Jeff & Charlie jumping at Patton Valley
Charlie's transaxle swap at Gordon's Well.
Charlie has a 3.5L Honda with a VW Bus transaxle in his four
seat Extreme Performance sand car. About a year and a half ago, Charlie
upgraded from an turbo Ford Focus, to a 3.5L Honda. With the extra torque of
the 3.5L Honda, Charlie was concerned about the longevity of his transaxle.
So after the engine upgrade, Charlie knew his original
transaxle would go out at some point, so he had an upgraded transaxle in his
5th wheel that was built by Don's Bus
Box in Phoenix.
The inevitable breakdown occurred during our trip. While
running up Test Hill, the pinion broke, and he had to be towed
back to camp. It was a good thing that Brett was camped with us since
he has a truck built by Colorado Sand Cars that was perfect for the job.
The next morning, it was time to swap transaxles.
We took over Jeff's enclosed trailer since he had lots of
tools, an air compressor, and most importantly, a winch that we could use to
lift the engine out of the car.
Charlie's busted transaxle. You can see the damage to
the ring and pinion.
The upgraded VW Bus transaxle had been sitting in Charlie's
5th wheel for about a year.
Once the old transaxle was out, we found that the bell
housing on the new transaxle was not the same. With an incredible
twist of fate, it just so happened that Don from Don's Bus Box was camped
right next to us at Gordon's Well. Once Charlie explained the
situation, Don came right over and helped with the bell housing swap.
Putting the finishing touches on the transaxle swap
After we got Charlie's car all back together, it was time
for a test drive.
