Hmmm, I always thought it was the sound of the exhaust valve because of the
short exhaust system.  Similar to the way you can hear the exhaust valve
slamming shut on a Fiat or Alfa motor with the valve ~ 1" from the manifold.

On Fri, Mar 13, 2009 at 8:12 PM, Mark A Kippert <vanagon@kippert.com> wrote:

> It's definitely not as pronounced as the air cooled engines but I hear
> it just enough to know I'm driving a flat-four VW.
>
> Now I'm beginning to wish I had an air-cooled bug. My mom had one when
> I was in my teens. I drove the heck out of it (even though my own car
> was a big ol' '67 Galaxy 500). One of my favorite stunts was in the
> winter after a fresh snow. In the high school parking lot I'd get
> going fast, cut the wheel hard, yank the brake and see how many 360s I
> could do (it was a big empty lot at night).
>
> Sigh...Ummm...don't tell my mom  :o)
>
> Mark K
> 1986 GL/2WD/4SPD
>
>
>
> On Mar 13, 2009, at 8:26 PM, John Bange wrote:
>
>  It's a sound I've loved hearing ever since I was a kid (I'm 52
>>> now). I
>>> figured it was because they were air cooled but I hear it coming from
>>> my WBX (which pleases me to no end). Even with aftermarket exhaust
>>> you
>>> can still hear the telltale chirp. It's seems obvious that it's a
>>> flat-4 thing, although I'm guessing you won't hear it from a Subaru.
>>>
>>
>> Yeah, even with the waterboxer you can still hear that little
>> "twip-twip-twip" noise a little. If I had to guess, I'd say it's the
>> direct result of pushrods and rocker arms plus the H-4 configuration.
>> It definitely isn't there in my brother's overhead cam Subaru...
>>
>>
>> --
>> John Bange
>> '90 Vanagon - "Lastwagen"
>> '90 Vanagon GL - "Wiesel"
>>
>

--
Jake

1984 Vanagon GL
1986 Westy Weekender "Dixie"

Crescent Beach, BC

www.crescentbeachguitar.com
http://subyjake.googlepages.com/mydixiedarlin%27