. Should have more than enough to make it look better than when I bought it. First purchase!  Still yet to unbox most of that. Have brand new seals front to back, lights, handles, interior pieces, and everything else I could think of. Painted the cargo floor   Installed the new dashboard  And started fixing up the wiring. Got the lights working!  Surprisingly, most of the wiring behind the dashboard made it out alright. There's a few wires that had the insulation start to melt, but apart from that, there was no real damage. Even the fusebox is still usable.
|
|
#
?
Sep 19, 2014 04:13
|
|
|
Reinstalled the glass today    Also got the windscreen wipers working again. Patched in a new loom for the rear engine too and pulled all the wires to the brake/reverse lights waiting to be installed.
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2014 06:05
|
|
|
Cakefool posted:I never realised the front seats were structural! Not only that, he has the "walkthrough" model!
|
|
#
?
Sep 21, 2014 06:54
|
|
|
Now have the indicators, running lights, headlights (low & high), oil/generator lights, brake lights, dash lights, and ignition cylinder wired up again. Almost ready to head down to the garage for it's brake/lamp certificates. As soon as those are given, it should be road legal again  Patching the old harness up to the new engine area harness. Finished crimping it and tucked it in the rails after this picture.  Rear lights! 
|
|
#
?
Sep 26, 2014 03:13
|
|
|
Started installing all those parts I ordered. Still coming along well, and now have every electrical system working perfectly in the bus. Bought a shiny rebuilt carb  New sliding door handle  Installed the new latch  Started cleaning up the new engine area wiring     Reinstalled the drivers side vent window  Reinstalled the heating system and dash cover  New windscreen   New glovebox door  Used ash tray and handbrake handle  And picked up some comfy seats from a Eurovan  Also took a short video of the windscreen wipers working. Two whole speeds! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUNo_-c27DE Plan to take it to have it's roadworthy inspection some time this week. Should have it road legal and registered by the weekend.
|
|
#
?
Oct 1, 2014 04:37
|
|
|
As someone who got burned by "the man" regarding changes to vehicles, primarily a VW camper this thread is kind of  to me but I am in awe at your progress and hope to see it back on the road ASAP. Keep up the good work so that I may live vicariously through you.
|
|
#
?
Oct 9, 2014 10:38
|
|
|
Installed new rear shoes, cylinders, adjusters, and drums  Picked up the missing electrical outlet  New rear hatch  Painted the inside to match  Put on the new mirror (Driver side made it through the fire)   Finished installing the windows   Threw the closest paint I could find on the back. Temporary until I find a body shop to do the rest of the metalworking and paint      General_Failure posted:As someone who got burned by "the man" regarding changes to vehicles, primarily a VW camper this thread is kind of Passed it's road inspection test, got it registered, and it's back on the road again! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHAoC0hRlKA Thanks for the kind words! I'm amazed how fast we got this back on the road. Been a lot of long nights, but, it's chugging along again. We've contacted a local bus parts dealer, and hopefully should find an interior set in the next month or so. 4 year only, so, bit of a pain to find.
|
|
#
?
Oct 10, 2014 04:53
|
|
|
Drove it down to it's first VW meet this weekend    Still drives surprisingly good. Hold's freeway speeds without issue, and starts up every time in the morning. Going to start rebuilding the furniture this weekend using the old wood as templates. Probably order the interior door panels as well and get those installed.
|
|
#
?
Oct 14, 2014 06:31
|
|
|
To be completely honest, I think ACVW vans are cooler, but I can't afford one, so I got the sedan instead. Looking nice!
|
|
#
?
Oct 14, 2014 09:41
|
|
|
Geirskogul posted:To be completely honest, I think ACVW vans are cooler, but I can't afford one, so I got the sedan instead. Looking nice! They certainly aren't as cheap as they used to be, but, you can occasionally find a decent one in the $2-4K range. No ACVW collection is complete without a bus  Did some more work on it! Painted the rear hatch and roof a lighter blue for now. Fits a bit better than the red  Installed a vintage style radio and cleaned up the dash   Put sound deadening and carpeting in the rear   Put in the floor mat I bought  Bought the most important part for the whole bus: The Fabled Clock. Only came as a special option for 68-72 (Later ones had clocks, but, changed styles). Coming from Austria, so, hope it makes it alright.  Fixed the heating system and got the pipes and dash controls back in   Still need new knobs as the old ones melted. Disassembled the passenger side vent window to fix the frame and remove the copious amounts of silicone the previous owner put in New slider knob!    Found another Westy at work  Also drove it on the motorway in the rain yesterday. Handles surprisingly well in it and has no problem holding 60-65. Engine sounds quite healthy for something that went through a raging fire.   Started checking out the plywood at local hardware stores and figure we could recreate the original wooden panels and headliner. Weren't anymore complex than stained wood cut to shape and holes drilled to mount the cabinets. Should start looking complete again by the end of this year
|
|
#
?
Oct 27, 2014 05:53
|
|
|
I just read this thread. Holy crap.... Well done!
|
|
#
?
Oct 27, 2014 14:33
|
|
|
PhoenixWing posted:Found another Westy at work In a Barry White voice: "Oh hi, baby, now what is a fine bus like you doing in a parking lot like this? That? It pops up when I see something I like..."
|
|
#
?
Nov 3, 2014 05:23
|
|
|
Got some more work done on the bus the last couple weeks Started insulating the rest of the inside          Installed a bamboo parcel shelf (Yes I realise it's upside down. Took me a few days though..)  Put in a CB Radio   Thought it was neat to keep the burned shift knob.  Put in some flooring (Again)     And picked up some Christmas decorations for it  Still looking out for the interior bits for it. 4 year only Westy stuff is unfortunately quite hard to find.
|
|
#
?
Nov 24, 2014 02:20
|
|
|
Got a lot done over the Christmas break on the bus. Put on almost 500 miles since the bus went up in flames. Caught it at the lucky 5's on the motorway (Yes that is a toothpick for a needle. Seemed a shame to throw it out after it survived such an ordeal, so, glued the new toothpick needle on  )  Used it to donate toys at a children's hospital with a load of other VWs  Installed on of these so it never goes up in flames again  Bought a load of flowers and other stickers for it  Put a few of them on as well  Replaced the charred control knobs with some shiny new ones from Santa  Installed an essential British element requried in all my countrymen's cars   Uncovered the charred remains of my furniture  Base of the rock-n-roll bed   It's door   Pulled the crusty vinyl off   Planed it, and then stained it  The other bits of the bed   Painted the brackets  Test fitting all the pieces together again    We couldn't save the rear piece of the bed as it was the closest to the fire and damage was deep enough to warrant replacement. Thankfully that was the only piece that did not survive. The jumpseat:    New vinyl going on     Installing it again!   The bus is almost at the same condition now as when I first bought it. Plan to take it on a 1200 mile journey in mid-January to the biggest VW bus campout in the U.S. I never did get to actually use it as a camper before the fire happened, so, can't wait to try it out. A new brake booster and master cylinder showed up today that I need to install, and, then it should be all set to make the journey. The engine is running amazingly well considering it survived a raging inferno on top of it. I hope to bring it all over the U.S. in 2015 and see all the places I've always wanted to go. It's going to be a good year with this bus.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2014 00:57
|
|
|
PhoenixWing posted:Got a lot done over the Christmas break on the bus.  Looking good man! Much impressed with the work to bring this and the bug back to life.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2014 05:14
|
|
|
It's seriously cool that you decided to rebuild it. It looks great! edit: and thanks for the tip on the Blaze Cut fire suppression tubes. I think my RX-7 and '70 Cutlass could use one each.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2014 05:42
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:21 |
|
|
ssjonizuka posted:
Cheers! I hope to get the bumper sticker on tomorrow too, will post back when it's on. Darchangel posted:It's seriously cool that you decided to rebuild it. It looks great! I couldn't let it go to the scrappers. Sure I could've bought another bus with the insurance money, but, it would have signed this bus' fate to the crusher. It somehow survived for the past 43 years, and, I can't bring myself to end that. It's 0-60 time needs a calendar, it handles like a sofa around corners, and it takes Popeye's arms to do a u-turn, yet, it's honestly been the most enjoyable vehicle I've ever owned. I always have a big smile driving it, and it always seems to put a smile on the faces of those who see it too.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2014 07:21
|
|