It has only taken a smidge over eight months since we dropped it, but this past Sunday I helped buddy Scott nearly-literally shoehorn the beautifully rebuilt 1500cc wind-chilled motivator back into his project Type III. Scott has a much more knowledgeable write up of the day's proceedings over on his impressively researched VW 1500 restoration blog. But I will say this: I hate the clutch return spring on all Type III Karmann Ghias. I thought the Germans were supposed to be such great design wunderkinds? Turns out they're French. Anyhow, now that the engine is back home, Scott is just waiting on a six-volt battery, some last minute futzing (oil leaks) and my sister to get married before Jalopnik gets a test drive. The plan is to point the car up hill, in case the brakes don't work. Make the jump to see a photo of the idiotic part that took longer to install than the actual engine.
Below is the dang-blasted Clutch return mechanism and stupid return spring. Instructions concerning how to re-install it are missing from both How Works A Volkswagen and the factory manual.
Ninety-minutes and two bloody-hands later. We even got the clutch cable reattached. Jalopnik Top Tip: If you are wondering why your old VeeDub toolkit includes a 14mm wrench, look no further than the nut on the end of the clutch cable.
And now, because I love you all, some gratuitous shots of the engine. Enjoy!
Engine In [vwplusvw1500.blogspot.com]
Related:
How Works a Volkswagen? Karmann Ghia Type III Rebuild, Part 1