A beginning.....

With what seems like a rather long list of work to be done to get this Kombi up and running, I needed to make a start at least. So I have chosen a small, seemingly easy, and obvious job to set the ball rolling. By obvious, I mean a job that has been in the feild of veiw every time I glanced at the kombi, cast my eyes over it, or simply walked past it.

The basic plan is to attend to the main repairs required on the body as a primary focus. This will mean some cutting out of damaged and rusty panels, welding in replacement panels, and removal and treatment of the many areas of surface rust, mainly on the roof and gutters.

So to start.......

Although this photo is poor quality (taken pre purchase), it is easy to see that both rear corners have sustained damage and developed rust somewhere along the way. This seemed like a good place to start. Out came the wire wheel and off came the rust, and the filler. The left rear corner had a shallow dent which had been covered with filler, then, perhaps due to poor adhesion or maybe further impact, had come off and left the metal exposed.

After removal of filler back to original well adhered coating , I had a patch three times the size of the original area. Rust had crept its way under the filler, but the damage was not too serious and the dents came out with some patient work with hammer and dolly. The result was satisfactory. A relatively straight (straighter than before) left corner, free of rust, and one happy worker.

As mentioned in a previous post, without a shed this project is going to be a challenge, mostly in terms of protection of work done or underway.

The next manditory step here was to get a coating of something on the bare metal. First up is rust converter, which needed to be left overnight ....

......then three coats of primer.

Three coats, brushed on thickly. It looks so much better already!

I haven't really decided on a final colour at this point, but may stick with the original factory colour. If you have had a look at the youtube clips in previous posts, you may be getting the idea that a rustic, ratty, worn kind of patina is where I am heading, and you are right, for now at least.

The current paint work seems to be 1mm minimum thick, consisting of the original factory blue, then maybe a spray putty, then a different shade of blue on top, interspaced with a plethora of primers and undercoats. I figured that a thick application of primer would be good to try to match some of this thickness. At some point the whole body will get a thorough sanding back, so patches of brushed primer will be smoothed over for a final even surface.

This is definately not the end of work for the left corner. On the inside, the tray needs to be replaced and the bottom edge will need to be tapped out.

The right corner is a bit more involved.......

In the first picture in this post, this corner looked like it had only one dent level with the taillight and not much more. I thought that it would be similar to the left corner. The more I poked and proded, the more bog fell off....... the worse it looked.....

This piece was almost 40mm deep! It was all that was left of the lower part of the corner. The metal it covered is as thin as tissue paper and highly perferated. I did spend time tapping the damage out best I could, but in the end decided that to replace this coner with new metal would be smarter. In addition to the exterior damage, the battery tray fell out and will be replaced. I have left this corner be for now. A welder is on the shopping list!!!!

While hanging about the rear end of the kombi, I started to look into a small crack in what looked like filler over the left rear wheel arch.....

I'm sure you can guess where this goes..... I'll tell you about this adventure next time.

And a couple more clips

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDXVsx3xgu0&feature=endscreen&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKmpQ-EkiEo&feature=fvwp&NR=1

And here's another......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y71en2eOaWw&feature=related

Check this out!

Watch "vw bus" on YouTube

Day of the VW 2012 SA

Spent a few hours wandering among the finest VW's to be found in South Australia today at the Day of the VW held at Modbury. The pictures (best quality from a smart phone) say it all........

There was much more than Kombi's to see............ This is only a sample of the splender on offer.

Three fine Ghia's entered in the show, and I spotted two more good ones out in the carpark as well. My mind kept ticking over, wishing that I had more time today and had driven my own ghia down and settled in for the day. Maybe next year.... I seem to remember thinking similar things when I took a trip to Port Adelaide a little while ago, to see the VW show there.
Some of the cars from Port Adelaide were noticably missing. I had expected to see a nice white Ghia fitted with a Porshe motor, but it was a no show. All the same, a great day, a great show, and all praise to those who take the time to organise these events. It helps keep VW heads alive and ticking with inspiration.

As an introduction.....

So, there he sits at the end of the driveway with a tarp over his head. Today, I give you an overview of the current state of this vehicle, and an idea of what needs to be done.

From the inside you can see that there is considerable rust in the side panel on the right side, no floor under the drivers feet and well established surface rust on the passenger floor. The spare wheel well is also well rusted. Other than that, the interior seems to be quite good.




On the outside is a little more involved. Both doors are too far gone, so replacements will be sought, lower doglegs and lower nose panel, inner and outer (mostly falling off in little rust chips on to the ground whenever a door is opened or closed) will need to be cut and replaced.

Sections of gutter on the right side and the right rear corner will need to be replaced, and both lower rear corners also. There are some bumps, knocks and wear and tear here and there, but they may not present too bigger problem. And of course there are those large holes in the centre panel to be cut and replaced.

With time and much patience, all these things will be sorted out.

You can see that I have already been poking around at him, and "the more you look, the more you see" rings so true here. I will give more detail of the surprises I have found in future posts, but this time i wanted to give you a brief overview of the state he is in and what challenges I have set myself up for.

The first ever VW I owned was a $300 early beetle. I didn't have a lot of mechanical, carsy knowledge, but put it in the garage and pulled it apart anyway. I learnt a lot and I learnt it fast by doing that. My knowledge is much improved now, some years later, so I am looking forward to this challenging journey.

Hopefully one day I may be able to slip the board in the back and head for the coast, with all the work behind me.

Welcome......

I am pleased and excited to present this adventure to you.
I have high hopes and excessively high expectations of my own abilities in regard to restoring the van.
VW's have been a part of my life on and off over the years, so this one was no real surprise. A project like this has been on my mind for some time, and now it is a reality. There will certainly be a fair share of challenges along the way, working without a shed for one. This means any real progress will be subject to the weather, rain, hail and hot hot Adelaide sun. It will also be seriously governed by the surf conditions, and where my loyalty lay on any given day. All sort of normal variables I suppose.

This van came home around August or September 2011, so there is a little bit of catching up to do here. He arrived on the back of a truck and was pushed and shoved until he sat in his current spot at the end of the driveway.


First Day

There he sat while exams loomed and passed. Work was to begin at the beginning of summer, but festivities, time away and beach days seem to get priority. As the next year of study commitments comes close, I have had a burst of energy and enthusiasm. The van is finally getting the attention he deserves.

In following posts I shall post pictures of the progress so far, the challenges his age and condition presents, the highs and lows, the successes and the failures. Hopefully you will find it entertaining and informative.