Help identify my engine/transmission and maintenance specs

You can't tell displacement from the exterior of the motor, only way to do so is cc a cylinder and measure stroke.  That said, you have genuine Weber IDF carbs (a great thing) and that would indicate a larger engine build.  We user there carbs starting with a performance eversion of the 1915cc and clear up to a 2332cc.  I find them too large for a smaller displacement motor unless it is just a crazy compression spec or something out of the ordinary.

Distributor is an 009 mechanical advance with standard points and condenser. Bosch blue coil.  Mechanical fuel pump.

Transaxle specs will be a guess as well, however we can see that it is a swingaxle and you can measure the bearing carrier to see if it s long or short axle.  It has a billet side plate on the ring gear side, which is usually an indicator that it is "pro-street" specifications, but that too is just a guess based on our builder, it could be stock with a billet side plate.  You can check your tire size and speed vs. RPM and calculate your R&P size, I'd assume stock gears 1-3 and calculate your 4th also (likely 0.89 but could be 0.82 or others)

The .006/.004 valve lash, in my opinion, will be a little loose if you have chromoly push rods.  That spec is for stock aluminum push rods.  Use a magnet and determine which ones you have.  If you have chromoly use .002 as your adjustment spec.  I actually set mine to a loose zero, but that is also easy to Eff up so I don't make that recommendation to anyone without experience anymore.

Oil: I won't get into an oil debate, there is no point,  but I ONLY use and recommend 2 oils (Beck owners will find additional examples in the owner's manual based on client experience, but personally I only use 2 different oils).

My #1 choice (Brad Penn) is no longer available in the same formula as it once was, so my new top choice is Driven DT50 (formerly Joe Gibbs).  However since that is not stocked many places, my #1 "off the shelf" oil is Valvoline VR1 Racing non-synthetic.  We run 20w50 unless we're doing something special in cold climate and we drop to a little thinner.

As for full level, that is debatable also, but we do NOT fill to the top line.  I find that most motors will force out a cup or so when you do so, so we recommend filling to 1/2 - 2/3rds between the lines.

Just my $0.02

Oh and one more quick note, take a close look at the fuel inlet on the passenger side carb.  It is hard to tell how close it actually is to the back side the carb, but that side of the carb rotates the same as the linkage side and you don't want your rubber hose touching there, it'll eat its way through eventually and when that happens you get to see how quickly fiberglass burns...

Yours may be plenty far enough away, I just can't tell in the pic.

As Carey stated Valvoline Racing is readily available - Walmart/Trak/O'Reilies/Advance/Amazon.

Stock engine refill is only 2.5 quarts.  You say no added sump but do you have a remote cooler (perhaps with a spin-on filter)?  Remote cooler is typical on a larger engine and it could add up to a quart capacity. You can measure what you drain out as a guide.  I don't see any indication of a remote cooler/filter.  Does have an oil breather - good.

If a remote filter then the screen could be absent.  Removing (replacing) the sump drain plate is troublesome as acorn nuts are torqued in inch pounds --- not foot pounds.  Over tightening and you'll strip the studs in the engine sump! You can get billet sump plates with a normal drain plug to perhaps save removing the entire plate next time.  (Noticed your steel one has the drain plug).  You will need the new small copper washers for the acorn nuts or it will leak.  These might be in an oil change kit.

The VS signature curly red wire to the alternator looks like it's rubbing the carb linkage? 

@chines1 Thanks for the tip on the fuel hose. I checked and it wasn't touching but I'm going to make some more room for it, it's close.

Regarding the push rods, do the heads need to come off to test with a magnet?

Not sure how to do the bearing carrier measurement, I'll do the gear/rpm measurements to get an idea of the R&P size.

Is it a type 1 engine? Type 4? Someone mentioned they thought it might be type 4 which seems like it might be a newer design.

@WOLFGANG I haven't seen a remote cooler but I'm not sure where to look. Like I said, I'm really new to the air cooled world.

The curly red wire is touching the carb linkage. Any tips on how to reroute it so it doesn't? I could also wrap it with rubber splicing tape, it would be a wear item but the pressure is so light it might only be once in 20 years.

I'm going to hold off changing that screen until I know more. I might drop some new oil in and just change it again in a few weeks when I fully understand how to do the screen and acorn nuts.

It's a T-1 engine --- a T-4 engine would have 2 bottom access plates and a spin on oil filter.  Exhaust ports would be on bottom not ends of heads.

@silverghost posted:

@chines1 Thanks for the tip on the fuel hose. I checked and it wasn't touching but I'm going to make some more room for it, it's close.

Regarding the push rods, do the heads need to come off to test with a magnet?

Not sure how to do the bearing carrier measurement, I'll do the gear/rpm measurements to get an idea of the R&P size.

No problem.

No, just pop a valve cover and you'll see the push rods against the lower portion of each rocker

Google long vs short axle and there are a ton of pictures, length difference is about an inch, and it really doesn't matter unless you need brake parts or wheels.

We have heard in the past on here, that some VS cars had the engine displacement written on the back side of the fan shroud by the engine builder before it was VS for the car.  

Get a mirror and look across the firewall side of the fan shroud and, if you’re lucky, it might tell you the engine size.

@Gordon Nichols checked, I don't see anything. Possible I missed it but I took pics and put them in the gallery.

@silverghost posted:

Regarding the push rods, do the heads need to come off to test with a magnet?

Just remember, the pushrod tips are ALL STEEL. So make sure you check the pushrod itself for aluminum vs. steel. It is easy to make a mistake here.

Also, the BEST way to check the oil level is on a warmed up engine, either at idle or a few seconds after you shut it off. That way, no matter what extra oil plumbing you have you can get a true reading of RUNNING oil level. And as Carey said, a touch below the top mark to about half-way between the two marks is a good place to be.

Question on the engine, I understand type 1. What model year(s) do you search for when searching for gaskets, billet sump plate, drain plug washers, torque specs etc?

61-79 Beetle oil change kit will include the 6 small crush washers and the drain plug crush washer.  Spark plugs are very dependent on which heads you have.  Some use the old stock VW short reach plugs, while others use a skinny long reach motorcycle plug. I always recommend pulling a plug and checking what you have.  From your photos, you have aftermarket bolt on valve covers.  Some of these use the stock valve cover gaskets, while others use a special U channel rubber gasket that is only common to the aftermarket (no OEM part/year exists).  I cannot tell from the photos which gasket yours uses.

I have mixed feelings about the later drain plug oil sump plate.  While it makes oil change much easier, it also allows users to skip cleaning their oil screen, so be sure to pull the entire plate down and clean the screen, inspect for debris, etc...

@chines1 posted:

I have mixed feelings about the later drain plug oil sump plate.  While it makes oil change much easier, it also allows users to skip cleaning their oil screen, so be sure to pull the entire plate down and clean the screen, inspect for debris, etc...

If you're running a drain plug sump plate AND an external filter do you even need to keep the screen?

@Lane Anderson posted:

If you're running a drain plug sump plate AND an external filter do you even need to keep the screen?

NO.

@Lane Anderson posted:

If you're running a drain plug sump plate AND an external filter do you even need to keep the screen?

Some will tell you no and others will say it is a good idea to keep it.  I've heard arguments of cavitation with our higher revving motors, restriction on cold oil, etc... but I've driven some of the highest revving T1 motors that I've personally ever seen and they had the screen and no oiling issues.  The oil pick up tube leads directly to the oil pump gears, so I leave the screens in as a last line of defense to the pump.  Pat full flows nearly every motor he builds for my clients and they always have the screen...  Thus, we leave it in and just have a reminder that it needs cleaned with oil changes.

Makes sense, but kind of defeats the purpose of the drain plug sump plate, doesn't it?

No, it's still easier and more direct to drain the oil with the drain plug, and the sump plate gaskets won't last forever (unless you RTV them or use silicone and then they might).  I guess if you KNOW someone isn't going to clean the screen, it potentially can build with gunk and become an issue more than a solution.

That's why I say I have mixed feelings. You could argue that since people are using RTV the lack of screen could allow errant dry silicone to enter the pump, but I'd also bet the pump would shred it and the next stop is your external filter.  Likewise, you could argue that the screen would stop part numbers from going through the pump, but if you're pulling part numbers through the pump you already have bigger problems...

Like I said, Pat puts them on the motor, so when we change break-in oil we put it back.  If a customer wants to remove it, it's their motor and they can do what they want.  I'll be leaving mine in place until it causes a problem or someone proves otherwise.  I'd be willing to bet that Danny will continue to remove his.  Both will probably be fine...

Also, an argument could be made that many of us (me included) change our oil every Spring and that same bunch seldom drive more than 2,000 miles per season (if we even go that far) so the oil stays relatively clean, making the need for the screen less important.

If an owner changes their oil every 3,000 or less miles, the anti-pebble oil screen might never have anything to screen out.

To another of Carey's points, I have been using the silicon sump gaskets for a while now and my experience is that (a.) they do a great job of sealing the cover, etc, but they don't last forever.  I have a sump drain, so my gaskets are on there for good, which translates to about 6 - 7 years, then they get kind of funky and distorted from being attacked by the oil and heat and start to leak.  Pop in a new set (never use RTV with silicone gaskets) and you're good for another 6 - 7 years.

95% of the leaks are going to be down the studs and out the threads of the nuts on the sump-plate. I stopped mine by taking out the studs and using truss-head (phillips) screws and copper crush washers. The hardware is no longer the lowest thing on the sump (the fins stick lower), and the entire arrangement stays dry. Ace Hardware has the screws, and I get the copper washers in a kit from HF for $1.99 or some such.

There will doubtless be some hand-wringing regarding threading and removing steel screws from aluminum FM threads. But (like Gordon) I tend to not get into the sump unless I know I need to -- so it might be years before I take those screws out, clean them up, and put them back in. I'm the rebel whose engines are full-flowed, and who runs a screen sometimes (not in my dry-sump engines), AND doesn't feel a burning need to look at the screen every time I do an oil change. I’m a wild and crazy guy.

The screen is dumb, but it's possible that might save... something... I guess... maybe? It's part of the Sainted German Engineers' Rube Goldberg oiling system so you know it's just "top-notch". My guess is that they put it in the design on the Monday morning after the Octoberfest weekend, when they realized that they left a real filter out after the bier and schnapps started flowing freely in the office on Friday afternoon. I suppose we should be happy they remembered the actual oil pump, instead of using a slinger and splash oiling system like an old flathead Briggs and Stratton. They seemed confused if they were designing lawn and garden equipment, an aircraft engine, or a flying lawnmower.

Regardless, the screen will strain out a camel but not a gnat.

The paper gasket is fine, assuming the sealing surfaces are flat.

Kind of reminds me of those effective oil-bath air cleaners of last Century.  All the car makers used them in all sorts of form factors, even VW and HD Diesel construction engines (and a lot of over-the-road rigs) right through the 1980s.

They worked well, but they took up a lot of vertical space when the hood-lines were coming way down and they were a PITA to clean unless you had a power-spray, solvent parts cleaner and how many of us had one of those?  Usually you just splashed them with raw gasoline and went at them with a parts cleaning brush.  

Our school buses with HD 350 V8s still had oil bath air cleaners into the early 1980s but they died out as the price of a quart of oil kept going up after 1974 while hood clearances went down.  

are the toilet paper filters out of style now?

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These nuts were snugged down in 2014 when we went to a slimline sump and haven't been touched since. The drain plug gets worked often, though.

It's been 45,000 miles now and everything's still spinning OK. No silvery bits in the oil, no smoke out the back, and the mighty two-liter endures.

To what might I attribute my good fortune, other than to boyish good looks?

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@Sacto Mitch posted:

To what might I attribute my good fortune, other than to boyish good looks?

And living the good life in California

And using Crest Pro-White toothpaste.

@barncobob posted:

are the toilet paper filters out of style now?

People still use those but they're kind of dinosaurs, now.   We had them on our buses for over a decade - Ours were made by the Frantz company.

They worked well with Scott tissue rolls, at least.  Don't know how they would have been with Charmin.  🤷‍♂️  Using the Frantz, the oil got slightly darker but like cooked caramel.  It never got dark like you would expect from being in an engine sump.  My Dad wasn't about to trust it at first, so I would take some oil samples over to a nearby truck stop garage to test for viscosity break down and increased acid content.  the oil never lost viscosity but would gain in acidity after a while so we were doing oil changes at 30,000 miles.  We had one engine that we dropped the oil pan (can't remember what for) and the inside of the engine looked like new.  

https://www.hagerty.com/media/...ctually-a-good-idea/

@Sacto Mitch posted:

These nuts were snugged down in 2014 when we went to a slimline sump and haven't been touched since. The drain plug gets worked often, though.

I would have cleaned those 1/2" high nuts off in the first drive around my block. When I talk about "the mean streets of Stanistan", I'm not talking about thuggery and whatnot. My street was last repaved during the Eisenhower administration. It's mean.

@Sacto Mitch posted:

To what might I attribute my good fortune, other than to boyish good looks?

I think you mean "rakish".

Also: limited hooning. I'm thinking your good fortune is attributable to a light touch. I'm doubting any hard parts touch terra firma while dancing in the foothills.

Also, have you stayed in a Holiday Inn Express recently?

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@Stan Galat posted:

I would have cleaned those 1/2" high nuts off in the first drive around my block...

Well, note that I did say, "...when we went to a slimline sump..."

The original sump contained copious amounts of oil but was not in any way slim. It rode only three inches above our mean streets.

For a while.

One warm, July afternoon the inevitable happened. I learned that steel manhole covers are considerably stronger than whatever alloy they use to make those nuts. I also learned another advantage besides engine cooling for carrying a lot of oil in one's sump.

We added about an inch of clearance by switching to a 'slimline' sump.

And another two inches by racking the rear torsion bars until we've acquired a perhaps unstylish 'cab forward' stance. But I've learned to accept that look if not love it. And I can see the wisdom of a dry sump.

At least the outside of my sump has remained dry ever since.

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@Sacto Mitch posted:

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At least the outside of my sump has remained dry ever since.

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This is absolutely to be celebrated.

Thank you for clarifying there are different types of pushrods @chines1. I had an old grumpy aircooled mechanic catch up on my maintenance, the push rods are chromemoly. His opinion when driving was engine size 1900-2300 also. He didn't drive it that much, and I could tell he wanted to be precise but didn't want to be wrong in what he told me. Regardless, it goes when you put your foot in it.

To the new owners, I'm glad I didn't rely on my own skills, even though I've worked on older vehicles quite a bit. He caught my fan being off balance after I replaced the alternator (albiet I replaced it myself so I could drive to the shop and not have to arrange a tow out of an underground parking garage), and tuned/sync the carbs so it runs beautifully now. I didn't know it could run so well! It's nice to do things yourself but I'm happy I had an aircooled specialist go through the car before really driving it and walk me through it, good piece of mind.

The old aircooled mechanics are worth their weight in gold.

And just as hard to find.