Services

Choose your ride:

We specialize in mechanical repair and upgrades on Vanagons and the other VW vans such as Eurovans and air-cooled buses and also the air-cooled passenger cars like the Beetle, Type 3 and Ghia. Come visit us for all your Volkswagen needs!

Volkswagens started out as humble transportation, relatively simple and easy to repair.

In the 21st century the days of easy part availability and inexpensive repairs are long gone along with the majority of the talented mechanics with the specialized know-how. We know at which end of the vehicle the engine is located!

Let’s face it, these vehicles are antiques and the life of a classic VW mechanic is full of corrosion, stubborn fasteners, and decades of neglect and correcting poorly done patches and repairs by unqualified people.

Here at Valley Westy we have experienced personnel with the specific skills to fix your classic VW the right way, with the best quality parts available, and our pricing reflects that. Call or email us today to see how we can help keep you on the road.

Our featured services include:

• Subaru conversions using the VANARU system and late-model Subaru drive-by-wire engines.

• Hand-crafted premium-quality original engine rebuilds including waterboxer for Vanagon and earlier air-cooled Type I and Type IV.

• Suspension, steering, and brake work all the way from repair of faulty components to full upgrades to make it ride and perform better than new. We are an authorized installer and reseller of Powerflex poly suspension bushings.

• Transmission pro rebuild and gearing selection based on your driving needs

We have been working on the air-cooled cars for decades. Any mechanical repairs will be handled the right way, with the best parts we can find.

At their age, most of these cars could use an engine refresh and this is the place to get it done right. There are all manner of bargain engine replacements available out there and that old adage applies: “You get what you pay for”

Want your car to perform well and work well like it used to? Want the heater to work right when you pick it up? What good is it if you get it back and you need wheel bearings or the brakes won’t stop you. We take a whole-car, project-based approach, so when you get it back you can get plenty trouble-free miles for your daily driver or sunny-Sunday fun car!

Let’s take a project-based approach and get it fixed up right so you can use it and enjoy it.

The beetles were the entry-level addiction that got us started. But air-cooled buses were what hooked us into a life-long obsession.

Bottom line is we have done everything on air-cooled buses like Splitties or Bay Windows.

Want your bus to perform well and work well like it used to? Want the heater to work right when you pick it up? What good is it if you get it back and you need wheel bearings or the brakes won’t stop you. We take a whole-vehicle approach, so when you get it back you can get plenty of trouble-free miles for your daily driver or sunny-Sunday fun bus!

Let’s take a project-based approach and get it fixed up right so you can use it and enjoy it.

Holy cow we saw the light! In our opinion the pinnacle of what a VW bus could be! Now we drank the Kool-Aid. The Vanagon is the ultimate evolution of the earlier buses. Our buddies laughed at us when we got interested in this new van. “That’s not a real VW!” they said, but eventually all of them were driving Vanagons.

The Vanagon was built on a commercial chassis, so the doors don’t sag and it doesn’t have squeaks and rattles even with high mileage. Finally a really drivable vehicle that can have cruise control, rack and pinion steering that you can take on a cross-country tour (and our customers HAVE!)

Vanagon work is our bread and butter and where we can do upgrades that exceed expectations.

ENGINE:

We can rebuild the original engine. The days of just replacing head gaskets or top end work are gone. All of these engines have 150k or more miles and are several decades old. Fixes around the periphery are a gamble and we won’t play that game anymore.

Rebuilding a waterboxer means starting from the ground up and making sure all the components are solid. Starting with a solid crankshaft, resizing rods, using new connecting rod bolts- all of that inside the case. Fuel injection parts that have run for decades won’t do, so items like new injectors and the correct high-quality fuel hose are mandatory. Many of the drivability problems can be traced to small fractures or corrosion in the engine wiring harness so we install a factory-quality new harness that even comes with gold-plated terminals and rebuilt engine computers to address the common failure points in the circuitry. All this goes toward the fuel injection working as it is supposed to.

At the same time to protect this investment and be able to apply a warranty, we need to address the other systems that affect and protect the engine. New stainless steel coolant pipes are mandatory as well as replacement of all of the rubber hoses, and a new radiator that cools properly.

The fuel system directly affects the injection system so a rusty gas tank needs replacement along with the vent bridge and seals and new fuel hose all the way to the engine and back.

Do we attach all of this work to a worn-out transmission? Again to be able to apply a warranty, we can’t have a slipping automatic transmission or a manual transmission with a worn 3rd/4th slider hub that pops out of gear.

For this level of project we charge starting at $11,700 plus a transmission rebuild which can be anywhere from $2500 to $3500. If your van already has some of these upgrades done properly then we will look at pricing case-by-case.

All that said, if you want to double your horsepower to make the van really drivable and increase reliability, read on about our Subaru conversion!

Subaru Conversions for Vanagon

Currently we do conversions using the 2010 to 2012 Subaru Legacy engine. This is the last iteration of the tried and true EJ25, 2.5 liter 170hp engine, with coil on plug, drive-by-wire and variable cam timing technology.
We add the Vanaru system of OEM-grade parts to make a world-class power plant setup that looks and feels like it was a factory engine option.

This engine makes your engine bay LOOK like a modern vehicle and makes your van PERFORM like a modern vehicle! Gone are the white-knuckle highway ramp merges and climbing hills in the slow lane.

Click here to read more about our technology and to see lots of happy customers!

We can fix Eurovans too. They are no Vanagon but we still like them A LOT! We own several of them so they can’t be all that bad!

Parts availability is tough but we can overcome that and we own the special tools to work on them.

VR6 engines with high mileage are going to need timing chain work. We do it right with new tensioners and guides.

Got an automatic having trouble? It’s possible to do a 5-speed conversion if that works for you. We would be happy to discuss that kind of project. Give us a call or send us an email to start the conversation!