Sometimes working on an old VW Bus feels less like fixing a vehicle and more like solving a mystery. Today's mission seemed simple enough: replace the starter. Lula has a 1995 Subaru 2.2 engine paired to a VW 3-rib transmission. The original VW starter had been struggling a little with the higher-compression Subaru engine, so I bought a high-performance starter thinking this would be an easy afternoon project. Famous last words. 😂 The bottom starter bolt came right out. No problem. The top... not so much. There was a nut that I just couldn't seem to get a socket on. After taking a video and looking closer, I realized the transmission case has a boss cast into it that keeps the nut from turning. "Aha!" I thought. "The bolt must come out from the engine side." Back under the bus I went with a whole new level of confidence. Except... There was no bolt. After a lot more staring, scratching my head, and probably inventing a few new words, I finally figured it out. When the Subaru engine was installed, they put the starter on before mating the engine to the transmission. The Subaru block completely blocks access to that upper bolt. In other words... The only way to change the starter is to remove the engine. 🤦‍♂️ So after all that excitement, Lula is still running the same old VW starter she had when the day began. The good news? I did install a hard-start relay, and it spins the starter much better than before, so the day wasn't a total loss. Working on these old buses teaches you one thing over and over: every project has a story. Sometimes you fix the problem. Sometimes you solve a mystery. And sometimes the bus politely reminds you that she's still in charge. Cat and I just laughed, packed up the tools, and added another chapter to the "Life with Lula" book. One step at a time... one adventure at a time. 🚐❤️

If you've ever restored an old VW Bus, you know they have a way of testing your patience... and your sense of humor. 😂 When we first climbed up on the roof, we found years of old paint, peeling coatings, rusty screw heads, cracked sealant, and a canvas that had definitely lived a full life. There were moments when we looked at each other and thought, "Well... this escalated quickly." So we started scraping... and scraping... and scraping some more. The roof wasn't restored in a fancy body shop. It wasn't painted with expensive equipment. It was painted in an abandoned garage with a pile of spray paint cans, a lot of determination, and probably a few too many "Well, let's see what happens!" moments. Then came the new pop-top canvas. Now... if we're being honest... it's not installed 100% perfectly. 😄 There are a few spots we'd probably do differently next time. But here's the thing... It was our first time. We learned together.We laughed together.We got frustrated together.And somehow, by the end of it, we stood back and smiled together. Because that's what this journey is really about. Lula isn't headed to a car show to win trophies. She's becoming our home, our adventure vehicle, and a reflection of every lesson Cat and I learn along the way. We're building her while we're g her ready to live in her .We're fixing her while we're traveling in her. And every project gives us another story to tell around the campfire. Will we make mistakes?Absolutely. Will we probably repaint something, readjust the canvas, or redo a few things someday?Without a doubt. But that's part of the adventure. Perfection isn't the goal... memories are. Here's to learning as we go, laughing through the challenges, and proving that you don't have to know everything before you begin. Just grab a spray can... maybe a scraper... definitely a friend... and get started. Thanks for following along on our crazy little journey. We can't wait to see where Lula takes us next. ❤️🚐

Is anyone going to this event in September? We would love to meet you there!

One of the biggest changes we’ve made to Lula lately has been updating the dashboard to better support her new Subaru heart. When you swap a 1973 VW Bus over to a Subaru engine, you gain reliability and power… but you also need to know what’s happening under the hood. The original VW warning lights just aren’t enough anymore. So after what felt like miles of wiring (and maybe a few moments of questioning my own sanity 😂), the new dash is finally coming together. We added gauges for: 🛢️ Oil Pressure🌡️ Coolant Temperature⚡ Voltage🚨 Coolant Warning Light🚨 Oil Pressure Warning Light Now instead of wondering what’s happening, I can actually see it. This wasn’t a bolt-it-in-and-go project. There was plenty of cutting, fitting, rewiring, testing, taking it back apart… and then doing it all over again until everything worked the way I wanted. That’s part of building these old Volkswagens. Sometimes progress looks like a beautiful finished dashboard. Sometimes progress looks like 100 wires laying across your steering wheel. Both are part of the same story. I also wanted the dash to still feel like a classic Bay Window. Clean, simple, and like it belonged there instead of looking like a race car. I think we found a nice balance between modern reliability and vintage character. These are the kinds of projects we’ll be sharing here in this community—what works, what doesn’t, the mistakes, the victories, and everything in between. Because the VW lifestyle isn’t just about driving these old buses… It’s about building them, learning from them, helping each other, and enjoying every mile of the journey. I’d love to hear from you… If you’ve added gauges to your VW, what did you install and where did you mount them? Show us your setup in the comments! 🚐✌️