VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

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jingle_jangle
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VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jingle_jangle »

I built this car in 1977 from a napkin sketch I made in 1968...still have the sketch and working drawings, too.

It's been rebuilt and repainted no less than 5 times. In 2002, I shipped the wood and fiberglass parts to Brazil and spent Winter and Spring rebuilding it on a 1976 Brazilian Beetle.



Here's a glimpse inside as I'm driving it on local cobblestone streets. Listen to me complain!

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johnallg
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by johnallg »

How cool is that?! Must be rewarding, Paul.
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ram
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by ram »

That is cool Paul! Love the back swing doors! Great paint job too! that IS style!
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Hotzenplotz
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by Hotzenplotz »

Yeah! A fusca! (That is the name of them in Brazil)

I had a '78 1300cc with original 60.000km when I lived there - absolutely no rust. like new! I was a driver of these for over 20 years. Last year I sold my '67 export (double bumpers, light blue with red interior.) after owning it since 1990. I was a good friend all the time, never had a problem. (except one necessary engine change after 177.000km - not bad for these!)

The exhaust sounds like the typical brazilian ones where just the pipes are bundled and with no space for any insulating material.
The bubbling "inhalation" of the engine when pushing down the throttle control sounds like there is not much above the carburetter - right? Surely not the original oil-filled air cleaner...
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woodyng
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by woodyng »

FUN,FUN,FUN!
i bet it is really nice with the windows all out in the warm Brazilian weather!
oh,and the house looks really interesting,too-maybe a pictorial of that sometime for us modern architecture buffs? (love your bay area home)
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jingle_jangle »

Sascha--yep, it was built on a '76 Fusca (Portuguese for "beetle"). The car came from a desert city (Caico) which is also my momma-in-law's hometown. No rust, ever, but lotsa dents and wheels that were so totally thrashed from smacking curbs that all four had to be replaced with new ones.

Now, about those guesses...it is currently running a 1500cc single-port engine, because the 2200cc monster motor that I built for it back in '86 won't run reliably on low-octane Brazilan gas. The only mod to the motor is a quiet-pack exhaust, and it does have the original oil-bath air cleaner, with its oil up to the mark. So you're probably focusing on a sonic anomaly of the camera's microphone. On other than cobblestone streets, the car is amazingly stiff and quiet and the motor has a healthy roar but is not loud enough to compete with the Blaupunkt CD radio system.

About the house, Woody...it's owned by a friend of my mother-in-law. She's 90 and lives there by herself. I've never been inside...

The following photos were taken (along with about 100 others) at a friend's walled, gated house last week. We visited her very sick mother and while there I asked permission to photo the car under the porte cochere.

Image

Image

On the street, it got a thumbs-up from the local car guys...

Image

:D :D :D :D
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jimk »

Love the Model A Ford tail lights. That's a classy touch. But then, I've always been nuts about Model A Fords.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by Hotzenplotz »

@ Paul: Thank You! So the Idea about the camera mic sounds logically.

If You want to raise the octane You could use the normal alcohol from every gas station. Alcohol offers 102-104 octane. It can be used mixed or pure. You only have to use the gas leading parts from the alcohol versions that are still around for a few bucks. If You use alcohol pure the flow-rate is at about 30% more.

I did that with my 5series BMW - no problem at all. For further informations (there are a few things to follow) we could PM about if You want. In the german BMW E34 (5series) forum I am something like You and Your guitars.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jingle_jangle »

Sascha: The issue was only partially octane. There seems to be some sort of additive in Brazilian gasoline that reacts with the metals of the Weber carburetors (IDF44) that I have on the big motor. I would drive it, park it overnight, and in the morning it would not start due to fuel starvation. The first time I pulled the carbs down, I found hundreds of needle-like transparent crystals clogging the main jets. I would clear the jets and drive it and find the same issue the next morning. I spoke to a couple of local engineers and they suggested I pick up an aviation fuel filter. I think they were convinced it was dirt causing the problem. But, the inline fuel filter was clean--whatever was happening, was happening inside the carburetors when they were run and then allowed to cool down.

I do remember that, back in the '60s when I drove a new FIAT, I would occasionally have this problem--maybe a couple of times per year. The FIAT had a single Weber.

Before I put the wood body on the Fusca, it was an unassuming white car, dead stock, with bashed up wheels and lots of dents. Into this I grafted the 2200cc, 150+ HP motor, just to dial in the mechanicals before I did the body conversion. The car ran very strongly and never lost a street race during that time. Oddly, the fuel problems only started after it had sat idle for three months while I did the body conversion and paint. Weird.

Anyway, it's a fun drive, and the smaller motor starts on the key and idles and runs like new. It only has about 80 miles on the rebuild.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by ozover50 »

That's great, Paul!! :D

I've seen plenty of pics of the car and knew that it was in Brazil but assumed that it would be covered in cobwebs and would have issues given that it's so rarely driven. Did you have much work to do to get into a driveable condition?

Dalia looking beautiful as always, too!! :D
"Never eat more than you can lift." - Mr. Moon
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jingle_jangle »

It's been indoors under a custom-made dust cover for the last eight or so years; the engine swap to the 1500 was done in early '09, and it was driven a bit then. The motor was newly-rebuilt, so it had a new carb, clutch, and the rebuilder also installed a new battery.

I didn't know what to expect when I arrived this time. I looked into the garage and there it was under its cover. I thought it might be taunting me. I avoided even removing the cover for four days. Then early one morning (5:30, before the heat begins at 9 am) I went downstairs to the garage with my momma-in-law's driver, Aldo. We stripped the cover off the car and found--a light coating of dust. When I inserted the ignition key it cranked, but too slowly to fire up. I hooked up some jumper cables, dribbled some gas into the carb mouth, and after a few cranks it started. Five minutes later, the accelerator pump was full enough to give it a goose...I adjusted the idle mixture and speed, and it ran perfectly. Aldo and I gave it a quick wash.

In the trunk, I found a ten-year-old bottle of my favorite Zymol! The bottle was yellowed, but the wax was just fine. I got some clean flannel and a sponge applicator, and we waxed the metal and wiped down the wood. You cannot find whitewall cleaner or Brillo pads in that area of Brazil, but I did find a Scotchbrite pad and something akin to Comet cleanser, so I finally got the tires looking good again.

You'll notice in the second video that the removable radio/CD player faceplate is missing. I found it the day before we flew back--behind the rear seat in the storage compartment.

So, Aitch--about 15 minutes to get it running, and maybe another 30 to wash and wax it. To say I was happy would be an understatement.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by Hotzenplotz »

The needle thing is from things in the gasoline, IMHO. These carburetters are made of zinc die-cast alloy. Maybe Weber used a different mix than the other companies. The gasoline starts a chemical reaction inside the float gauge room.

Most people do not know that even regular gasoline in Brazil contains up to 25% alcohol (e.g. in São Paulo) to avoid/ reduce smog and pollution by unburnt hydrocarbyl. A city like São Paulo would asphyxiate in a few days with todays traffic!

Maybe You can find a company that is able to coat all gasoline leading parts with a thin copper coating at the inside. So these parts need the copper coating: Tank, fuel pipes, fuel pump and the carburetters (float gauge room and carburetor throat for sure, maybe the suction tubes, too - it depends from the alloy these are they made of).
That is the way Volkswagen (surely all other companies, too) went for all alcohol engines with carburetters in the 70's and later on - to avoid the effect You wrote about. A filter can not solve that because it is before the carburetter in the chain.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by jingle_jangle »

You have grasped the issue perfectly, Sascha, and your conclusion that it is a chemical reaction was the same one I arrived at.

Yep- I agree that alcohol could be the culprit. Copper-plated carbs, lines, and fuel tank is a huge undertaking. I'll have to give it a thought...we are considering shipping the car back to SF, too. So there's a lot to think about.

OTOH, if it is just the alloy of the carb bodies (which is my hunch), that's no big deal, and there are lots of platers in that area of Brazil... 8)
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by Hotzenplotz »

Thank You!

I start to think if it is not possible to float these carbs with a mixture of substances that does a chemical reaction that provides a thin copper coat. Equal to the effect silver nitrate can deliver in special cases. Maybe silver nitrate is a possible solution, too. I would try to coat the inside of a test tube with silver nitrate. Then I would fill the silver plated test tube with alcohol for a few days and see what will happen. A simple and cheap try.

A company for surface technology should be able to tell You more. Maybe You try it in the US, to find help directly in Brazil can be very difficult and it can make nerves of steel absolutely essential.

All other parts than the carbs can be taken from a two carb stocked alcohol fusca. If I remember correctly all alcohol fuscas were equipped with two carbs, BTW, but these are unfortunately 28s or 30s, IIRC - a bit to small for a 2.200ccm engine. These alcohol fuscas are still easy to find, maybe as a cheap accident damaged car. A lot of "oficinas" stock these (used) parts, too. So the focus is just on the carbs, the rest of isjust plug and play.
Last edited by Hotzenplotz on Fri Jan 13, 2012 6:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: VWOODIE IN BRAZIL

Post by cjj »

Yep, alcohols such as ethanol and methanol can be classified as weak acids and will react with various metals to different degrees. Methanol is more corrosive to zinc, magnesium, aluminum, and if there's any brass around, this can act as a catalyst to speed up the process. Ethanol is more corrosive to ferrous metals, but can also affect things like zinc, aluminium, etc.

Dr. Gary would be able to tell you far more about this, I'm sure...
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