The Bus is Back! | VW Camper Van Restoration | Episode 4
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- Опубликовано: 27 сен 2024
- My VW splitsceen camper van has been needing a little help for a while. With a fuel indicator that refuses to work, I decided to bring it back to the workshop to sort this issue out once and for all!
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LINKS:
www.dominicchinea.com
Dom's Instagram: / dominicchinea
Honest Jon's Instagram: / honestjon_
Ranalah Ltd's Instagram: / ranalahltd
Edited by Dan Cross: / djcross87
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Wooohooo, a happy Dom with a working fuel gauge👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏thanks for taking us along these videos are so much fun to watch.
Dom! This is one of my favorite of your episodes because it was all so real! We've all set out to start a job, which then turns into a total nightmare, but the end shot of the working fuel gauge, was total gold. I bet I wasn't the only one to shout out YES! when it worked. This is why I love your channel.
That soundtrack was amazing! You should definitely use it more often. Soothing, classic, timeless, and rather meditative as we watched you work. Gotta admit, seeing how easy it is to pull that engine has got me jealous. Might have to buy an old VW bus!!
Brake lights work! It is great that these older Beetles are so easy to work on by the DIYer, even engine removal. Another option for adapting the too-long sender might be to leave the sender as is and install a spacer/gasket above the tank?? Hmmm....
I wondered that, but looks like that would impede the tank on reinstall.
I am guessing you would get a false reading and that the tank wouldn't be able to report empty accurately or at all for that matter. That is based on how I think the unit works. I could be seriously off on that one. Great thought though with the gaskets. I like some creative thinking like you and Dom did.
WELL DONE YOU !
Cheers From California 😎
I think that's the most productive day you've had for a long time!
Have some self belief and work on your own more often. Well done chap.
Thank you!
In shortening the wire the float runs up you've reduced the maximum resistance that can be seen by the sensor. If zero resistance, i.e. Float at the top, means the tank is full, then you'll never get maximum resistance, i.e. float at the bottom so the gauge will always show more fuel than you actually have. You'll have to learn by trial and error just what level of full means you are actually empty. Until you learn that by running out you might as well not have a gauge, just carry a full Jerry can.
This is spot on. Definitely don’t wait until the gauge hits empty as you’ll run out of fuel before that. 😂
A small resistor in line with the fuel gauge hot wire might fix the deviation. Value for the resistor either by trial and error or a variable resistor.
There's quite a bit of space above the tank in the van... I would just have made a 'shim' out of some heavy gauge tubing or something to fit between the top of the tank and the mounting ring of the sender.
Also, buy a couple of 9V batteries, and a dozen of both AA and AAA batteries. If they have, get a couple of CR2032 cells also. This is stuff you should always have in a workshop.
My thoughts too, especially with his metal skills, and the knackered screw holes
That was my first thought, just shim it up.
would have been easier to create a spacer on top of tank dude
Came here to say this. Nice big lathe in the corner was screaming out
given the time constraint I reckon this was his quickest option
Unless the spacer stuck out and got caught on something else! I do love making spacers though :)
Yes, but not a lot of clearance up top. I’m not going to second guess a guy willing to take a perfectly good part apart to make it fit so he can drive home.
@@michaelsnelling2918 and best ....
I really loved this one Dom, those VW engines are so easy to remove and refit makes working on them a dream
If you find the fuel quantity reading is not accurate, you could probably install a variable resistor somewhere in the sensor wire, maybe close to the gauge & trim it in until you are happy 😊
Good job! I really like removing and re-fitting engines on a splitscreen, no tilting, or support bars, straight in and out.
I think, faced with that I would've fabricated a collar to extend the neck of the fuel tank to accommodate the longer unit without altering it. 😅 Well done Dom, necessity is the mother of modification 🤣
I couldn’t find anything suitable!
@@DominicChineas If only you knew somebody with a laser cutter 😊
Nice job Dom, ditto on making up a spacer for the sender - still you are back in business again.
Love the use of your leg on the trolley jack to get the engine back in!
After doing this a few times myself in a bus and Karmann Ghia I decided to treat myself to a 4 post lift to make the job even easier the next time I do it (Almost a year after moving house to my dream barn I haven't had the need to yet!)
I've placed on of your Ranalah stickers on the lift for good luck when I do though! - I need to reseal the original tank in my '59 Ghia so I'm currently using a tank with no sender in it ;-) Fill and hope!
Well done Dom. Reminds me of the shenanigans I went through to get the horn working on my 1970 camper. Very satisfying when it works out! Nick.
Feeling you pain - I couldn’t cut a hole. But ended up replacing tank / seals / finding spots to weld etc. never forget perfect t time to change gearbox starter bush!
Glad your fuel gauge is working!!! Time for more Porsche!!! Let’s go🎉😂
Simplicity itself.. great job Dominic, i'd still keep a can of fuel on board for a while just to be sure😊
That's the plan!
So many gambles added to that little job, and you won them all! ... time to put the lottery on I think :)
Flip that was stressful. Having watched all the videos of that engine going in and coming back out again I nearly cried!
Dom you're a nutter and a genius! 🎉
(Yes brake lights good)
It’s becoming a quick release component now haha
@@DominicChineas haha!! 🤣
Ok Dom it shows full but as you have shortened the resistance wires you won't have have max resistance to indicate tank empty, your gauge will still indicate some fuel left as you roll to a stop at the road side! Again if you fit a spacer the tank would over flow with the gauge showing not full, maybe try to repair the old gauge, or a deeper tank. And please restore to the correct ride hight.
Great job Dom.
I had a similar problem some years ago. My solution was to turn up a brass ring/spacer, slightly thicker than required to make enough space, tap the ring with some M5 threads to match the sender.
I then soldered the brass ring onto the fuel tank. When soldering onto a petrol tank I always fill it up with water to just below the area to be soldered. I then use a very hot torch to solder with. A soldering iron does not work as the water acts as a heat sink.
All the best, Tony Hillyard
Love the simplicity of old VW's!
Thanks for sharing 🇨🇦
Our pleasure!
Nice job on your own Dom,well done fella😎
Nice little job done, the cutout in the tank is a mess!
Cut a small hole in the floor right above the sender, you will love this later 😉😎
God, I wish my Sprinter was that easy to work on!! Pressure job Dom, well done. I think I might get a Moggie 1000 again for simplicity😅
love this! how many modern cars could you drop out the engine and fuel tank, fix it and put it all back together in a day !!
grand job Dom , good thing about the old dubs engine out is so easy, reminds me off my old van 1969
I can see myself a couple of weeks ago. Bearded man under the bus, installing the engine with my leg operating the jack. Good to see the bus again!
With a bus that low I wouldn’t risk going under it to put the axle stands on without putting something under a sill just in case the jack failed? Just imagine if it did just before you positioned the axle stand!
Great video mate!
You lucky so and so! Now that has to be a moral booster for you, you and I know that jobs like that generally tend to go far more pear-shaped and not get resolved so easy. Thank your lucky ones Dominic.
Good that you got fuel sender working again after all that work.
I think I would have turned a spacer to fit between tank and new sender unit.
It would have been easier but I didn’t have anything suitable at the workshop
@@DominicChineasWhere's Brenton when you need him 😂
The late brake show with Jonny Smith on youtube has just done a video with a load of barnfind Volkswagens, well worth a watch.
That was fantastic work Dom . . . you overcame a series of tricky problems to triumph in the end . . . well done.
Hi Dom, well done!! I will join the make a spacer crowd. I would think your guage will give you a good indication even if it isnt accurate. All the best!!
Thank you! I didn’t have anything suitable to make a spacer really, would have been easier I guess
I'm no mechanic but removing and replacing the engine and fuel tank single-handed in one day is amazing.
Thank you! It’s fairly simple on these old vws
Good genuine DIY to watch. BTW you could have tested the brown wire by shorting it to the ground/earth and watched if the fuel gauge pegged at the top.
Thanks for the idea!
Awesome work as usual, well done and the bus is so cool
Hi Dom, I've just bought the same Sender Unit, I have a brand new tank. I can confirm that my sender unit is too long for the tank as well. Must be a pattern part problem! I'm making a spacer for mine, as that's the easier option for me. Your fix was just as good though!
Not sure about the "perfectly" part of the working fuel gauge. Senders have a specific range of resistance and by altering the length of the sender, you have changed that range. It will read but it probably won't be accurate. Keep a Jerry can handy in the meantime...
Hang onto the old sender. It's probably ok.
Boy, if i had 1£ for every mile i logged in my 10 vw vans over the years…..1 23 window sun roof, 1 21 window sun roof, 1 dormobile, 1 barn door, 1 split window with a SLIDING DOOR, various other busses including one that i put a capri water cooled engine in…… had i just held on to them i would be a millionaire now! I ran in to that same problem on the road once, i took the sending unit out and took a hammer and just pounded a dent out a bit from inside the tank. If you own a bus out there that has a dent in the bottom of the tank it is one of mine….as i remember it was green😁
I'd have got the lathe fired up, spun up an extension that A gives you enough Hight & B spans the doggy holes
Isn't it always the way? Almost every aftermarket part I buy has to be tweaked or modified in some way,
to make it fit. I feel your pain, Dom. A half hour job, turns into a 3 or 4 hour epic!
Yes Dom. the brake lights work! Job well done.
Thanks 👍
Well done Don. You actually only needed too attach the two wires to the sender (before you screwed it into the tank) and then tip it back and forth to see if the gauge worked
Well done Dom. Job well done.
Good job Dom!!!! Way to go, happy driving, safe journeys going to and fro! Love the videos!
Job done Dom.☑️ Thanks for the video.👍👍
True repair shop style.
So happy for you 🎉🎉🎉 Congrats on a fabulous gauge replacement including the amazing modification! Loved this episode Dom ❤️👏🏼❤️👏🏼❤️👏🏼
I think you can probably get the gauge working better, Dom. As you've reduced the resistance in the sender by shortening the wire, you'll get an inaccurate reading, so, if you add a (variable) resistor into the circuit (in series with the sender) you should be able to restore the lost resistance and calibrate the sender to the gauge. That would set 'empty'. To adjust where 'full' shows, I think you'd need a (different) shunt across the meter. I may have misunderstood how it actually works, so probably best to get your brother involved with this!
Got to love the Split Bus. Spent a great weekend in ours. Great to see you working on the Bus ❤️ Our fuel gauge doesn’t work. I just fill it and keep an eye on the mileage. Fill it again when it’s half full +/-.
Good job Dom
Hi Dom Now I can breathe again 😂, (I had my hand on the jack) glad you got it sorted, All the best Brian 😅
I wish you would do episode where you come and help someone like me to sort my bug
Hi Dom, I totally agree with you. I'm going to fit a fuel gauge in my 1959 split screen deluxe microbus. I wouldn't cut a hole through from the top either!
Brilliant, Dom! You are a legend, mate!
Get some more stickers sold - then you can afford to fill the tank ;-)
Look forward to your weekly films and love all your projects - Thanks Dom, Dan and John........
yes brake lights work fine
@14.08, watching you with your head under the wobbling engine, cranking the jack lever with your leg, was the most magnificenty sketchy thing I've seen in a good long while! Ingenious :)
To test the fuel gauge why not hook up the sensor and turn upside down for full and right side up for empty?
Nice work, and what a relief I'll bet? I have a T1 1954 Oval. My fuel gauge is a length of dowel. Wet mark indicates fuel presence 😂😂.
If it doesn’t have a fuel gauge it should have a reserve valve down by the gas pedal
That’s long gone sadly, the tank isn’t original and doesn’t have the reserve tap
great episode. i love the sound of a VW
Get a big stick, round one end and use it to hammer a dent in the tank for the new sender! Dan S. From Michigan and Texas
Return to Sender. Not bad, got it all done without help from John.
Dom' you do chance your luck from time to time ........but well done !
well done when you finished the mod you could have wired it and tilted it , holding it up side down full right way up empty
Hey Dom, great Video.
But if you shorten the wires..... don't you change the resistance of the sender?
Full will be Full but it will not show you empty.... I think?
Greatings from Switzerland
While I appreciate respect for originality, I have no patience for parts that need service and are nearly inaccessible. If it were me, and ESPECIALLY if I were an expert like you, I would have modified the firewall with an access door. Nothing wrong with a useful and well done modification.
As always, a fun video... can't wait to see what your next project will be
My gosh, you have the luck of the Irish (on St Patrick's Day, to be sure!). You had a lot of headroom above the tank. I would have created a plastic tubular sleeve, and placed it on top of the tank, with the tube of the gauge screwed down on to it, so that the gauge remained clear of the bottom of the tank. Your plan was cleverer!
Hmmm, I see we all have the same idea!
I borrowed one in 1973 and removing the engine reminds me of my original 1960 fiat 500. Simple and efficient, although the car wasn’t 😕🌞
Did anyone else hold their breath as Dom was manoeuvring the engine back in? 😮
Yes, me! Haha
Most enjoyable to watch Dom.
Thank you
What about free standing lift or a rotisserie for the Porsche even. That job isn’t too back with a jack and stands though.
Great little vid Dom. You would of easily got a lift off someone if you haven’t of finished on time. How come you didn’t test the gauge before you put the engine back in?
Such a cool bud well done Dom 👌
200-220 miles between filling up will leave you a small reserve, Dom. Ask me how I know....
Nice one mate. Your luck buddy as bad as mine lol. Love your vids. 👍👍👍😁
Nicely done.
I had the same dilemma when fitting a 944 sender in the bug tank so the porsche gauge would work properly.
In the end I used an aluminium spacer ring, but of course a full tank only shows as 3/4 on the gauge.
Out of interest, does your gauge read a full tank ok?
well done Dom
I'm torn as to what to say mate. I'm a fellow air-cooled nut so I feel your pain.
On the one hand, you're an arse, as the whole problem to begin with might've just been the disconnected wires! Maybe you could've just connected them and it would've been fixed! Plus, I had no gauge in my '68 bug for years, as a daily. I just filled it up every 200 miles. It was easy as that. And your bus isn't meant to have one! 😅
On the other hand, my bug has 3 extra gauges that I put in simply to look cool. So I know what it's like. It's fun to play.
Well done anyway. It's all fixed. 👍👍
Did you miss the part where the sender was snapped in half and half lying in the bottom of the tank! It definitely wasn’t the wire…
@@DominicChineas Ahhh, yes I did miss that bit!! That is probably part of the reason it wasn't working then! 😂
A fibre gasket between tank and sender would have been good to avoid fuel vapour leaks? (I appreciate that you were short of time)
Yeah, I didn’t have anything suitable
Crazy idea but why have you not hit it with 5 gallons of rust converter while you were at it.
Good work!
Great video thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching!
Hi Dom a mate of mine has a 2 post lift for sale in Southend he closed his garage by the airport
Bravo!
Has that shed actually passed an MOT test!
I imagine it has at some point in its life!
Jesus Dom - your fuel sender is the last of your problems mate - whats happened to your suspension?????? 😂
Who needs suspension haha!
Skin of your teath Dom, excelent stuff.
I once had a mini cooper that had the engine out every other weekend for one reason or another. In the end the challenge of getting it back in became a bit boring.
Well done Dom, do you recon it was that random brown cable all along, and where where was Honest John when you needed Him????
No the original sender was broken in half!
Did you check the reading with the 1.5l of fuell in the tank? If it was reading empty at least you'll know the minimum amount of fuel you have in there when it hits that mark.
Top job Dom
Always knew you would do it Dom 😂
Did you consider just making a spacer?
Yes I did
Such a cool channel! I could watch this all day. What about a series on the BBC?? 🤔🛠👍