I bought a new battery, installed it, and… nada. The double piss off is that I dropped off the old battery at Canadian Tire for disposal, and it probably wasn't dead after all. I'm glad Lucy has a brand new battery, but I should have kept the old as a spare, especially since I read that I should never try and boost Lucy using cables. Oh well, lesson learned.

I imagine the problem with start up is either the starter itself or the solenoid. I happen to be one of those rare VW owners who hates getting his hands dirty, so I'm not up for doing these repairs myself.

Case in point: my GF changed the flat tire for me! I got it patched at Canadian Tire pretty inexpensively. Apparently, I'd driven over a long screw.

So, I've been paying for insurance all summer and haven't even got the motor running. Since I live on an island, getting Lucy towed in for repair is a rather expensive endeavor, even with my Canadian Tire Auto Club membership (the tow is covered, but I have to pay for their time waiting in ferry line-ups and the ferry ticket.) My best option is probably to call the mobile auto repair guys and have them come over and check it out. My insurance runs out in a month, so assuming it is a starter or solenoid issue and I get it fixed pretty quickly, my insurance will run out, the rainy season will begin, and Lucy will go into storage for the winter months. Sigh. Oh well, at least she'll be running and that means that as soon as spring arrives, I can drive her into town, invest in the other repairs I'd like to get done and get her ready for the 2009 festival season!

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!

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:

1. Remove the flat tire and take it into town for repair, or
2. call a mobile service and have them come over with four new tires and put them all on.

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 important 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.

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! 

Not so fast though: I do need to get her back into Glenn's Repair ASAP to deal with a number of pressing issues:

• New ball joints
• New engine seal
• New heater box
• New muffler
• Inspect gas tank seals for leaks
• Strap main wiring harness to frame
• New tires, balance tires
• Remove axles, disassemble CV joints (clean, inspect, re-pack or replace CV boots)
• Replace front and rear shift linkage brushings and cage
• Fix gas gauge
• Fix passenger side seatbelt
• Fix rear light wiring
• Replace burned out passenger side headlight
• Install new locks

Quite a list! I'm probably looking at close to $4K here.

I took Lucy in yesterday and asked for a full review of the vehicle and an estimate to resolve my "priorities" and get her into good restored condition. The final report was 2 pages long and totaled $4497.02–just a little more than the $1000 I had earmarked!

The brakes are certainly the biggest priority. In addition to a non-functional emergency brake and leaky seals on the back brakes, Lucy needs:

• new rear brake shoes and drums
• new rear wheel cylinders and system bled
• new rear brake cables
• new front brake pads and rotors, pack wheel bearings 
• new front calipers

The current front calipers are completely seized. Noel at Glenn's almost burned his hand removing the hubcaps because they were so hot from the caliper friction! 

Needless to say, I went ahead and authorized the brake job. The total cost will come to around $1400, parts and labor. I should be able to pick her up tomorrow afternoon.

The next job will be to upgrade the exhaust system, including a new muffler and heater box. That will come to around $800. At that point, I'll have invested $2200 into Lucy's mechanical restoration–halfway there! 

Some of the other things she needs:

• new ball joints (about $600)
• new engine seal
• strap main wiring harness to frame
• new tires, balance tires
• remove axles, disassemble CV joints (clean, inspect, re-pack or replace CV boots)
• replace front and rear shift linkage brushings and cage

There's also some of my original issues remaining: 

• fix gas gauge
• fix passenger side seatbelt
• fix rear light wiring
• replace burned out passenger side headlight ("eyelids" may or may not fit–apparently, they can be problematic, especially the knock-offs)
• all-new locks
• install tape deck and speakers (Unfortunately, this has been moved to the bottom of the list!)

So, we're looking at a process here, a long term investment in Lucy. I'm up for it!

The good news is that Noel and Sean at Glenn's gave Lucy a big thumbs up for the condition of the body. They said she's "very clean" and appreciating in value every day. Once these mechanical restorations are complete, she'll be an extremely fetching Westy! 

• Emergency brake
• Leaky seals on back brakes
• New muffler
• Pass. side headlight burned out
• Gas gauge
• Pass. side seatbelt doesn't lock
• Rear light wiring

The muffler problem wasn't expected, but I have to have it replaced. It works OK, but it's way too low–I have only about a half foot of clearance under the vehicle. This means no Denman Island driveways (too bumpy) and only taking Lucy off of Denman Island when the tide is high, otherwise the angle of the ferry ramp will be too steep and the muffler will scrape against it. Hilarious, yet wildly impractical, so a new muffler it is!

The rear light wiring is funky. When I turn on the hazard lights, I get one orange blinker and one red one on the other side. This is possibly illegal, and definitely not safe.

Secondary issues include:

• Stick shift OK?
• Install headlight "eye lids"
• Make sure all locks are functional
• Install front license plate
• Install tape deck

The stick shift is unique–something to get used to–if you miss first gear, you can wind up in this nether-gear-world where the stick doesn't feel engaged with anything and spins at random, like a shoulder out of its socket.

I found the headlight "eye lids" in a box of parts inside the bus. I hope they fit on Lucy, they look so cute!

The sliding side door is from another bus, so the locks don't match. I'll either have all the locks replaced so one key works, or keep the existing locks and just make sure they all work.

The tape deck slot is just a little too small, but I think the folks at Glenn's can just cut that opening a little bigger to fit the deck. 

The tertiary list is made up of things I want to get for Lucy:

• Spare tire
• Touch-up paint
• New wiper blades
• Locked metal box to be bolted under seat
• Extra keys
• Storage bin/step up for the pooch
• Foam bed for the pooch
• Collapsible table & chairs
• Install speakers
• Protective seat covers, plus beaded seat covers for comfort
• Seat storage covers (storage on back of bucket seats)
• Clock

I might look at getting new seats, especially if I ever do any long distance driving in Lucy, but I think protective covers and bead covers will do for this year. If I can get all these things fixed for this summer, I will be elated!

Ain't she a beaut'?!

After picking her up on Friday afternoon, I quickly realized that the gas gauge and passenger side seatbelt that I had paid to be fixed were still broken. Sheesh. I can't say that I had a good experience dealing with the folks who did this "work" and the paint job, so rather than take her back to them, I am simply going to get these items fixed at Glenn's Import & Domestic Parts & Repair, where we have an appointment this Thursday morning.

Friday evening, I cleaned Lucy out and spent some time just hanging out in her. The maiden voyage came on Saturday when I drove her around the island and picked up a friend for a ride. Unfortunately, while waiting for my friend to come down the driveway, I inadvertently left the key engaged in the ignition and drained the battery! I tried turning it over a few times, but there was simply no juice. I laughed at the ridiculousness of it all, then tried one last time and Lucy sputtered to attention! What luck! That was an easy lesson, the first of many she will teach me no doubt.

I didn't stall her on that first trip out, but I still sometimes have a hard time finding first and reverse. You have to get into the Zen of it and not think about it too much. I need to just let Lucy guide my hands. She's really fun to drive!