Troubleshooting the vacuum system + Introduction.

[lucas660]

First of all, I have been reading this forum for the last couple of days and am enjoying it.
I'm from Australia and have a '64 Rambler which I have enjoyed for the last 15 years.
About 5 years ago when my father saw the work I was doing on my car he decided he wanted to by a classic vehicle.
Because he had owned 4 semi auto bugs in the past I suggested that he might want to own one again.
He purchased a '71 Super Beetle, apparently one of the last German assembled RHD vehicles.

Of course I have taken on the role as Volkswagen mechanic. A steep learning curve and very different to the American V8 engines I am used to working on but I have the relevant manuals and so far have not had a problem with keeping the VW on the road until now.

It's not going into gear, and wants to stall whilst trying to select a gear.

So far I have cleaned, adjusted and repaired the shift contact and tested with a multimeter on continuity to get the best and most consistent reaction.
I replaced the carby about six months ago and drilled out the correct fitting.

My main questions are, can I test each part of the system by connecting directly to manifold vacuum, or does the control valve restrict vacuum in some way? To me this would be a logical way to find the leak, but I don't want to try in case it causes more harm than good.

Can I use AN-8 hose for the vacuum connections or should I find some hydraulic hose for the application?

I have the clutch servo diaphragm repair kit on its way because I am convinced that this is the problem.

Thanks for providing a great online resource.

Lucas.

[lucas660]

I got some hose that is used for spraying chemicals up to 600psi. It has a nice thick wall and should do the trick. Will reply when I get to work on the vehicle again next week.

[68autobug]

Hi Lucas
I am also in Australia , located in Scone in Northern NSW. Yikes about Your father owning 4 autosticks before, any reason He sold them??
Sounds like a leak in the Vacuum system like as you said as it sounds like the clutch isn't being fully disengaged or not even disengaged at all...   or if the old type of cotton covered vacuum hose is still there it can be cracked and you cannot see the crack.  The Hose You mentioned should work probably better than the originals.  Many types of good quality hose can be used but many people like the old type of cotton covered Hose that VW liked to Use. It may have been the best hose to use back then..  I have seen the clear type of air hose being used, which works as it goes hard as a rock due to the heat from the engine. It would nearly be impossible to take off too... lol   The control valve seems to work just about forever... I don't think I have heard of them even leaking... and if You can hear them working then they are usually OK..   It does pay to have a few spares on hand though, even though they are very old, they all seem to work ...  Once all the vacuum hoses are replaced with good hose clamps then You shouldn't have any problems for many years.

cheers

Lee in Australia

[lucas660]

Success! I replaced all hoses with the chemical spraying hose obtained from a hydraulic hose supplier.
I now have a servo diaphragm kit in stock. The existing servo has the screw on clamp like the rebuild kit so it may have been replaced before. I needed to tune the engine again now that the vacuum is stable. The vehicle has a vacuum guage and it has never been so stable.
My dad is happy as he can drive it again. Now to fix a few pesky oil leaks.

[68autobug]

Hi,
although I have an engine oil leak to fix... sump plate nuts that I stripped need replacing [again]

it is well known in Volkswagen air cooled communities that a Volkswagen doesn't leak oil...


They Just leave their mark.... 


LEE in Australia... a very chilly part of Australia at present... -3 degrees C.....

[lucas660]

Well the 600psi chemical spraying hose is a NO GO!
Once the engine is up to operating temperature the hose becomes soft and collapses.
For the first 50 miles it seemed to work OK, but I imagine a few heat cycles has ruined the hose.
I will try to find some truck air brake hose or hydraulic hose as suggested elsewhere in the forum.

[68autobug]

I had some yellow covered chemical hose here many many years ago, I thought it would have been OK, but I suppose was only made to be used with chemicals , with no heat.... I used it as a garden hose for many years.... lol..
Hopefully the truck/trailer air brake hose is easy to obtain. The place I used to buy it from has now gone out of business.. like many businesses in the country towns... I presume it can still be purchased... there is a truck parts sales business in town... but I suppose I will never need to replace it, unlike the old cotton covered hose... lol

LEE in Australia

[lucas660]

The Repco here has some rare parts in stock, for instance alternator brushes and things that no one seems to stock anymore. He found some gates branded 15/32" brake booster hose. Drove beautifully today. I'll report back here if it fails like the last experiment. The specs say it can handle 26 inHG minimum. The engine produces 22 under heavy deceleration so it should be ok.

[68autobug]

Great News. I found some VW starter motor brushes which I have put into spare starter motors. I think I have found some generator brushes too, as i think I have fitted some of those, but I don't use a generator any longer...  Auto Electricians in Australia many years ago could buy electrical items at very very low prices... so most had many spares... most have probably been trashed... but hopefully there are still some out there. I found that many REPCO stores still carry tie rod boots and maybe ball joint rubber boots for beetles...  whether they can still be re-ordered though ??

cheers

LEE

[lucas660]

So the clutch system failed again, this time the hoses were not at fault so out came the clutch servo. I think this vehicle had been through a flood because the servo housing was incredibly rusted up until the barb for the vacuum hose. I had to rebuild the starter motor a few years ago for the same reason. I cleaned and painted the inside of the servo and reassembled it with the new diaphragm. It now works well.
A little trick I came up with refitting the clevis pin to the cluch lever is to connect a hose to the servo and use my mouth to control the position of the rod end. At the end of the day everyone is happy and the info learned on vwar.org saved the day. Fingers crossed I wont have to work on it for a while.

[68autobug]

Great News Lucas....


Lee