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Driving home tonight, I was wondering what the opinions of folks here were on what shift points they use. I have a stock 78 Westy and usually shift from first at 15-20mph and from second at about 30-35mph. My question is, what do people here think the highest sustainable speed should be in third gear? I usually shift to fourth at about 40mph unless going up hill. I have read on another thread of someone climbing a hill at 55mph in third but that just seems to be turning the engine to hard. What does every one here think?

Jasan

My shifting is similar. I have a 79 Westy with a 1.8l Progressive T4. My first shifts are about the same a yours, in third, I go to about 40 - 45, i NEVER drop into third until that point .... slow is better than stopped with a blown rod ...

I shift more by rpm these days than speed ..

i shift at about 4000 rpm tops, seldom higher. if i am not driving aggressively, i might shift quite a bit lower than that, say 2800 - 3200.

i have done hills at 55 in third, but the revs get up there. 50 might be more comfortable. it is better to have some revs to keep the power up, and as well to keep the cooling fan spinning nice and fast, than to lug up hill.

i have lots of gauges so if the motor starts to get hot, i slow down. i drive by the CHT gauge more than anything.

scott lyons

I don't have a tach, but I shift at the same point for 2nd and third. Fourth I shift at 50-55mph.

I once let my buddy drive while I sat in the passenger seat. He forgot to shift into fourth, and we were doing 70 on the interstate in third. I wondered why the engine seemed so loud from the passengers side. We did this for about 20 mins before I realized what was wrong. Nothing bad happened, but the oil temps were higher than normal.

This is in a '72 westy with about 30k miles on a rebuilt stock 1700.

It sounds like every one is about the same then. Just wanted to see what others thought. As for gauges right now I dont have any. Does anybody have any suggestions on what are the most important ones to have and what brands are the best? How is the tach hooked up? Is it just wired to the coil or cap somehow?

Thanks
Jasan

For the stock '78 Bus, pulling onto a freeway you want your shift points to be:
1-2 @ 20mph this is 4,600rpm to 2,550rpm.
2-3 @ 35mph this is 4,450rpm to 2,710rpm.
3-4 @ 56mph this is 4,300rpm to 3,000rpm.
This is your most effective horsepower to torque split for each gear change.
You don't even think about extracting another 3mph out of your first shift point, you'll bang the rev-limiter. If you wind out any of these shift points, you're just wasting time because your horsepower is dropping off rapidly, get the shift done and let the torque do the work.
Let's say you are not trying to merge onto a freeway:
1-2 @ 17
2-3 @ 28
3-4 @ 39
and if you are puttering around town on a slight downgrade, feel free to dump into into next gear at:
1-2 @ 13
2-3 @ 20
3-4 @ 30
rules are that you can coast along but no heavy application of throttle without a downshift.
Long hillpulls are acceptable at:
2nd 30mph
3rd 55mph
with no need to wind it out as the hill flattens, just hang tight and shift when you know the next gear will latch on.
Colin

Thanks Colin for the detailed reply. Thats what I was looking for. Any thoughts on gauges?

Jasan

I have relied on the two little idiot lights all of my air-cooled life. It makes you paranoid, because that little red oil light coming on at-speed means one thing,
"Congratulations! Yer Screwed!"
But it sure makes you an attentive driver and a careful mechanic. I have never had an engine emergency with any Volkswagen I have ever owned. I did put in a tachometer. The rest, I rely on the state of tune I keep the engine in. YMMV
Colin

Colin

I agree with not having a bunch of unnecessary gauges but I would like to get a tach. Is there much to hooking one up? Any brands better than another?

Jasan

"Unnecessary Gauges" means you have taken the Air-Cooled Oath to keep your engine optimized at all times, and it means that you have sworn off the loud stereo system out on the road when you are doing long hills, it means you check for vacuum leaks at least as frequently as you floss, and it means you have a good ear for little rattlesnake rattles from your connecting rods, and that you can tell when a valve tightens up, because, suddenly, you don't like the way it is idling when hot, too quiet around the valve covers, and too rough at the tailpipe. The tach is wired to the #1 terminal on the coil, power supply from any switched fuse ( meaning only when ignition is on) and illumination from any dash light, I think they are grey/red. I used a tach from an old Jaguar and had a face plate silkscreened from a speedometer so that the numbers look just like the speedo. Lousy picture at: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/gallery/inde ... +60008.jpg

colin,

good points. sometimes gauges sort of get in the way - i look at them too much! i have CHT, oil pressure, oil temp and air/fuel ratio. i don't see any of them as unnecessary, even though my bus is in top shape at all times. the gauges reassure me that everything is still the way it supposed to be, especially when i am 4000 miles from home.

scott lyons

I think I have taken "The Oath" almost to the point of paranioa. I find myself checking the thermostat flaps and fuel lines more often than I fill it with gas. I am also very concious of the engine on long climbs. Sometimes its nice just to turn the radio off and just listen. A tach would just be nice because my engine runs so quiet that sometimes its hard to hear how fast its turning over the road noise. I have hydraulic lifters so listening to the valve train isnt to much help but I do keep them adjusted every 6k.

One question about vacuum leaks. I have heard to just spray WD40 around the lines and listen for an increase in RPM. Is this how you check?

Thanks for all your great replies guys and or gals. This site is like a bible for any one with air cooled fever!

Jasan