1971 Westy Dual Port 1600 (No Power)

Dec 08, 2005 5 Replies
R

Can anyone here tell me how I can best get more power out of my 71 Bus? I live in Colorado and going into the mountains kinda sucks as I on some hills on I-70 I have to go like 35MPH (3rd gear sometimes down to



2nd gear). What can I start looking at to get this beast to take the mountains better. I camp alot, but out here, if I can't get into tthe mountains or need to worry that I will loose all HP, that limits my camping and travels.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.



I looked at the turbo chargers, but am unsre as they are expensive and seem like they would ruin my engine quicker.



Also, I bought this from a guy in Bradford PA whoo says it was restored by a proffesor at University of Penn Bradford campus. Before that, it came from Florida.



If anyone knows the professor, please get in touch as the guy I bought it froom said the engine had been rebuilt and I would ike more history on the bus if he has it...



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A

check :

1)valves 2)timing 4)points 5)carbs 6)leaks on intake manifold

you don't need a turbo, you need to tune up your bus.

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W

Do a compression test to see if you are getting near the original 50 HP.

50HP is not much to push a heavy bus with camping gear up and down hills. Power cost $ - exhaust? dual carbs? heads with bigger valves? over sized pistons? different cam?
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S

I have a 70 westy bus, and i had bigger pistons put in a 1600 i had built for me, and a engle 110 cam. the bigger pistons give me a 1641cc. I havent had any problems going up hill, probably 50 mph up good hills with a nice load in the back. Is the bus you bought a white one? You buy it from over by Wal-Mart? I just moved to Virginia, from Olean, NY and I worked in Bradford and saw a white camper all the time for sale.

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G

either convert to a type 4 engine with upright cooling, or build a stroker type 1. The type 4 would be a slighly greater initial investment, but it has a far greater cooling capacity. If staying type one a 74 stroke with machine in 88 cylinders is a nice size for longevity in a heavy vehicle.

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R

Yepper that is where I got it. I have only had a few issues with it since I got it. Was in a huge hurry and took it to jiffy lube for a oil change... Big mistake!! The dumb guy there put in too much oil and half way to Colorado I blew my main seal. Basically set up an IV of Oil drip into the Engine, then had the Rear Main Seal repaired in Lyons and Vee W Unlimited (those guys are great). Then, in a windstorm, the crappy aluminum hinge on the pop top snapped. Got that repaired at Busted Bus in Boulder (another really good guy) with hinges from a 72 which are much more durable.

I miss that area of NY/PA very much, but Colorado is pretty cool too.

Thanks for all the advice..

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