Have been offered 1st pick on 1976 B1 Passat Sedan.............

[phaeton]

Hey all B1 Passat Owners.

As the title says I have been offered 1st pick on 1976 B1 Passat Sedan.

My question is what should I like out for ?

Any advice is much appreciated.

[Peter Jones]

Body and trim are the hard to get bits on the early Passats. Look to see if it's all there. Missing trims and clips will be hard to replace.

They can rust in the bottom of the rear quarters if the boot seal is leaking.

Check the carpet on the parcel shelf - if the back window is leaking it can rust under there.

Most mechanicals are Golf and are pretty easily available so don't worry if it needs wheel bearings, brakes, balljoints rod ends etc.

Take a good look at the window scrapers, they can rust badly and scratch the glass.

Main thing is to make sure it's complete

[tassie_euro_mk1]

nice :)

Well dont be concerned about the suspension, they're all like that haha. Steering will tend to feel a bit vague past a turning point at speed, that's just because of the steering rod being attached to the strut itself. They are very basic cars, so by rights it means less to go wrong. My B1 has been my most reliable car to date.

The rubbers around the windows and boot lid of the B1's tend to be average. Water leaks with heavy rain. New rubbers should fix that easy.

Motor is the same as a golf, just facing North South. Nothing really else to worry about. Just the typical old vdub stuff :)
It has surprisingly a lot of room inside or a small car and the seats are comfortable.

Honestly they are a great car. People who haven't own one before tend to think they are rubbish. But once you own and drive one, the love is there :)

[tassie_euro_mk1]

^^^^ what Pete said :)

All there as parts are very thin on the ground

[phaeton]

Thanks heaps for info. :D

[RedVR6]

Check the plenum for rust also. It's covered with bitumen stuff but they can rust there are it's pretty awkward to weld in new steel because of the location.
The dash will probably be cracked because they pretty much all are.
Depending upon the model, the carby may be hard to get bits for, but a swap to a 32/36 Weber from an Escort or Cortina is a quick and easy fix.
The only other thing I can think of is the gear shift linkage. The bushes in them can wear out and they are really hard to find (assuming it's a manual). It is difficult to check without pulling it out, because the shift isn't the most accurate and positive mechanism in the world, but if it feels really sloppy, might be worth a proper look.

I had an Audi Fox as well as a couple of Passat parts cars as my very first car. I'd get another one in a heartbeat, but they're pretty rare these days as we all know.

[phaeton]

Unfortunately the car turned out to be a lemon and needed an engine overhaul.

[hjsimpson01]

That's sad to hear.. The good ones are out there. I suppose it all depends on what the person wanted for it. I am after some bits, so I tend to pickup anything I find, if it's cheap enough, because as Peter mentioned, they are thin on the ground... not many about... I do know of one recently selling further south for $200 which is what looks to be a good starting point.. But if you are after something in mint condition, they are hard to come by... something in between should be findable if you look long enough....

Good Luck with the search!