Engine almost buttoned up

I was able to get the cam covers back on, as well as the water pump and the carbs. Most of the fuel and coolant lines have been replaced at this point, but I just found out the fuel line kit I bought is missing a large section. I need to contact Dave and see about getting the last piece.





Since I had the cooling system drained, I replaced the thermostat. An OEM F-car thermostat is like $75 and I heard that a suitable replacement is one from an MkIII Golf. The dimensions are almost exactly the same. I had to drill an internal bleed hole like the OEM one. Strangely, there is a stamped dimple on the VW thermostat where the hole should be.



One other thing I did was drill out the original bleed screw in the thermostat housing. There are two bleed screws in the cooling system -- one on the thermostat housing and one on the radiator. The screw on the radiator is a true bleed screw. It's drilled so you don't need to remove the screw completely to bleed air from the system. The thermostat housing screw is solid and requires complete removal to bleed. This modification turns this screw into a true bleeder so you don't need to remove it completely.



Getting closer now to try and start the engine. My list of todo/toget is:

- alternator belt (on order)
- final sections of fuel hose
- change engine oil
- get coolant (6 gallons!)
- get spark plugs

Am I missing something? I'm sure I am...