Date:         Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:10:15 -0700
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Larry Hamm <ldhamm@xmission.com>
Subject:      Re: Air-cooled to Water-cooled

Frayed1003@aol.com wrote:
> 
> I was just curious if anyone has ever turned an air cooled vanagon into a
> water-cooled one.  I never hear much on the subject so I imagine it is either
> next to impossible or very expensive.  I have an 81 Westy and I am always
> thinking about this.  It is one of those things I would probably never do,
> but that doesn't stop me wondering about this.  The talk about installing
>  suburu engines in the vanagon is what really sparked my curiosity.  I am new
> to the list and vanagons, so forgive me if this is a dumb question.
Frayed,
Engine swaps are relatively common-I've done two, a Buick 3.0 V6 in my
'78 Westy, and a Buick 3.8 in my brother's '81 brand-X camper. The
Vanagon was nice to do, because the radiator mounts were already in
place. Just pick up a radiator and grill from a watercooler, cut the
front hole for the grill, run some plumbing to the rear, and you're
ready for a wet engine of your choice. I don't recommend a V6 for the
Vanagon, though, because the rear deck is lower than on the TypeII, and
requires an engine compartment extension of about 4" to work. 

Call Kennedy Engineered Products in Palmdale, CA for their catalog of
engine adapters, clutches, flywheels, and starters, 805-272-1147. They
have excellent products, great reputation, and are always pleasant to
work with. (Unsolicited testimony) They can provide parts (not kits) to
put almost any engine (and at least one motor) into a VW.
Larry