Turbo VW - clueless

RideSand

RideSand

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My wife and I have been kicking around the idea of getting a rail or SxS for the last year or so. We haven't been to the dunes in forever and when we did go, it was quads and bikes. We have two kids now, and they are both big enough to ride in a rail without having to worry about their heads twisting off of their necks, so the conversation starts again.... We have friends with big boy cars and turbo RZRs and all that fun stuff that we would go with. Right now, a $7k rail is within reach but a $17k SxS is not.

Big thing Im curious and clueless about is upkeep and maintenance. I know, I know, if you own a VW you'll learn how to work on them really quick. Sure, thats great and I am totally cool with that, but what do I REALLY need to look out for or plan for? We like this one, linked below, but haven't looked at it yet. What do I ask, look for, or need to know, and again, what can or should I expect down the road? Thanks all!

https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/snw/d/phoenix-sandlimo-sand-rail/7385878095.html

 
The price is the advantage, you might be able to get it for 6500.00. If your going to Glamis that car should have better paddles. No travel up front so it will suck in the rough stuff. No B pillar so the roof will not be that strong if you put it on its lid. If the tranny has good parts it will be pricy to rebuild, and thats just a matter of time. A turbo 1915 is a good all around motor, it will be a little under powered in the dunes. SxS are pricey but would probably be a better all around buy with very little maintenance. 

 
IFLY said:
The price is the advantage, you might be able to get it for 6500.00. If your going to Glamis that car should have better paddles. No travel up front so it will suck in the rough stuff. No B pillar so the roof will not be that strong if you put it on its lid. If the tranny has good parts it will be pricy to rebuild, and thats just a matter of time. A turbo 1915 is a good all around motor, it will be a little under powered in the dunes. SxS are pricey but would probably be a better all around buy with very little maintenance. 
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I would add a b pillar for sure - just looks wrong. We will get a SxS someday, just not today haha. All good points so far, thanks guys 

 
i've had quads, vw rails, sxs's, rode with others when i didn't have one, and one thing was always in common.

I always left the dunes with a smile on my face, even wrenching on them in the sand lol. get it, have fun. 

not much to a vw, dual carbs can be a pain, looks like a single carb. good luck, have fun

 
basketcase said:
Who doesn't love shopping or window browsing for someone else.  What is your budget?  

I think this has good potential for 12k.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1404776046442278/permalink/2914693628783838/?sale_post_id=2914693628783838
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Be right back - drooling 👅

Right now the budget is pretty capped at $8k for the right one. That might even be a stretch as we are looking for some "shelter" as well. We have a small set up, but would love to move into an older, but nicer cabover. Just missed a couple, but we will get there. We also dont have to make anything happen this year. We've always been good at being patient and waiting for the right thing to come our way. Looked and shopped for our truck for about 6 years, boat took about three. We will get there! This VW is the first thing in a while thats been really tempting 

 
Is it just me or does anyone else think this doesn't really look like a Sand Limo frame?

The long hoop out front reminds me of some of the other older manufacturers but not Joe Fab's work.

IMHO, it's not just the missing B pillar, something seems "off" overall just looking at the car.

Who knows, you might not even care if it is or isn't an actual Sand Limo?

 
Sure it seems great, looked good in the guy's driveway and is right at the "budget" but....... You will not be as happy if you don't just had waited for the good deal on a 4 seat SxS.

Get the shelter thing taken care of so you can camp and boat, then get the car to get back to the desert.

 
RideSand said:
My wife and I have been kicking around the idea of getting a rail or SxS for the last year or so. We haven't been to the dunes in forever and when we did go, it was quads and bikes. We have two kids now, and they are both big enough to ride in a rail without having to worry about their heads twisting off of their necks, so the conversation starts again.... We have friends with big boy cars and turbo RZRs and all that fun stuff that we would go with. Right now, a $7k rail is within reach but a $17k SxS is not.

Big thing Im curious and clueless about is upkeep and maintenance. I know, I know, if you own a VW you'll learn how to work on them really quick. Sure, thats great and I am totally cool with that, but what do I REALLY need to look out for or plan for? We like this one, linked below, but haven't looked at it yet. What do I ask, look for, or need to know, and again, what can or should I expect down the road? Thanks all!

https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/snw/d/phoenix-sandlimo-sand-rail/7385878095.html
Click to expand...
I would avoid a turbo air cooled engine.  

I’m building one right now… to run on E85.  The MoTeC ECU PDM and dash are mor than $7k but IMO, that’s what’s required to make a VW turbo reliable.  Heck, the Bergmann fan kit is almost $2k, also IMO required to export enough heat to run a VW turbo reliably and there is not a single VW part in the car… still it’s a bit dicey.  

For $7k, I’d look for a nice VW with type 1 front end and just deal with the woops.  Something clean and well maintained and NA that will get you all over the dunes.  

 
luvdunin said:
Is it just me or does anyone else think this doesn't really look like a Sand Limo frame?

The long hoop out front reminds me of some of the other older manufacturers but not Joe Fab's work.

IMHO, it's not just the missing B pillar, something seems "off" overall just looking at the car.

Who knows, you might not even care if it is or isn't an actual Sand Limo?
Click to expand...
My son has a Sand Limo of around this year. His had no b pillar originally. We added them, also it has the warrior beam front end with the loop just not as long forwards though. The rear dose look like Sand Limo imo. Also the bar holding the steering shaft is the same as his "was".

But I agree on front loop, maybe some ones idea of a modification.

 
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Once you learn how to clear a plugged idle jet, change a fan belt and adjust valves (all extremely easy), VW's are great. You don't need anything fancy, that's the beauty of them. They just run and are super reliable. This is a small motor with a single carb, that means no carb synchronization which is 80% of the maintenance on a dual carb engine.

 
It's going to need race gas or just rejet to E85. There was a guy off the 91 that did alot of these turbo VW's. If it has a bus trans it would be a good starter. I always found on the VW cars that you should count on rebuilding the motor and freshing the trans shortly after you buy them. If you can do it yourself there great.

 
That's the Joe Limo "Canal Catfish" model, you can attach a diving board right to the front end :lol:  and go to the canal for a swim.

IMHO - go with what you could afford, then go have fun.  I've spent too much time waiting for Unicorns in my life, you don't keep these toys forever ad you'll change what you have anyways when something better comes along.

 
The E85 option isn't in his best interest.  It's not "readily available" in PHX.  Having to figure out how to transport a drum of fuel adds complexity I doubt he has considered.

 
Vws can be simple i ran one for about 12 years from 1776 to my last 2275 which i had for 8 years.checked valves a couple times a season checked carb sync once a season and rarely had an idel jet issue those seemed to happen when ever i had the engine apart or carbs off for same reason.

I had all good parts in my last build and it was reliable and i would tear it down every other year just to refreshen it but parts were getting expensive and quality slipping so i finally went with a honda 3.5 and damn why did i wait.LOL

 
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My 1st rail....it had a 2,000cc Pinto with a built swingaxle and a big carb.  I had those desert tires on it.  It ran fine.  Personally, I like small tires on a VW trans.  You make the tires the weak link...they spin and your trans and clutch doesn't.  That said, I tore the center out of a clutch and the splines out of a rear hub.  

My boss had a 2 seat short-back w/a 2180 w/1300 paddles.  He had a lot more balls, when starting  from a stop, at the bottom of a hill and would shift to about 3 or 4 going up comp....but, in the dunes, he wasn't really any faster...w/the above tires.   Long story short....those tires will work just fine for now.   You just won't have the umph when starting out from the bottom of a hill.  If you are in 2nd, you'll never notice it....1st yes, but not 2nd.

Also, there is a guy on here selling a 2.2? Ecotec, w/adapter....it has the same amount of HP, and an extra 100#, not counting water and radiator.

 
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