Alex's Rabbit Project: Take-Two

[bmxguy]

for relocating your coil you could hide it under the dash. theres a company that makes this cool little piece to make your coil wire pass through the firewall or other body panels just to hide your coil. its like the heads of two spark plugs that the wires attach to on both sides. i think jegs or summit sells them. that rear end repair looks great.

edit: page three pwnage.

[aeffertz]

Came home to some goodies just now. Got a Moroso 8V valve cover, a swallowtail aluminum fuel cap (thanks again Yves!) and some chrome interior handles.



Early weekend for me so hopefully I can make some good progress on the bunneh.

[bmxguy]

i missed out on a new in box moroso valve cover a while back on cl..... guy wanted $25.

[rabbitnothopper]

Does anyone know where to buy the little insert and cap for the timing hole on the transmission?

the cap easily gotten from GAP
the screwed insert im not positive maybe GAP, try busdepot if not...
i know they sell them somewhere
http://www.germanautoparts.com/Volks...smission/410/1

5 speed are green normally
4 speeds are white, im not sure if both will fit either/or but the little cap should fit both

stock ones were white (mine was for my 81) new ones are black


http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthrea...ht=timing+hole

[aeffertz]

i missed out on a new in box moroso valve cover a while back on cl..... guy wanted $25.

Wow! That must've been a rush finding that. I paid 10x that for this one and this one needs some work.

the cap easily gotten from GAP
the screwed insert im not positive maybe GAP, try busdepot if not...
i know they sell them somewhere
http://www.germanautoparts.com/Volks...smission/410/1

Oh wow, I don't know how I overlooked that. Thanks for the help!

Got my vinyl samples in to see if any of them matched the headliner I got, but sadly the ones I found weren't quite the same.


Close, but no cigar. Will keep looking. I got some more sanding done in the bay for a few couple hours and my fingertips are already sore again. I hate whoever talked me into it.

[simon_C]

Wow! That must've been a rush finding that. I paid 10x that for this one and this one needs some work.



Oh wow, I don't know how I overlooked that. Thanks for the help!

Got my vinyl samples in to see if any of them matched the headliner I got, but sadly the ones I found weren't quite the same.


Close, but no cigar. Will keep looking. I got some more sanding done in the bay for a few couple hours and my fingertips are already sore again. I hate whoever talked me into it.

oh that looks like OEM material used in cabbies.
http://topsonline.com/model/Converti...nd_Golf_1.html

scroll down to headliners.

[rabbitnothopper]

oh that looks like OEM material used in cabbies.
http://topsonline.com/model/Converti...nd_Golf_1.html

scroll down to headliners.

which do you mean? my 78 has this exact stuff....

[aeffertz]

oh that looks like OEM material used in cabbies.

Hmm. I'll get in contact with them and see if I can't get a sample. Thanks for the link.

Yesterday did some more sanding...


And a little welding. Got the original dash mounts cut out and new ones welded in to work with the early style dash.


It's warm enough today to sling more filler so that's what I got ahead of me today.

[oopseyesharted]

Excellent work as usual man!!!!

[Kopasz]

[aeffertz]

Excellent work as usual man!!!!

Wanted to do something a little more fun and different than sanding for a bit so I figured I could install the chrome trim in the window seals now to make it a little easier. Still got a sore thumb, though.



I did the hatch and rear quarter windows. I would say the quarter windows took half an hour each and the hatch window took almost an hour. I didn't have the special tool for it because I don't know how they work and I just wanted to do it now. I ended up using, erm, a personal lubricant and it actually made the trim slide in much easier and cleaned off with just water. So, that works.

[syracusegli]

I ended up using, erm, a personal lubricant and it actually made the trim slide in much easier and cleaned off with just water. So, that works.

buahahah! thats great.

[aeffertz]

Decided to try out the Eastwood buffing kit that I got the other day. I've never polished or buffed anything before so I don't know much about the process. The aluminum swallowtail gas cap I got was pretty dull and you could tell has been sanded down a bit. The sanding marks weren't deep or anything but you could see them. Fingernail didn't catch on anything. Went through all the compounds and it did come out to a very nice shine, although you can still some sanding marks that must've been deeper than the rest.




All in all, pretty pleased with the results of my first buffing experience.

[oopseyesharted]

That eastwood kit is good but you need the big shooter.
I got the 1hp buffer and it is amazing.

I will throw down a polish on that if you want. Just pay for the shipping. No biggy

[aeffertz]

Cool. I'll keep that in mind.

Got a little work done today worthy of some pictures. Welded in the accelerator pedal and fuse panel mount. The PO planned on swapping in a Passat TD so a lot of the factory stuff was cut out. Then I decided to get the frame notch done. Ended up with a bigger notch than I was originally planning but not a big deal. Probably would've been fine to just cut the pinch weld out with the 13's but at least it'll be set for if I ever want to go to a bigger wheel. Got some new, non-HF wire for the welder and man it makes a world a difference. Had to get used to it but started to make some decent welds (for what it is) a lot easier.




The rear end is practically done and ready for primer now. Also re-seam sealed the two panels.


The front end is getting really close to being wrapped up and ready for primer. Hoping next weekend I have off will be spraying some primer!

[aeffertz]

Oh, question. Does anyone know exactly where the holes are for the trim that runs along the whole body? I'm switching it over to the early style chrome trim that snaps onto the clips. Even basic placement of them would be fine.

Thanks.

[aeffertz]

Just thinking out loud, feel free to chime in.

Kinda of thinking about getting a cam for the 8V. Do you need to do anything to the valves? I'm not going to autocross this thing or anything, just looking to have a little something extra for highway driving. I do have a Scientific Rabbit ported/gasket matched intake and a ported stock throttle body and will be running a 4-to-1 header. I see TT had a 274*/270* cam but no longer carry them.

Didn't seem to come across anything in the classifieds, any other brands out there that still carry something that's not strictly for race? Am I just wasting my time with a cam? Seems like a quick and easy way for a little extra ponies.

EDIT:

After a bit more reading, apparently the 1.6 cam (what I have) is pretty close to a G-grind cam?

[bmxguy]

i noticed a big difference in my jh between a 1.6l cam vs a g-grind. i would still go a little bigger. a 272* would be peppy with your supporting upgrades yet still be good on the daily. you will need to re-shim your valves and get high rev valve springs. g-grind you can just re-shim though.

[benjaminobscene]

a set of new VW chrome metal body trim.

Can I ask your source for the body trim?

Good stuff so far

[aeffertz]

i noticed a big difference in my jh between a 1.6l cam vs a g-grind. i would still go a little bigger. a 272* would be peppy with your supporting upgrades yet still be good on the daily. you will need to re-shim your valves and get high rev valve springs. g-grind you can just re-shim though.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind a little bigger cam since it won't be a daily, rather a weekend/nice wearer driver. Do a little lumpy idle is one with me. I'll have to look into how to re-shim the valves, not sure what it even means...

Do you happen to know anywhere that still sells new solid lifter cams around 270*-274*?

Can I ask your source for the body trim?

Good stuff so far

Thanks! I got the metal trim from MKI Autohaus.

[aeffertz]

Okay, adjusting the valves isn't as bad as I pictured. Don't have my Bentley with me at work so I'll read through that when I get back.

I have found a place that sells the shims, however they aren't labeled with thicknesses on the site. Any leads on this?

EDIT: Bus Depot sells them individually. Perfect.

[ArpyArpad]

you could always give http://techtonicstuning.com/ a look.

[aeffertz]

Yeah, I messaged them and they said they'll have them in stock by next week. Sweetness.

Just got back from work and had some packages waiting for me! Got my intake and throttle body back from Scientific Rabbit. Stage 1 intake with a stock throttle body ported.



Also had some triple plated chrome euro bumpers waiting for me! Thanks again Chris!


Also got some round headlight crash panels in to finish the front end swap.


Will get some work done to it tomorrow!

[aeffertz]

Well today I worked on the front end a bit. Had the core support, fenders, and crash panels on and off a dozen times but I think I got everything lined up relatively well. I've learned that using aftermarket parts with other aftermarket parts doesn't always go together very well--today's case core support and grille. It'll work but not without tweaking everything and drilling new holes for the out pieces of the grill. From here on out, if I ever do another core support swap, I'm getting a new front clip from a donor car.

Also the fender's didn't line up very well with the bottom of the core support for me. If I bolted the fender on, it put too much stress on the fender and made it bow out, leaving about a 3/4" revealance between the support and fender. Nothing a welder and a drill bit can't fix but still.

Anywho, here's some pictures. I got the crash panels welded in and seams smoothed out.




While I waited for the filler to dry, I tinkered with a few things. Took a wire wheel to where the windshield sits, cleaned it up, and sprayed it with some rust encapsulator, just in case.


Marked and drilled out holes for the trim mounting clips on the rear quarter.


Did a little frame notch on the driver's side.
Before:


And after:


Last but not least, got the intake all cleaned up and painted.


Thanks for looking!

[GTrabbIt]

Looking good! Keep it up!

[aeffertz]

Made some good visual progress today.

I got some stuff welded up in the bay; the airbox and fuel filter mount. Was surprised to see once I got the fuel filter mount cut off that it actually was marked and had a part number, kinda neat.



Got the core support welded on and test fit the fenders. Here's what I was trying to explain yesterday, how the fenders fit like ass. It was actually hard to get a good picture as to how far it was off. There was about a 3/4" gap between the fender and the core support and the fender would stick out past the core support on both sides. (Before anyone says it, I wasn't completely finished welding the core support when I took this picture.)



But worked the core support a bit, welded on some metal, and drilled a couple holes. Got it to where I'm satisfied with how it sits now.

[bmxguy]

looking good.

[canexrabbit]

Awsome

[aeffertz]

More progress.

Started to shave the fenders. The first one I welded too quickly and warped it pretty noticeably, but the second one went just fine.





Assessed a little rust in the rear. You can also see that someone put some sealant down for the rear hatch which was a pain to remove.



But got it all cleaned up and sprayed it with some rust encapsulator.


Then did a little painting. Laid down some etch primer in the bay and in the rear. The bay still needs a lot of work, but at least it's easy to tell what needs to be addressed with it all one color now.


The rear quarter turned out well, though. Just needs a little bit more work along the belt line.



And that's it for a couple of weeks!

[Shaggy]

Nice work.

[aeffertz]

Couple new pics for you guys.

Got the Helicoil I needed and fixed the hole in the head for one of the coolant flanges.


Then just went around the bay and used some spot putty/glaze and hit some spots to help smooth it out.



Followed by just more sanding everywhere. Just about ready to get a full coat of primer everywhere.

[aeffertz]

Got some cool parts in the mail this week. Finally got my Oldskool VW order in, 6 months later. Got a slim pan with a new oil pump and a set of his Super Delux strut caps. Also got some new chrome trim for the grille, new rub strips for the bumpers, and also a spark plug wire loom from an ABA to help tidy up the CIS bay.



Installed a couple of the parts.


No more black tape! The bumpers are way too pricey and hard to come by so spending the little extra for actual rub strips to help protect them seemed necessary.

[sk8ordie]

Looking good mang

Its painful to have limited access to a project.

[bmxguy]

im jelly of your bumpers. where did you get that grille trim from?

[lil_squeeker]

im jelly of your bumpers. where did you get that grille trim from?

i would also like to know this