Aircooled engine,rebuild or re-con?

[melmelody]

h there everyone.
the engine on my new westie bus is seized solid and this i think could be terminal. am hopefully going to pull the engine out next weekend to inspect a little closer but i was wondering what your views/ opinions are on rebuild or recon and what experiences you've suffered in the quest for a reliable replacement engine.
looking forward to your replies

oh better le you know the engine i suppose,ha ha! 2.0 cu 1980

[kevtherev]

Personally I would replace
then rebuild the old engine..maybe sell it, to off set the cost of the re conditioned one, or to keep for a guaranteed future engine

[melmelody]

Personally I would replace
then rebuild the old engine..maybe sell it, to off set the cost of the re conditioned one, or to keep for a guaranteed future engine

hi kev.
thanks for the quick reply,anyone you would recommend and any idea of prices?

[kevtherev]

A reconditioned 2ltr Aircooled is £950 from.. http://www.elitevw.co.uk/products.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.
no one here has moaned about the service, and many have used them.

or here.. http://www.remteceurope.com/router.cfm/ ... pageID/12/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
again good reports with no issues that I've heard.

or here.. http://www.vegeuk.com/engines.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jason k]

i had a vege motor for my old Aircooled bud.

do a search re elite.

[jason k]

also look into why it seized.

all tinware present? engine seal?
carbs in good order etc?

its no good replacing the motor if these other bits are out/ missing or you will be buying another soon enough.

[melmelody]

also look into why it seized.

all tinware present? engine seal?
carbs in good order etc?

its no good replacing the motor if these other bits are out/ missing or you will be buying another soon enough.

hi there jase,
yeah all the tinware is there and looks like its never been removed i tried turning it over when i got it home from the scrappie but the battery was flat so next day charged it up and turned it and it turned for maybe 3 or 4 seconds then just stopped . i thought ,ah its just the battery i've put on it as its been sat in the garage for 4 or 5 months doing nowt and probably discharged a bit and gone flat .so stuck another on and just clunk.lots of power at the starter motor ,you can tell by the clunk and all lights really bright .so not lack of battery power also put an endescope down th ecylinders last night and all looks okay ,well not really okay all the valves are closed apart from 2 which are only partially open so its not a stuck valve locking the engine .also the airfilter box has a lot of oil in it ??? do these engines use a wet type air filter? it does'nt look like it to me but i could be wrong.i think its spewed it backwards fron the main engine?just guessing as i know very little about these old Aircooled engines and their habits.is it possible it could have turned into a pump?anyway i reckon i'm looking at a new one.the thing is iv'e got one in the u.k in my other Aircooled bus so might have to do some maths and maybe take alll the bits off one and scrap it afterwards ....although it makes me sick to do this.guess i'll have to do some thinking.cheers for your help though.
mel.

[armyphil]

come on Mel, dont give up yet. if its turning over it aint seized take the rockers off and have a good nosey.
if its been sat take the fuel pump off and see if thats good might be something really bone as opposed to £950??

[John Potter]

Sell it and get a diesel !

[jason k]

helpfull!!

as phil says if its turning over its not seized.

will it tow start??

could be loads of things.........

[CovKid]

Never mind starter. Remove all the plugs and see if you can turn it by hand through the full cycle.

[melmelody]

come on Mel, dont give up yet. if its turning over it aint seized take the rockers off and have a good nosey.
if its been sat take the fuel pump off and see if thats good might be something really bone as opposed to £950??

hi phil, its not turning over it turned for about 3 seconds and now its just a heavy clunk put an endescope down the cylinders and all the valves are closed ,now thats definitley not right so like you say rockers off and lets take a little looksie.problem is i'm off skiing sat morning so can't do anything for a week but hoping to remove the whole engine next week so i can have a good look at it and ill make a decision then .until then i 'm just tring to find out what my options are cos if the worst comes to the worst i'll take the engine out of my Aircooled bus in the u.k and use that instead while i get this one rebuilt. but no not giving up its only a dumb piece of metal at the end of the day..

[melmelody]

Never mind starter. Remove all the plugs and see if you can turn it by hand through the full cycle.

hi covkid,
removed plugs and tried turning with starter motor and nothing ,seems seized sollid and air filter box is full of engine oil which i think does'nt look good. will have to wait till next weekend to remove engine to find out exactly what the problem is. then make a decision on rebuild replace or use the engine from my other bus in the u.k.

[jason k]

what cov kid is getting at is with the plugs out try turning it by hand.

take the cover off the fan hub and stick a spanner on the bolt and try to turn it over.

you could have a starter fault but see if it turns over by hand first

[CovKid]

Yep,thanks Jason - I should have explained better.

It could be that theres a problem during the full cycle (ie all four cylinders going through the motions) and turning by hand may help pinpoint where the issue is. Sometimes removing valve covers will help as it could be a dropped/broken valve or anything and you'll know at what point it locks or seizes. You can't actually 'feel' anything via the starter which is why I suggested doing this by hand. If it won't turn with a spanner then you really do have a prob.