Well, that didn't last long: the battery is dead again. I suspect I need a new one. I thought I'd gotten one from the previous owner when I purchased the van, but it must have been second-hand.
This is definitely slowing me down! Now I need to get the battery and tire fixed before I can even get Lucy into the shop for the long list of other repairs and upgrades she needs!
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Houston, we have juice!
I was sitting here doing some boring banking when I heard the beloved sound of my Lucy's engine fire up! Vroooom! Unmistakable.
My GF charged the battery this weekend. It was at 69%–enough juice to power the lights, but evidently not enough to fire the starter.
Unfortunately, she still has a flat tire, so I can't drive her yet. I'm debating about whether I should:
She needs new tires anyway–the current ones are plain car tires, not rated for Lucy's weight. I will be getting proper 8-wall tires. I also need several other import repairs done, so it's really about getting four inflated tires so I can drive her a bit before taking her in, or just biting the bullet and taking her in for a longer list of repairs. Once she's in the shop, they'll probably have her for at least 2-3 weeks. Sigh.
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This has never happened before: Lucy won't start!
I don't think it's the starter… those tend to go over time. When I turn the key, I can hear a bit of a hum near the engine but nothing mechanical is happening.
Dead battery? I only have one functional headlight and it appears to be out. I do have hazard lights and the internal light. Does this simply sound like not enough juice to get the engine started up?
I don't know how I could have drained the battery. I started Lucy up just a few days ago. Nothing was left on.
I do have a battery charger, so I guess it's time to get my hands dirty!
→ 4 CommentsTags: Repairs
I purchased 6 months of insurance for Lucy today. Once the flat tire is repaired, we'll be back on the road spreading those good V-dub vibes!
Not so fast though: I do need to get her back into Glenn's Repair ASAP to deal with a number of pressing issues:
Quite a list! I'm probably looking at close to $4K here.
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Bummer, I noticed a flat tire on Lucy the other day. I had a friend come by and pump it up, but we couldn't find the leak, and today it's flat again. I will need to remove the tire and take it in for repair.
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I scored two new Volkswagen books over the holidays, gifts from my VW-obsessed, 2-year old nephew.
The VW Bus Custom Handbook is a really fun ride through the history of V-dub buses and features plenty of color photography of some truly wicked customized buses.
How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive is a classic reference manual that should be on the bookshelf of all Westy owners. The book walks you through a plethora of common repair tasks, and features incredible hand drawn illustrations.
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I've uninsured Lucy for the rest of the fall and upcoming winter. I got some cheap storage insurance for less than $50 and she'll spend the winter under a canopy. I'll be sure to add some fuel stabilizer to the gas tank, and to start her up regularly until the advent of spring.
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Lucy and I went to the fabulous Big Time Out music festival in Cumberland, BC last weekend! This was Lucy's first festival experience, and she got to show herself off to numerous VW owners and admirers. I definitely felt the Westy Pride! It was just two years ago that I came to the first Big Time Out and drooled over the beautiful Westfalias in attendance, and expressed a desire to roll into the parking lot at the next BTO in my very own Westy.
It's a bit dark, but here's Lucy in the lot, we scored a great parking spot:
I had so much fun in the bus after Spearhead's set on Saturday night! Because BTO is held in a residential neighborhood, the festival shuts right down at night, but the party went on all night in Lucy! I had my coveted collection of Ebony Cuts shows to listen to and a seemingly endless supply of beer. I chilled and listened to the finest funk and house trax until sunrise.
One concern with Lucy at the festival was that she still doesn't have any locks. Whenever I left the bus to go catch a set on stage, I simply placed a little blessing over her, and found that this worked perfectly in protecting my cooler from would be thirsty thieves.
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I went to a Ganga Giri concert in Cumberland, BC on Friday night, my first overnight trip in the bus! Here she is packed up and ready to go:
It was wonderful to have a "homebase" at the show, and to not have to drive anywhere after the show.
One thing I will do differently next time: because the gas gauge doesn't work, I have to carry gas with me. It didn't occur to me to put the gas can outside the vehicle while I slept, so I dealt with the smelly gas odor unnecessarily, which gave me a bit of a headache (no, it wasn't the beer!) Next time, I'll just pop the can outside the vehicle before crashing.
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When I bought the bus, I was told by the owner that Lucy wasn't a single bus but a conglomerate of more than one vehicle–two in particular. My vehicle registration states the bus is a 1977. Indeed, the engine and transmission are from '77. I think we now have enough clues to confirm the year of the bus that makes up Lucy's other half.
First, Sean at Glenn's called today to let me know the brake job was going to take a little longer than expected because upon further inspection, they discovered that Lucy's front brakes are actually from 1972. They don't stock '72 calipers since they were unique that one year. He suggested that I keep a journal to distinguish between the '77 parts and everything else.
Next, I received an email from the author of Viva Westfalia! that suggested that the front parking/signal lights looked pre '73. I have to agree. Compare for yourself: 1977 | 1972 | Lucy
Piecing together the puzzles of Lucy's "checkered" history is part of the fun of having a v-dub!
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