Wilmac VW Trike

[Herby01]

Kawazuki is perfectly correct, the 1600 VW pumps out a shade under 50hp, I've had mine up to 80! 3 up which surprised the hell out of me so your 1200 doing 65 is just fine
A Haynes manual is a great idea

[buelligan]

I've got a haynes manual, but it's at my dads, 140 miles away, should be going down at the end of the month so will collect it then.

I think I'll wait until pay day and try a few things at once, plugs, fresh fuel, new fuel line, make sure the pump is actually working, and maybe have a look at the carbs. Unsure about playing with the carbs as I've no idea what I'm doing with them. Is it possible to just take the float bowls off and clean through the jets, or would I need to remove all the jets?

Never really attempted any engine work before, except stripping the dragstar engine to see what was wrong, but that was easy 'cos I never had to put it back together! So hopefully the Haynes manual is very specific about how to do the engine. Though if you need to rev it to a certain point, that could be awkward as there's no rev counter fitted...

I'll go for 6mm fabric braided line, can't quite stretch to stainless braided and I'm not a fan of shiny things TBH. Good to know about the carbs, thanks, but I'll be honest carb icing won't be an issue, I'm a fair weather rider now, I held out against getting a car for 7 years, then riding home 1 winter morning in -15.5 I decided it was no longer fun getting home and not being able to open the garage door due to lack of feeling in my hands. The trike was actually getting done for my wife, so I could go out on the bike, and she could come along with the kids on the trike, but now we're expecting our 3rd child, that plan won't work anymore. So now it's for me to take the eldest out sometimes.

Found a website with the engine codes on, according to the stamp on the block mine is a 1300cc twin port, with around 44bhp. 65mph was purely estimated, I tried fitting a bicycle speedo, in fact I tried 2, but I could never get the magnet mounted so that the sensor picked up the signal. These days a simple phone holder on the forks and I could use the app on my phone which seems accurate.

[Kawazuki]

The Haynes will likely not have info on your carb - unless it was a factory fit item - they are fairly simple things to strip and clean but if you know someone with an ultrasonic cleaner that'll take the whole thing that may be the most expedient route!
Get a speedo fitted a) its required for MOT and b) Plod take exception to 'App speedos'! Bicycle speedos are piss easy! Change one of the disc bolts for a regular hex hex bolt, drill recess in head sufficient to epoxy the magnet in, arrange sensor on fork leg to see magnet - job done!

[Herby01]

Looking at you carb I'm guessing it's a Weber 32/36, have a look at this, it tells you quite a lot about it and making it work with your motor
http://www.aircooled.net/making-weber-p ... vw-engine/

[The BFG]

My Manual of choice is "How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot" by John Muir, much better than a Haynes

[buelligan]

The Haynes will likely not have info on your carb - unless it was a factory fit item - they are fairly simple things to strip and clean but if you know someone with an ultrasonic cleaner that'll take the whole thing that may be the most expedient route!
Get a speedo fitted a) its required for MOT and b) Plod take exception to 'App speedos'! Bicycle speedos are piss easy! Change one of the disc bolts for a regular hex hex bolt, drill recess in head sufficient to epoxy the magnet in, arrange sensor on fork leg to see magnet - job done!

Theres a speedo fitted in the panel on the tank, but the bloke I bought the trike off never actually connected it up to anything. There weren't any bolts on the old front wheel to do that with as it had a pathetic little drum brake, so had to try and attach the magnet to the spokes. But with the dragstar forks on there now, I've got a drive to connect to a mechanical speedo, prefer them to the electronic speedos anyway. Just need to find a cable long enough, or try and get an extension for the original dragstar cable.

Looking at you carb I'm guessing it's a Weber 32/36, have a look at this, it tells you quite a lot about it and making it work with your motor
http://www.aircooled.net/making-weber-p ... vw-engine/

Thanks for the link, I've bookmarked it. Had a quick read, and hopefully it's just because I'm tired, but I've still no idea about it... Will have another read when I'm a bit more awake.

My Manual of choice is "How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive: A Manual of Step-by-Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot" by John Muir, much better than a Haynes

Thanks, I'll put it on my christmas list, my wife insists on buying me a book every year, which I never read, so she might buy something a but more useful...

[buelligan]

Well idiot of the week award goes to me. The rough running and spluttering could be dirt in the carbs, or the fuel line, but it could also have something to do with the lack of fuel in the tank... Went to start it again to check the fuel pump was working, and it wouldn't fire, tried easy start and it'd fire but then die. Just thought I'd check how much petrol there was and it was bone dry both sides. Must've turned it off at just the right moment when I put it back in the garage last time.

So I syphoned some petrol out of the buell and into the trike, and it started no problem (when the fuel had eventually made it's way all along the line), and when I pulled the pipe off the carbs, fuel was being pumped out, so guess the pump is working. It did seem to be in pulses rather than a steady flow though, not sure if that's normal.

Not had a look at anything else yet, spent all day yesterday sorting an oil leak on my wifes corsa, 2 hours to clean off all the silicone that a garage had used instead of just buying a new £10 gasket! Looks like they also re-used the old oil filter. Twats.

[Mad B0B]

The pulse pumping is normal as its a cam that pushes a rod that provides the pump action.

[Herby01]

Yes it's normal for the std pump to pulse fuel through it has to suck then blow unlike an electric centrifugal wizzy thingy
Oh, don't ever use that garage again! Sound like cowboys, bodge it n scarper!

[buelligan]

The pulse pumping is normal as its a cam that pushes a rod that provides the pump action.

Ok thanks, I did wonder if it was that sort of arrangement but didn't know. So that's another job ticked off the list, though I will fit a filter as I can't see 1 fitted anywhere.

Yes it's normal for the std pump to pulse fuel through it has to suck then blow unlike an electric centrifugal wizzy thingy
Oh, don't ever use that garage again! Sound like cowboys, bodge it n scarper!

Won't ever be going back there, used them a couple of times, and for various reasons was unhappy. The more I use garages, the more determined I am to do everything myself. Never seem to find anyone who does anything I'm completely happy with, despite occasionally using recommended 'specialists'. Only been 1 garage I've used that I'd happily go to again, Northants V-Twin.

Anyway, back to the trike. Now into the 3rd week of the school holidays, wife and kids driving me insane, so went and hid in the garage for a bit. Decided I'd see if the speedo worked, so connected a cable and then connected that to a drill, and it worked. Then thought I'd see just how much too short the cable was, and found that actually routed a different way to how I'd planned it actually fits. A little tighter than I'd like so will still get an extension sometime, but took it down the road to see if it read the right speed, so held my phone in my hand, using an app, and it showed 20.4mph, and the speedo on the trike showed 20mph. Doesn't seem to work at much less than that, but I doubt I'll ever be riding at much less than 20.

It also ran a lot better this time with some petrol in the tank...