First Car!! 1982 VW Rabbit Convertible!!!!

[carter]

Also what are your opinions on this method of extending the shifter arm to reduce the throw length? the picture that i have attached is about a fourth of the way down the page.

http://www.4crawler.com/Diesel/ForSale/ShiftLinkage.shtml

Not trying to tell you your business but I've heard it's bad for your trans to use a short-shifter kit.

As for your dash cluster problem, It could be a faulty relay causing it, or a bit of exposed wire grounding out on the chassis.

 

[fowler]

In the long run
For a synco shift

Theres a reason u are taught to shift in a certain time

When u push the stick.in first the syncro rings engage and bring gear and shaft to matching speeds

If u shift too fast u are basically slaming the gears in and not giveing the syncro time to do what it should
It will wear out the synrco rings and damage teeth

If u shift too slow u are riding the syncro rings too long
And wear out the rings

U can also wear them out by not rev matching
And shifting without a clutch

Thats the problem with my car
The previous owner was using it to pull a gooseneck horse float
He obviously wasnt very good at down shifting as 1st and secind were being engaged at too higher speed
And worn out the rings

 

[carter]

In the long run
For a synco shift

Theres a reason u are taught to shift in a certain time

When u push the stick.in first the syncro rings engage and bring gear and shaft to matching speeds

If u shift too fast u are basically slaming the gears in and not giveing the syncro time to do what it should
It will wear out the synrco rings and damage teeth

If u shift too slow u are riding the syncro rings too long
And wear out the rings

U can also wear them out by not rev matching
And shifting without a clutch

Thats the problem with my car
The previous owner was using it to pull a gooseneck horse float
He obviously wasnt very good at down shifting as 1st and secind were being engaged at too higher speed
And worn out the rings

So essentially that means that a conventional syncro trans can only shift so fast? I'd wager that's why many super cars have gone with flappy paddles and many sports cars have switched to tiptronic trans'. They can simply shift faster.

 

[OzFab]

Also what are your opinions on this method of extending the shifter arm to reduce the throw length?

The key to making a short shifter is simply to increase the length of the shifter between the pivot & the point where the linkage attaches...

Before you do any cutting, check to make sure the linkage doesn't interfere with anything else in its path. When I made a short shifter, the linkage rod interfered with the exhaust, which made selecting first difficult &, eventually, broke the weld...

 

[fowler]

yea
if the car shifts fast then its unlikely a manual box like we think
and more like an auto box wheres its just a matter of disengagng and engaging clutch packs

or some performance cars or motorbikes thats basid on the fact u are going to rebuilt the box every 100k or so

 

[carter]

yea
if the car shifts fast then its unlikely a manual box like we think
and more like an auto box wheres its just a matter of disengagng and engaging clutch packs

or some performance cars or motorbikes thats basid on the fact u are going to rebuilt the box every 100k or so

That actually also explains why the "manual" flappy paddle gearboxes don't hold up to any punishment. I guess slamming a bunch of cogs into eachother in .1-.3 of a secondjust might be a bad idea.

 

[fowler]

Howd u make that

 

[carter]

Howd u make that

How did who make what?

I'm confused now.

 

[fowler]

your manual flappy paddle

howd u acheive that

just a set of linkages?

 

[carter]

your manual flappy paddle

howd u acheive that

just a set of linkages?

I actually don't know, but they were in alot of early 2000's supercars. Aston martins and such.

 

[j.concepcion54321]

Looked around on the web and realized that i can pull off using a set of coilover sleeves off of an older civic so im gonna order those this weekend! Time to get the rabbit sitting a little lower!

Also take a look at the list of the things i want to get for the rabbit It makes me happy just seeing the list!

http://www.ebay.com/cln/theconcept9596/Rabbit-Parts/129794238019

 

[carter]

Looks like you have alot in store, but isn't this going to be your daily driver?

 

[exenos]

I saw nothing there that would cause any issue with did the car, with the possible exception of the harness. That could be extremely annoying.

Just a suggestion if you are serious about getting a Short shifter, really think about it. I made one for my truck and even though It can be fun at times I find it to be more of a nuisance because its far too easy to miss a gear and/or overwork the synchro's if your not careful during normal driving.

 

[carter]

The harness was what stuck out to me. It's pretty annoying to have to strap yourself in like that just to go around the corner.

I'd be more concerned as to whether or not that engine can hold up to a turbo, or NOS.

 

[j.concepcion54321]

Yeah i think the NOS is a bit much, especially since i won't be trying to pull any magical times down at the strip.

Good call with the harness, i see how it can be a problem as this is gonna be my daily driver! Ill stick with the stock seatbelt.

Also as far as the seats go, i think im gonna go with a set of stock seats from a toyota celica. They look like they have good support, and i can pick a set up from a scrap yard. Usually front seats are 50 bucks a piece if they have airbags, and 30 if they don't have airbags. They also have half off days for anything you pull so it would be 50 bucks for both seats at most and 30 bucks minimum so that would be really awesome for me financially, and it should still be an upgrade

 

[exenos]

Yeah i think the NOS is a bit much, especially since i won't be trying to pull any magical times down at the strip.

Honestly unless this car has less than 100k on it then a rebuild would probably be the best performance mod you could do. Then you look into the turbo after you have it broken in.

I just looked back a few pages because I couldn't remember if you had finished the body work and paint and I have to say that i really like how it turned out.

 

[j.concepcion54321]

Yeah, the motor has 55k on it and it is motor running strong, even with the thicker oil. Its running castrol 20w50 right now. After talking to a couple of specialists they recommended something thicker for the winter especially on an older engine like that.

Thats why i figured the motor could put up with the turbo since its has extremely low miles and is running on the thicker oil like its nothing. No knocks or weird sounds, even around the cam area which usually clinks a little on these single cam v dubs. The thicker oil definitely made it run a lot smoother.

I appreciate the kind words! it was definitely a learning experience and there are areas where i can tell that i could have used finer sandpaper to get things to look even smoother, but to the naked eye it came out awesome! I just wish i had the time over the summer to get a nice clear coat on it so the paint would look good, too cold for me to go in and try to do that now. The flat color still looks pretty good though. Thanks again!

 

[exenos]

Wow, I was expecting something around 200k. How long was it abandoned?

What's the theory behind the heavier oil? Does it just stick to the surfaces better? I would have thought that you would want to go to a thinner oil in the winter instead of a heavier oil.

 

[j.concepcion54321]

Yeah, the previous inspection sticker on the car said 2000, so Its been off the road since then. It was in pretty rough shape when i grabbed it. It was definitely left to die.

The heavier oil provides better lubrication within the motor. As far as the winter goes it would have been better to choose a thinner oil but just in general he recommended it was better for the older motor. I don't think i should have a problem trying to start it in the winter though.

We also both agreed it was worth a try to get thicker oil in order to try and get rid of the beeping noise from the oil pressure warning light.

 

[j.concepcion54321]

Just ordered the coilover sleeves. They should be here within a week or so. Im gonna do it like the guy in this video did as they came out really good. The stock suspension for this came off an older volkswagen aswell. Skip to 10:30 to get a good look at the final product.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2FMgLxxWLs