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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2015 4:38 am Post subject: My new car.... Zenith Blue 67 |
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[edit: pics added on fourth message]
I finally have my new 67 on the road...it's a US spec model (hence relatively rare here in Europe), Zenith Blue, interior is original (i.e. well used) wings look to have been resprayed in the past (fender beading is black, same as running board rubbers, my understanding is they should be blue, right?)
It was built in late december 1966 (117408XXX VIN), engine number makes me think it's probably the original one; back bumper is non-correct earlier type, seats have release lever on the back rests, doors have push button locks (pictures to come soon for the 67 police).
According to the story told to me by the seller, the car was originally bought brand new in 1967 in Germany by a Spanish immigrant working there, who might have been a worker at VW (this has not ben confirmed)
[in any case, the main mistery is why (and how!) would he get a US-spec model??? ]
The car currently has amber top tail-lights and 140kph speedo, they were probably in the car since almost new, since it was being used in european roads.
When I got the car it was clearly lacking power, compression test showed #2 cylinder dead, exhaust valve was burnt, so both heads were rebuilt with new guides and valves, and cylinders were reringed (not ideal I know, but splitting the case was out of the question at this point)
The car also had a hall effect distributor (from an Alfa Romeo it seems), that didn't seem to be very happy with the original PICT-1 carb, so I'm currently running a 019 I had in my stash.
Second gear synchro is on it's last legs and the ring and pinion howl on coast, but I'm gonna have to live with that for a while
In any case, the car is working great now (BTW it came with Koni shocks on all corners!), the only nag is sometimes on long left turns (for example a roundabout), it loses power and misses for a couple seconds, flooding? fuel starvation? electrical short? so far everything checks out fine! any suggestions or ideas on what to check next are welcome!
Last edited by Slow 1200 on Tue Sep 29, 2015 5:24 am; edited 1 time in total |
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KTPhil Samba Member
Joined: April 06, 2006 Posts: 33875 Location: Conejo Valley, CA
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2015 9:33 am Post subject: |
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Sounds carb related. Get a rebuild kit or at least a gasket kit for it, and find a place where it usually cuts out but where you can pull over right away when it does. Kill the engine, don't let it coast (engine rotate) while you find to a safe spot by the road. Take off the air cleaner and carb top cover, and see if the float bowl is empty. If so, that's your problem. It also might be way too full, and overflowing into the vent tube.
Either way you need to clean or replace the float valve (though rebuild kits are notorious for crappy quality valves) and set the float level once back at home. |
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 5:14 am Post subject: |
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Maybe I wasn't clear, the car just dies for 2-3 seconds and then sputters back to life so it's hard to stop before it's running again (let alone on a busy roundabout or a narrow windy road)
float looks fine, haven't checked fuel level properly yet, I suspect I might have the wrong washer under the needle valve |
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 5:24 am Post subject: |
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Now for some pictures, this is how I got the car
eagle eyed sambanistas will notice that the back tires are Michelin ZX, no, they are not being reproduced in 165 size.....they haven't been made since 1975, yes, they held air and had thread |
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 6:19 am Post subject: |
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#2 was low on compression....it was clear why
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 6:21 am Post subject: |
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Pressure plate and flywheel were scored
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 6:23 am Post subject: |
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Cylinders looked fine, still with the crosshatch, but rings were well used, you didn't even need a feeler gauge
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 6:26 am Post subject: |
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After spending some dough at the machine shop, heads and flywheel looked like new again!
Then the brakes needed some attention...all four cylinders and flex lines were changed
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BLAU GEIST Samba Member
Joined: June 17, 2015 Posts: 100
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 7:53 am Post subject: |
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Beautiful car keep up the good work! |
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Mon Feb 29, 2016 5:58 am Post subject: Re: My new car....Zenith Blue 67: dying on left turns only |
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well, it's been a while...after changing the (more than questionable repro) needle and seat it looks like the dying on left turns is gone!
also I installed a period header with glasspack...talk about loud! Next step will be a zenith carb |
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Slow 1200 Samba Member
Joined: July 02, 2004 Posts: 2103
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Posted: Wed Jun 29, 2016 4:39 am Post subject: Re: My new car....Zenith Blue 67: dying on left turns only |
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So under those white circles in the doors there was a surprise hiding
Luckily I found a painter willing to fix it and he did a great job!
Also I found the correct 67-only back bumper so the repro that was there is gone, you can also see the period glasspack header (which is proving almost impossible to seal by the way), and I also installed the missing reverse light (car only came with one when I bought it)
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