Another important part of the car to check is the engine. Aircooled engines are very reliable if well maintained, and if anything should go wrong, they are easy to work on, needing nothing more than simple handtools and a bit of basic knowledge. This is good on the one hand, but it can mean that a "have-a-go-cowboy" has been there before you; so caution should be used. Armed with a bit of knowledge and a few simple checks, you can gauge the condition of an engine very quickly.

An aircooled beetle or van "long block" (that means thethe main part of the engine; the bit you don't see when you look inside the engine bay- crank, rods, pistons, cams, heads valves,..... also the most important bits!) will last about 100,000 miles IF it's taken care of. That means the valve clearances have been reguarly checked and adjusted every 3000 miles and the oil changed at the same interval. These are rough estimates, and the way it's been driven will also affect the working life, but the two most important considerations in assessing a Beetle engine are how many miles are on it, and whether it has been maintained properly. Unfortunately, it is very unlikely you will know one or either of these two things. Asking the seller often results in an embroidered truth! Reading the amount of miles clocked up on the speedo won't help, a reading of '45630' for example wont necessarily mean that its covered only 45k miles, it could be 145k, 245k even 445k!!! It could be the vehicle's fourth or fifth engine during its life such is the reliablility of the rest of the car. if the amount of miles on the clock are being claimed as genuine, ask to see the history; a car like that will often have a stamped service book, receipts for repairs from new, sometimes even an original bill of sale! Check it all out.

Now.. to check your prospective engine...

All the usual tests you'd do when buying a car and checking out the engine apply here too, so drive it and listen for weird noises. Before starting it up, do the following tests which apply to all models of aircooled VW; dip the oil, check the level and its condition, rub it between your fingers, it should feel smooth and silky, the oil should have been changed every 3000 miles, so if its gritty or very black, you know it's not been serviced regularly. Is the engine bay clean? Or are the parts covered in black sludge? A fine mist of oil is normal, as this escapes from the breather during normal running, but heavy leaks should be addressed. Conversely, the engine bay on a tatty car could be too clean... cleaned maybe to hide a leak? Use common sense and ask the vendor questions.

There are 3 very simple checks to gauge the internal condition of an aircooled motor though...... here they are...

This check is to see if the crank and its bearings are worn, so quite an important test. Grab hold of the lower of the two pulleys in the engine bay with both hands, and push it in and out quite hard [forward and back] you shouldnt feel any movement if the engine is fresh, but in a worn example there may be as much as 1/4 of an inch of play. This is known as 'endfloat' and means that the engine is due a rebuild pretty soon.

To test the oil pressure remove the HTlead from the bottom of the coil [not from the distributor cap end] and then turn the engine over on the starter. The oil warning light in the speedo housing should go out after a few turns of the engine if all is well. In a worn engine it may only flicker or even stay lit. Connect the HTlead again, and start the engine, if it's worn it may need a good bootful of throttle to get the light to go out: means worn bearings and oil pump=bad!

Look for Oilsmoke. Due to the layout of an aircooled engine, with the combustion chamber being at the same height as the sump, a small amount of blue/white smoke on startup is normal. Oil seeps past the piston rings when it's stationary for a while, and it is burnt when you next start the car. However, a small puff is all you should see. If when you drive the car it puffs smoke between gearchanges or when decelerating in gear, it's an indication of worn piston rings and/or valve guides. It may be worthwhile to have someone follow you in another car watching the tailpipes while you testdrive.
Again, if this is the case a rebuild may be needed.

VW engines are cheap to rebuild, and built 'longblocks' can be bought from many VW specialist retailers. But if you are buying a vehicle for less than £1000 you can expect to spend at least 50% of that again if it's needed. Best to check it over first.