'85 Vanagon *AirCooled? v I just talked to a guy in a parking lot [USA] with an 85 Vanagon with an aircooled type IV engine. I was thinking the US market went to watercooled engines in 83/84. He thinks all 85 Vanagons are aircooled. Were 85 Vanagons sold with type IV engines in Canadian or European markets? I bet a few 85 Vanagons were converted back to aircooled, but . . . v [check for accuracy --vague memory] If a 200X Vanagon from South Africa can come with a Jetta engine, and a 199X Bay Window from [Mexico?] came with a watercooled
1985 Vanagon engine and a 2004 Brazilian Bay Window [bug engine?] who knows?
I have heard that Vanagons have always been available with
1600 aircooleds. As far as I know, all U.S. spec 1985 were watercooled. The last of the aircooleds should have been
1982 / early 1983. Maybe not even any 1983. When was the newer style wasserboxer? 1986? I would think that it would take some major modifications to put an aircooled in where the watercooled was.
No, only as long as they were available with 2 litre Type 4 aircooled engines as well. The transition to wasserboxers was, as far as I can tell, completely in one single step for all markets.
Less than vice versa.
I thought they were all five cylinder, Audi type. But I may be wrong, and there may have been four cylinder versions too.
No, those had four cylinder inline engines as featured in the Golf/Jetta/Passat range.
Yes.
Rules of thumb for which engine you can expect to find in a rear-engined VW Bus:
Until 1972: Type 1 only on all markets.
Europe: Type 1 or Type 4 until 1982, optional Diesel from 1981, Wasserboxer replaces aircooled boxer from 1983, optional Turbo Diesel from 1984.
North America: Same as Europe, but no Type 1 from 1972.
Mexico: Type 1 until 1991, inline-4 from 1992.
Brazil: Type 1 only, ever, until today.
South Africa: Inline-5 (and maybe inline-4) since whenever they went watercooled, until last year or something when production was discontinued. Presumably Type 1 previously.
So unless I'm wrong, there's no such thing as a 1985 aircooled German-made Vanagon. Maybe a South African one, I don't know -- but that wouldn't have a Type 4 engine.
The aircooled Vanagons ended half way through the 1983 model year with the wasserboxers being fitted from the beginning of the 1983 model year (5 month overlap). The Brazilian Bays were fitted with 1600 aircooled, the Mexican Bays with 1800 Golf (since 1987) and the South African Vanagons, I think, were fitted with wasserboxers and Audi five cylinders (not too sure here).
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