2.8L Chevy Adventurewagen

[WestyPop]

Interesting stuff. Still haven't gotten the time to transplant my 2.8L Ford V6 (Hey... it's German!) into the 68 Westy yet, but hopefully soon... in the next couple of weeks.

Your mention of changing your mind on the radiator(s)' placement is interesting. I've been goin through the same mental meanderings, in fact I'd also thought about welding two more factory side air scoops in down below. It also seems like the logical thing (hot air rising n' all) that it would be best to cut the top scoops, then reinstall them backwards, to let the natural vacuum at the rear of the cruising vehicle add some extraction action. That might even allow thermal-controlled fans to be used, so they wouldn't have to run all the time.

'Course then I come back to the concern that maybe the underbody condenser for the A/C won't be effective enough, so why not just stick the whole radiator/condenser mess out front, behind some sort of extended 'roo bar arrangement??? Haven't decided yet, obviously.

Current plan for tires/wheels is to use Mercedes 14 x 6.5 with 27-8.5 C Range LT for now. The tires mounted up fine, and I'l be switching over to the disc brakes and larger rear drums I have gathered from parts donors. Adapters therefore, won't be needed, just some drilling out of the M-B 12mm holes to 14mm and longer studs.

Interested to hear how you're coming with your project.

J.R.
68 Westy
(+ others)
SoCal

[fastmc25]

Well , today i worked on the rear suspension.... lifting it 3-1/2 ". I installed some custom adapters to the rear trailing arms to gain a decent amount of lift. This will help with the tire clearance and add to the Baja Bus look......I will be modifying the rear flares as they are too wide.....

I recieved my custom built raised front spindles Friday...from [email protected] ........ They were awesome. The guy did a fantastic job on them.....I ordered new balljoints for the front. When they come in i'll install them and mount my front tires on the bus...... I hope i don't get a nose bleed.....

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i160/ ... en%20Baja/

I found some radiators that will work in the rear. 81-85 rabbit/gti radiators with shrouds and fans. They are 12-1/2" tall and 23" wide. I will attempt to mount them in series to double the cooling. I am hoping they are enough to cool this thing. They will be sealed to the engine compartment sides and additional air will be ducted in from the side vent's i'm making.

Well that's it for now....... I'm just keeping at it each day and someday it will be finished.........................

[regis101]

Along the same line is using dual honda radiators. IIRC, volks-swap is a site that shows the dual set-up. Another interesting idea is a later jeep. Their radiators are 11" high and 35" wide. Almost a perfect fit in place of the rear engine door.

[GeorgeL]

Your mention of changing your mind on the radiator(s)' placement is interesting. I've been goin through the same mental meanderings, in fact I'd also thought about welding two more factory side air scoops in down below. It also seems like the logical thing (hot air rising n' all) that it would be best to cut the top scoops, then reinstall them backwards, to let the natural vacuum at the rear of the cruising vehicle add some extraction action.

I think that you had better verify that "natural vacuum" before you count on it to cool your engine! I have not seen any engine bay door radiator arrangements that cooled well without a big engine-driven fan. You don't want to depend on an electric fan running continuously!

Before you start hacking, take a look at the Australian Custom Off Road setup. It isn't perfect, but it has been successful in several vehicles. The modification I would make to it are to move the radiator further to the rear and switch it to downflow, with a short duct made by boxing in the frame rails and a simple scoop to provide some ram-air effect.

'Course then I come back to the concern that maybe the underbody condenser for the A/C won't be effective enough, so why not just stick the whole radiator/condenser mess out front, behind some sort of extended 'roo bar arrangement??? Haven't decided yet, obviously.

This is obviously the best arrangement for airflow, but it will also need a lot of plumbing and will be the fussiest to get bled and working correctly.

Check out the Aussieveedubbers.com site. They have done a lot of work in this area!

George

[fastmc25]

Well,

Hope everyone has a Happy 4th of July.....

I've been working on the bus suspension lately. I installed the raised spindles finally...... This allowed for 30x9.50x15" tires to be installed on the front without any issues... I also put some 31x10.50x15" rear tires on. I can put my chin on the drivers door window scraper..........Why .. .... I don't know.... thought it might give you some idea of how high it sets...... I'm 6'2..............or my hands were dirty at the time and i needed to scratch my chin.....




I am working now on the fenders to make it look right with the offroad Baja theme. I have aqquired a set of Jeep Wrangler rear flares that i'm modifying to fit close to the body and provide the protection i need and allow the sliding door to open. These aren't an easy task at all.........I have one side in pinned in place awaiting final assembly attachment.

I had to order some longer rear axles to compensate for the lift and track width changes. I can't wait to get this thing on the road.......

My biggest problem now is i have outgrown my floor jacks...... I have to use 4x4's to help lift it......

[WestyPop]

Whooooaa! Looks like you've been doing some major work. Nice.

Sure do like the contour of your flares better than a simple(?) large radius for the rear fenderwell. The lift is too much for my Westy; will probably just try to even it out(typical VW bus saggy-butt right now), or might even raise it just about an inch, along with air overload springs in rear to keep it level with different loads on board.

OTOH if I really want or need more clearance for a trip, the stock level of my Jeep truck is probably a foot higher, let alone how it's going to sit when finished with that project. Won't ever be as nice a camper as a Westy, but will seat 5 in cab, and has a 9-foot bed out back. Also it probably won't ever get the fuel mileage the VW(even with V6) can, but with a low RPM torque-monster motor, it will be a true work mule.

Keep up the good work. Will post pics when I get engine/tranny in & radiator(s?) mounted. Interested in seeing your solutions/inspirations as well.

J.R.
68 Westy
(+ others)

[fastmc25]

Well,

I have totally ditched the rear radiator plan. The more i worked on it the less i liked it. I can get more cool air back there but i loose all of my room for the Gas heater i was installing.

I am going back to the Mexi grill set up..... ...... I'll just paint it to match the rest of the van ........ I'm still putting a tubular brush guard on the thing so that might help camoflage it.......

I made the first cut and removed a section of outer skin....... Like disecting to see whats inside......... LOT'S OF CRAP !!!!.. ..... I was so cautious watching my wiring I cut the water washer bottle in half.... .. The wires are fine......

Now to decide on how much airbox to remove........ I want to still have functional vents so i'll have to play with that......

That's about it for now......... gotta work all weekend so i'm on hold ......

[regis101]

Most of european air to h20 conversions use rear radiators. kennedy's site has radiator sq inch requirments for front mount applications, IIRC. I keep 400 sq inches as a rule of thumb. An 11x35 jeep is 385. The 12x23 rabbit is 276 and two of 'em is 552. That's alot of cooling area and they fit in the back. Hooked in series with Y's and not Tee's.

As quoted from someone smarter than I, "Ya makes yer choices and ya pays yer monies"

In the end, i guess, the front is the best for all around piece of mind AND results. The Mexican bay front rad grille is Just peachy 'cause it's VW backed.

Pushing the front bumper out 4" and building the crash bar/radiator mount is also cool with the baja look. Pushing out the back bumper works also.

It seems that the cinversion people may have some of the "purists" intrests on the back of their minds, but f**k 'em.

I look forward to all of your end results.

Regards, Regis

[Mike T]

"regis101 said: It seems that the cinversion people may have some of the "purists" intrests on the back of their minds, but f**k 'em. "


regis101, I agree 100% with you. A conversion is about scratching a very personal itch. I was ostracized from a local VW club because I brought a converted Super Beetle to a club meeting. (I had a 1.8 Jetta engine swapped in) I naively shared what I had done and I was amazed at the negetive reaction. I stopped going as a result but continued to enjoy the car privately for many years.

Paul, keep up the good work!

Mike T

[AKA]

Hi, great topic...I noticed that you were thinking about putting on a brush guard. Its a great place to stick the radiator too. Pretty simple.


Here's some pics of a Ford 2.8 engine in a '73 bus. If you need anymore specific pics, let me know.




Best of luck on your project, I don't think you'll regret it.

[fastmc25]

Well, I worked on the Radiator mounting today................... Man......I'd hate to have to replace a front clip on a Bay Window....... It took a lot of patience, Saw-z-all blades and blood,.. ... cutting out for the radiator mounting....

I opted not to remove the air box up front. Vw put it there to cool me down and by golly i want it there...... .... I ended up removing the bottom 5" of the box at a angle to allow for the rad enclosure. After several blades and some blood i finished my cutting. During all the cutting I only cut 1 wire and my water bottle in half......

I hung the rad in place with makeshift hangars while I built a lower mount. I used Dexion (spelling) as it is very easy to work with and adds redneck truck flare to the front..... I had to allow for the steering arm clearance on left turns by moving the lower mount forward 1 inch from my original plan. Now no interference ... I also mounted the front bumper to check clearance with no problems.................On to the box work....

USPS helped me out with the templates....... I trimmed and fit a makeshift box behind the rad and it looks like plenty of area for the fan and to expelling hot air. I will channel the hot air rearward with additional metalwork later... Also i'll be installing a small airdam under the forward edge of the rad to aid in creating a low pressure area behind the rad and shrouding....

After all the metalwork is complete i'll seal the rad to the front body with some race plastic to force all the high pressure air though it rather than allowing it to go around..... Here are my Rad install pics....

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i160/ ... 0mounting/

I still have the metal work to do tomorrow maybe........ I'm a bit tired today.............

[fastmc25]

Today I hung out in the Monster Garage and worked on "Clyde"...... The bus as I have now named it..... I fired up the saws ,grinders and welder to try my hand at custom fender making.......






I took some front bus doglegs and made rear fenders with additional clearance for my big tires. What I wanted was a near stock style with plenty of room for my 31's I put on the back. I took left and right doglegs from a 73 - up bay window and trimmed and welded them together..........Now the rear fenders will match the fronts almost like they came that way......

Tomorrow i'll do the other side and do some finish work........

[jjenibun]

Hey fastmc25. I retired from the army at Fort Richardson. I was stationed there for about a year. The winters were so cold. Did you do cold weather training while you were there? I live in Oklahoma City now. I have a 1969 vw beetle. I want use my Chevy S-10 pick up with a 2.5l in it. I am in the process of removing the engine from the S-10. After the engine is removed what electircal parts do I need off of the engine? Does the computor need to be removed as well. I plan on using the wireing harness as well. When you get a chance can you post your wiring schematic.
Thanks Jerod.

[fastmc25]

Hey Jerod,

I don't have a wiring Schematic...... No computer etc...... Just hook + on the coil to ignition switch wire and start up.....

If you are using the FI that came with the 2.5L i'd say get all the harness you can including the computer........

[jjenibun]

Thanks for the information. I can't wait until I finish.