Autoist, September 2008
Magazine for the Volkswagen Club of America
 
This book is a guide to the restoration of the 1968-1979 VW Type 2 Bus, aka the Bay Window Bus. It is generously equipped with color photographs throughout and relies mainly on these captioned photographs to convey its information via step-by-step instructions. The book is intended to supplement existing VW workshop manuals in areas that the author thought were lacking or neglected, such as bodywork. As with previous published VW restoration manuals, this author also includes a brief history of the model as well as key inspection tips (also photographed) for the prospective buyer.  The restoration topics begin with 60 pages of text and pictures on body and chassis repair procedures – more procedures than most VW hobbyists would have the temerity to tackle, unless they had professional welding skills and no constraints on time. It is at least helpful that generous use is made of pre-fabricated repair sections and panels in these procedures. Next is over 20 pages on door and hinge repairs, large and small, up to and including (for the brave) re-skinning your door while simultaneously replacing significant frame rot. The subject of bodywork is completed with a chapter on painting. This is an area that the experienced VW restorer will likely find to be less detailed than desirable, given that many general-purpose restoration guides already exist that cover painting tasks extensively.  Next come chapters covering the bay window mechanical systems-front beam, rear axle, engine (but not tranny), fuel delivery and so on. Many workshop manuals, plus the line of Bug Me Videos, already cover the rebuilding of such components with detailed step-by-step procedures. By comparison, this book uses 84 pages of captioned photographs to convey what the author considers important and/or over-looked nuggets of information on these subjects.  Accordingly, while not a standalone rebuilding guide in these areas, the novice VW restorer should find this part of the book useful in further illustrating many common repair steps. Other than a final chapter on workshop tools and techniques, the author ends the restoration topics with a subject on, which I find almost all VW workshop manuals to be sadly lacking – trim and fittings. There are 24 pages of captioned photographs covering repair steps and/or useful tips on seats, door panels, headlining, floor coverings, seals, bumpers, badge and grill, wipers and so on.  In summation, although much of this book's audience might hesitate to attempt the more complex bodywork procedures, the numerous captioned photographs on Bay Window Bus restoration still manage to convey much useful information not published elsewhere. If you plan on doing your own bus repairs, consider adding this book to your library.