Date:         Thu, 14 Oct 1999 13:08:22 -0400
Reply-To:     Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bulley <gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM>
Subject:      Real Life Motor Mods That Work

While my motor is a bit different (1982, air, 2.0) the 'stuff' we did to
boost the HP is transferable to virtually any pancake motor, and yielded
results you can feel. Our Westy now does 0-60 in about 16 seconds, and that
is with all our junk in it.  Prior to the rebuild, the motor had almost
completely dropped 2 valves and couldn't hold 60 mph. Here's the elevator
speech on what we did followed by my guess at what I paid.

1. Heads completely rebuilt with slightly larger valves (34mm rather than
31? I think) all new seats, springs, guides, etc. ($400)
2. Replaced VW 94mm pistons/jugs (worn out), with slip-skirted 96mm NPR
hypereutectic flat-top pistons, (approx. 9.0 compression) with Grant Rings
($320)
3. replaced crankshaft with Gene Berg Counterweighted stock crank ($250)
4. Replaced oil pump with Melling 150% capacity pump ($60)
5. Cleared and adjusted the EGR system ($10)
6. Replaced stock distributor with Bosch 009, and a Pertronix Ignitor
electronic ignition ($100)
7. Had EVERY SINGLE PIECE of moving machinery in the motor (except oil pump
and distributor drive), zero balanced to 0 grams. ($150)
8. Incorporated 2 large oil coolers and an oil-routing thermostat ($200)

Total cost of all the junk and work was about $3,000, although I have not
actually totaled all the bills (I don't want to know!). The most important
thing in our rebuild was the counter-weighted crank and balancing. Took the
motor from a clumsy rumble to a silky purr. Of course having 8 functioning
valves probably helps...

After the rebuild, it took some 'fiddling' to get the timing, CO, and other
settings right, since lots of little things weren't stock. It pulls a full
load of folks up steady grades at 70 mph without losing speed. Holds 70-75
mph for hours on end, even in high temps. It won't boil the tires of the
rim, but has more than enough "GO" to do me just fine. More importantly for
this discussion, it wasn't anything new-fangled, or odd-ball that we added,
(different motor, different tranny, rare-earth magnets, Vortex flow
increaser, magical coatings)...just some common sense, measured solutions:
slightly larger pistons, slightly higher compression, better ignition,
easier-breathing heads, and more cooling capacity.

Cheers,

G. Matthew Bulley
Director
Bulley-Hewlett & Associates
www.bulley-hewlett.com
Cary, NC USA
888.468.4880 tollfree