vanagon caps?

Piper · Post by **Piper** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 5:04 pm

Wondering if the old school VW moon eye type caps that came on buses and beetles will fit stock black steel Vanagon rims? If they will, what size do I need to look for, (I'm thinking eBay). The generic wheel covers that came on my bus just aren't cutting it looks wise.

aircooledtechguy · Post by **aircooledtechguy** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 5:12 pm

The '68-'79 Beetle hub caps will fit on stock steel Vanagon wheels, if that's the type you are talking about.

sideshow · Post by **sideshow** » Mon Jan 14, 2008 7:15 pm

An old codger (pre internet expert) was telling me that the early hub caps will fit a Vanagon wheel...but there is a tiny difference compared to the real thing, most applicability there is a minor difference in the lip and only the Vanagon style hub caps are known to stay on in motion.

aircooledtechguy · Post by **aircooledtechguy** » Tue Jan 15, 2008 6:58 am

A check of the dealer catalog will show that a hub cap from a '68-on beetle will fit (and carries the same P/N) as any '68-on VW 411/412, type3, type2, Vanagon, type1. Sometimes even "old codgers" are not correct all the time. . . After market caps sometimes don't well, maybe that was his experience??

Piper · Post by **Piper** » Tue Jan 15, 2008 6:40 pm

thanks guys!

dr. no · Post by **dr. no** » Sun Jan 20, 2008 5:24 pm

Here are mine:

Actually harder to get off than on a Type 1.

Piper · Post by **Piper** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 2:42 pm

thats exactly what I'm after!

Piper · Post by **Piper** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:45 pm

OK, so how do I get these darn things on? they are sooo close to fitting! There are the three raised areas the cap wants to snap over, but they seem just slightly, (like a 32nd of an inch) too small. Do they need something to help get them on, like vasaline? How hard should i have to force them on? Understanding that they need to be tight to stay on.

dr. no · Post by **dr. no** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 7:15 pm

Get it over two of them, then kick it in place

Post by **Piledriver** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:18 pm

dr. no wrote:Get it over two of them, then kick it in place

He's not kidding.

Piper · Post by **Piper** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:15 pm

OK, thats what I was trying, guess I'll keep pushing! Thanks guys!

sideshow · Post by **sideshow** » Mon Jun 22, 2009 10:33 pm

aircooledtechguy wrote:A check of the dealer catalog will show that a hub cap from a '68-on beetle will fit (and carries the same P/N) as any '68-on VW 411/412, type3, type2, Vanagon, type1...

Well many manuals have a section on antifreeze, even several that claim to cover nothing but the air-cooled era stuff.

Myself I have never owned something that new but according to him the rims are same (hub cap flange) but the front grease cap or whatever sticks out more than other models. He observed that before the crappy plastic wheel covers were the normal a slightly different hubcap was used on the vanagon.

Laying a few flat on the floor tells me he might be onto something; vanagon, common normal, vanagon, common normal.

While the common cap will fit it will not stay on in motion on the fronts (rears seem fine). EMPI isn't making dealer manuals are they?