The Betrayer

 The Betrayer...

It really is difficult to abandon an auto manufacturer when you have relied on them for 30+ years.  The only thing that did in all my old VWs was time, and road salt....with the exception of the mk5 Jetta.  It was noisy, dirty and not a high quality build like the mk4s and older.  I was happy to sell the 06 TDI on.  VW has not carried the torch the last decade or so, as their quality has waned so it was time to try something else.  Sorry VW, you have lost your way...

Last July I bought a 2010 Accord from an old couple from Stratford.  It is very well cared for, and I immediately changed the timing chain and some sundry things to get a baseline set for reliability.  It is a nice comfortable car, but one of the biggest issues is fitting my 6' frame.  I have to set the seat all the way to the back of the track, and extend the steering wheel all the way out because the pedals are not set far enough underneath like VW does.  Not a huge deal, but if I decide to upgrade to a newer Gen Accord, it will be a deal breaker if the pedal layout is the same.

So, I finished building the new motor for the Bug last summer, and while everything is good on that front, it works well (albeit I have to check for a rear main or cam cap leak....grrr) but I added up all the receipts on the build.  $5000....folks, that's $100 per HP and it really is unacceptable.  I really should have thought it through.  That was dumb...

One of the cheapest power upgrades for the old air cooled VWs is with Subaru power.  With a $1000 Kennedy adapter, you can jump another 100HP in stock form.  Yes, yes there's more to it than that, but with the removal of the spare tire well already, there's space up front in the bug for a radiator.

Where am I going with this?

So here it is.  I just bought a 2011 Subaru Outback for $1250 that the PO says needs head gaskets.  I chose this model because it has no turbo, and single overhead cams and will fit the VWs engine bay with minimal sheet metal work...and only a modest bump in HP to 165 meaning I can use the stock trans and clutch.  The oil is not chocolate milk, so the head gasket swap should be no big deal.  But I took it for a 1 hour jaunt and there's no sign of over-pressurizing the coolant, no hard hoses, no bubbling in the rad, no leaks.  weird.  I'm gonna chalk it up that it was showing early signs on the hottest days.  I'm gonna go ahead and do the rear wheel bearings (they're BAAAD) and get a safety check and start driving it.  It seems to be in really good shape, very little rust and no codes on the OBD either.  My friend CJ brought over his spare floor mats from his Forrester, so that'll save me some bucks. (PO took them, WTF?) 

So after some years of driving, I'll strive to keep at least the motor in this thing pristine, understanding that this motor and harness may eventually go in the bug....to create the SUBERBEETLE! Yeah the personalized plates are still available for that, go figure...

Selling the stock VW engine should net me $3000 grand back, so that doesn't hurt as much and maybe someday I can feel a bit smarter.... ;)