I had to drop and rebuild my 1979 VW bus engine and this was the perfect book for that job. The pictures are a great companion to the written instructions. There was a lot of info I learned that helped me look for some parts and the photos showed those parts in great detail. Great book and hopefully I'll never have to pick it up again.

This a well prepared thesis. The details provided by the author are excellent and the reference matterial useful. The photos, black and white, are just too small to see the image and deduce the exact aspect he wishes to display.

This book is fantastic. Its very detailed and gives you the information you need to do this job proficiently.

The How to Rebuild Your Volkswagen air-Cooled Engine was over my head.

I have not used this manual yet, but it appears to have the information I need to maintain my 1971 VW Super beetle convertable show car.

I have not used this manual yet, but it appears to have the information I need to maintain my 1971 VW Super beetle convertable show car.

Truly an invaluable book. I am rebuilding my 1600cc dual port engine with this, and John Muir's "How to Keep You're Volkswagen Alive". This book's numerous pictures, advice, and technical information combined with Muir's common sense and experience is a great combo!

Muy buen libro, refleja claridad de ideas y sus recomendaciones son de gran utilidad. A pesar de estar en idioma inglès, se entiende perfectamente. Las fotografías son las adecuadas para este tipo de libro y ayudan mucho. El autor hace recomendaciones de productos y herramientas necesarias para llevar a cabo los procedimientos descriptos. Me parece de lo mejor para llegar a reconstruir el motor del escarabajo. Bien redactado, aborda el tema sin caer en detalles superfluos. Lo recomiendo.

My opinion of this very useful book is from a Porsche 914 perspective. This book is going to really cover the basics and give a good overview of what you're getting into. I really like the breakdown of the book and the photos. Yet, if the photos could be color it would be better - but the detail of the B&W give a fine detail of each step. Of course most 914 nuts are going to buy anything that will help them with any aspect of the 914. For a general book, I think it takes a good "how to" stand on each section of the engine rebuild.

Of all the vw books I own (a lot) this has been the most useful so far. I cant find the info for rebuilding an engine to stock condition anywhere else not even in the rightly fabled Bentley manuals. This book saved me so much money and a blown engine that I would send mr.wilson a bucket full of white grease if I knew where to send it.

As an FAA-certified Airframe and Powerplant mechanic, I can say with some authority that this is one of the best tech books ever published. No fluff, incredibly informative and very "user friendly", this one needs to be on every VW and Formula Vee owner's bookshelf.

Came in decent time frame, not too expensive, and arrived in good condition, thank you!

I found this book to provide detailed and informed information and pictures on the process of disassembly, repair, and reassembly of the VW aircooled engines types 1-4. There are many hints and tips that should prevent many mistakes and save hours of time. The information also agrees with other publications that I have read on the subject, which lends credibility to the author's suggestions and options. I recommend this book to anyone interested in VW aircooled engines.

Very thorough. Easy to understand. Sometimes the layout is a little confusing but that could just be me. Looks like the information you would need is there regardless.

I've read and have most VW repair books and this one is on the top bracket of quality and easy understanding for the guy (or gal) who is working in an aircooled VW motor rebuild or even simple adjustment of valves.
It has all the information you may need for a standard motor rebuild, however if you are planning on supping up or hotroding your motor you will find information on that part to me minimal or nonexistent.
All motor work is covered with special sections added to each part in order to cover the type 4 engines, which are not even mentioned in most other handbooks.
Step by step procedures and alerts that will make you avoid time consuming mistakes in the assembly of the engine are very well detailed in the important parts where they are needed.
An excellent choice for engine repair, it does not cover tune-up procedures that are out from the basic set-up of the engine.
A worthy addition to any ones library on VW repair.

Me encanto, el libro de Tom Wilson, Glen Grissom es un libro que te lleva de la mano en la evaluacion y reparacion para el motor de tu vocho, exelente y bien descrito paso a paso.

Tom Wilson's book brings the mystique of engine rebuilding down to a level that your average backyard mechanic can understand. It is as easy to use as John Muir's book when is comes to rebuilding a VW engine. It does not take hundreds of hours to do nor does it take thousand of dollars. Rebuild kits with cylinders, pistons, etc are relatively cheap and, if these parts are servicable, a gasket kit and rings will be well under a hundred dollars. I rebuilt my engine for about three hundred dollars and it runs like a charm. It took one week to do part time; about twenty hours. Little in the way of specialized equipment is needed. Machining, if needed, is usually minimal and not costly. I only have the usual range of socket wrenches and stuff and no specialized equipment. Muir's book even tells you how to make inexpensive substitutes that work excedingly well. Wilson's book cuts to the chase and tells you what you need to know. If you have an average level of mechanical ability you can do this.

Having just recently finished rebuilding a 1200 engine, my experience with Wilson's book was frustrating. Not only are key details about the 1200 engine omitted but issues such as compression ration/deck height are poorly explained and the uninformed reader is left to guess. This is fatal when considering the composition of modern, lead replacement fuels which require a lower compression ratio. Other important issues not covered are - how to get the timing right when inserting distributor gear shaft (which should be done after crankcase assembly), lubrication details (using white grease for assembly as he recommends clogs oil galleries), checking bearing crush for big end bearings, as well as adjusting rocker arm geometry. Having said all this this happens to be the only book which deals with rebuilding in this depth, so it is useful but think for yourself! Another important aspect is the cost of a rebuild and the number of hours required - expect to spend thousands of dollars and hundred of hours of time. Although the book claims to make rebuilding easy, without the proper machinery and tools rebuilding is time consuming, costly and annoying. Expect to either buy or borrow specialised tools such as large sockets, micrometers, depth gauges, etc and to pay for machining work such as regrinding values, crank, etc. Rebuilding can end up being merely a reassembly task of work completed by a machine shop.

If you are planning on rebuilding your VW or Porsche 914 engine, or are even just curious about what's involved, then this is the book for you. The book is broken down into several excellent sections: engine removal, teardown, parts interchange, reconditioning, assembly, and burnin. Detailed B&W photos document every step involved. This is by far one of the best how-to books out there, and is almost all you need to rebuild your engine (factory manuals would help to supplement the book too).... it's a great buy, and definitely worth purchasing even if you're not going to rebuild your motor, but want to know what's involved, or why your mechanic is charging you so much. I'm currently writing a similar book on rebuilding the Porsche 911 engine, and I'm modeling it after this one.

If you have an aircooled VW and you're planning to rebuild the engine then you need this book. Use it in conjuction with the proper service manual like Haynes or better still..the Bentley Manual. This book makes rebuilding a VW engine much easier. The writing style is easy to understand and not boring at all. If you're serious about your Beetle this should be in your reference library

If you are knowledgeable about engines but not VW's this book is for you. Tom Wilson solves the mystery of what part goes to what engine. Mr.Wilson even tells you how to identify the old 36hp engines no longer used. He tells where to find part numbers what parts to replace for street use and what to replace for hard high rpm use. Terms like crank whip,counter weight, and such are explained. While aimed primarly at the street Beetle owner a valuable addition to the shop library, specialy if you are starting with a pile of parts

This book is very useful but you must remember to use it in conjunction with other books like the service manual and above all, common sense! I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to rebuild their aircooled VW engine.

I was a VW/Audi technician for many years in a dealership. Never in my many years did I find a book as easy to understand as this book. It is much easier to read and understand then even some factory shop manuals. I have rebuilt many VW aircooled engines and also review this book prior to beginning a rebuild just to remind myself of the nessesary steps. It even tells you what Engine cases to use and not to use and step by step parts installation. My only recommendation is not to cut corners on your parts and the first thing to do is buy and read this book. M.C.

Unlike the other two canonical manuals for air-cooled VWs (The official Bentley Shop Manual and the John Muir Compleat Idiot Guide), this one focuses on removing, rebuilding, and reinstalling the engine. It describes rebuilding procedures more clearly and in more detail, and feels more "current" than the other manuals. If you are contemplating a rebuild of your bug, bus, early vanagon, porsche 914, squareback or other air-cooled VW engine, this inexpensive manual will easily pay for itself by reducing the amount of time you spend puzzling over procedures and improving your chances for a successful, high-quality rebuild. The only complaint I have is that color pictures would be nice, but would undoubtedly raise the price