- most common: lower ball joints. i would carry the two lower torsion arms with fresh ball joints installed. the upper ones don't seem to break...it seems like the lower ones get over extended more. as a group, we've encountered four lower ball joint failures in less than a year, even joints that are less than a year old can fail. i'm on my third lower passenger joint and second lower passenger torsion arm.
- accelerator cable
- clutch cable, this is a bear to replace too.
- rear brake drum. i've seen the splines of a rear brake drum strip out. this happend with a high horse power engine, though.
- CV joint. these last longer if the boots aren't cracked and there's muddy water in the joint instead of grease.
- total electrical system failure. usually happens when dealing with origional electrical system components. i.e. generator/voltage regulator craps out. replace stuff that's acting up before venturing out alone.
- long tie rod with ends. if not strengthened, these bend easily. can be straightened with a big breaker bar, but would be eaiser to have a replacement.
- loose steering box. usually happens when tie rods are strengthened...the steering box comes loose. might even fall apart. mine is.
- bent front beam. just limp home and rip a new one off a junker at the wrecking yard $75 complete.
- broken front tranny mount. clunk clunk clunk when revesing...can move engine up and down by hand
- diagonal arm piviot bolt comes out. similar symptoms as broken tranny mount. check for tightness periodically.
- broken wheel bearings. just put the everything back together and slap alot of grease in it. pray it holds, turn the stereo up so you don't hear the grinding sound
- blown wheel cylinders. have alot of brake fluid along so you can keep filling up the resevior.
now, stuff that would be a good idea to have along. all this stuff is pretty cheep insurance. a good idea if you go out alone.
- oil
- brake fluid
- bearing grease
- degreaser/solvent. can of starter fluid will work just fine
- replacement pushrod tube that you can install without taking off the cylinder head.
- points/condenser/rotor/cap for the distrubitor you have
- carb rebuilt kit
- air compressor and tire patch kit or tube patch kit if you have tubes in your tires. tubes are good because you can fix them easily all you need is a tire iron and a jack to break the bead. it can be done with these simple tools. the "how to fix your vw for the complete idiot" book shows how.
- some wheel cylinder rebuild kits
- fan belt or two
- a full assortment of tools to fix every thing
- a shop manual for reference
- common sense
- sleeping bag, tent/tarp and other impliments of survival.
