ring and pinion

[iceneweb]

I want to put a different R&P in my non split case tranny. Is this acheivable without special tools?

[Bruce]

Does your trans use the early pinion bearing secured by 4 bolts, or the late one with the giant ring nut?  If the latter, you need a special wrench to tighten and loosen that nut.

Do you have a good selection of shims for the pinion?  Diff bearing shims?  If so, all you need is some GM gear marking compound and a bunch of hours. 

[iceneweb]

Hi Bruce, Thanks for the reply. It has the four bolt side covers, so no problem there. I can look at my Bentley on setting the bearing and pinion preload, but where can I get the shims? Thanks,
Mark

[Bruce]

It has the four bolt side covers,   

There's only one pinion retainer that has 4 bolts.  It is not on any side, but inside the gearbox, so I suspect you don't know where it is.

    . I can look at my Bentley on setting the bearing and pinion preload, 

That is no help since you don't have the mega-expensive factory tooling required to do the job according to their procedure.

  where can I get the shims?

The shims come from old dead gearboxes.  Or from others that will sell the shims they got from a dead gearbox. 
No, I won't sell you any of the ones I have, I am still collecting them.  There are many different sizes I don't have yet.

[BUSDADDY]

Are you considering this as some sort of backyard freeway flier mod? Because unless you're prepared to build the beefy stroker motor to go with it you'll cook your stock motor. Don't try to outsmart an office tower full of VW engineers, the gear ratios in your bus offer the best cooling/power combo a stock engine can handle.

[iceneweb]

Bruce: thanks for the info, and no I wasn't asking to buy anything off you. When I mentioned 'four bolt sidecovers' I should have been less specific. After a quick look under my bus the other night I could see that it wasn't the one that requires the huge wrench you mentioned. I know I don't have the factory tools mentioned in the Bentley, but I can read the specs and get an idea about where to put the shims etc.

Busdaddy: yes, I am well aware of the old chestnut about gearing and power that you guys are so fond of pointing out every time someone asks a question about gearing. The rolling diameter of my tyres is about 2" less than stock now, and that is what I am correcting. And no, bigger tires will not fit (and I don't want mismatched front to rear tyre sizes).

Thanks again, Bruce and Busdaddy. It is your invaluable hands-on experience that is so useful to us guys new(ish) to the VW world.

Cheers,
Mark

[Bruce]

  After a quick look under my bus the other night I could see that it wasn't the one that requires the huge wrench you mentioned. 

The part I was refering to is completely enclosed INSIDE the gearbox.  You can't see it without removing the diff.

[iceneweb]

Oh! Apologies for that, no need to yell though, mate
I'm doing this from my little Blackberry screen, so reading through it all is not so easy. But still, I should have waited to get back to my PC.

Now to get back to the original questions: is there any way from the outside that I can tell whether or not I need the big wrench? Does the tranny number give any clues?

Are shims available anywhere other than old trannys?

What tools do use to setup a R&P? Dial gauge and ?

Is there a page out there with comprehensive specs on vw a/c trannys?

Thank again, Bruce

Mark

[iceneweb]

. . . And the GM gear marking compound of course.

[Bruce]

is there any way from the outside that I can tell whether or not I need the big wrench? Does the tranny number give any clues?

Yes, the trained eye can date a gearbox.
Post pics.

Are shims available anywhere other than old trannys?

NAFAIK.  Long Ent or Weddle may sell shims they removed from cores.