The time has come to re-power my '91 Westy.  30# of compression in cylinder
#3 (probably due to a failed valve in my 70K old AMC cylinder head job)
coupled with progressive loss of compression overall and falling oil
pressures over the last few years tells me it's time to bite the bullet and
replace the (original) 2.1L WBX  engine.  I considered TiiCo, but decided I
wouldn't be happy with the additional noise and vibration (I always liked
the 'vibe and feel' of the WBX I guess anyhow; call me a traditionalist) nor
the 'experimental' nature of any conversion (call me a conservative - but
not *that* kind of conservative!).  

 

Anyhow, I'm now looking at my rebuild options, with two currently standing
out:  Northwest Connecting Rod (a local Seattle shop) and GoWesty.
Northwest Connecting Rod is highly respected locally (pretty much "the"
place for rebuilds, according to all the good local shops) and the
recommendation of my mechanic, Chris Delong at Fine Tuning; IMHO "the" place
for VW service in the NW; truly wizards, brilliant, devoted to VW's and
honest and fair almost to a fault).  Either way I'd probably go with a
modest oversize (2.2 L) and reworked AMC heads (upgraded valves).  GoWesty
makes a *very* appealing pitch, however, with it's custom head jobs, custom
pistons, higher outputs (per cc) and apparent attention to quality and
detail, and, of course, the 4 year/48K (pro-rata) warranty!  Would be
interested in opinions, sagas and recommendations regarding either of these
options/vendors from any of you other Vanagon owners out there.  

 

Thanks!!

 

-Wes

 

Wes Neuenschwander

Seattle, WA  USA