Well it has been a while since I last posted. Slon has been languishing in our garage tent for a year now. The (new) brakes will probably need replacing as the van has stood still for so long. Sigh!
On the good new side of things, I got the Remtec engine fixed by VW Heritage a couple of weeks ago. Apparently user error, the engine was running lean and the fan belt was loose. I'm not entirely sure that this was my fault as the engine has never felt like a new one even when I had just installed it. I didn't fiddle with anything after installing it and driving it up to Norway which suggests that the engine had been set up wrongly at the factory. I did fiddle with things when I got it here, but by then the damage had been done.
However the engine is apparently running well now according to Nigel the head engine honcho at VW Heritage and it cost very little to get it fixed. I'm not going to argue this, just make sure I never buy a complete engine again. The old Volkspares engine was running fine when I pulled it out of Slon, albeit leaking oil at a visible rate. That was a short engine and has the original carb and distributor on it.
Hopefully I will feel like getting on with the remaining restoration jobs after putting the engine back in. I want to do a few things in the engine bay before I put the engine back, some wiring needs replacing and some rust needs removing from inaccessible places. I am in two minds about taking out the fuel tank whilst I have the engine out. On the one hand giving it the once over might not be a bad idea, on the other hand, if it aint broken don't fix it.
I will start posting when I have done something as a way of motivating me through the cold autumn and winter nights.