My New Estate

[Bill K.]

It's green, but it's clean.
I'm happy to have a new car to go from my new home to my new job. It's all good.
After fixing a few things, I'll move on to swapping in new/rebuilt suspension and upgraded brakes from my other 412 project car.
It's great to be cruising country roads in a Type 4!

Bill

[vwbill]

Wow, congrates! Very Nice wagen! You have a sweeeet new ride!! It looks like it has the Ljet set up too! Is it the 1800? Auto! I love the wagen 411/412's they are so great for cruizen four people and lots of gears spaces! Where did you find that rare sweet condition 412?Congrates again!! Bill,jr

[raygreenwood]

Nope...that is late D-jet with the plastic round air cleaner....but its nice! Ray

[plumcrazee]

nice looking ride dude very clean

[vwbill]

Damn, you have a better eye then me Ray, as always! I seen the dash pot and did that assumtion thing! Nice car!! Thanks for the post! bill

[Bill K.]

It has an EA case rebuilt to stock 1700. The PO said he replaced #1 when he rebuilt the engine after getting the car via donation to his vocational school where he taught transmissions. The exhaust valve seat popped and the car was donated with the engine in boxes. He had never built a VW and the school didn't take on the car as a project, so he acquired it and rebuilt it as a challenge. He had head work done by Adrian (Headflow Masters), so that's fine by me... FI was tuned by a fellow teacher. The motor has a few hundred miles on it since rebuild. I got 20 mpg on the first tank.

The car was purchased in Olympia where I bought it and was owned most recently by a couple who had the paint and interior done. The car was used for touring as a "tow car" for a boat. The boat had a crane for loading/unloading It's nice to have found one with a pampered history... for $2900

I've been very busy with my relocation and have tuned out the VW scene for several months but the other week I opened mail and found this car on The Samba. Being close, I decided to go for it. The PO was very detailed and straightforward on the phone and on visiting his shop it confirmed this was a good buy. His shop was well kept and occupied by finished and in-process classic muscle cars. He handed over all the receipts for his work, the original owners manual, and a Type 2 Repair Manual with full disclosure on the condition of the car.

The drivers seat back was busted so I replaced the tipping lock arm frame mount mechanism with parts from my other 412. What a pain, but now the seat is very comfortable. It took 2 seats to get enough parts to repair it...

Other items on the repair list include:
* Master cylinder -- rebuild to fix drip
* Water leak above fuse box -- source?
* Battery tray -- rusted out
* Horn -- no toot
* Clock -- no ticks
* Passenger window regulator -- track is stripped/slipping
* Passenger seat belt real -- rattles like hell on recoil
* Gas heater -- no go

Upgrades down the road:
* Front suspension - rebuild, upgrade, and lower
* Rear suspension - replace shocks, add sway bar, delrin bushings
* Gas tank - rust treatment
* Brakes -- rear disks, front upgrades
* Wheels -- wider, taller, kuhler
* Engine - TBD
* Trans -- "Z" code converter?
* Paint -- no, green is good

I took my wife and 3 kids for ride tonight and they thought it was a blast. Almost as rewarding is that I can now rid myself of the sorry Accord I've been driving.

Thanks for the cheers,
Bill

[Wally]

Estate?? That is an extremely nice Variant!!

Congrets Bill! Good to read from you again
Don't be a stranger no more

[Bill K.]

Greetings Walter. All is well now that we are settled and my fingernails are dirty again New job has less travel, but more fun and time for family. See ya, Bill

[raykinsella]

Hey -another type 4 in the Puget Sound! Great! I live across the water on Bainbridge and I have three type fours. I was just driving around with my three kids as well. They love to ride in my Estate. Ever get over this way? Look on ebay right now; somebody's selling a master cylinder rebuild kit. And there's a NOS clock for sale on Samba.

[Bill K.]

Thanks for reaching out Ray. Maybe we can meet up this summer... A ferry ride in the wagen, lunch, and some gallery shopping sounds good. I'll PM contact info.

Thanks for the parts leads. The MC rebuild kit was FAG which I believe is for power brakes and I have manual (ATE/Teves). I'm looking at going with Greenwoods bus modification to prolong obsolescence issues. I'll check the clock wiring before replacing.

Take care,
Bill

[Bill K.]

For posterity, here's my Craigslist ad for the Squareback I SOLD today.

==============START OF OLD AD ===============================
Description:
* This is a nice daily driver for a VW enthusiast
* 1973 Volkswagen 412 station wagon (a.k.a. Type 4, Squareback, Estate, or Variant)
* Marketed as "The Rich Man's Volkswagen" as it was the nicest VW of it's time

<---- New Paint --->


<---- New Interior --->


<---- New Engine --->

<---- New Transmission Seals --->


<---- Roomy --->


Ownership History:
* Original owner purchased car in Olympia Washington from dealer
* Second owner, a transmission specialist teaching shop at community college, acquired car after it was donated to the school. He rebuilt the engine and serviced the transmission in 2005. He put about 200 miles on the car after the rebuild before selling it to me.
* I purchased car in April 2007 and have put about 2000 miles on it while making upgrades and repairs. The odometer reads about 67k miles (reported to be original miles per second owner). I've used the car for my daily driver and it is great for commuting. I need to sell the car after buying a 1973 412 Coupe, due to space constraints.

Features:
* Roomy interior
* Comfortable seats
* Fully automatic transmission
* Reliable engine
* Smooth suspension
* Unique model

Recent Services (within last 2500 miles):
* Rebuilt 1.7L engine with rebuilt heads from Headflow Masters
* Valve clearance and timing set
* New vacuum and fuel hoses throughout
* New Cylinder Head Temperature sender
* Leak-free Manifold Pressure Sensor
* Pertronix electronic ignition upgrade
* New Bosch Blue coil
* New Bosch Tri-electrode spark plugs
* Rebuilt Aux. Air Regulator
* New Air Filter
* New transmission seals
* Rebuilt distributor

Drivability:
* Starts on first crank
* Idles and warms up nice
* Accelerates and shifts smooth
* Suspension rides smooth, but has slight front-end shimmy at 45 mph
* Brake pedal is firm

Interior:
* New carpet
* New front seat vinyl and padding - very comfortable
* Alpine CD player stereo
* Clean dash with few cracks (clock does not work)
* Headliner is free of sags, but does have a couple small tears
* New rear hatch hinge covers
* Windows operate well and do not leak
* Heating system is adequate even though auxiliary heater does not work

Exterior:
* Newer glossy green paint covering all surfaces - very thorough
* Doors close well but have small dents evident with correct lighting
* Bumpers have good chrome but dented in a couple places
* Full set of body trim, but dinged up
* Windshield is free of cracks or hazing
* Indicator lenses are clear and intact
* Tires are worn but still have life

===============END OF OLD AD =============================

I passed it on in better shape than I got it and didn't loose anything but time so I'm happy.

I still have a few Variant parts for those interested.
* NOS rear turn signals lenses ($70/pair)
* Good used rear tail light lenses ($30/pair) and rear light housings ($20/pair)
* Good used rear swaybar with hardware for automatic ($100)
* Good used intake bellow ($20) and duct ($20)

[Wally]

Oh man, I would have an extremely hard time selling a specimen of such a fine car if it were mine...
I suppose you had your (good) reasons.

[Bill K.]

Oh man, I would have an extremely hard time selling a specimen of such a fine car if it were mine...
I suppose you had your (good) reasons.

Wally - I wish I had your creativity for garage packing. Your Variant is well stowed, but my Americanized garage just can't handle it. Convincing the wife to sell the minivan to keep the Squareback wasn't an option eventhough she likes it better than the Coupe. The Squareback was a nice ride, but like most of these cars, had it's issues. I was lucky to find a Coupe having:
* 4 speed with quicker gearing instead of flat automatic in low end
* Original paint with chips instead of new paint covering bubbling rust
* Solid pan instead of rusted out battery pan
* Dashboard with minor cracks instead of gaping ones
* Newer master cylinder instead of original leaking one
* Leak-free windshield instead of need for car cover when it pours


I'll miss a few things about the Squareback:
* New comfortable seats
* Spacious cargo area
* Automatic in stop-and-go traffic

[SureFit Travis]

Got any more pics of that car??? Interior??

Okay, my interests are biased.

I just completed the front seats in my 412 today, including installing seat-heaters, and now I'm moving onto the rear seat. I'm going to replace the carpeting behind the rear seat while I'm at it, as the sun has really bleached it out over the years. It was a nice dark blue originally, and now it looks almost grey.

Love to see more pics of the car.

Travis

[Bill K.]

Likewise Travis, show us your work!

Here's Samba pictures from PO.





It's got that semi-crusty, well used, but not destroyed interior thing going on. Could use some SureFit magic ...and some tunes