Aircooled VW South Africa

I've been after a bus for quite some time, but was focussing on getting a Splitty, and more specifically a DOCA / DC / Crewcab - they just have SUCH a presence (In my view), but taking heed of advice from the elders (re driving experience) I started looking at the Bay's a while back. Couple of really awesome looking AD's on the Net the last couple of months, from the Lime Green DC in Pinetown (with owner non-responsive on comms via Ad), to the Jagermeister bus and the Blue DC in Boksburg.....and then suddenly last week Tuesday at about 15:40 appeared the AD for the '68 Baywindow in Junkmail! I phoned and within the hour the missus picked me up and we were on our merry way to Silverton to go have a closer look.
All of us immediately liked it, there were a couple of obvious things that would need some attention, but for the most part it really was well kept over the years. When the bus was started, and purred like a happy kitten, with no oil marking the spot, I had the confirmation (if I even needed any) that this was the one. Opening the sliding door just confirmed that the bus was well kept over the years....the condition of the rubber "mat" took me back to my parents' '79 2L Bus where I spent numerous hours on trips back home sleeping some nice steps into my cheeks on the floor:
The front seats, as well as the rear seat are all still in immaculate condition, needs a wee bit of soap & water and Bobs-your-uncle:
Picked up the Bus last week Thursday, and now it is time to get stuck in.
Issues to resolve:

1) Brake Assembly Left Front is Non-Existent
2) Windscreen to be replaced - got one lined up
3) Mid-Seat to be fitted - bought one on Saturday from Hendriks - just need the bolt fittings
4) Left Rearview mirror to be replaced
5) Proper inspection to ensure it is Mechanically Safe
6) Roadworthy & Change of Ownership
7) ROAD TRIP!!!!

Will keep you posted.

Cheeers,
Marius.

P.S. Guess I'll have to update my profile...."Skye" joins the Speedster, '63 Bug "Tjoklits" and my sons '74 Bug "Frostie".....now need more garages!!!

Congrats Marius. Awesome ride.

Awesome!!! Congrats.
hope you have many happy miles in SKYE

Nice one M, looks great man..
Will follow your build as you go.

cheers

Alan

Keep the updates coming!

Congrats Bossie, she looks beautiful

Having the first production year is indeed something special

Model Year 1968. Succeeding the Splitty, the T2 Transporter, nicknamed Baywindow or Breadloaf, is being presented. It is equipped with a 1600cc single port engine that delivers 47hp, and still has its predecessor's drum brakes. It's quite loud inside, because VW are still experimenting with the drive rubber mounts and the insulation of the doors and such. But at least we have an independant rear suspension and a single-piece windscreen. Only breakdowns are what we shouldn't have - there's no hazard warning blinker circuit yet.

Model Year 1969. The pushbutton style door handles, a leftover from the Splitty, are discontinued, as are the door locking pins. The thief has a little more hassle in getting into the van now - the locking buttons are now incorporated into the inner front door handles. Pity about the chromed inside rearview mirror - it's now finished in plastic, but it can be had tilting now. And now our bus may break down once in a while - the hazard warning circuit is now standard equipment. Borrowed from http://www.gerbelmann.de/changes/index.en.html

the condition of the rubber "mat" took me back to my parents' '79 2L Bus where I spent numerous hours on trips back home sleeping some nice steps into my cheeks on the floor:

I just f*cken love that sentence man You are a bus nutter for sure bru - congrats again

Congrats, good looking bus

Hope to see it at the kamp out !

The stripping of the BRAKES started in all earnest, had to remove the drivers side front to get a complete set from Volkspares...bent the wallot a bit more than I expected, but wanting to keep the original wheels on, it is the price to be paid I guess. I shall look at the Disk-Brake conversion if I am going for mags - the challenge there is to get similar "Wide-&-Narrow 5's " and then get a single adaptor plate to ensure the spare can go on either front or rear.

Left Front (there was NO Dust plate and abviously no internals and or flexible hose):
and what it should look like...
Getting the Tyre/Drum assy's of was also not a 5min job as expected, having borrowed the 46mm Slogging/Flogging spanner from a neighbour got the wheelnut off, eventually.... and then the drums would still not just slide off - even having released all tension on the adjuster screws!!! Some Q20 overnight did not do much, ended up putting a "scissor jack" on the frame and on the tyre to put so pressure on the wheel, then add a Good DOLLOP HEAT onto the drum to persuade it to release from the spline shaft, and for good measure the 4-pounds hammer at the bottom end of the tire - just to balance a bit of pressure to ensure a uniform release on the splines....and Bobs-ur-Uncle...she's popped off! Patience and wisdom put to the test!!!

One of the bigger challenges for me at this stage is getting the *(&^#!$@ Wheelnuts off the drums...already broke one head CLEAN off. I've applied Q20, ATF, DeOxydene, HEAT, HAMMER, Double-Spanner.....so the only way I see remaining is to load them four "AIR-PLAIN" wheels into the car and off to a Tyre-fitment centre to get them Pneumatic Impact-Wrench to give it a "Can-of-Whoop-Ass"! And YES, the Compressor is on the Birthday Wishlist !

Once the wheels came off, the front brake components were all intact:
ain't much life left at the "shoe adjuster" end, but the top at the Slave Cylinder (SC) can still go a tad...will have to get the linings refurb'ed on all four corners.

It cleaned up well:
I've installed the LF brake assembly (ex Volkspares) and after cleaning all four corners started bleeding the system to check for any leaks, and initially all went well. Started Left Rear, Right Rear, Left front...and then suddenly I heard that dreaded HISSING SOUND (I can soo relate to poor ol Adam in the Garden of Eden!!!). It ended up being the Left Rear Slave Cylinder that has pushed the seal out. This has just fast-tracked the procurement of either the Slave Cylinder Service kits or the whole Slave Cylinders - planning on getting all four corners sorted once-&-for-all!

So what will be the advice here guys, service kit vs total slave cylinder replacement? If budget is no constraint the latter is the obvious option, but what have you all done? look at the general condition of the wheels, & brakes I don't think the bus was driven often/regularly in the last 5-8 years. According to the local "Brake-&-clutch" dealers, the service kits aint available (discontinued), so they can work some magic by getting closest possible kits in there. Then my next question is do I give the SC's in for full refurbishment by them?

Still have to get the shocks sorted as well - seems like this bus was used to fix up another.... Right Rear has NO SHOCK!

Front Windscreen - got a replacement unit from HERBY_53 - Tx Andreas! Will get the rubber (Is Pro-Auto Rubber the best option here?) and then get to fitment thereof over the next week or two - seen it done MANY times, so its time to get the practical experience under the belt! Are there any snags that I should be aware of, tips/tricks?

Got the Bus Change of Ownership done, collected them papers this morning, so at least it is now OFFICIALLY mine.

Unfortunately I missed the "KKK Kamp-Out" with the Brakes Issue, hopefully we will make it for 2016! Saw the photos, so while you were having a "COLD-ONE" I was trying to get the bus "stoppable"!

Your advice is always appreciated.

Cheers,
Marius.

Baie geluk Marius! 'n Bus is maar net 'n ander tipe ryding en ek glo jy gaan hom baie geniet as hy eers aan die gang is.

Dankie Hennie....gehoop om hom gou-gou op die pad te kry, maar daai brieke....hulle "vat-my-hond"!

Congrats on the bus, welcome to the Bay club

Tx Jonno. Looks like the size of the body indicates the size of the spanners & hammers required, albeit only initially

Having bought the Bus with a Cracked Windscreen, - yellow line indicates the SIZEABLE Crack:
Having bought a replacement windscreen from Herby_123, and the Rubber from Pro-Auto Rubber in Pretoria West, it was time to get stuck-in and get it replaced. The rubber profiles differs a wee bit, but nothing serious - Left side is what came out & Right side what had to go in:
At Pro-Auto I had a lekka chat with a dude from one of the Auto-Windscreen Replacement Companies, just to confirm what "My-Friend-Google" and "The Samba" told me regarding the process (having watched a couple of episodes of windscreen replacements and surfing Google flat - and still being a Novice), he gave me a couple of pointers to make sure the job runs smooth. Most important tool being the rope:
also, got the "nozzle" to get the rope easier into the rubber...

Builders Warehouse some R34-00 odd (3mm - could not get the 5mm version).

I've chatted to a couple of lads and was told to cut the rubber about an inch longer than what fits around the periphery of the windscreen, so I "taped" the rubber to the frame instead, making sure it seats properly into the corners, and then still added about another cm to make sure it sits tight! I've also taken the rope TWICE around the rubber fitted to the screen - this to ensure that the "lip" is properly pulled over the frame - this came in VERY HANDY! I've had a bit of about 250mm that did not pull through properly, but this was due to the windscreen not seated properly at the top - mainly because the "Cheap-Labour" are WAY-too-SHORT to reach to the top to apply sufficient pressure when I pulled the rope on the inside.
Took some 1,5 hrs but it is in (not too shabby for a First-Timer), and one more Tick-Box sorted to get Roadworthy done.

Not sure if anyone has use for a "Cracked Windscreen" - perhaps usable in a Man-Cave / Bar??? Else, I'll just drop it into a bin...