Porsche 5-speed Transmission into Breadloaf Bus NOVEMBER 1975 The VW Bus, with all its many virtues, has one major fault. It's always in the wrong gear, whether it's the "stump puller" low, "roaring" down the freeway at "slightly" over 55 or having to use third gear and 50 mph to get up a "normal" freeway grade. The solution is simple: a five-speed gearbox - but how? A few issues ago one of our readers was complaining about the inadequacies of his Bus as a trailer tower. We weren't able to offer him much help, but a few days later Jack Zandergen, owner of Los Alamitos Motors (3570 E. Cerritos, Dept. HVW, Los Alamitos, Calif.) called and said that his resident VW expert Lyle Althouse (if that name sounds familiar, it should - he was the "wrench" on the Treuhaft Trans-Am Beetle) used his Bus with its Porsche five-speed to tow a ski boat on their periodic weekend trips to "the river." For all you Easterners, "the river" is the Colorado and it's a 250-mile jaunt from L.A. that involves going from sea level, up through the mountain pass and out across the desert. Unlike many of the "great, new" (but unproven) ideas that appear in magazines, this installation has been operating for two years and 50,000 miles and we left most of the dirt on for the photos, just wiping off the special pieces for clarity. If you live in, San Francisco, Pittsburgh or some other "Hillsburg" where you "need" the VW low gear, forget the whole program, because as you can see from the chart the new low will be between the existing first and second. It's not as drastic as the chart makes it look and if you can make level ground starts in second gear with a little concentration you should have no trouble. Lyle has no problems - even on the boat launch ramps. If you're still interested, the whole program is unbelievably easy (except paying for the Porsche gearbox) and this is how it's done. Remove the engine, transaxle, halfshafts, and the entire shift linkage. Remove the inner CV joints and replace with sedan units (113 501331). They have the same bolt pattern as the Porsche stub axles. Porsche CV joints have a different spline and will not fit the shafts. The 113 joints are not as thick as the Type II units. This difference is made up by installing two more concave washers (113 501 327) "facing" each other, then installing the CV joint and snap ring, using normal assembly procedures. Reinstall halfshafts into Bus. Mating the VW engine and Porsche gearbox is the next step. First, make sure your engine is fitted with a diaphragm type clutch cover and that your disc is in good condition. Make sure the Porsche release bearing is in good condition. A Porsche or VW Automatic starter must be used. Neither will engage fully so the bendix and ring gear must be in good condition. If you have access to a mill, machine approximately 1/8-in. off the starter to transaxle mounting surface. Lyle's installation has been "partially engaging" since it was first installed and has never given a problem. The lower engine studs should be replaced with longer ones from an automatic case or be "backed out" and Loc-Tited to allow for the thicker Porsche housing (or machine the bosses on the Porsche transaxle). Attach the original VW clutch cable bracket to the transaxle with the top bolt. as shown and file a notch in the bottom part so it pushes against the lower nut (see photo). The stock clutch cable and flex tube are used without modification. The 902/ (number is stamped on case) transaxle has the same flange-to-flange width as the VW, and must be used. The unit can come from either a 911 or 912 but the stiff (round biscuit) 911 front mount must be used. The soft (square biscuit) 912 mount will not work. Fabricate the pair of brackets per the illustration, put the bolts, 12mm (or 7/16) by 3 in., into the brackets first, then install the brackets to the existing control arm bolts. Remove control arm bolt with no tension on the suspension. At this point you are ready to reinstall the engine and transaxle assembly. Due to the fact that the Porsche transaxle mounts slightly higher, make sure there is no interference between the throttle cable and the front body cut out. If there is a problem, it can be remedied with a "ball peen adjuster." Make sure there is clearance between the nose of the transaxle and the torsion bar housing. With the big stuff in place, all that remains is the shift linkage. Round up a couple of old hockey sticks (shift rods) and cut off so you have a straight rod with genuine set screw hole. The front shift shaft has an "S" bend in it. Straighten out the "rear" curve with a torch. Cut the rear shift shaft at the front end so that with 1/2 in. of one of the cut-off shift rods inserted into it, the dimension from set screw hole to pivot hole is 60 in. Align holes at approximately 90 degrees. Reinstall "'cut off" piece of the rear shift shaft back into the front shift shaft in its original. manner. Insert the other shift rod into its open end. DO NOT weld - this will be your final adjustment. Install the rear (now front) shift universal onto the shift rod. Because the Porsche shift rod exits so much lower than the VW a new shift shaft housing is fabricated from 1-in. electrical conduit, which should be cut to 55 1/4 in. The bushings are part of the shift shaft and fit the conduit without modification. The original dust boot will also fit, but must be fastened into position. The housing is attached to the VW frame at each end with conduit clamps and sheet metal screws. An "old style" (111 711 175B) coupling is used to connect the rear of the new rear shift shaft to the Porsche shift rod. Alignment of the shift rod and the shift shaft (which should be as straight as possible) can be done by shimming the trans mounts or shift housing with washers as required. The shift shaft should rest on the bottom of the housing to allow for the natural rising under acceleration. After everything seems to be aligned properly, clamp the front slip joint with vise grips and see if all gears are attainable and located to your satisfaction. If so, weld thejoint. Lyle has found his gas mileage is now 23-25 instead of the 19-20 he originally got with the four-speed. His Bus (camper), which has a stock engine, will pull 4500 rpm in both fourth and fifth gears, and that figures out to 85 in fifth. The reduced engine noise is a real blessing and being able to shift down twice and still be above the legal speed limit is a feeling that must be experienced to be appreciated. Top, "stiff," 911 porsche mount with round biscuits must be used. 912 Porsche type is too flexible. Bottom, conduit is clamped to frame and original dust cover is "tie-wrapped" into place. Top and center, mounts can be fabricated from steel angle according to diagram and must be clearanced for torsion bar housing. Bottom, a stock VW clutch bracket is used and a notch is filed in it to support the bracket against the lower nut. From: "William R. Kennedy, NJIT CIAT, 201-596-5648"