Pat Downs 2332cc maintenance

I use a VW Beetle manual as the basis for any work on my VMC Speedster.  For valve adjustment Greg recommends 0.005" for intake and exhaust.

Jason

Hi thanks for that info. Can you suggest a Bentely manual usually there's a year range. I asked Pat Downs but was unresponsive

thanks

the Orange cover one has Dual port motors , ball joint from suspension and IRS rear suspension ,

The Blue cover one has swing axle , IRS , Ball joint  and single port motors ,

They have been printed for 40 years or more so there are lots of used ones !

Originally they were less than $10 now $60

Also find an Idiot book 

Thank you so much for all that great info and will do regarding the idiot book.

many thanks
D

@Mike Manning posted:

Hi thanks for that info. Can you suggest a Bentely manual usually there's a year range. I asked Pat Downs but was unresponsive

thanks

I purchased the orange Bentley manual -- years 70 through 79.

Jason

That's the one I use as well.  

Thank you!  very helpful

I thought someone might suggest; ‘ How to fix your vw, the book for the complete idiot” it predates the dummy series.

Ummmm, No.   That book’s not for me.

The best I’ve been able to accomplish is just half an idiot.

But Mom always said I was cute………

Don't sell yourself short, Gordon, you're a compleat idiot in my book.

In all seriousness, the Muir book is very good, despite the somewhat humorous cover and writing style.

Way back in the late 1970's, when I was a lowly project manager at Data General Mini-Computer Corp, one of the more talented tech writers wrote a "How-To" manual as a joke for our Systems Engineers lucky enough to be helping our customers run our Commercial Advanced Operating System (pronounced CHAOS).  

Here is a photo of the title page of my copy.  Zoom in and read the finer print, too, and you MicroCode and Software Weinies will get a kick out of the part number (fine print, center of page).  It was actually a very accurate and complete manual, but the reader couldn't stop laughing as they went from page to page.  

Who says Computer geeks don't have any fun?

This is the same company that had a really good Employee Rock Band that did parodies of just about anything Data General-ish, but mostly made fun of the Sales force.  They called themselves "The Talking Propeller-Heads" and have a few videos up on Youtube.  

https://www.youtube.com/result...r+heads+data+general

Here's one of their videos.  "Ed" was our CEO, Ed DeCastro and "Herb" was Herb Richman, the VP of Sales, and they were our company founders.

I use Muir and the orange Bentley. It doesn’t help with wiring. So far as I can tell we just have to figure it out.

I have found it to be a fun puzzle to figure out how to do things that don’t have easy solutions. How to get a CA yellow plate. How to relocate switches. How to make VW switches look like Porsche ones. How to make the front end less skittish. How to make mats that look more like 356 originals. How to get all of the LEDs to work. How to make period seatbelts without spending a ton. What to do about emblems. How to pack the frunk. What about Porsche keys. What octane is best. Why you should carry a fan belt and which one.  Why does the front end squeak.  What accessories match yellow taillights. What to do with gauges. I feel I’ve only scratched the surface so far.  You may find a few!  Let’s us all know…

I've got 'em all. I can't say I ever look or refer to any of them. So much doesn't apply that the little that does gets lost in the noise. Mine are in a file somewhere, along with the (unused) Johnson guide to authenticity, etc.

Years ago, when it was $29.99 I bought the blue Bentley(1966-69) manual. The reasoning was it covered the swing axle AND IRS transaxles, along with 6v and 12v electricals(no alternators, just generators).

I use it for specs, pictures, and general reference when rebuilding transaxles.

And of course, the ball joint front beam. As Stan states, not much else applies.

Arriving today(since I now need it for racing) is a factory VW 1200 manual(found on ebay for under $100). This will be useful for the engine stuff and especially the old king and link pin beam on my Formula Vee.

I'll also be ordering king pins, link pins, bushings, and an 18mm hand reamer. Took this stuff apart yesterday, FORCE and heat required.