Greetings from Kansas

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brystheguy
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Greetings from Kansas

#1 Post by brystheguy »

Hi everyone. I bought a 1970 Young a month or two ago and it is currently in storage until I sell some mopeds to make room for it in my garage. I love these cars and I have to have one but I may have gotten in over my head with this one! I finally got over there today to look it over more closely and I'm not quite sure what I got my self in to.

The floor pan is rusted out on the drivers side and I guess I can use a VW bug floor pan and cut it to fit. However, the frame part runs under the door is rusted through also for about 1.5 feet on the bottom inside edge. I guess that a "L" shaped piece of metal could be welded in there too. I don't own a welder but I own about every other tool that I would need for this project so buying and learning how to use a welder isn't out of the question. The engine is also locked up on it and I pulled off the heads last night and peeked inside. Rusted in place and one of the pistons is cracked and actually one half is rising up a bit. Sprayed it liberally with PB Blaster and let it sit overnight. Nada happened with some serious pounding. Awesome.

Pfffft. I have a lead on another one but this yellow Young really called out to me so I don't know .. . .. Decisions, decisions.

Quick question, nothing actually bolts to the floor pan, correct? Trying to figure out if the style of the floor pan would have any effect on anything.
Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

2stroketurbo
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#2 Post by 2stroketurbo »

Nope. Nothing bolts floor pans, except torsion bars in rear, hopefully your rust is not that extensive. You can make floor pans from flat plate steel. Cut to fit. Don't be scared. You can do it.
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kjrcace360fan
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#3 Post by kjrcace360fan »

Metal can be replaced. My first restore was a 68 beetle. We called it "Fred's Ride" cause it was like the Flintstones car. You could push it without getting out. And when you opened both doors You had to lift them back up because the metal that joined the two door posts under the door was missing. I had to weld some braces inside to the door posts and lift the body off the frame to repair all the metal that had rusted out. I eventually drove this car for my drivers test and several years after. The one good thing about bugs is they are still made in foreign countries and new parts are available. I was fortunate enough to find a 360 sedan that had mainly surface rust and one 5" hole in the floorboard. don't get me wrong It has a fair amount of rot but nothing like my bug. I wish you well with your project.
Spud the Orange Young, Hippie (Sold), DB1 Yatch car, DB2 Cheesburger dune buggy

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Spiffy
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#4 Post by Spiffy »

if that's all there is you should be able to bring it back to life... at least give it a try... if nothing else you have a good parts car...

let's see some pictures! (:


--Spiffy/John

foyfarlow
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#5 Post by foyfarlow »

Hi there . /waves =) wish you luck .. body work can be fixed .. but rusted solid engine thats a major problem .. i would get up with ed parsel hes the master! he knows more about this car than the builders in japan.. :D

brystheguy
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#6 Post by brystheguy »

So here she is. Tell me how bad I did.
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These next four pictures are of a group that I could get for under $2000. The white one has been started fairly recently. The one is a rolling chassis and then there is the body. Thing is, I don't have room for all of this stuff at my house. I'd probably strip the blue one of good parts and scrap it. So, knowing I have room at my place for a max of two 360's what would you do? Let's hear some ideas!

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Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

foyfarlow
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#7 Post by foyfarlow »

your yellow car has upper body in better shape than mine but the floor pans are alot worse.. mine sat in feild not driven since 1987 . im guessing the yellow one was driven on winter roads. from what ive seen if you can get the motor squared away you may be able to get new sheet metal. .. its right on the edge of being saveable. .. worst case alot of the other part do look good like te windsheild roof fenders etc.

go take a look in the gallery i posted my red one there its pretty ruff as well its from the se texas area

2stroketurbo
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#8 Post by 2stroketurbo »

brystheguy wrote:So here she is. Tell me how bad I did.
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These next four pictures are of a group that I could get for under $2000. The white one has been started fairly recently. The one is a rolling chassis and then there is the body. Thing is, I don't have room for all of this stuff at my house. I'd probably strip the blue one of good parts and scrap it. So, knowing I have room at my place for a max of two 360's what would you do? Let's hear some ideas!

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whoa. You've got a lot going on there
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foyfarlow
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#9 Post by foyfarlow »

yeah never seen so many in one place.. if you have the spare room and cash grab the one that has a working power train .. isnt to hard the do a engine swap. from what i hear pistons are like gold one of the hardest items to track down.
also noticed the air scoops on the yellow one are broken .. yeah mine where as well .. just doesnt hold up to the uv after 40 years.. makes you wonder why the sedan has the stainless scoops and the sport has plastic

MJ
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#10 Post by MJ »

I would rate this project a bit higher than others have expressed. This is a very do-able restore and worthy of the efforts!!

Welding? yes. Possibly new/replacement engine? yes. Paint, upholstery, clean-up......DONE!

Everything is there! Hard to find Young pieces seem to all be present and accounted for, based on your photos.

My opinion if space is limited......make a deal with the seller for just the white one......swap working drivetrain into Young and then sell white one to a member of the club/keep it until another good engine becomes available to you/part it out to members here (choose one).

Oh, if you choose not to buy the other cars....please post contact info here so someone can save the little guys!
-Mark
'70 Subaru 360 Young S
"Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his shoes.
That way, when you do criticize him, you'll be a mile away and have his shoes."
...Groucho

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kjrcace360fan
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#11 Post by kjrcace360fan »

Is the rust only on the drivers side? If so I would think it was more a case of the roof or windshield leaking. Paint looks original and your out shell looks immaculate to me. Welding under the car beats welding of the outer body anyday. I would love to find a young in that shape. The wife would hate for this to happen :shock: Looks very promising to me. My parts car has outer body rust through and floor rot. I plan to bring it back but It is Way Way worse than yours and its just a sedan. Just curious if anyone know if you can put a young instrument panel into a regular sedan dash without cutting? If I could find one I would like to do it so I could have a tach.
Spud the Orange Young, Hippie (Sold), DB1 Yatch car, DB2 Cheesburger dune buggy

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kjrcace360fan
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#12 Post by kjrcace360fan »

would you happen to know what the serial numbers are for the red white and blue cars? I am curious because neither of my cars have the emblem below the window and I noticed the red one and white one have different emblems. One of mine is a 69 and one is a 1970.
Spud the Orange Young, Hippie (Sold), DB1 Yatch car, DB2 Cheesburger dune buggy

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Spiffy
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#13 Post by Spiffy »

that's not in horrible shape... totally fixable...

I agree that you should try to get a working engine, and probably a floor pan, from the other cars if possible...

then pass on the remains to club members...


--Spiffy/John

brystheguy
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#14 Post by brystheguy »

I'm not sure of the VIN's on any of the cars as only the Young is actually mine.

Yes, the rust is only on the driver's side as the window was left open on the car on that side. The car only shows 10000 miles on it.

I'm leaning toward picking up the white one and then swapping the engine. I like the look of the Young and the body is in better shape than a lot of what I have seen. At least all of the welding that I would have to do would be mostly hidden. I may keep the white one after that and continue to work on it since it is pretty complete and actually has a usable interior.

I may end up picking up the whole shebang and bringing them all back. I could park the van in the driveway for a bit while I get rid of the other stuff. Before I do that though, is there a demand for something like those two incomplete ones? What would someone use them for? If I can get rid of them, I'll bring them back but I don't want to be stuck with two extra 360 bodies. They might be easier to move here in the Kansas City area as opposed to the middle of nowhere, which is where they are now.

Thanks for the advice and encouragement guys. I'll let you know how this pans out. I need to sell my Sears/Allstate Twingle motorcycles to make some room.
Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

StevenM
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#15 Post by StevenM »

Congrats on finding the yellow Young! Yes you've got plenty to do but your car seems like a good foundation. Whatever it may be needing, there are a lot of other things that are RIGHT with it. So you definately have got yourself a hobby - join the club! (oh wait, you did - excellent)

If you need any manuals you can find them all here... http://www.mysubaru360.com/manuals_and_documents/

Best of luck,
Steve
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'70 Subaru 360 Young http://www.mysubaru360.com
'71 Honda 600 Coupe http://www.honda600coupe.com
'78 MG Midget http://www.1978mgmidget.com

subaru360nut
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#16 Post by subaru360nut »

There are several articles in the BOR about how to unstick a seized engine. Be sure to read all articles indexed POWER UNIT/Pistons, Rings and Rebuilding.
But if you have not done it yet, remove all 8 nuts that hold the cylinders down before you do anything else. When you get one piston to move, the other one probably will not, and you can bend a connecting rod, which requires swapping out the entire crankshaft assy.! :cry:
If you have both cyls loose from the crankcase, when the piston you are hitting moves the other cylinder and piston will begin to move off the crankcase, and the crankshaft will not be ruined. :)

Ed
300,000+ miles on Subaru 360s since Feb. 1975, and have never (yet) been stuck on the road with one!

brystheguy
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#17 Post by brystheguy »

Thanks Ed. After flipping through 346 pages I found the article. They're still stuck pretty good. I was able to peek in to the exhaust outlet and saw that the piston with the cracked dome also has two broken rings. It just keeps getting better and better!

How can I make sure that I am not in gear as the whole unit is just sitting on my floor and, for all I know, the transmission might be the bigger problem.
Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

subaru360nut
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#18 Post by subaru360nut »

If you jack up ONE back wheel and can turn it, you are not in gear.

If your brakes are stuck in both back wheels, look at the shifter shaft that goes into the transmission from the front of the car. If there is about 1/2" of shaft showing it is in neutral. If there is 1" or NO shaft showing it is in gear. You should be able to move that shaft by hand even if it is disconnected from the shifter and the long rod that connects it to the transaxle.

Patience is important in loosening a stuck engine. The first 1/8" is the hardest, once it moves that far it gets easier. The important thing is not to cause any further damage (like to the crankshaft or cylinders).

Ed
300,000+ miles on Subaru 360s since Feb. 1975, and have never (yet) been stuck on the road with one!

brystheguy
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Location: Kansas City area

Re: Greetings from Kansas

#19 Post by brystheguy »

The engine is already out of the car and just sitting on the floor. Looks like I can still look for the shaft coming out of the front though. I'll check that out as I'm not too sure about the condition of the rest of the unit so I'm trying to narrow down my problems. Thanks for the advice.
Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

subaru360nut
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#20 Post by subaru360nut »

Hold one u-joint in your hand and try turning the other one. If one turns while the other stays put the trans. is in neutral. The u-joints are what you unbolted the rear axles from, in the differential.

Ed
300,000+ miles on Subaru 360s since Feb. 1975, and have never (yet) been stuck on the road with one!

brystheguy
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Location: Kansas City area

Re: Greetings from Kansas

#21 Post by brystheguy »

Pfffft. Locked up there too. I may just try and tear this thing down. I started a post in the engine section to get this in to the proper area for those that may search in the future.
Bryan

"The babbling that I brook." - Pink Floyd

subaru360nut
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Re: Greetings from Kansas

#22 Post by subaru360nut »

If it got water inside the crankshaft bearings may be seized up or the transaxle bearings or both. Your best bet is to get the SHOP MANUAL-ENGINE SECTION and follow it step by step to disassemble the entire power unit. We got permission from SOA in 1981 to reproduce these at cost for members only. I still do the printed version ($15) and I think Brian can make the CD version ($10).

Ed
300,000+ miles on Subaru 360s since Feb. 1975, and have never (yet) been stuck on the road with one!

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