Our Services
At Retro Rust, we bring your classic VW back to life with expert care.
Welding
Strong, clean welds that restore your VW’s frame to its original strength.
Engine Swap
Engine conversions tailored to boost performance while keeping vintage charm.
Engine Conversions
At Retro Rust our aim is to find the sweet spot in engineering building cars with increased reliability, power, mpg, comfort and handling than it rolled out the factory with.
VW T3 1.9TDi
The VW T3 is a very well engineered Vehicle but the engines are slowed by hills, gears can be difficult to find, engine revs to high and this can be tiring to drive everyday so our T3 Tdi conversion is designed to solve this.
T3 Tdi Conversion Consists of:
1.9Tdi AFN Engine
Audi/Passat Flipped gearbox to make it cruise at 70mph doing approx 2200RPM.
Ultimate Engineering Hardware.
Custom gear shift cables and cab mounted pedestal to make van change gear like a VW T5.
Cruise Control with modified genuine vw stalk to keep the dashboard looking original.
Upgraded high flow PD150 intake manifold and Custom upgraded Intercooler.
Tuned ecu for approx 145bhp and 50mpg.
Neat Simplified wiring loom.
Custom AHU turbo adaptor so that the stock exhaust and manifold is used to keep future maintenance simple.
VDO high quality oil pressure & Boost gauge installed in the dash ashtray space with a Brickwerks Gauge Pod to avoid cutting the dash board.
Engines will have new timing belt, Water pump, oil pump, new gaskets, etc
Price
Labour: £3500
Parts: £3000-£4000
(Prices may vary depending on parts availability)
What to expect:
The Work takes 1-2 weeks approximately unless theres extra work you would like done while theres better access such as welding, etc. all our work is covered by a 28 day or 5000mile warranty. The engines and gearboxes are secondhand with 80-150k miles on which you will get to choose what you want beforehand. We get the majority of our parts from Ultimate Engineering and Brickwerks and only use good quality components where possible.
You didn’t come this far to stop
Other Conversions
Mk1 Golf
Classic Fords
American Muscle
JDM
We do a range of swaps on different vehicles, we don't currently have experience with American & JDM but this is the direction Retro Rust is moving towards.
Welding & Restoration
Welding:
Thin Bodywork, chassis, shell, etc.
Custom engine mounts or other unique fabrications.
Can weld Steel, Stainless & Aluminium.
We use 1.2mm Galvenised Zintec steel for most automotive work, thicker for chassis, etc.
Restoration work:
Mechanical work such as brakes, suspension,
upgrades such as brakes, fuel, electrics, interior, etc
Mobile mechanic work. £50 + £1/mile from my premises call out fee then labour on top.
Campervan work such as fitting solar systems, insulation, etc.
Analogue electrical work such as wiring up gauges, sound systems, diagnosing faults that don't involve a computer.
Recommissioning dead cars back to the road, getting them running and driving to road worthy condition again.
Vehicle Consultancy - we can advise on projects, buying/selling vehicles, inspect vehicles, etc.
Vehicle Sourcing - We can source rare vehicles/parts and courier them from the uk and Europe to your door including shipping nova documents and uk V5c registration.
Price
Labour: £65 per hour
(This includes basic materials like welding wire/gas, protective paint, grease, etc unless the job requires an excessive amount.)
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