dune buggies and hotVWs February 2018

Today, most enthusiats simply call us “hot VWs Magazine”; yet, our official magazine name remains “dune buggies and hot VWs Magazine”. However, I am not sure how many people remember that our publication originally started as “Dune Buggies the Fun Car Journal” in 1967. In the early stages of our magazine's life, the content of each issue pretty much revolved around buggy and off-road stuff. But we slowly included more street and drag race car features; so, in the April 1970 issue, “and hot VWs” was added to the magazine title - it therefore became “dune buggies and hot VWs Magazine.” Just eight months later, the “hot VWs” letter size became larger than “dune buggies.” Since the July 1971 issue, it became and is still today’s logo format that we…

Valve train clatter. Here is my combo: 1776 cc motor with 40x35.5mm 042 heads, single hi-rev springs, Scat lifters, Engle W-110 grind cam, .430 valve lift, 284-degree duration; intake opens 19, exhaust closes 12; intake closes 48, exhaust opens 55; gross cam lift 397, duration @ .050 247, lobe centers 108, lash .004, Autocraft solid shafts with swivels. Is it normal to have a significant clatter with this setup? This is a strong running engine, that also uses dual Dellorto carbs. Other components inclde: Brazilian case, Demello c/w crank. I heard the issue occurs with some cams and lifters. Philip Citek Los Osos, CA Cam grinds can have a little to do with valvetrain noise, but the biq piece of information you didn’t supply is your pushrod type and material.…

Airhead Parts specializes in stock style restoration parts for rear-engine VWs. From Bug parts to Vanagon parts, new and used, we’ve got what you need to help keep your classic Volkswagen on the road! We wanted the pedal pads shown above to have good grip and last a long time, so we made them with a high quality natural rubber. They look and fit like originals, only with our logo in place. For 1955-79 Buses, all other 1950-79 air-cooled models, and 1980-91 Vanagons. For more info, or a free catalog, check out airheadparts.com or 866-664-3724…

We love our cars. We love driving them, we love showing them, we love collecting them. And some enterprising artists even love turning them into works of art. Of course, this isn’t new. Way back in 1968, artist Bob Hieronimus painted Bob Grimm’s 1963 VW Kombi Bus, who named it Light after his band and took it to Woodstock, where it became synonymous with the music festival. Images of it appeared in publications all over the world, and it’s still used in retrospective articles, CDs and DVDs about Woodstock to this day. The esoteric symbols Bob painted on the Bus were very much in harmony with the theme of the festival. While most people enjoyed the Light Bus as a piece of psychedelic art, it actually carried the message of…

Yes, I agree: Any Volkswagen looks good lowered and equipped with Porsche Fuchs wheels. But it’s so outplayed nowadays. Not only in Germany, but around the world! I remember the late ’80s-early ’90s, when there were no Fuchs “repops”. Even back then, people said “Everybody is running Fuchs wheels. That’s boring.” In Germany it was really difficult to get road-legal aftermarket wheels, especially all those desired 8 spokes and Riviera alloys from overseas. Sure, we had ATS, Pedrini and Mahle rims, but they weren’t exactly easy to get and they were just regular European wheels. And we all wanted the cool American stuff! Or Fuchs, because of their Porsche heritage. Even with all those forged alloys around, cars differed because people customized their Volkswagens much more than today. Of course,…

Our VW family of enthusiasts is aging right along with our cars. I know that is a very obvious statement, but if you are anything like I am, you really don’t pay much attention to the passage of time until one day you kinda wake up and realize that things are different. I joined the VW scene in the mid-’80s and have been hard at it ever since. It doesn’t seem that long ago to me inside my twisted brain, but looking at the calendar, that is well over 30 years since I attended my first VW event. I’m seeing a lot more grey hair on my head and the heads of others at the shows, and more than once I have had conversations with friends about where the hobby…