Wow. I watched both videos of that super spreader event, and didn't see a single mask...that was a shock to me. Anyway, covid shaming aside it looks like an incredible event! Pretty adventurous of your daughter and fam to get out there with the baby too.
Are these late model Beetles really that bad? I saw four of them for under $1,000 at a local charity auction here including one for $300. I am thinking cheap rallycross car.
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
The Beetle's mechanical bits are just Mk IV Golf, so reliability ought to be similar. I wonder if the depreciation is a result of it being viewed as a girl's car to some extent. Like you, I go looking and $1k will find you a running car.
I see broken ones for less than $1,000 and some of them even come with turbochargers and manual transmissions. It looks like these are the unwanted stepchildren of German cars.
The drivetrain is basic MK4 VW which is nothing special, but not terrible. The most significant problem with these cars is that the interiors literally fall apart. For rallycross, who cares if the door panel is gone and the window regulators have failed? For a sub-$1000 car expect the timing belt to be overdue for a change, control arms and ball joints to be worn out, failed HVAC control, and the interior door panels to be falling off. A perfect cheap beater to run into the ground.
The "Gambler 500 Kansas Rally Spring Sling" is this weekend. Here's a picture from their Facebook of when they were scouting the course:
It's going to be fun. I'm excited. There were some last minute things I had to do on the Dung Beetle to be ready and I think I have them done now. The oil pan needed to be cleaned and there was a coolant leak that had to be fixed.
Coolant was leaking from a cracked plastic connector that had been repaired (badly) in the past. I got a new part and installed it. It leaked from the weak old spring clamps then, so I replaced those as well. I think it's good now.
These engines have a bad reputation and I believe a legal settlement because of sludge developing in the oil pan from the turbo lubrication getting too hot. A few times while I was driving the low oil pressure light blinked for a moment, so I wanted to clean out the sump and put fresh oil in before doing the 500 mile back-road weekend. Whoever put the oil pan back on last used way too much sealant and I was worried that some had probably broken off and got stuck in the oil pick-up tube. I cleaned it all off, thinking of what an idiot the last person who worked on the car must be. I put sealant on the pan, put the ~20 bolts back in, then torqued each one. Satisfied that I had done an awesome job, I climbed out from under the car and noticed the oil pick-up tube laying next to my toolbox. Oops, now I'm the idiot. I took the pan back off, installed the pick-up tube, hoped the sealant was still good, bolted and torqued. Nope. One corner leaked. Just a slow drip, but enough that I was going to have to take the pan back off and re-seal it one more time. To make it sort-of worth while, I ran/drove the car for a couple hours to give it a good flush with the fresh oil. All good now.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
At least you discovered the pickup before you started it.
We had a great time at the 'Spring Sling' and Dung Beetle was awesome. The water crossings and deep muddy roads were the most fun, but there was lots of cool, scenic checkpoints and terrain along the Kansas - Oklahoma border. We also picked up a LOT of trash and saw a Rodeo. I don't have any good shots of us in the mud or deep water (we were inside the car, duh), but got lots of pics of other cars. Here's a few uploads so far:
That beetle ute is pretty sweet. Looks like a fun time.
After Action Review...
Event Album: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmVqm9Q8
Dung Beetle's performance: It ran well with no serious problems, but revealed some areas that need attention.
The traction control (VW ESP ) needs to be turned off before entering deep water, or trying 'donut' maneuvers. Running through the water, revving the engine for directional control and momentum; the last thing I needed was to have the ESP applying a selective hard brake and cutting throttle. Donuts are hard enough for me to do with the FWD and big front tires reducing the turning radius – having the car specifically try to stop spinning and sliding kills the fun and makes me sad.
The radiator hose issue: Occasionally the radiator fan rubs on the upper radiator hose. That's not good. I zip tied a piece of license plate metal around the hose to temporarily protect it, but the fan-rubbing-on-metal noise is not a good thing. Happens mostly when the car is put in park and rolls slightly forward. Maybe an engine mount is bad. Move the hose, or get a flatter fan.
Intermittent whining noise from right front: Seems to be caused by the angle and direction of the sun. I need to tint the passenger side window and fix the blend door for the HVAC. The door that switches from heat to AC in these VWs has big holes covered with foam. When the foam is gone, the heat blows along with the AC. Not good with Mrs AAZCD in the navigator seat in full sun.
Service the transmission: At the end of two days of hard driving, deep mud and water, and high revving fun, the transmission got a little clunky in low gear and shifting from reverse. At 112,000 miles I bet it has never been serviced. Couldn't hurt to change the filter and put some fresh fluid in.
Kit: HF “Racing Jack”, plastic bin with assorted tools, Duct tape and zip ties, Motor oil, water, and coolant, 15' long 2” wide ratchet strap, 50' rope, 12 volt jump/aux power battery. Add: Larger sockets to help out with Truck lugs, about three feet of radiator hose and heater hose, Hacksaw, and bigger hammer.
Navigation: We used Gaia GPS app on an android tablet and phone. Rather than entering all the checkpoints, we usually only loaded the next one. That reduced clutter and confusion of which point to go to. My offline map download was interrupted at some point and I didn't find out until too late. Expect no phone or data coverage and check maps before heading to the wilds. With Gaia, I liked using the “Guide Me” feature better than “Driving Directions”. “Guide Me” just shows a direct line to the checkpoint and lets you choose the path. “Driving directions” defaults to Google and tries to give turn by turn directions. In this terrain that's just an annoying voice nagging you to go the other way.
Social: People are awesome, but tend to stay in their little clusters at first. We stayed at a motel instead of camp, so we were even more isolated. Walking group to group taking pictures and asking about cars, breaks the ice and makes quick and easy friends. I need to take more pictures of people, most of my pics are of cars. Be prepared to explain the Gambler 500 and cars to everyone you meet on the road – You are a stranger doing strange things in their land. Most of them will share back with local knowledge and character.
Rodeos are awesome to watch.
Do not try riding an angry bull.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
I wonder if you have enough access to the motor mount that you could just goop some liquid nails in there & hope it stiffens it up?
In reply to Pete Gossett (Forum Supporter) :
I just looked it up at FCP Euro and the mount that is most likely the problem (Dogbone mount) is pretty affordable. I still need to get more of a gap between the fan and hose though. I have the radiator raised about 2" above the stock position and set back a little.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
Oh nice. Hopefully there's room to replace it without too much trouble.
There's a local Gambler 500 event in the morning. I didn't think I was going to make it. Dung Beetle had developed a low oil pressure warning that stayed on constantly above 1,500 rpm. It did fine for the whole Kansas rally, not even a flicker for 500 miles of back road and deep water abuse. It was back home, driving around town that it came on and wouldn't go away except by reducing the rpm below the threshold. I was worried that I may have damaged the engine by driving it slowly but surely back to the house.
I flushed the oil and changed the filter – the oil had less than 600 miles on it and still looked fresh. I checked the PCV system and found a bad hose near the valve.
I replaced about half the system and cleaned the rest. No change to the warning light. I bought an oil pressure test kit along with a new pressure switch. It was a real pain to reach the switch and after attempting to connect the test gauge up I decided to just replace the switch.
No change. I read everything I could find online; Audizine, NewBeetle.org, VWVortex and others. I started thinking that the oil pump was bad. Once again I pulled off the sump, cleaned everything (everything was already clean), and looked at what I could see of the oil pump. Everything looked good. I decided to use the oil pressure tester – I had learned there's a port on top of the filter manifold that is much easier to access than the one on the side. The pressures at idle, 2000, and 3000 rpm read perfect, even a little high. Huh..?
I did what I should have done in the beginning. I pulled the Bentley Service Manual from my bookshelf and looked up the engine oil pressure warning light. It took me to section 17, pages 2 and 3. I did the test. The test showed that the circuit to the oil pressure switch was bad. I cleaned the connector and plugged it back in. PROBLEM SOLVED.
At least I have a super-clean sump and fresh PCV system now.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
Had a similar problem on our 2010 Odyssey. Three pin sensor, one pin totally corroded away. Replaced wiring pigtail and sensor, no more oil light!
It was awesome. I'm definitely going to service the transmission now. It started slipping pretty bad for some reason. Maybe water got in the vent?
...and a bigger winch. Maybe make sure it's a waterproof one.
Edit: Don't watch this one, it's 10 minutes long ...and it's a long 10 minutes. Just go to my next post and watch the "Wanda the Honda" one.
'Okie Fambler' video:
Ok, New Shorter Videos! For Better Watching!
Wanda in the mud. This is where Dung Beetle got stuck and sank. I blame Wanda for rutting it deeper.
The Fauxrari couldn't quite get up the hill and needed some help. #TiresMatter .
The rest of the cars at the event driving by.
After I got home from the 'Fambler' a friend called me to ask advice about buying a Porsche Boxster that was potentially a flood car. It didn't even occur to me until today that what I have done to Dung Beetle, just out having fun, is far worse than most flood cars. Should I file an insurance claim? The mud completely filled the floor of the car. I parked on a steep slope and opened the door to let it flow back out while I bailed with a plastic cup. At one point the roll-over protection either triggered or shorted out and the rear headrest roll protector things popped up. Oops. Maybe it's time to think about caging it? The roll-over things pushed back down and they are staying so far.
A couple people asked me if I was going to be able to fix the winch. I said, "Hell no. It's just a $50 HF winch, throw it away and buy another." Today I remembered how cheap I am. I partially disassembled it, rinsed out the mud, flushed it with some waste jet fuel, then sprayed in some lube at the bearing. Back together and it works fine. I still need to make a better mount for it.
I serviced the transmission today. There were water droplets in the fluid, fine grit in the filter, and discoloration from wear. The transmission might be done.
During the refill process when I went through the gears and it went into reverse and drive okay. After I was done it would not engage in reverse at all. I ran some extra fluid through it and it still looks ugly coming out. I'm starting to think that these transmissions weren't designed to run for extended periods under water. I did a test drive. It did move forward and shift through the gears a little rough, but there was no inkling that it was responding to reverse.
Next, I'm going to buy a couple jugs of Valvoline Maxlife ATF and do a drain and fill again. If that doesn't work, I'll dump in one of those magical transmission repair additives. If that doesn't work, I may tow it to a HooptieX and drive it forward 'till it dies a worthy death.
I tried to do other things today; Took the cover off of a 914 and a Boxster and poked around the interiors. Started taking plastics off of my recently acquired KLR650, then put them back on. I can't move on until I dig into the Dung Beetle transmission one more time.
I found some PDFs online with diagrams of the transmission, but they don't make much sense. It's my understanding that automatic transmissions work by spinning discs with magical glitter on them. The faster the glitter spins, the faster the car goes. In my case, some of the glitter has come off of the discs and settled to the bottom of the pan. That static glitter counteracts the spinning glitter and stops the transmission from engaging. Hoping that if I clean it all off, there will still be enough glitter left on the discs to drive the car.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
"I'm starting to think that these transmissions weren't designed to run for extended periods under water." - This needs to be go in the quotes section of the magazine. 
I'm headed to Ft Smith Arkansas to pick up a $400 '02 Beetle. Manual transmission and mis-firing 2.0L (non-turbo) engine. The plan is to get it. ...then make the plan.
Nice blue. She matches the Tow Pig. I may swap the Dung Beetle parts over.
In reply to tremm :
These are terrible cars. I get them for well under $1,000. Because they are terrible and cheap, I don't have any reservations about ripping them apart, adjusting the exterior with a Sawzall and duct tape, then driving them across rivers and into mud holes. The original black one that came back to me for free (towing cost) is a happy memory now. I enjoyed transforming it as much as I enjoyed driving it in events and around town. When it wore out beyond reasonable repair, it made me see them all as disposable individually, but a concept that I can carry forward. I like the light blue convertible one a lot, but I also like being able to walk away from it after taking the 'hard trail' and burying it in the mud. If I love a car too much, it won't be a good Gambler.
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