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Date:         Mon, 21 Apr 1997 12:39:20 -0400
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Derek Drew <drew@interport.net>
Subject:      Re: 16'' conversion/syncros

I'm glad you finally got the mail I sent you, Tom. Yes, you can keep those articles as I had them copied especially for you and for your club because you have been so helpful to me. I finally found the 16" people!

Tell me when you are done with those articles and I can send you some more!

Great to get your scanned pictures. I am getting a scanner too soon so I can send you some back.

At 01:16 PM 4/21/97 UT, you wrote: >From: Thomas Niksch > CCT_tom_niksch@msn.com > >To: Derek Drew > drew@interport.com > >Hi Derek, > >cause I had got a message from Munich customs office that some mail from you >is waiting for me, I went there this morning and after beeing qustioned like a >latino immigrant without a passport, I figuered out that the only problem was >that the parcel should have been declared as a "personal gift" or of a "very >low commercial value" - that's all. Nevertheless it took me half of the >moning plus lunchbreak cueing and discussing that with the guy (sorry, >"officer" is the correct word)

Funny. I hope it was worth it! Let me know what to put so next time I send you stuff they won't do this. Do I just write: "No commercial value" on the envelope?

>Anyway, thank you so much for the copies - may I keep them for our archive or >do you need them back ? A brif loke made it clear that we would never have got >them in Europe without your help ! As it is a lot of material and reading in >English takes me more time, than the same in German there is enough work for >several rainy sunday afternoons. > >Your letter is dated 11th of March wich is more than six weeks back from now. >I would guess that some of the questions you mentioned, have been answered so >far by Tobias, somebody else or myself in the meantime. I propose to get

Not really answered by anybody else yet. You seem to be the #1 source of 16" info at this point.

>through the questions in your letter to come to a quick response and we enter >into the deatails later, if necessary. > >"Standard syncro 16'' gear ratio" >=> there was none! As all body versions like crew-cab, panels, Kombi, Westy, >Caravelle etc. were offered as syncro 16'' the gear ratio depends on the >version. There is a simpe way to figure out the richt gear ratio. From your >tire dealer you will easily get date on the girth of your tires. If not figuer >it out with the "white-chalk and black pavement method" Tom Fornham mentioned >in one of the WWW Sites (don't know which at the moment). As a result you get >the RPM in relationship to the miles made. If you then calculate the girth of >the new tires you whish to mount in the relationship to the ones you have and >the gear ratio you have you get the gear ratio you need to achive the same RPM >for the same speed. (If I was shure to get it through the email I'd add add an >EXCEL sheet to make it clear, we can try that later) >Formula: >RPM [1/min] x gear-ratio x tire-girth [km or miles] x 60 [min] = speed [km >or mls / hour]

I am determined to pick the tallest tires that will fit, and then order gear ratios to match (6.17s) from Germany.

>"Tallest Tires" >=> all of them in combination with the coil-springs / absorbers package from >Autohaus Seikel, I know about 245/75 R 16 with 7x16 rims, 7,50 R 16 wit 6x16, >215/85 R 16 with 5,5 x 16. All of the cars are factory 16'' equipped.

This is great information

>"body lift" >=> without a bodylift (=different springs) on your 14'' the 195 R 16 on 5,5 x >16 or maybe 205 R 16 with 5,5 x 16 should work properly without prior body >modifications. What max load is beeing given to to you by VW oA. In Europe the >complete weight for a syncro 14'' used in havy off-road conditions is limited >to 2300 kg and 2500 kg for the 16''. Sorry Derek, but from my point of view it >seems completely foolish to load up a syncro to more than 3,0 tons without >changing the coil springs and absorbers to something more havy duty. This may >also explain your tremendous consumption of new cv-joints. The body >reinfocements on the 16'' were done exactly for the same reason.

This is a matter of philosophy. Some serious off-roaders prefer relatively mild (not stiff) shock absorbers and springs so that, when they smash into rocks on a bad road, the springs and shock absorbers will give instead of transmitting the shock into the body of the vehicle. But, since I drive at nearly 3 tons a lot, I certainly do want to upgrade to stronger shocks and springs, as you say.

>"ground clearance" >=> in the factory 16'' version the lifting derived only from the enlarged >tires

WOW! I have been trying to get an answer to this question for several years. Now you have said it.

>"rear-axis arms" >=> the longer arms give you more clearnce for larger tires because the car >gets a 20 mm longer pace (=distance between center points of the front and >rear wheel)

Excellent piece of information. Now I have to order new rear-axis arms.

>"Oettinger-Westfalia 16'' syncro"

I ordered and installed Oettinger fog lamps in my syncro.

>=> Sorry again, forget about it !! The (suspectedly) only Oettinger 3.2 >syncro 16'' ever built had the motor blown off at 60 000 km and was recently >converted into a 1,9 TDI . Besides that, it was a Caravelle not a Westfalia. >Forget about the Oettinger 3.2 itself! This engine had been developed by >Volkswagen and later canceled because of the high manufacturing costs. Later >Oettinger recieved the existing parts and tools and built a few cars but only >one syncro 16'' prototype. You should also forget putting an Oettinger 3.2 >into any syncro. You can count the miles, until the gear-box will "explode" >because of the power - and more impotant - high torque. (They used to hve >automatic with most of the 4x2 WBX 6. We have had several 1,9 TDI (110 HP, 260 >Nm) conversions and the gear boxes sometimes make it only 5.000 km. > >"2.1 engine for Westfalia" >=> don't know what kind of engine they sold with the Westaflia in the U.S. but >I belivesd so far it was the 2,1l (95HP) Kat. In Europe most of them were 1,6 >Turbodiesel (70HP) or 2,1 gasoline (95HP) > >"syncro 16'' Westfalia" >=> there were not many of them as a California / Joker. This wasnot offered >through VAG but you could get it throghe westfalia, they should know how many >of then they made - we don't know. With the price thre is a little >misunderstanding. You get a 16'' non Westfalia Camper at 20.000 $ or below. >The Westies are very rare but probably the price is quite similar, in case >tehre is one offered. >(I'll try to send you a copy of a 16'' Camper conversion done completely in >ultralight aluminium-sandwich material. From my point of view I would not >bother a minute with Westfalia if I could get one of these.) > >"Westfalia" => We had three kinds of factory-made campers offered over here: >Multivan, Joker/California, and Club Joker / Atlantic. The multivan was the >the cheapest of them with optional pop-up roof, a rear bench/bed a table and >a fridge. The Joker or later called California had a little kithchen besides >the driver's seat with a fridge and stove, water tanks and optional diesel/gas >heater. the Club/Joker or Atlantic was the GL version vith isolating windows, >nicer trims ond some comfort extras. I guess the thing you could buy was >something in between the California and the Atlantic. Beware that over her AC, >cruise control, power-windows and mirrors, and stuff like that are not inclued >in most of today's VW Campers. They make a lot of money out of these things >and it is not a hard job to bring a California Club (4x2) up to 70.000 DM >(50.000 $). > >I hope you don't suspect me playing the "teacher", but I still think the idea >to bring a compete 16'' Kombi, Caravelle or Camper to the States would >probably be an economic solution. Recently a 1992 16'' 2,1 l (95HP) went off >at about 16.000 $ in a little town near Munich. And a 1990 16'' 2,1l Crew-Cab >with 120.000 (professional) km was sold for nothing more than 9.000$. What if >you came to Germany with your wife visit some 16'' drivers, have a demo-drive >with a 16'' and than decide if it is enough reason for you to change tires, >gear-ratios, and springs in your existing car or even to procure a "new" one. >This trip may be 2.000 $ but it might avoid "spilling" 20.000 $.

Ok. We will do this in the year 1999 as I have some business affairs I am trying to attend to in the meantime that reduce my free time.

>Did you get the broshure I ordered from "projektzwo" for you ?

Not yet. I got one about five years ago and admired their black double tube bumpers, which I considered ordering.

>Best regards >Tom > I think I better forward this note to the list so its contents get into the archives.

Have you been to my URL? (See www address below). ____________________________________ Derek Drew New York, NY drew@interport.net '90 Syncro Westfalia... ...seen off-road at http://www.anet-dfw.com/~ddes/vw/drew/index.html


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