It would be fairly simple to set up a fuel pressure gauge, between the pump and carb. 1/8 NPT- T fitting, two 1/8 NPT barbed fittings and fuel pressure gauge. Typically weber carbs want 1-1/2 to 2 PSI. The electric pump might need a pressure regulator.
If you don't get fuel pressure then the pump isn't pumping enough fuel.
In reply to TED_fiestaHP :
I may have to do that, but am hoping not to yet. Not sure I’d be able to find an appropriately sized gauge locally, so might have to order online and wait. The electric pump I have is rated 2-3.5 psi, so should be good to go, I think the 30 PICT-3 is supposed to get around 3 psi, although earlier versions of the carb may run at a lower pressure. I’d still rather stick with a mechanical pump, just to keep things simpler. I’ve learned the way the fuel pressure is adjusted is to stack gaskets between the pump and the engine. More gaskets = less pressure.
Summit has all the fittings and the little gauge, you will want the cheaper one, 0-15 not liquid filled. Summit is quick to ship, only problem with them, min buy of $100 to get free shipping.
It is great to have for trouble shooting.
Looks like as small as they go for fittings that attach to rubber lines is 5/16”. I’m running 1/4” lines, and they may be a bit bigger than they should be already. It is possible that I can find something for lawn tractors or industrial equipment that is small enough. If a quick fuel pump swap and a check of the float valve doesn’t clear anything up, I may do a bit more digging in that direction. Of course, there’s probably also a solution available from an online air cooled engine parts vendor, too.
I just recently set one of these up, so I have the part numbers.
T fitting AT991701ERL 1/4 barb / 1/8NPT EDD-844240 Gage SUM-G3122
In reply to TED_fiestaHP :
Cool, thanks! If I end up needing to do additional tuning, I’ll have to put in an order. Summit usually can get things to me in 1-2 days since I’m in Ohio.
Changed the pump out, and that did not seem to make much of a difference. Although I did have a fuel leak for a bit, as I under tightened the hose clamps. The connections on the new pump are smaller than the old one. While the pump was out, I removed the negative battery cable from the engine, it was a relic from being in the Ghia. I also pulled the fuel pump pushrod, and it measures 107.5 mm, just like it should.
While it didn't get rid of the popping and some of the stumbling, I did manage to figure out what was absolutely killing the power in the car, and proved it by taking it back over the same short course I drove yesterday. It helps to have all four plug wires hooked up. I suspect the #1 wire must have come loose when I pulled the timing light.
I'm thinking of ordering the parts to get a fuel pressure gauge connected, so that can be checked, but I also have another concern. The exhaust valve for cylinder #3 was tight when I checked clearances, so it could be burned. Not sure if loss of compression on one cylinder would cause the behavior I'm seeing. I'll see about borrowing a compression tester, and checking all four cylinders. If the problem is a bad valve, I'll probably shelve this project until I can get my S10 and Miata in better shape. I've been neglecting work on both of them.
At least the car has enough power that shuffling it around the driveway should no longer be an issue.
Don't know if this is still available or any use to you?
https://columbus.craigslist.org/zip/d/free-vw-bug-motor/6663170124.html
In reply to EvanB :
Well, the price is right. I'll pass on it, though, since Alex has a spare short block he's willing to sell cheap, and there's a decent chance I can get by with the case I have for now. I'm trying to cut back on my hoarding tendencies. Baby steps.
I did grab a compression tester on my lunch break. Will try to get out to the garage tonight or tomorrow to check compression, and see which direction this project will be taking for the next couple of months.
Warmed up the car a bit, shut it down, and disconnected the fuel supply line, then started the engine again. Learned something new - a Beetle will run quite a while on the fuel in the carb bowl. Once it coughed and died, I pulled the power to the coil. Thus began the compression test. Firstly, I'm very glad the compression tester I got had a 14mm extension, or I never would have gotten it to work. Secondly, I've finally found something harder to do on this car than on most other cars I've worked on. Inline 4s and V8s tend to be easier to hook up a tester to.
Anyway, the numbers:
115-105-110-90
Not very good, but considering it's a junkyard engine, not too surprising. Number three was the one I was worried about, and I was right to do so, just not for the reason I thought. Here's what the plug looked like when i pulled it:
I'm not sure how that happened. I checked the gap before installing them, and my father-in-law pulled them to check the gap at one point, too. Maybe he bumped it really hard when he was reinstalling it? There didn't seem to be any signs of it being hit, so I'm left wondering. I swapped in a spare plug, reattached the coil and the fuel line, and hit the starter.
Running smoother, and no popping this time. The new fuel pump managed to prime itself without me needing to add fuel to the carb, so there's a win. I'll see about adding a fuel filter back into the system now.
The carb will need to be retuned now that all 4 cylinders are firing consistently. I would have handled that tonight, but I needed to mow the lawn. I'm kind of tempted to see if I can get it ready for the two day rallycross in September.
Any opinions on Restore, or some other snake oil to give this engine a bit more life? Or should I just throw in some 15W40 or 20W50 and hope the engine stays in one piece for the rest of this year?
VR1 20-50 for a air cooled engine. Valvoline
Basically oil cooled. It should run much better on all 4, odd find on the plug....
After running for a while the rings might get a little better, also after running some, recheck valve lash.
Sounds almost like Italian tuneup time
Drive it, keep checking the lash, and also just drive it.
Never trust compression on an engine that hasn't run for a while. Remember my Sentra? (Probably not) I parked it for two months and it had no compression when I tried to start it. Srsly, I thought the timing chain fell off.
Patrick said:Sounds almost like Italian tuneup time
Fortunately, I can wring this car out, and no one else will notice 
Ted, thanks. I'll see about putting in an order for some oil. Since ZDDP is mostly for lubrication during initial startup, would an accusump be decent idea instead of expensive oil? I'd think if I got a full flow filter, adding the accusump wouldn't be that difficult. Not something I'd likely do in this incarnation, but maybe for whatever gets put together over the winter.
Knurled, I think I vaguely remember it. B12 generation?
The VR1 oil has some of that special stuff. The accusump is really for when in a turn the oil pickup doesn't get oil, so the accusump will provide oil pressure for a few seconds until the pump get oil again. It's kind of a fix for not having a dry sump. If you turn it on (and it has a oil charge) before start up, then you will have oil pressure prior to starting, but to do that you have to remember to shut the valve before shutting off the engine, or the accusump will drain and you won't have a charge later. There is a expensive electric valve for it as well.
Sometimes you can find the VR1 oil at a local store, but it kind be hard ot find that way. Of course all the normal vendors that you would order from have it.
If you get the oil and the gas pressure gauge parts at the same time, you would spend enough to get the free shipping......
Already ordered the oil on its own. I’ll hold off on the fuel pressure gauge parts unless I continue to have tuning issues...or until I rebuild the engine over the winter.
Side issue: I’ve been doing some research and it looks like there may be issues with my plan to convert to 944 brakes. Firstly, it appears the brakes push outward enough that I actually would be more likely to want later offset Porsche wheels. More problematic, though, is that 15” wheels may not fit up front due to the hardware needed to make the suspension align correctly. I’ll need to do some more searching, and if this looks like it’s true, I’ll probably sell off the 944 parts and look into getting a front disc brake conversion kit. That may end up cheaper in the end, anyway, once the cost of wheels is accounted for.
Took it for a quick spin this morning when shuffling cars around. It runs better than before, but still needs a bit more tuning. Also, I think I have figured out some of my shifting issues. When it's running, it can be very hard to get it into first and second, and I haven't been sure why. However, at one point when it was sitting still, I tried to shift into 2nd, and creep forward, as 2nd is easier to get into than 1st. I ended up in reverse. Tried it again, and had the same result. I suspect the spring to hold the shifter up may be a little weak. I'll test that theory next time I drive it by pulling up on the shifter when trying to shift into 1st or 2nd. If that changes it, a replacement spring should be a cheap fix.
Disc brakes..... http://www.cbperformance.com/Disc-Brake-Kits-Super-Beetle-s/120.htm
Note I have no connection with CB, and I only bought some carb parts from them. I am sure there are other sources as well...
In reply to TED_fiestaHP :
That’s considerably cheaper than the top line kit. I’ll do some digging to see if the 4 lug kit use Karmann Ghia parts, too. The car might get used on road rallies, so I want to make sure consumables aren’t to hard to come by quickly if needed.
Just thinkin' - shifting problems can also be caused by the transaxle nose moving up and down. When we converted my wife's Bug into a Baja 30 years ago, we had a problem with popping out of third gear, on and off throttle. New, heavy duty trans mount cured the problem.
It’s possible something isn’t bolted up tight enough, but the front mount for the transmission is polyurethane, and so is the linkage. If messing with the shifter doesn’t work, those will be the next things I check.
Shuffled the car around a bit, and changed the oil to the VR1 stuff. Shifter is still pretty balky at 1st and 2nd, and the linkage at the transmission nose seems fine, so I'll probably just pull the shifter back out, and see if everything looks well. Idf not, I'll order replacement parts, or try out the Scat shifter that was in the car when I got it. But I really like my new shift knob, so will probably stick with fixing the current shifter.
Long break between updates, as life has been busy. I've been cleaning the garage in anticipation of separating the body and chassis, in order to replace the floor pans. Really hoping to have all the chassis work done by the end of December, then I can move onto the engine. There isn't enough room to completely roll the chassis out from under the body, so I may need to partially work under the body. I'm guessing it's been done by others, though, so it'll be inconvenient, but doable. Also, it looks like the seat frames have been welded to the rails, so I may need to get the grinder out to free them up.
I did manage to hit a few body bolts with kroil and loosened them a bit. I'm traveling over Thanksgiving, so probably not much more progress this week, except maybe more cleaning of the garage
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