FasterLaster.com

So we begin the journey that is my ownership of a Type 2. I bought the bus from a guy named Jon from Alabama. Against my wifes wishes I set out at 5:00 after work south. An hour and a half later I pull off the road at Athens, AL to set eyes on my first bus.

First impressions are good. Really needs some TLC in the cosmetic area. Finished in a home depot blue/white combo it looks much better from far than up close. The bus has been painted with what looks like latex house paint with a brush. Like I said home depot paint job. The body has rust I would expect from a vehicle that had been in Florida. Such as around the window seals and the roof drip channels. The only signs of bad rust are on the rear hatch area.I will probablly have to spend some time working on this area. The other main problem with the body is the really bad cracked windshield. It came with a new windshield seal but I will need to buy new glass. There is a large dent in the rear passenger side but other than that the body seems straight. The last two things missing are a little plastic piece that helps the sliding door to stay on it’s track and the tale-tale VW emblem on the front of the bus. There is some silly angry god magnet in it’s place, but that will have to go, and soon.

Mechanically it is pretty sound. The #1 cylinder is bad. Jon says that a mechanic told him it was a burnt exhaust valve. The jury is still out on that, untill I can confirm it myself, but one cylinder does not fire (since I can pull the plug wire from that cyl and the motor speed changes exactly zero). This will need to be my first project. I would like to take it to 60-65 mph if I can. From what I can tell the brakes work as well as the steering and suspension.

The test drive was interesting. Not only did I have to reaquent myself with a standard trany, but a vw trany. We didn’t go very fast because of the bad cylinder but I took it up to 55mph with out any problems. It seems stable and tracks well.

After thinking real hard (and flipping a coin) I decided that I had to have this bus. So I am now the proud owner of a blue/white 1979 Type 2 Volkswagon.

The ride home was interesting. For some reason Mother Nature thought it would be funny to make April temperatures drop to around 30 degrees. So after leaving my waggon at the local Wal-Mart and getting out anything important off I cruise down the interstate back to TN. Driving this beast is like nothing else. It took a while to get comfortable with the steering, especialy with all the 18-wheelers out sending cross-winds my way.

So off I go up I-65 at 55 in 35 degree temps. The weather wouldn’t have been an issue except that there is some sort of exhaust leak into the cabin when I turn on the heater and all I wore were pants and a short sleeve shirt. So here I am freezing my butt off, driving a new vehicle with unique driving characteristics a speeds 15-20 mph slower that everything on the road. I loved it. I can’t wait to get into the bus and start sorting out things.