Engine removalREMOVING AN ENGINE often makes working on them much easier, but sounds scary if you haven’t done it before. Don’t be scared, read this…

If we had a quid for every time we’d heard the old chestnut “just undo four bolts and a VW engine comes right

out” we could afford a Formula 1-style pit crew to do the job for us. Like “Beetles float” it’s one of those annoying facts non-VW people tend to throw at you that is of no help whatsoever if you’ve never actually done the job yourself. The reality is, that comment is not that far from the truth, but it’s a bit more complicated than that makes it sound, but read on and you will see there is nothing to be scared of. In fact, an air-cooled VW lump is one of the easiest engines there is to remove. Fully assembled it’s also light

enough to be carried by two people and you don’t need any kind of specialised hoist to lift it out of the vehicle.

To make life even easier, Split and early Bay Window Buses even have a removable rear valance that means you don’t need to raise them off

the ground to gain clearance for dropping the engine down. With these, you simply remove the rear valance and bumper, support the engine on a jack and wheel it out. Late Bay Windows have a fixed valance so the engine has to drop down to come out beneath it, hence us showing you how to do it the hard way, so to speak. Later

Buses also have an engine brace that needs removing from the underside but our guinea pig had no such encumbrance, so we haven’t shown that here. Nor did it have any heat exchangers, so remember to remove your heater tubes and disconnect the cables or your

engine will go nowhere when you try to remove it.You’ll also

need to pull the engine four inches towards you to clear the splined input shaft in the gearbox. Don’t allow it to tilt or sit on the shaft as that could damage it.

If this is your first time it’s a good idea to label all the wires you remove from the engine, to remember what goes where when you put it back.

TOP TIP:Have a friend to help, especially if this is your

first time attempting this procedure. Two pairs of

hands are better than one and it’s a lot safer, too

TOOLBOX

TOOLS USED: Basic hand tools, a trolley jack, a pair of axle stands, a friend

SKILL LEVEL:

❶❷❸❹❺COST OF JOB: Approx £100 exchange

TIME TAKEN:

an air-cooled lump is one of the easiest engines to remove

2 HOURS

We were removing our engine to fit a replacement

from The Engine Shop, but there are a multitude of reasons why you might

tackle this job

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H O W T O E N G I N E R E M O V A L

The hit it with a hammer trick may work for a bit but change your starter motor now to avoid getting caught out in the rain

Engines

are heavy. Never

lie underneath

unless you have a

jack holding the

weight

09 …this is where a friend comes in handy to help

steady the jack as you pull the engine towards you. You may have to wiggle and tug it a bit, but be careful it doesn’t snag on the gearbox input shaft. When it’s free of that (you’ll be able to see from underneath), carefully lower it to the ground and pull it clear of the Van. There, that wasn’t so bad was it?

08 Even with the nuts removed the engine is still supported, so do a quick visual check

to see if anything is still connected (on ours we had to remove the fuel line at this end, too) then when you’re happy, it’s time to pull the engine out…

01 First on your to do list is to disconnect the battery. Obviously, any wires on the engine that attach to anything staying in the Van have to be

disconnected, too. Start by removing the wires to the coil, the automatic choke and the oil pressure switch underneath the distributor. Now label them.

03Unhook the accelerator cable from its mounting on the carburettor. Forget to remove this little sucker and your engine will stick fast when

you try and pull it out. If you have an original oil bath air cleaner then that has to come off as well to give you the clearance you need

05 If you’re happy it’s all secure,

climb underneath and clamp the fuel line closed. If you don’t have a clamp, undo the woven fuel line and jam a screwdriver in to stop the fuel from spurting out. Make sure it’s not leaking, okay? If you have heat exchangers now’s the time to detach the flexible heater pipes and control wires

02 If you have a

voltage regulator on top of the generator the wires have to come off this as well. Likewise, if it’s an alternator

04With that done,

remove the rear tinware. It’s just four bolts on a Split or early Bay so it’s simple. Done? Then jack the rear of the Bus up and secure it safely on axle stands (if you don’t know how or where top do this, see page 7). And remember to chock the front wheels as well

06Now it’s time to remove those four nuts. They are all 17mm and the bottom two are the easier ones to get to…

07 The other two are in

similar positions at the top behind the fan housing. These are removed more by feel than sight but perseverance will get you there

The four nuts BODY

WOR

KOT

HER

MEC

HANI

CAL

ENGI

NE

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H O W T O E N G I N E R E M O V A L

Q: The nuts are off but my engine just won’t come out

A: Check the heater control cables aren’t still

attached, We’ve all done it…

Q: Should I attempt to do this job on my own?

A: It is possible to remove an engine by yourself,

but a friend will definitely help