This is a variation of my lovely mother-in-law’s excellent phrase, “Don’t put it down, put it away” (thank you, Millie!). Most marked when you first start campervanning and take far too much stuff, this tip helps reduce frustration. How? Well, when you inevitably need to move stuff around to get to the item you’re looking for, at least you only need to move one trayful of twenty items, instead of twenty individual pieces!
Just back from a weekend away in Herefordshire at a cider farm and vintage fair. Here are some photos from the club members!
Spend since last report: £2,747. Total hours labour since last report: 52.05
As 2022 draws to a close, I am prompted to look back at the progress made this year. Ahead of what happened this episode, here is a summary of the year:
In addition to the above, I have also made progress elsewhere.
The front beam has been dismantled, removed from the van and was hanging on a block and tackle for ease of movement for about a month. It is an adjustable beam of unknown origin that came with Eric. The bottoms of the clamshell sections that form the chassis mounts were both rusted, but were by no means unsalvageable – cutting out the minor amounts of rot and replacing it properly with butt welded sections made for a great look. Much easier and more satisfying than the work on the vehicle that has been rather worse hit by rust!
Each component of the front suspension, steering and brakes was removed and either stripped, painted in anti rust treatment, primed and painted or was replaced. The brake calipers have been painted in 3 coats of bright green Kawasaki high temperature paint and all other components were top coated in John Deere tractor paint in gloss black. This was a recommendation some years ago by a VW restorer and the colour and protection are great.
Then with the beam off the van, I was able to tackle the chassis rails in the sections that had been hidden by the beam. As this was only about a foot on each chassis rail, it did not seem like a long job however, the access is only by laying on the ground and understandably, 50 years of water, mud and rust had accumulated to rot out a large chunk of this. New sections in 2mm semi-galvanized steel were fabricated up and welded in place, and with new thick steel onto nicely tidied chassis 2mm steel, this went in smoothly and with minimal grinding required. Once fully smooth, again this was rust proofed and primed but top coat on the chassis / underside is the original L90D pastel white. I am using synthetic enamel for its hard wearing and easy to apply properties.
Once finished (first picture), and with the anti roll bar back in place complete with the new rubbers and mounting brackets, it all got a final check before calling on a neighbour. The recommended way to refit a beam is to get it under the van and jack it up on a trolley jack, keeping it horizontal and continue lifting onto the chassis rails.
I had a brainwave and for once it worked out well. We wheeled the finished beam to underneath Eric, ensured that it was approximately as vertical as needed. Eric was on the block and tackle to get it high enough for the beam to go underneath, then we simply lowered Eric onto the beam, which was therefore completely flat and the sheer weight of the van helped press the chassis rails into the beam. A few little wiggles and we were able to get the first bolt on each side before a little further wiggling could get the remaining bolts into the chassis. From the beam being up on the block and tackle, to moving the beam, lifting the van on the same block and tackle, lowering the van onto it and aligning all bolts took 45 minutes. We felt that was a big result! Picture 2 shows the offside front wheelarch, all painted in white with the beam in place and shiny green calipers.
Picture 3 shows the chassis under the beam, the lumpy underseal was hiding some gremlins but new steel sections have made it all strong again. With the chassis rail opened, I have been able to add rust proofing paint to the insides of the rails in a lot of places and will follow that up with underseal in due course.
Once that was complete, Eric had a beam with which to roll him over. The garage was suitably tidied and emptied, Eric was turned nearly 180 degrees (not easy in a double garage) and the offside wheels removed. The rollover jig was bolted in place of the wheels and Eric was laid onto his off side. This allowed me to get to the underside to work on the sections not easily accessible when he was on his other side a year or so ago. The key section here was the nearside rear chassis rail. Picture 4 shows the remains of the chassis rail – I knew this was bad when I did the other side of the same section. If you have a box that has seen better days, replace one side then the other – more reliable for positioning than replacing it all at once. Just behind the torsion tube was about 30cm / 1 foot that needed a significant section replacing and as it was curved, this was done in 3 sections, again rust proofing the inside as it became accessible. Anything rusty was cut out. The mounting bracket of the bump stop was removed as that was very bad, new sections fabricated for that before welding that back on to fresh steel.
It looks much better with steel instead of holes! Picture 5 was when the rust proofing paint was still wet, once dry it goes purple and then the primer went on twice and several coats of L90D top coat as well.
A similar story on the offside rear wheel arch – remove buckets of underseal, get visibility on the metal, remove the paint unless it is looking great. Remove rust, add new metal if required, rust proof, prime and paint. Once all of that was complete, the majority of the underside is now done – just minor bits that were missed plus the underside of the fuel tank to go then it is build up time. Picture 6 of the offside rear wheelarch and bump stop all clean and white made me feel rather good!
With that section complete, I was able to tackle the offside rear suspension. Nothing major here as it is heavy steel that needed stripping and again rust proof / prime / paint. On investigation of the driveshaft, this was ok but the CV joints were sadly not – I had bought new gaiters for the CV joints and now need to buy CV joints. Which come with gaiters. That outlay will have to wait for a while until I feel happy about paying good money for something that I already own!
Next jobs are – assemble the rear drum brakes, add the brake cables, brake pipes, find which brake servo is which and where they go. Add the brake flexi pipes to the right places, join everything up. Add the steering box, connect that to the beam. Gear selector mechanism. Air heating pipe completion. Finish cleaning the gearbox, prime it and paint it, mount it, add the driveshafts once I buy the CV joints. Around that time I can put Eric back on his wheels for what I hope will be the last time. Perhaps I will manage that for the next issue but it is cold. And that list feels daunting! Until next time.
Another brilliant weekend in Great Bourton, Oxfordshire with our great new host William. Lots of fun, laughter and burgers!
Here are a selection of pictures.
Just a week away is the ABC, our annual AGM, BBQ and Club Camp – are you going?
Get together with members and hear what’s happening in your Club at our short AGM. The Barnstones site has served us really well over the last several years, and is located in Great Bourton, Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX17 1QU, just a couple of miles off the M40.
Scene of our earliest club BBQs, which are free for members, we’re very much looking forward to going back. We will be using a local hall to host the AGM part of proceedings, along with light refreshments. Just bring your membership card with you.
Price per night is about £15 for a pitch (van with or without awning), but electric hook-up prices cannot be quoted at the moment, due to uncertainty in the market. I’ll share this information as soon as we have it, but please be reassured, we will be able to power the BBQ food storage safely.
I will be making all the bookings, just let me know your dates, how many adults, children and dogs, whether you need electric, and whether you’re bringing an awning. Places are limited so contact me soon to reserve your spot! Please do not book direct as there may be insufficient space on the rally field.
The site itself says, “Barnstones is a very attractive 4 star AA award winning site situated on the edge of the pretty village of Great Bourton. 3 miles from the historic town of Banbury, other attractions nearby are Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwick Castle, Oxford, Blenheim Palace and the very beautiful Cotswolds area all within a 20 mile radius of the site. The site is very mature with beautiful landscaped grounds, full serviced pitches and hard standing pitches are available, all pitches have hook-ups provided, the high quality toilet block provides free showers, dishwashing facilities and a full laundry room. Wi-Fi and a children’s play area are available. A local pub serving very good food is 200 yards from the site.”
Read more on the web at https://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/campsites/uk/oxfordshire/nr-banbury/barnstonescaravanandcampingsite/
Tatner’s Tips – No 1. Magnetic Hooks
Michelle Tatner writes:
I don’t know about you, but I am at the age when I need to wear glasses when I read, or anything else when I come to think of it. I love to read for a while in bed especially when I am all snuggled up in our T6 campervan Ginny and this is where the problem starts. It’s easy to pop your book under the pillow and it doesn’t really matter all that much if it slips down the side of the bed, however, where do you put your fragile spectacles to go to sleep? If I had a pound for every time that I have had to get out of the van to retrieve my glasses case and my mobile phone/torch from under the rock and roll bed, I would probably be driving around in a fancy VW California.
In our first van Misty the T25 Holdsworth Villa there was a shelf overhead so you could pop your book, glasses, torch, mobile phone, midnight chocolate supply etc. on it to go to sleep. We do not have this luxury in Ginny and we didn’t want to start drilling holes to fix a shelf and Steve was getting fed up with me waking him up every time I had to lean over him to put my bits and pieces on the work top area. So, what to do?
After trialling all sorts of weird and wonderful ideas including sticky Velcro (not good when you get your hair caught in it – don’t ask!) and with the help of You Tube, I discovered the joys of Magnetic Hooks.
You can buy them in all sizes and weight bearing capability, and if there is a metal base you can move them around the van to suit your needs. If I use them on the outside of the van, I do put a small piece of thin fabric between the metal and the magnet just to protect the paintwork.
We use the Magnetic hooks for a wide range of things including but not limited to:
I can go on, but I think you get the idea. I bought ours from Amazon from the Ant Mag Store and they are called Heavy duty magnetic hooks 36KG (80LBS). As at the date of writing, they cost £15.99 plus postage for 6 though there are certainly deals to be had for different sizes and quantities and other providers of course. As with all these things, read the instructions of use carefully, take care to where you put them, I found that popping one in the middle of the top of sliding door wasn’t a wise move and I wouldn’t attach one to any of my electronics or my mobile phone.
Until next time, happy camping everyone, Michelle
Last time, Thomas covered the restoration of the underside and windows of Libertine. He continues:
A friend of mine moved down to Cornwall, taking his hightop VW Splitscreen with him. At the time, he used it as his main mode of transport. Trouble was, he used to give it a hard life and drive as fast as he could anywhere. This took its toll on the old reduction boxes. Constantly having to give them attention because the seals kept leaking. Personally, I thought that he drove too fast and there was too much pressure in the reduction boxes. I don’t know how he did it, but he managed to get the old bus to drive at seemingly crazy speeds. Perhaps it wasn’t and it just felt like that.
One day he rang me to say that he had crashed and ended up in a hedge, leaning at an angle. He was unhurt thank goodness. The bus was badly damaged down one side. The brakes had failed while going downhill approaching a bend. His only course of action was to go through the hedge.
I mention it here because of the cause of his brake failure. An insurance assessment revealed that the rear backing plates had corroded. When the brakes were applied going downhill, the rear brake shoes locked against the drums as they are supposed to. The trouble was, the corroded back plates spun, wrenching them from their mountings and parting company with the brake hoses – no brakes!
My friend kept his van mechanically fit and regularly maintained and examined other than the annual MOT inspection required at the time.
Being concerned about my friend’s accident and the near loss of his bus, I went outside to crawl under my bus and examine my bus. Mine is a 1973 T2, so I expected things to be all well in the back plate department. To my horror I could not have been more wrong!
The back plate metal on both sides at the rear had corroded where the back plates bolt to the hub. I did poke it hard with a screwdriver, so perhaps more than would normally be done on an MOT inspection. Something had to be done and quickly. Biting the bullet I ordered a load of parts from a well-known parts supplier (No, not ‘Just Kampers’ at that time). I had now owned the van for some years and never needed to change the rear shoes. Yes, there was so much ‘meat’ left on the brake shoes from careful driving I suppose. Even so, I was going to give Libertine a full overhaul of rear brakes. Stuff it I thought – all the brakes!
I ordered new brake callipers and pads for the front. Proper German parts as well. Full set of flexible brake hoses, full set of brake shoes for the rear, new backing plates, brake cylinders, springs, hand brake cables. Stuff it, may as well order two rear brake drums whilst I’m at it.
This parts list soon adds up in price. However, my life and that of myself and family and friends are worth so much more. The parts arrived in very quick time. Being very pleased with all these shiny parts was a great feeling when spread on the kitchen table – where else!
Noticing that the VW parts supplier has charged me very little for my order I telephoned them to say so. Being passed on to one person then another I eventually spoke to the manager. Telling him of my problem (not enough charged) he asked if he could call me back later. Doing so, he explained that he had never before received a complaint (it wasn’t a complaint I protested) that his Company had not charged a customer enough for their order. This being so, he informed me that as a reward for being an honest customer he wanted me to accept the order with his thanks and compliments. WOW! What a result.
Setting to work, I jacked the bus up on heavy duty axle stands and began cleaning and stripping parts off. The drums looked serviceable, but everything had given good service since 1973. The backing plates were in bad shape. Underseal had hidden their real poor condition. Flexible hoses are expendable items in my view, but were changed anyway. Replacement was a reverse procedure as removal. All went smoothly except the handbrake cables. Although functioning, the outer cable covers were full of rust. I had reached them in time. Assembly of front disc brake callipers went smoothly. Old ones off, new bolted on. A full change of brake fluid followed.
All was now well. A test drive proved that. My friend’s accident had potentially saved me from the same fate. His VW van was eventually fixed and beautifully repaired, and drives around Cornwall to this day. With a different owner now, and perhaps not as fast.
Since the major brake replacement Libertine continued to serve me and the family well. Six trips to France and Ireland as the family grew up. Using it whenever I could.
It was now 2012, and the Olympic Games were being held in the UK. Being an Army Reservist for many years, I was mobilised to do certain work at the Sailing Competitions at Portland, near Weymouth in Dorset. The nature of my work there prevents me from discussing it here, other than to say it was both interesting and informative. If the general public only knew what went on in the preparation, ongoing events and aftermath of something like the Olympic and Paralympic Games you would be amazed. I certainly was, and I was to be in the centre of it all – in my Bus !
My attendance was going to be for some time. Because of the nature of my work I was given a special pass. Calling this my ‘Willy Wonka Golden ticket’, because only a few were given out and it allowed me to go anywhere and park anywhere. Not even the Police (who I worked closely with) could stop me. This was a power that I intended to use to its full extent. Whenever would I get the chance to do this again in my lifetime?
Of course, I had an important role to play, and Libertine would be a part of it.
Last issue, Thomas covered the trials and tribulations of getting an MOT. He continues:
By 1999, the van had been well travelled with the family. We had taken it to France a number of times, and a tour of the Irish Republic. All went well on these trips. The only real problem we had was in County Wexford, Eire.
The generator (it’s an alternator on our bus) light came on while travelling on a very hot summer’s day. Having a look in the engine bay, the alternator was so hot you could not touch it. A local small garage was near, so I asked a mechanic to have a look. There was a campsite near, so if we had a real problem, we could camp in the awning we had with us.
The mechanic said we needed a new alternator-without looking! By then, the engine had cooled down. Turning the key, the engine burst into life without the generator light on. Deciding to drive around a bit (the day was still scorching hot) the light came on again a while later. I was not convinced that the mechanics opinion of needing a new alternator was correct without looking or investigating for other faults first. As the light came on after a while, I had an idea. Taking one of the air tubes off the exhaust heat exchanger I used thick foil to create a funnel and wired it up so that the air from the doghouse blew directly onto the alternator body. We drove around locally in case the problem returned. It didn’t come on again, so we continued our trip.
We continued our tour of Ireland and visited all places I had as a child (my family are from Wexford) and a great trip. The kids loved the beautiful beaches and green places in the local countryside. We returned home without incident.
Later when home (1999) my exhaust system had corroded and needed replacement. I seem to have to replace it by every time the MOT was due. JustKampers started to produce more and more new products for T2 vans. They stocked a full stainless steel exhaust system for £118. I thought that this would be good value for money over time. I had no idea that it will still be working well in 2022. So is the alternator I had a problem with. I would say that was excellent value for money.
Using and enjoying the van into the new Millennium, by 2009 I needed to do some serious work on the body.
The front body panel had been patched at a garage some years before. Another hole appeared there, so a good poke about revealed corrosion requiring a more serious repair. Finding that my ‘repairs’ some years before had been nothing more than filler and spray can paint, it had not been welded. Investing in a MIG welder and other tools, I practiced and practiced.
My articles may give the impression that I don’t like mechanics. This is not so. I know some very good ones. It’s just that I developed some knowledge of mechanics myself and simply hate being ripped off. Working hard for my money I don’t want to give it away – I can bodge things myself for a fraction of the cost of a garage doing it. I also hate bodges!
My first bodywork was the inner and outer sill below the opening side door. This went well, and I was so pleased to have the alignment looking good. Best of all the door gaps were good and nothing dropped off. Getting brave, the window rubbers were, well, no longer rubber. Hard black stuff that oozed water when pushed with a finger.
New window rubbers were purchased at Busfest. All except the front windscreen. I had a great plan for that. A seal for a louvre window was purchased. Only because I found one in a hedge! Yes, it’s true. Camping at a non-VW event, I spotted a familiar shape of such a window hanging in a hedge. Retrieving it, it only needed a careful clean. All the glass was there, and the mechanisms worked.
All the window rubbers were cut out. Being careful to use suction handles to hold the glass to prevent unnecessary breakage. This revealed some corrosion as I feared, but not as much as I had expected. Cutting out the bad and letting in new metal all was soon looking well again. The rear window went in easily. Not so the side window rubbers. Asking a windscreen fitter that I came across in the street, he gave me an impromptu teaching session and a tube of screen rubber sealant if I needed it. Even so, fitting the side windows was the hardest work I have done on my bus to date. That is, until I learnt that I needed to be much more forceful with the glass panes than I was. The rubber around the glass needed to slip over the lip of the window opening. Using silicone spray as lubricant (never use washing up liquid, it contains a massive amount of salt) and cord wrapped around the rubber to pull on, each window rubber would almost get in place only to pop out at the last minute. This was so frustrating. I thumped it hard with my arm. Didn’t know glass could bend, but it does. Perhaps I was lucky not to cut myself to pieces and break all my glass, but it went in.
Next on my list were the two front wheel arches. They were a bit crusty. Schofields provided nice German made replacements. Brazilian ones are ok, but a little on the thin side and poor pressings. Still, this is dependent on your budget. Having two full wheel arch panels with steps stored away a few years earlier, I found them out removed them from my stash of bits to set about fitting them.
It is good practice to remove both doors to start fitting them. Being new to this work I didn’t, wanting to keep the doors on to help with alignment and good gaps.
The old sills were cut out. Drilling holes where they are to be separated. By now I owned a compressor and tools. An air chisel makes short work of separating panels. Great noises too.
Don’t think that my van looks amazing and pristine. It isn’t and doesn’t. It is solid underneath and will not leave a trail of rust in the road.
Owning a van is not all about repairs, although a part of it. More fun was to be had in the van before more serious work. There is nothing better than a meal in the evening air, the smell of a BBQ (or six) warming yourself by a campfire and putting the world to rights.
Next time I’ll write how I replaced the vans entire braking system, working at the 2012 Olympic Games in my van, front panel and windscreen replacement and a full engine build on my kitchen table.
Thomas Feeney
Spend since last report: £274. Total hours labour since last report: 72.66
In the 2 months since I last wrote an update about Eric there has been a lot of change. Fortunately, I note what I do each trip to the garage, how long I spend in there and I also document every purchase, just don’t tell Lorna the total! This makes it easier to write it up as I have clear “notes”.
The serpentines arrived – wavy bits of metal that provide the suspension for the seat backs. Initially I used the clips that came with them, but it was all very loose, so each serpentine was welded to the next one. At the sides, I used shortened sections of the serpentines bent to 90 degrees and welded in place as that seems to be how original seats are done – I was able to use the crème brulee torch that I bought about 15 years ago and had never used except for lighting the fire! It all looked fab and received rust proofing paint, primer, and black topcoat. Then I added some plungers purchased online to allow the seat back to lock in place for either driving or camping, sadly I put them in the wrong place and had to do it again the next day!
With the base almost complete, I spent more time on the seat tubs as they have some extra strengthening added for the arms of the seat back. It is starting to look good. I suspect that there will need to be some minor fettling when I get to upholster the base and back, but for now I am calling that section complete.
Following an email chat with a race engine builder in Warwickshire, I put restoration on hold and stripped an engine for the first time. My wife’s 1972 crossover Poppy had an engine replacement in 2015 when the case was found to be split, tipping oil everywhere and the engine had sat in the corner of the garage ever since. I bought a 1776 Mexican case online that was drilled for full flow (external oil cooler ability), but I did not really know what that meant. It took me just over 5 hours to strip the engine from the rockers inwards. From a “long block” and down past the barrels and pistons to piles of engine bits!
Don’t they all look pretty? I set a date with the engineer and toddled off in the rain for 90 minutes to see him, armed with a car full of engine parts from Poppy’s engine and the new case. All he needs to do is build them up into a fabulous engine once I buy the new, larger barrels and pistons. Unfortunately, as with most bits of this restoration, the theory was better than the practice.
The case that I had purchased online was a “good Mexican case” which turned out to have case saver studs, corrosion, had already been align bored and signs of very bad treatment. The drilling for full flow / external oil cooler had been done badly and is for a Beetle – the mounting bar (aka moustache bar) for a Bay window means that those holes cannot be used. Sadly, this is becoming increasingly regular as the cases are old and have not been made since 2014. Never mind he said, I will see what I can do once it is fully cleaned, tested, and measured. Which costs money and might end up as unusable anyway.
Next, we turned to the crankshaft. It has been ground several times and is very worn. He will polish rather than grind and see if it allows it to be used. Which costs money and might end up as unusable anyway.
He looked at the heads and gave them back to me. Totally shot, not even worth trying to resurrect. New heads required. Which costs money.
Finally, he looked at the flywheel. It needs to be 21mm deep between the inner and outer levels and was 20.34mm and the milling to that height had been done badly. New flywheel required. Which costs money.
In summary, I spent 5 hours dismantling an engine and nothing from it is usable. I spent £150 buying a case that is potentially no use either.
More work was done that that, but I will save that for next time. Enjoy your winter whatever you are doing, and I hope to see you at a club event in a field.
Last issue, Thomas covered getting into the scene and enthusing his children with the camper van bug. He continues:
It is always easy to devote time in club magazines such as this, to repairs and breakdown advice, and why not. Being part of the VW ‘community’ has shown me that VW owners are usually so willing to help other VW owners. Much kindness, help and assistance has been offered to me in the past. I was always so grateful, that I now offer the same whenever I can. Part of owning an older vehicle is to resolve problems (I won’t say the word ‘issue’, I hate it, it’s a PROBLEM!), in order to keep using your old vehicle. Having said that, I will talk of problems with my bus, and how they have been resolved. Not forgetting to enjoy them!
My first known mechanical difficulty was when driving from Honiton to Axminster. No sooner had I arrived in the small market town, I noticed the red generator light come on. By this time, I had been made aware that a loud BANG, followed by the ‘Red light of doom’ (the oil light) and the red light of…nearly doom (generator) require immediate action. That is, STOP THE ENGINE ASAP!
As luck would have it, I was right outside a local garage and MOT station, ong gone now to make way for a well-known supermarket chain. Coasting in, I came to a halt at the front door of the garage workshop. Looking in the rear engine bay, the fan belt was on and seemed tight, but when turning the pulley by the fanbelt (careful not to trap your hand) a grinding, crunching noise could be heard. Having worked from the local Hospital for some years and getting to know the local shops and trades, I was unaware of this garage, or if they were good with aircooled VW’s. Not able to move my van and rather stuck, I was forced to seek their help. Luckily for me, I could get to work and take the train home later, leaving the van in the hands of the garage “I’ll get the lad on it”. A worrying sight, as the poor lad looked so new and bewildered by an old aircooled van. He searched for the bonnet. There was none I informed him. “Where is the engine then?” He stares into the rear engine bay in disbelief. Clearly he was lost on this one. I queried the managers wisdom in setting the task of diagnosing my vans problem when he can’t even find the engine. If only my van could be transported home. This was not an option at that time.
The next day I was informed that the fan at the rear of the alternator had disintegrated. I trotted down on foot to visit and see for myself. Pieces of ‘doghouse’ and other components were everywhere. Even though I had not taken my engine apart myself before then (I have since) it looked a mess. The centre part of the fan was missing!
A new replacement fan was required. The garage mechanics were telling me that I needed a new engine. In my view, I had stopped the engine at the moment I heard an unusual noise (the BANG!) and when my warning lights came on. The engine did not stop, I stopped it. Still they insisted. From my early learnings of my van’s inner workings, I was not satisfied with their logic, even though I fully understand I am a self taught mechanic and not a professional. Even fanless, the engine turned and compression felt good. The search was on for a fan. At that time, the supply of VW components was OK, but not as plentiful as available now. A member of Hospital staff knew someone in the town who loved VW’s and ran around in Beetles. Only a nickname and name of a road near the Hospital. Walking up this road I soon found a VW Beetle parked in a driveway next to another under cover. Knocking on the door, it was answered by a young chap. Amused to find an unknown stranger at his door I explained my trouble. What followed was a quick tutorial on his Beetle engine, and a mucky spare fan shoved into my hand with spare nut and shims. This was my first real memory of other VW owners’ kindness. Heading back to the garage I handed the fan to the apprentice mechanic and offered advice where I could. I also carried a Haynes manual in my van which I gave him. My instructions to him and his manager were NOT to order a new engine. Fit the new fan, put it all back together and we will see what happens. Only if it all goes wrong will I consider this option.
A day or so later I called into the garage to see what progress had been made. Just in time to see it fire up and run sweetly. Success! Whilst at home, I looked at my paperwork and found that an MOT was due. Contacting the garage, I asked if they could do this as my van was with them.
The next day I was informed that my van engine was working and an MOT was passed, but my radiator needed urgent replacement. Thinking that this the manager was talking about the oil cooler, I visited the garage again. To my utter disbelief, he insisted that a new radiator was urgently needed, and explained the perils of keeping the cooling system of my engine in good order. I asked the Manager (Snr Mechanic) to show me exactly where on my van the radiator and water-cooling system were located. What’s more, if he can’t find it, I want my MOT fee waived. Not long after I left the garage, only paying for the replacement of fan and work done to expose it and put it all back. I only got outside onto the main road when my light came on again-the fan had undone itself! Leaving it with them AGAIN. On collecting it the next day I was told “To stop it happening again we put a spot of weld on the van to the shaft of the alternator”!!! (Editor – they had failed to install the woodruff key from the sound of it).
From then, I vowed to do whatever I can myself if able.
More trips and camping and diving holidays followed. Great fun. What’s more, I got to sit next to Falmouth bay, after a dive, in the doorway of my VW van supping a coffee and eating a mars bar. A realised dream at last.
To be continued…
Thomas Feeney