[T3] Spring "Cleaning"

[Keith Park]

A couple of additional things that I do when I get my cars out of
hibernation:

Before starting it, I unplug the trigger contacts and crank it for oil
pressure, that way the oil cooler re-fills and oil is spread around before
there is a load on anything.  It really takes some time to fill an empty
cooler and they bleed down over the winter so without doing this your
starting a dry engine without oil pressure for a while.  With carbs, you
need to crank it long enough to prime the system and fill the carbs that you
will have oil pressure before it starts anyway.

I also crawl underneath and make sure the thermostat opens properly, and
that there are no mice living anywhere.

Almost time....

Keith


Top Notch Restorations
topnotch at nycap.rr.com 
http://www.a383ina68.addr.com/radiorest/main.htm
71 Squareback "Hothe"
65 Notchback "El Baja Rojo"
65 Squareback "Eggcrate"
87 golf "Winterat"
93 RX7 "Redstur"


-----Original Message-----
From: type3-vwtype3.org-bounces at lists.vwtype3.org
[mailto:type3-vwtype3.org-bounces at lists.vwtype3.org] On Behalf Of Jim Adney
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2014 9:43 PM
To: type3 at vwtype3.org
Subject: [T3] Spring "Cleaning"

Spring is approaching, and I suspect lots of us are starting to think 
about what we should do to get our cars ready for the road again. I 
thought I'd put together a list of things I try to do for my cars 
this time of year. It's still pretty chilly here, so I won't be doing 
any of this yet, but for many of you, now is the time.

Jack up the front end and lube all 4 Zerk fittings. If you can't find 
the 2 upper ones, ask. They're there, and they're important.

Check the water level in your battery. It should be just up to the 
point where it touches that split gap that's a half inch or so below 
the cell cap. If your battery doesn't have removable caps, there's 
nothing you can do, but keep in mind that most cell caps these days 
pry off in groups of 3, rather than unscrew individually. If you need 
to add water, use distilled water, if possible.  

Start the engine and run it just long enough to wear any rust off the 
valves and seats, but not long enough for anything to actually warm 
up: less than a minute. Verify that the charging and oil idiot lights 
come on when you turn the key and then go out once the engine starts. 
Then adjust the valves: intakes .004, exhausts .006. Very early cars 
take different specs.   

Start the car and take it for a short drive. Now you want to warm it 
up. Stop and leave the engine running and check the system voltage at 
medium rpm. It should be 14.1 - 14.4 V at the battery, but I just add 
1/2 V and check it at the generator. Divide those numbers by 2 if 
your car is a 6 V.

Remove the movable point and carefully clean ALL the old grease and 
dirt off the rubbing block and cam. Put a thin smear of fresh cam 
grease on the cam. This step is ESSENTIAL to keeping your cam from 
wearing out from grit that gets caught in the rubbing block. That 
wear is getting to be quite common in all our cars by now.  

Check the resistance of all 4 plug wires; each should be ~1000 Ohms 
or zero, depending on the plug connectors you have. The distributor 
rotor should measure ~5000 Ohms. Some later cars also have another 
~5000 Ohms in the HV coil connector. Replace anything that measures 
infinity; replace wire that is hard or cracking. I sell good quality 
SP wire by the foot. You can just replace bad parts; it's foolish to 
replace entire wiresets. If you still have the very nice OE right 
angle screw-on distributor cap connectors, hang on to them. You will 
never find anything else as nice. Most of my parts are 40 years old, 
or more. Everything should be Bosch; it will be more expensive, but 
it will last MUCH longer.  

Check the dwell and timing, in that order (because changing the dwell 
changes the timing.) Verify that your advance mechanisms are working, 
by watching the timing marks with your timing light. A dwell meter is 
better than just going by the point gap.

Drain the hot oil, remove and clean the strainer. Replace the filter 
if you have one. Refill. Check the air cleaner for dirt in the bottom 
of the oil. Change that oil if the dirt accumulation is more than 
1/4".

Here comes the shameless plug. I have used Delta Mark 10 Capacitive 
Discharge Ignitions since 1966. I'm completely sold on them. Each of 
my type 3s has one. They make the plugs and points last MUCH longer. 
I've had points that lasted 50k miles, only to have the little wire 
break inside the insulation. With my distributor cam in good 
condition, and with fresh grease on there regularly, I almost never 
have to re-adjust my points.

I have several Mark 10 CDI units available for sale. I have a couple 
of genuine NOS factory wired Mark 10s for $125 and good used 
(thoroughly tested) Mark 10Bs for $125. The only functional 
difference between the 2 versions is that the Mark 10B includes a 
switch that lets you switch back to standard ignition with a 
pushbutton. Delta also sold the Mark 10Bs thru Knight, Radio Shack 
and Heathkit. I have versions from all of them and the only 
difference is the sticker on the outside.

The NOS units are complete with the original manual. I'll include my 
own instructions with either version.  

These use the STANDARD coil and points, and wire to the coil without 
cutting any wires. You CAN use them with something like a Pertronix 
if you like, but there's no advantage. They may need special adaptors 
to work with a tach.

Finally, they will not deliver any more gas mileage or power than a 
standard ignition in good condition. They deliver faster rise time 
spark and higher 
voltage spark than the standard ignition, so they will find any weak 
spots in your HV wiring. And, they make a high pitched buzz that some 
people may find annoying. That is probably not a problem in notches 
or fastys. Personally, I like the fact that I can turn the key ON and 
hear that it's working. Mine all sit on the cargo floor, just to the 
left of the engine hatch. The wiring slips easily past the hatch 
seal.

-- 
*******************************
Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
Madison, Wisconsin, USA
*******************************

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