Engine number vs. VIN number

[rays66vw]

OK, the '66 has been delivered; pictures coming soon! - First tech question: The VIN is 116 881XXX and the engine number is F0800XXX; in other words, the VIN is about 80k higher than the engine - is there still a chance that it's the original engine, or is the difference in numbers too great? I'm assuming that the engine and VIN don't necessarily match.

Thanks,

Chris

[couion]

Your assumption is correct. The only way to find out if the engine is OG is to order a birth certificate from Germany. The F0 at the begining does tell that the engine is a 1966 1300. Whether it is OG who knows.

[volksbugusa]

OK, the '66 has been delivered; pictures coming soon! - First tech question: The VIN is 116 881XXX and the engine number is F0800XXX; in other words, the VIN is about 80k higher than the engine - is there still a chance that it's the original engine, or is the difference in numbers too great? I'm assuming that the engine and VIN don't necessarily match.

Thanks,

Chris

Chris
Even if it is not the correct engine I would not get hung up about it.Has the motor been rebuilt?Has it been converted to a 1600?Would like to know more.
Matt

[jmartini]

Like Matt said I wouldn't get too hung up on whether the engine is original, so many were rebuilt and swapped out. However, with an F prefix the odds increase that you may have the original engine. I'd go for the birth certificate to confirm it if you have an inquiring mind plus you find out other things about your 66 that way like when was it built, what port did it come into, what options did it have etc... Fun Stuff! Let's see a picture now!!!

[rays66vw]

Update:
Well, we charged the battery and it held the charge, and the engine started on the third crank so our mechanic, Jimmy, drove it around to his unit here and started in on the brakes. Master and drums are good; wheel cylinders and shoes are bad so we'll replace them. When I pulled out the battery there was a lot of crud in there, but it turned out there was only some surface rust on the floor. I'll get some photos of the underdash wiring so you all can check out the 12v conversion, as well as photos of the rest of the car. We'll have to dig up a set of black plates for it with a close match to its original number (TAS 677).

One thing so far it's missing: the air cleaner. Is it a one-year-only item, or what years will interchange, and are they reproduced?

Thanks,
Chris

[jmartini]

I looked in my book to see if they had anything about oil baths by year - they didn't. I'm pretty sure moving up (beyond 1966) won't work but moving down might. I haven't seen any repro's but someone elso may have. I'd shop on ebay or on thesamba.com classified section.

[rays66vw]

More photos as promised:

















Comments welcome... Can someone ID that flasher unit? The flashers work fine (although the turn signals have issues - bad switch, most likely). Jimmy found that the engine is smoking pretty good when it warms up and doesn't have much power... looks like it's due for a top end rebuild.

Thanks,
Chris

[jmartini]

The flasher is not the 6 volt stock flasher for the year, probably because it was converted to a twelve volt unit. As long as it works - that's the most important thing. As long as your dropping the engine you might as well go through the whole thing - then you will know everything about it and can drive with peace of mind. Love the bahama blue color! Thanks for posting the pictures and good luck with your baby!

[couion]

Good to see another Bahama Blue 66. I think the flasher is a standard 67 or later flasher. I believe the turn signals on these had a seperate flasher from the hazards.