wipers

Sophia picked up windshield wipers the other day. The clerk suggested 369 mm ones. Too short. We need 394 mm (16 inches). The actual part number is N-16R. Now if it rains, we'll have streak free visibility.

No rain until November please!

VintageBus.Com - 1949 to 1967 VW Buses

VintageBus.com looks like a gold mine for how to information. The site is specific for the earlier split window bus (1949-1967) but still has information that applies.

In particular -- I found the elusive wiring diagram here. So when it comes to completely rewiring Indy, I'll get a giant plotter printout of the 1MB file and lots of spare time.

A Northwest Trip

On the Road to Inuvik probably deserves a permanent link.

"On July 22nd, 1996, a dozen Volkswagen busses left Vancouver on a journey northwards to Inuvik, in Canada's Northwest Territories. In 23 days the drivers covered 8,424 kilometers, 2,703 on unpaved roads. The busses include everything from a 1965 split-window bus to Volkswagen's newest EuroVan camper."

Seatbelts

The replacement seatbelts arrived today. I don't remember where we found them on the web. I haven't put them in yet -- and can't this weekend since I'm going out of town. But I'm really happy they arrived before our Big Sur trip.

More repairs

If you haven't already figured it out, constant repairs are necessary for a 30 year old vehicle. And these things are most noticable after a trip and the motivation to fix them highest upon the return too.

Things improved:
sliding door was sticking -- WD40 to the rescue
driving door lock mechanism -- took it off, WD40, replaced, works now
door flying open while driving -- likely fixed by above
ordered new seatbelts

Open items:
oil change
find and stop battery drain
new windshield wipers
attach cooler/table more firmly to side
speakers
back running light (intermittent)
replace seatbelts
another pass at removing stickers
door panel trim and lots of latches
missing screws throughout

But don't get me wrong, she's running really nicely and looks like she'll be up for our drive up the California coast to Big Sur and another desert trip.

Beep beep!

Headlight Trim

Replaced! Repairs that involve one screw are really nice.

Adventure Sports Magazine and Ocean Beach

"Each beach has its own personality. If you want to hang out with the hippie set and see one of the world's largest concentrations of VW vans, head to Ocean Beach. Pacific and Mission Beaches host a younger crowd, with lively nightlife scenes. La Jolla is the spot for wine and cheese and mingling with the millionaires."

Adventure Sports Magazine | Feature Articles


Guess where we live?

New curtains

Today Indy got new curtains. Sophia ordered a curtain pattern on e-bay. After a quick trip the fabric store to get matieral and thread, it was time to get down to work. Indy now has new back and side curtains. They are a blue and off-white stripe/check pattern ... with little curtain ties to match.

We also did some touch up painting on the wood surfaces below the seats. Bob gave Indy a good cleaning with the Dyson and a damp cloth. We hit the built-in cooler box with some Lysol wipes. So, lots of sprucing for Indy today. She looks a little bit more sparkly.

Next weekend we will head to the Laguna Mountains for two nights of camping, and next month it's the big trip up the coast to Big Sur! Yep, the VW adventures are begining.