Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Great!

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Amskeptic
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Post by Amskeptic » Thu May 14, 2009 7:58 pm

vwlover77 wrote:I replaced the flywheel seal during the initial engine re-do.

Pulled the engine again a few months later - polished the flywheel hub with emery cloth and installed another new seal.

Still drips about the same amount, maybe a little less.

Not gonna sweat it!
Hey Don, I had an unacceptable drop of oil showing after 1,000 miles from Atlanta, so I took a look. My crankshaft bolt holes were full of oil. Dumbo here had reused the graphite ring (when I did the endplay in Nevada last September) by turning it inside out. You know what? Don't.
Colin

Replaced graphite ring day before yesterday.
Winnie Texas chewed up gallery plug with JB Weld is still holding up after 140,000 miles:
Image
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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vwlover77
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Post by vwlover77 » Mon Aug 16, 2010 7:00 pm

Well, time for another report on the engine! Now 10,500+ miles into the rebuild, and still running great.

The oil leak I thought was the crankshaft seal at the flywheel turned out to be the input shaft to the transmission. Now, no leaks except a minor seep from somewhere around one of the cylinders on the passenger side. Not even enough to drip on the garage floor. I wipe the bottom of the engine off occasionally and that's it.

Sometimes I think the valvetrain is a little more "clickety" than it ought to be with hydraulic lifters. It's perfectly quiet when the engine is cold, but gets "clickety" when hot.

I've been getting between 17mpg and 19mpg consistently, and I finally ran a compression test a couple of weeks back:

#1 - 120
#2 - 137 (?)
#3 - 130
#4 - 125

I'm a happy camper.

If you don't think you can rebuild your engine yourself (with the help of this forum), think again!
Don

---------------------------
78 Westy
71 Super Beetle Convertible Autostick

"When we let our compassion go, we let go of whatever claim we have to the divine." - Bruce Springsteen

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Sean Gallagher
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Post by Sean Gallagher » Tue Aug 17, 2010 6:17 am

vwlover77 wrote: ...no leaks except a minor seep from somewhere around one of the cylinders on the passenger side.
This will allow you to retain your LEAKOIL credentials, but you're on probation.

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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by Jivermo » Tue May 20, 2014 6:06 am

Curious: how many miles on this engine now? Enjoyed reading this thread today.

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vwlover77
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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by vwlover77 » Wed May 21, 2014 6:59 pm

I believe I'm over 30,000 miles now. I'll be picking up the Bus this weekend from my mom's garage and will give an accurate mileage report then. It's still running very well, but seeping a lot more oil. That's OK by me.
Don

---------------------------
78 Westy
71 Super Beetle Convertible Autostick

"When we let our compassion go, we let go of whatever claim we have to the divine." - Bruce Springsteen

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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by asiab3 » Wed May 21, 2014 11:37 pm

Wonderful thread, thanks for digging it back up!
1969 bus, "Buddy."
145k miles with me.
322k miles on Earth.

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Amskeptic
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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by Amskeptic » Thu May 22, 2014 8:24 am

vwlover77 wrote:I believe I'm over 30,000 miles now. I'll be picking up the Bus this weekend from my mom's garage and will give an accurate mileage report then. It's still running very well, but seeping a lot more oil. That's OK by me.
BobD is beginning to threaten an oil drop at shut-down. I am dismayed. But understanding. These engines have a lot of movement between hot and cold.
Colin
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by Jivermo » Wed Jun 17, 2015 5:02 pm

How's your engine going these days?

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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by Amskeptic » Sat Jun 20, 2015 7:14 pm

Jivermo wrote:How's your engine going these days?

vwlover77's ? We might need to PM him.

How is your new engine running?

Me?
Chloe's is running well at 63,000 miles on Mike's build. I want to get in and see if carbon has built up
BobD's is running well at 110,000 miles, but I want to get in and look at the heads.
Plucky Squareback's is at 55,something miles and I'd like to put it's original head back on and get rid of that January 2008 Autolinea emergency purchase.
ColinInSouthDakota
BobD - 78 Bus . . . 112,730 miles
Chloe - 70 bus . . . 217,593 miles
Naranja - 77 Westy . . . 142,970 miles
Pluck - 1973 Squareback . . . . . . 55,600 miles
Alexus - 91 Lexus LS400 . . . 96,675 miles

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vwlover77
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Re: Don's Engine Refurbish: 10,500 Miles Later, Running Grea

Post by vwlover77 » Fri Aug 07, 2015 5:26 am

Sorry for the delayed reply, I just finally saw this thread! So much to catch up on in these forums!

My engine is still running very well, with a little more oil seepage and an off-and-on hydraulic lifter bleed-down issue discussed here:

viewtopic.php?f=46&t=12635

Overall, it's a happy Bus with a happy owner!
Don

---------------------------
78 Westy
71 Super Beetle Convertible Autostick

"When we let our compassion go, we let go of whatever claim we have to the divine." - Bruce Springsteen

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