1977 Volkswagen Bus (transporter) Type 2 - Champagne Edition I on 2040-cars
Kingsburg, California, United States
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Introduction... I am selling my daily driver bus. I have several VW buses, and I need to sell this one. So this will find a new home, and I can get on with other projects. This bus will pass the California Smog check prior to title transfer to a California resident Buyer at my expense, if so requested by the Buyer. Otherwise, any smog/pollution control inspections will be at Buyer's expense. Registration fees/title and export/import duties/penalties are the responsibility of the new owner. This bus is located FOB/FAS (Free on Board/ Free Alongside Ship) in Kingsburg, California, USA, postal Zip Code 93631 and if you want it shipped, you will please arrange so on your own. You can read all about right here, this is the link to my story: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=543251&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 Basic description...What are you buying? A 1977 Volkswagen Transporter (Type 2/Bus) that is in very nice condition, is a daily driver and is virtually rust free. It is located in California, Zip Code 93631 and it was originally imported to San Francisco. Background work done to the bus: I have done a lot of work to this bus since I found it. This bus was last registered and parked in 1986 or '87 and stored in the dry climate of Gilroy, California. It likely spent its whole time near San Jose and Gilroy, as the original owner records seem to indicate. The original owner belonged to the local (San Francisco) Porsche Club. The only major rust issues were the battery tray and the windshield frame. I have cut out both of those and welded in good replacement steel from parts bought from Bus Depot, Inc. The only body filler used was to smooth out the rough spots on the new welds. I have spent a lot of money in parts and hardware alone, and all the proofs of purchase and receipts are included with the bus. Things that need attention to make it like new: Exterior: The good... Very solid body, with no major dents or wreck damage. Very nice front clip, no stone damage. No rust on the rocker panels, just a little bit of body filler to smooth out the welding from the battery tray and windshield frame work. Very dry undercarriage, with most of the original undercoating still in place. No rotted floor panels anywhere. Brand new windshield and rubber seal. Two speed windshield wipers. ...and some things that could be improved: There are a few things the new owner might consider addressing: The paint is in fair condition. I planned on repainting it a different color, and didn't care about re-spraying some of the faded spots on the body when I repainted the engine compartment during the time I had the engine and transmission pulled for a refresh. The new owner will likely want to sand it down and repaint the bus. The roof has surface rust, and so does the bottom inside of the driver's door. I don't feel the rust is serious, but it needs to be addressed. Most of the window rubber is aged and needs replacing, except the windshield. This bus is nearly 40 years old, and has various small dings and dents. One of the side window frames has a bottom frame that is rotted. All of the weather stripping (except windshield) is aged, but there is very little wind whistling as you go down the highway. I have applied some black RTV sealant in some places to keep moisture out. Interior: The good: Really dry, no cigarette smells or rot/fungus. Solid floor and seat frames. Lighting works, and the front seats slide and adjust as designed. Rear bench seat is a genuine Z Bed and folds up. Headliner and sunroof fabric panel are in good shape. The bus did not come with the middle seat. The carpeting was pulled out due to its contamination and poor state. I found some old rubber mats so I could protect the floor paint, but the bus was originally furnished with brown carpeting. See the brochure that someone found on my internet link above. There is a square of good, un-faded original carpeting included as a sample. ...and some things that could be improved: The rest of the upholstery and interior panel will all need re-working. This includes the driver's door panel, which I gave up on because I couldn't do it right. The headliner is in pretty good shape, but it is discolored. The seats all need re-upholstery work, as the mice pulled out a lot of the wadding and the fabric covering is threadbare. It has all the original seatbelts, except the middle ones. The powertrain (engine and transmission): This is where I spent most of my time and money, and it has made it very nice. Rather than type up the things I did, you should check the internet link I provided above. If you have any questions, please ask! Here are a few things that should be looked after soon... The oil pressure bleeds down when it has been sitting overnight, so when it first starts after parked for a long time, the oil pressure light stays on longer than usual, about three seconds after starting. Running around town with many stops and starts, the oil pressure stays up where it should. Oil light never comes on when stopped, idling or coming off the freeway, or any other time. It just stays on a little longer than it should when it hasn't been driven in awhile. I am thinking the oil pressure check valve spring is getting weak. There is a small oil leak that I think is coming from one of the pushrod tube seals, and it drips right onto the driver's side heater box. So when you use the cabin heater (that works just fine), you can smell a little burned oil. There is a rattle on the rear passenger side, it might be the CV joints. They were cleaned, re-greased and installed with new CV joint boots, but they showed high mileage when I re-greased them...they are likely the original CV joints. Not all of the engine parts were replaced when I had it pulled. All of the fuel injection parts were tested per the Bentley service manual, Chapter 10 - Fuel Injection. I have taken this bus on several road trips, but a lot of these parts are very old and could fail at anytime. But I drive it about three to five times a week to work, that's about 23 miles at 70 MPH. We've taken this bus up into the mountains, over steep grades and many miles to the beach, and it's a great ride! The engine and transmission were pulled out for inspection and seal replacements. I checked cylinder compression, crankshaft endplay and did a cylinder leak-down test using the Bentley service manual. Advice and techniques were also referenced using Richard Atwell VW pages (Ratwell) and The Samba online library. You can search those out, too. They are an excellent source of information and learning about these cool machines! The engine had good compression and crankshaft end play was less than .004", so I did not rebuild the engine. I replaced numerous seals, and swedged the oil gallery plugs. All of the engine management controls were checked per the service manual and a new clutch, throw-out bearing, pilot bearing and some transmission parts in the nose cone were replaced to repair worn shifting parts. The entire gear shift linkage was disassembled, with all bushings and grommets replaced with new. It now shifts very easy! Electrical: All lights, turn signals and horn work as designed. I previously replaced the voltage stabilizer for the gas gauge, but I think it is out again, so the gas gauge doesn't work right. Wheels, Tires and Brakes: I cleaned and repacked the front wheel bearings and also completely replaced all four (inner and outer) rear wheel bearings with brand new parts and seals. (N.O.S. Timken and F.A.G. bearings and seals). This bus has four Hankook Radial RA08 195R14/8 tires purchased for my 1973 bus, but moved over to this bus earlier last year. They have about 2,500 miles on them. The brake Master Cylinder was replaced with a remanufactured unit from O'Reilly's Auto Parts, and the Brake Servo booster unit was rebuilt by Karp's Brakes in Upland California, all work done within the past two months. All of the flexible brake hoses were replaced new. The brakes were inspected by me and lines flushed. Parking brake was adjusted, and the brakes work great and don't pull to either side when stopping. No squeal or drag. Please ask questions early and often...I cannot look at this listing every day! Warranty: None, expressed or implied. As is where is condition, no cooling off period or grace. This is a nearly forty year old car that most automobile mechanics have little or no experience with. Please consider your intentions carefully. You are responsible for your bid, please do not do so if you cannot complete the sale. Thanks for looking! |
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