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Hi Jack,
Ag Shame man, what terrible crime did you commit to end up in the snow and wind and strange accents?

Today it is 36 degrees, and I am busy working on a high-roof bay window Kombi I just bought. (in between dips in the pool)
My 412 came back from having the suspension sorted, now sits almost level!
Both tappet covers are leaking so will have to sort those out before I go driving in it. Am trying to decide on a colour for the re-spray, so far green has it!

Also bought a VW double-cab the other day, air-cooled Caravelle shape. Brilliant pick-up truck, should have bought one years ago!

I bought the car off DAZ MAX, and am going to try get it sorted this year, and get her running nicely, have not thought much about what i want to do, but one thing i want to do is get hold of a stencil for the side of the car....

even though it is off the road, i still start her up and let her run for a while, just to keep the engine running. I have noticed she does idle a bit erratically.....

Cumulus, sent you a Private Message as well...looks like i will be visiting here quite a bit...

this is the other forum i also frequent www.volkszone.com and same username on there ...
This is me...

these are my kids...youngest and middle ones...

and my eldest...
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and our 3 ....
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Welcome to the forums! Ray

Welcome to STF! Enjoy the forums.

doc

thanks guys, i need to get the 411 sorted now...

Hello to all members of this Forum

This the paradise !!!
So many people that like Type 4 !!!
At least I am not alone in the world...

12 years ago I bought a 1973 412 LE VARIANT, in good condition, original, blue marathon.
Confortable, lots of space, more powerfull than type 1 and 3.
I realized that type 4 engines are the best in the air cooled VWs.
One problem: the great majority of VW mechanics, didn't know the D Jetronic F.I.. No interest to understand and know the technologie and bad face when I arrived with the 412.
So, for them, te F.I. was allways giving problems, was not reliable, the engine was not good, and so on...
And my wife...refused absolutely enter in the 412...what an horrible car, ugly...and my sons, also didn't like that I piked them in the school driving the 412...
After 3 years, I sold the 412. What a mistake!!!

Meanwhille, I used on dayli drive a 74 1303 S, 53 Oval, 70 Type 3 Variant, 82 GTI Mk1, 83 GTI Mk1, 1,8, 90 G 60, 91 Scirocco GT, and allways keeping my 66 Samba Bus.

I like all these cars that I have been using, but... type 4 engine is the best, for me.

And I came again to Type 4 engine with a 75 914 2,0, wich is now my dayli drive. Powerfull enough, very reliable, wonderful.

And now, that my girl and boy have their own cars, I want to buy again a 412 Variant or a rare 2 door 412.

Finding this Forum, Tom's corner, Type 4.org, is giving me the possibility of understanding and knowing a litlle better D Jetronic F.I., the Eberspacher gasoline heater, and much more...so that I can provide the mechanic with the information in order that he can make a good and correct assistence to my next 412.

Thanks to all of you for helping to keep 411 / 412 alive and with your comments, giving information to assist and resolve all the problems that appear on a restoration.

And it is interesting finding 411 / 412 enthousiasts from different countries in the world, all ages, ocupations, but the same interest for these cars.
Thanks God.

Paulo, 48 years old, from Porto, Portugal

Hi everyone,

My name is Tara and I've been a lurker on The Samba for a bit. Totally not a mechanic but am trying, through my 74 412 wagon (which is my daily driver), to understand cars a bit better.

Please forgive, in advance, any silly questions I might ask.

Thanks!

Hi Tara! Welcome, and tell us about your 412, where in the world you are, et cetera!

I myself live in the Seattle area and have two 412s and one 411, all three are daily drivers. Well, maybe not daily for each one, but each car does get driven at least once a week, depending on the weather and situation at hand.

I'm in Los Angeles.

My 412 came to me last March. At first I saw it and, being a Suzuki Sidekick driver, said, no way. BUT I'm shallow. I love the way this car looks. And when I drove it, I was hooked!

It needs some work on the interior but nothing that affects driving. It's got all the seats but a little rust on the inside. The seats are in a sad shape but they have covers over them.

I believe it's do for a valve adjustment because today, for the first time, it shut off. I pumped the gas a little and it came back on but it's running a little rough. I thought perhaps it was oil because the oil was below the minimum line when I checked it. I added some, drove it a bit and ran smoother but not the same.

Anyways, I love this car and I never expected to so I know I've joined an elite group.

Elite indeed! Well I never quite thought of it exactly like that, but we are at least very unique. I don't know why I am so into type-fours, but I've had five of them, beginning in 1984. Ugly cars? Many think so, but not me. I like the extra power and room they have, and the fact that they are so "un-loved" cause something in me to love them even more. In fact it is my contention that "type-four" is a great metaphor for many things in life: all that is unique, strange, unpopular perhaps, misunderstood...these are the Type Four things in life!
Your current problem may indeed be the valves, but, as you will discover with these needy cars, it may be something else entirely, for which you will get to spend many joyous hours scratching your head to find a solution. The good folks here are a great help, both practically and for emotional support. Let us know how we can help!

Please forgive, in advance, any silly questions I might ask.

Not asking a question is silly.....

Greetz, Ronald

Hey Tara - is that your 411 now for sale on the Samba? I hope you didn't lose heart so fast after all! Well, these cars are a calling, after all.

Been in the Type 4rum for a little while for my 72 Bay Window Bus. But I just picked up a 1971 411 Squareback automatic. I love it already and I just got it yesterday. She will need some work though.

First things on the list are:
1. Brakes
2. Front Suspension (scary job)
3. Stiff shifter - have to pull real hard to get it out of park (yes I'm pulling up)
4. Ditch the 009
5. Replace the fuel lines and move the filter away from the engine compartment

PICS!
http://www.sluggoproductions.com/iac/vi ... php?t=1403

Not so scary. The front end is not actualy very scary at all. The scary part is finding parts...be we have several ways of getting around things...read through the forums.
The shifter...I assume is an automatic? Simply grease the cable. The easiest way to do this is to mark first....then detach the tranny end from its clamp. Get a piece of heater hose...say about 1/2" ID and clamp it onto the cable cover. In teh other end...clamp the nozzle of a grease gun. Start pumping. Use black lithium or molygraph grease. Welcome!

raygreenwood wrote:Not so scary. The front end is not actualy very scary at all. The scary part is finding parts...be we have several ways of getting around things...read through the forums.
The shifter...I assume is an automatic? Simply grease the cable. The easiest way to do this is to mark first....then detach the tranny end from its clamp. Get a piece of heater hose...say about 1/2" ID and clamp it onto the cable cover. In teh other end...clamp the nozzle of a grease gun. Start pumping. Use black lithium or molygraph grease. Welcome!

Thanks! I don't know if it needs a complete suspension overhaul or not. It seems to have some up & down wobble in the front while moving. I know we need to replace the bearings.