Many of us in the 60's had beetles, aka, Volkswagens. They had no oil filters and the one I owned never locked up and ran well....so, Why didn't they have an oil filter...?? I dunno.
Older VW beetles,no oil filters.
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I don't know the specifics of why they didn't have an oil filter, but I imagine it was due to the fact they were designed in the 30's and many engines then didn't.
Remember the service life of an air-cooled VW was short compared to today's standards. If you got 100k miles on one without a rebuild you were doing something. I never owned a Vw with the original engine that I knew the complete history on, but I believe they had all been rebuilt at some point. I had a 75 Bus with a Pancake motor that may have never been opened up, but I just don't know, It supposedly had only 77k miles on it, and I tended to believe it.
I also seem to remember that the later models of the air-cooled VW Beetles made in Mexico into the early '00s had some kind of actual oil filter on them.
There was a VW Guru by the name of Bob Hoover and in one of his "sermons" I seem to remember him saying that in his opinion one of the best things you can do for the life of an air-cooled VW Engine is to add a Full Flow Oil filter on it. I *think* he wrote an article on the topic, but I am going off of a 20 year old memory I have of reading it probably at 130 in the morning.
I stayed up wayyyy to late many a night in the mid 1990s reading Mr. Hoovers Sermons on the internet. I recently looked him up and found that sadly he passed in 2010 from cancer.
I hope others chime in with their experiences, I love hearing old VW stories. I am fortunate to have owned several back when a few people who were not Vw fanatics were actually using them as "beaters" or Daily drivers. It was the very tail end of an era I believe.
Remember the service life of an air-cooled VW was short compared to today's standards. If you got 100k miles on one without a rebuild you were doing something. I never owned a Vw with the original engine that I knew the complete history on, but I believe they had all been rebuilt at some point. I had a 75 Bus with a Pancake motor that may have never been opened up, but I just don't know, It supposedly had only 77k miles on it, and I tended to believe it.
I also seem to remember that the later models of the air-cooled VW Beetles made in Mexico into the early '00s had some kind of actual oil filter on them.
There was a VW Guru by the name of Bob Hoover and in one of his "sermons" I seem to remember him saying that in his opinion one of the best things you can do for the life of an air-cooled VW Engine is to add a Full Flow Oil filter on it. I *think* he wrote an article on the topic, but I am going off of a 20 year old memory I have of reading it probably at 130 in the morning.
I stayed up wayyyy to late many a night in the mid 1990s reading Mr. Hoovers Sermons on the internet. I recently looked him up and found that sadly he passed in 2010 from cancer.
I hope others chime in with their experiences, I love hearing old VW stories. I am fortunate to have owned several back when a few people who were not Vw fanatics were actually using them as "beaters" or Daily drivers. It was the very tail end of an era I believe.
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Cost and simplicity. They did have an oil screen.
Originally Posted By: skyactiv
Cost and simplicity. They did have an oil screen.
yes, I did clean that from time to time, but later I quit doing it...there are days I wish I had it back,,but that was 1967,,,,omy. Is the Navy hiring us old salts..........................
Cost and simplicity. They did have an oil screen.
yes, I did clean that from time to time, but later I quit doing it...there are days I wish I had it back,,but that was 1967,,,,omy. Is the Navy hiring us old salts..........................
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Had two in college - first one lost the #3 Jug? It ran the hottest IIRC - traded to a guy who rebuilt them full time in a town of 10k population. He said 2k max on Pennzoil conventional ... that and always adjusting valves ?
My V8 Chevy Nova seemed like a spaceship after those two bugs ... and man-o-man - could run the oil 50% longer
My V8 Chevy Nova seemed like a spaceship after those two bugs ... and man-o-man - could run the oil 50% longer
My dad had 2 bugs. He had 120k on his 70 and a neighbor told him it was going to explode so he pulled it out and tore it down. Looked like new,even had crosshatches on the bores.
His 74 was totaled with 145k on it and it was still running strong.
He ran pennzoil 10w40 exclusivly back then and changed it when he remembered to and both were clean.
His 74 was totaled with 145k on it and it was still running strong.
He ran pennzoil 10w40 exclusivly back then and changed it when he remembered to and both were clean.
I remember as a kid some loser teenager driving his girlfriend around in a rusted out bug, trying to do a 3-point turn, and pushing it backwards because he couldn't find/ use reverse. Those days are gone!
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
4wd
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My brother had a VW van going to UT Austin - had to draft an 18 wheeler to do 60 mph
(back when trucks did under 80 mph)
(back when trucks did under 80 mph)
Originally Posted By: eljefino
I remember as a kid some loser teenager driving his girlfriend around in a rusted out bug, trying to do a 3-point turn, and pushing it backwards because he couldn't find/ use reverse. Those days are gone!
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
great post
I remember as a kid some loser teenager driving his girlfriend around in a rusted out bug, trying to do a 3-point turn, and pushing it backwards because he couldn't find/ use reverse. Those days are gone!
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
great post
Originally Posted By: eljefino
I remember as a kid some loser teenager driving his girlfriend around in a rusted out bug, trying to do a 3-point turn, and pushing it backwards because he couldn't find/ use reverse. Those days are gone!
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
"Worship"-ha, ha! I still have nightmares about pushing my '64 Bug around in the snow, trying to bump-start it because the 6 volt electrical system wouldn't crank the old 1200 cc 40 HP motor fast enough to start it! That and driving with blankets & de-icer cans (UNDER THE BLANKETS!) to defrost the INSIDE of the windshield because the heater box channels had rusted out. 63 MPH on flat ground-that was ALL it had! Couldn't drive that on the interstate today, no way, get run off the road for sure.
I remember as a kid some loser teenager driving his girlfriend around in a rusted out bug, trying to do a 3-point turn, and pushing it backwards because he couldn't find/ use reverse. Those days are gone!
What junky 90s car are we going to worship in the future? Saturn? With fuel injection and decent rustproofing I don't see anything being "rare." Yugos, maybe, but they're 80s cars. Daewoo?
Festivas maybe. You can build them with bigger mazda engines.
Father-in-law knew a guy with a VW bus and he'd need a valve job after every trip through the mountains as he'd burn them up with the pedal on the floor for hours on end.
"Worship"-ha, ha! I still have nightmares about pushing my '64 Bug around in the snow, trying to bump-start it because the 6 volt electrical system wouldn't crank the old 1200 cc 40 HP motor fast enough to start it! That and driving with blankets & de-icer cans (UNDER THE BLANKETS!) to defrost the INSIDE of the windshield because the heater box channels had rusted out. 63 MPH on flat ground-that was ALL it had! Couldn't drive that on the interstate today, no way, get run off the road for sure.
I had 2 VW's. 65 1200cc bug and a 68 1600cc van. My father had some 50- 60's as well. Their engine life wasn't really all that bad when you consider that they were air cooled and went maybe 80,000 miles while the big American autos went around 110,000 miles. The VW's were way under powered and spent most of their time wide open. I don't think the lack of an oil filter shortened their life very much. Had to adjust the valves often and change the oil as well but nothing went off-roading like a bug. OH the Fun I had!
4wd
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And big they were - Growing up - the neighbors towed a travel trailer for about 15 years and never owned a truck - this was common in 60's to 70's ...
Originally Posted By: WobblyElvis
I had 2 VW's. 65 1200cc bug and a 68 1600cc van. My father had some 50- 60's as well. Their engine life wasn't really all that bad when you consider that they were air cooled and went maybe 80,000 miles while the big American autos went around 110,000 miles. The VW's were way under powered and spent most of their time wide open. I don't think the lack of an oil filter shortened their life very much. Had to adjust the valves often and change the oil as well but nothing went off-roading like a bug. OH the Fun I had!
I had 2 VW's. 65 1200cc bug and a 68 1600cc van. My father had some 50- 60's as well. Their engine life wasn't really all that bad when you consider that they were air cooled and went maybe 80,000 miles while the big American autos went around 110,000 miles. The VW's were way under powered and spent most of their time wide open. I don't think the lack of an oil filter shortened their life very much. Had to adjust the valves often and change the oil as well but nothing went off-roading like a bug. OH the Fun I had!
Number 3 "jug" ran hot because the oil cooler blocked airflow to it. Fine German engineering.
4wd
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Winner-winner - chicken dinner - engineering irony at its best
we had a 74 - I think it was a super beetle (whatever that meant). bought it used from some family friends for $500. I patched up the rust and had an Earl Scheib paint job put on it. since I did all the prep work and removed all the trim, it turned out pretty well. ours had the 3 speed semi-automatic. the windshield washer fluid was driven by the air pressure from the spare tire. and you adjusted the fan belt by moving shims on the split pulley.
I owned a 65 bug that I bought new in April of 1965. I remember changing the oil every 1500 miles and cleaning the screen yearly. I did a valve job at around 40k and a complete rebuild at 80k, then a neighbor hit me with a 1 ton Chevy pick up and killed the car. That was in 1978 and all I ever used in it from new was Quaker State Sae 20 which was recommended at the time or Quaker State 30 depending on the time of year. Sometimes I wish I still had that car.
Originally Posted By: tomcat27
we had a 74 - I think it was a super beetle (whatever that meant). bought it used from some family friends for $500. I patched up the rust and had an Earl Scheib paint job put on it. since I did all the prep work and removed all the trim, it turned out pretty well. ours had the 3 speed semi-automatic. the windshield washer fluid was driven by the air pressure from the spare tire. and you adjusted the fan belt by moving shims on the split pulley.
The Super Beetle was a Beetle upgrade that appeared around 1971. It was a little bit longer with a more sophisticated front suspension. A Super Beetle had a curved windshield, a hood that bulged out and flow through ventilation. Two crescent moon shaped vents behind the rear side windows made a Super Beetle easy to identify. I drove a '73 SB bought new.
we had a 74 - I think it was a super beetle (whatever that meant). bought it used from some family friends for $500. I patched up the rust and had an Earl Scheib paint job put on it. since I did all the prep work and removed all the trim, it turned out pretty well. ours had the 3 speed semi-automatic. the windshield washer fluid was driven by the air pressure from the spare tire. and you adjusted the fan belt by moving shims on the split pulley.
The Super Beetle was a Beetle upgrade that appeared around 1971. It was a little bit longer with a more sophisticated front suspension. A Super Beetle had a curved windshield, a hood that bulged out and flow through ventilation. Two crescent moon shaped vents behind the rear side windows made a Super Beetle easy to identify. I drove a '73 SB bought new.
I used to play around with old 36hp engines, often the main bearings were speckled with particles embedded.
Our lone VW was a Vanagon.
The air cooled Type IV had an oil filter and the heat was decent down to about 20F.
The windshield could be kept clear at any temperature and the cavernous interior was comfortable at any temperature on a long trip, although you'd probably keep your jacket on since shirtsleeves would have been uncomfortable.
Loved this old school rear motor VW. It was our first van and worked well for us when we had small kids with all of their stuff to haul on trips.
Made many trips to the north to see my parents as well as two to Nags Head in this machine.
The air cooled Type IV had an oil filter and the heat was decent down to about 20F.
The windshield could be kept clear at any temperature and the cavernous interior was comfortable at any temperature on a long trip, although you'd probably keep your jacket on since shirtsleeves would have been uncomfortable.
Loved this old school rear motor VW. It was our first van and worked well for us when we had small kids with all of their stuff to haul on trips.
Made many trips to the north to see my parents as well as two to Nags Head in this machine.
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