VW Campers Engine Power?

[Martin Capps]

I quite like the look and size of the 1980's square bodied VW Campervans
(T3?) but need to be able to tow a Mini on a trailer to race meetings. In
adverts I see a lot of different engine/gearbox variations such as 1.6D, 1.9
petrol, 2.0 aircooled automatic. Can anyone please tell me how powerful the
different engines are and whether they are suitable for towing? Also what
sort of fuel consumption should I expect - I've heard that they are quite
thirsty?

[STEVE DAVIS]

I have a 1.6 diesel version and it is not quick but plenty of economy I feel
the best option would be a 1.6 turbo jobbie as the 1.6 naturally aspirated
is only 54 hp and the turbo is 75 hp and although I have never had a drive
of a turbo version i would think thatw ould be much better. They are all
golf diesels by the way.
"Martin Capps" <no...@m.ta> wrote in message
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[T.P.]

"Martin Capps" <no...@m.ta> wrote:

They are thirsty, unreliable and prone to serious body rot but I
wouldn't swap my '84 for a VW Type 4 that was ten years younger,
it's *that* good. The Type 25 (the Germans incorrectly call it "T3")
has a fantastic ride, good handling and masses of space inside. It's
easy to drive, especially if you have power steering. Mine is the
most common type, a 1.9 litre water-cooled flat four (wasserboxer)
with 78 bhp. It does around 20 mpg in town and 22-25 mpg on a run,
cruising comfortably at 60-65 mph.

This engine (and its 2.1 litre 112 bhp fuel injected successor) is
basically unburstable and might easily go 150,000 miles before needing
a rebuild ... if it were not for one weakness. The design is
unfortunately prone to serious coolant loss through the cylinder head
gasket seals and this can often result in catastrophic engine failure.
There is also an issue with people using the wrong type of coolant
corrosion inhibitor causing brittle failure of the cylinder head
studs, so beware.

You can't exchange an engine for reconditioning if it has a piston
through the block, and this accounts for the popularity of replacing
the wasserboxer with a inline four from the Golf/Passat range. Other
engines such as the Ford "Pinto" 2 litre, Ford 2.8 litre V6 and
various Subaru engines can all be made to fit, with varying degrees of
difficulty.

The 1.6 litre Diesel has 54 bhp and is completely gutless. The 1.6
Turbo Diesel has 70 bhp and performs well except for its noticeable
turbo lag. Later Diesels had 1.7 litres, however they were not much
faster than the 1.6 versions.

The best Diesel of all is surely the 1.9 litre Turbo as fitted to
later Golfs, Passats etc. It is a direct replacement for the 1.6 D
and TD engines however, if you wish to replace a wasserboxer, you need
the Diesel's adaptor plate, engine mountings, tinware, wiring loom
etc. plus you may have to make I have driven one of these with 110
bhp (the latest have up to 150 bhp!) and the performance is superb
with unbelievable fuel economy (30~35 mpg).

There is also a 4x4 Syncro version of the Type 25. These are
specialist vehicles, much heavier than a normal T25, and have very
high fuel consumption.

The earliest Type 25s had 1.6 and 2.0 litre air-cooled flat fours
(luftboxers) and these are best avoided, being discontinued by 1983.

For towing you need good torque rather than outright power, and the
following standard engines would suit: the 1.9/2.1 wasserboxer and
the 1.6/1.7 turbo Diesels.

HTH.

[Martin Capps]

Thanks to TP and Steve Davis for the fast and excellent advice.

Martin

[Adrian]

Avoid all the air cooled petrols at all costs, thirsty isnt the right word
and the only thing you will be towing is a petrol tank.
We have a 1980 2 litre flat four and I am trying to persuade my other half
to let me slap a ford V6 in its place. 100+ BHP good torque and not many
mods to the body work. the only drawback is I will also have to fit the
entire watercooling system and design most of it from scratch.

+ points
sleeps five adults (with roof up)
easy to drive
extremely reliable even after having done 100,000 mls +

- points
roof starting to fracture and leak
body rot well advanced
new exhaust system well over priced.
2.5 diesel transit fully loaded and pulling 18ft caravan is more economical
and nearly as quick.

my other half may be persuaded to sell her VW if you want a project....
already has a tow bar.

Adrian

PS I use a dormobile converted transit (sunlight laundry) to carry my kit
car and then put the touring caravan on the back. 67 inch track clearance
on the back doors and you can stand up inside if under 6'4''. £1200's worth.
most versatile vehicle I ever bought.