T1 irs trans in bay

[streetstroker1]

hello,

I'm new to baywindows,
I am rebuilding a '74 bay double cab (has a 1600cc std), it came without engine and gearbox.
I also have a 2017cc t1 with enough power and a strong thing irs gearbox, weddle 1 and 2, billet diff... was build for a race car.
Drove this setup for 2 years in my 1303s

So does anybody know if there are kits available to put this trans into my bus?
i know there are kits available for '68-'71 buses, but do not know if someone sells them for '71- ...

Or do i need to fabricate my own mounts?
maybe someone some information?

Not looking for something to race, but a setup to drive daily, and drive 120km/u on the highway for long periods comfortable.

thank you
T

[fusername]

hmm, that is a avery good question. you are in good shape if the engine bay was originally lay out for a 1600, a lot less fab work to seal it up. 2017, sounds like a stroker, nice. Does your engine have a moustache bar, or provisions to mount one up? if you have that you are not going to have too much trouble. Around here putting a T1 style box into a bay is about the last thing on anyones mind, so I ahve never actually heard of it.

[Chris V]

Old Speed used to offer a kit to put a SSC Type I into a Baywindow...they advertised on TheSamba. The conversion or 'euro-tin' is replicated in fiberglass if you have a hard time finding the OEM sheetmetal.

[streetstroker1]

Thanks for the reply's

I bought a moustache bar yesterday, and need to check my engine if it allready have the mounting holes.
Cant find the oldspeed kit on the samba anymore.

This is the kit by frenchslammer for '68-'71 busses

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/83 ... 679628.jpg

Maybe i need to make something myself
Just thinking for a solution for the mid-mount on top of the tranny.

T

[bajaman73]

There is a company that makes a fiberglass filler here in the states. Creative Car Craft. Quality work from what I read. You may have to trim a bit due to your stroker.

http://www.creativecarcraft.com/notforbug.htm

My Mid mount on my 72 looks to be easy to fab. Not sure how they mount on the later years.

Definitely gonna need the proper holes in the case for the mount, or you will have to use the oil pump location which tends to leak.

Good Luck!

[Marc]

...I bought a moustache bar yesterday, and need to check my engine if it already have the mounting holes.

If not, there's an aftermarket solution (I refer to it as a "Mickey-Mount). It's a bent-up metal piece that bolts onto the 4 oil pump studs (they may need to be replaced with longer ones) and catches a longer m8 bolt passing through the lower-rear corner of the case. You need a flat steel/iron pump cover to sandwich in there, the Mickey-Mount bracket itself should not be used as the pump cover.
Some Type I cases have the bosses in their castings for the moustache bar bolts; some only in one half - they would sometimes raid them from the Bus production line if the Type I line ran low, since Beetle demand was higher. Depending upon what production stage the case half was in before it was diverted, it may be undrilled, drilled, drilled/tapped, or drilled/tapped/HeliCoiled. If one half is good to go (or can be made so) you can simply whack off that side of the Mickey-Mount. Sometimes some shim-washers are required to correct the stack-up; you can also cut off the welded nut from the Mickey-Mount (if it has one, some use a bolt/washer/nut arrangement instead) and pass a bolt through it into the case...whatever it takes to make things line up with the pads on the body. If you jack the moustache bar too far rearward there'll be issues with getting the heaterbox-to-muffler clamps in place, or in making the rear engine mounts line up, but it's not rocket science. In case you can't tell, I have a low opinion of these brackets and believe that they should only be used in case of a dire propulsion emergency, but the more time you put into installing one the better it will work. Still, I wouldn't trust this setup implicitly, so be sure to check on it from time to time.

http://www.aircooledparts.com/product.p ... 437&page=1

IIRC the IRS Bus trans is longer than a Type I by a bit, but whatever adapter front mount you use should be able to align the flywheel plane. I suppose you could just run Type I CVs on the inboard end of Type II driveshafts, but it'd be sweeter to use Thing final drive flanges (or replicas) and four Bus CVs so that angularity wouldn't be a worry.

...Just thinking for a solution for the mid-mount on top of the tranny...

As you realize,`72-up Buses had center trans mounts, which of course a Type I bellhousing can't accommodate - but you should be able to fabricate a bracket out of steel plate which can pick up the two top bellhousing bolts and the mounts in the Bus body. Shouldn't be too challenging if you have a late Bus trans handy for comparison.

`68-`71 Buses had the moustache bar bolted solidly to the engine case and rubber mounts at the outboard ends, with the mount pads welded to the body. Starting in `72 the outer mount system was made in two versions which bolted up to the "frame rails" of the body, one for the Type I engine with outboard mounts and one for the Type IV which had rubber mounts at the center. If you can get your hands on the `72-up Type I engine moustache bar but can't find the correct "Euro/Mexican" outboard bracketry for it, it's not too challenging to make your own outer mounts out of some torched out of an IRS type III body. I have such a Frankenstein out in the backyard, I can get you pictures if you need them.

[Jadewombat]

Seems like too much work to me to put into a bay for no gain really, except saving a few bucks initially (maybe, not sure what those conversion kits cost). The 002 and 091 are physically bigger to handle the load of pushing the much heavier bay bus. Maybe 10 years ago and earlier the bus "3" and "5" rib boxes were the big ticket with the off-roaders and asking prices were fairly high and most of these guys have moved on to much stronger Mendeola type boxes. Last year I sold a used 002 after months of trying, I could hardly give it away.

I put a T1 IRS in my '66 bus, but only because I can't stand swing-axle and the one I had leaked like a seive no matter how many times I replaced the redux seals. This took quite a while to do the conversion though. If it was me I would just find a good used IRS bus box. Something that just bolts back in begs the question what your time is worth.

[Chris V]

The big change from '74 (usually a 5.375 or 5.43, and seldomly the 5-rib 4.86) to Thing (4.375) is 1-3 gearing, and you could go as tall as 3.875. My '73 Bay w/stock 002 & 1995cc Type I with a bunch of bottom-end grunt always made me consider taller gearing, or a wilder cam change.