Engine Rebuild - Metal finishes?

Hey Everyone..

I am in the process of pulling out my 1.1 small block FA engine from my 76. Before I start to strip it down I want to make a list of all the parts I pull off, and what the OEM colour/metal finishes should be for the rebuild. I think I remember a similar question on here from ages ago but couldn't find the topic/thread.. would anyone have a list of part number/description/images with info on the colour/finish for each so I can ensure it is perfect as it left the factory?

Thanks, Jon  

Hey

I'm restoring a 76/77 with a 1.6 engine, but much of the finishes will be the same over the early years. My experience is that it's easy to go fullblown yellow zinc on all brackets etc, giving an "over-restored" appearance. In reality many brackets where often either black or clear zinc (electroplated) or hot dip galvanized as well, or even just painted black. Another point is that the chemicals used for electroplating is different today than back in the 70's (trichromate vs hexchromate), that's why newer yellow chromate electroplated parts often are more green/bluish compared to the deep yellow on older plated parts. So my preference is to leave parts that are just slighlty tarnished alone, instead of having them look like chinese jewelry.. Just my two zents =)

If your parts are tarnished beyond recognition your best bet would be to google brochures etc. I think there's a small cut from the FA engine in this video at around 1:12    Volkswagen Golf Mk1 | Retro Car Review | German Car | Drive in | 1974 - YouTube

I am pretty ocd about this stuff so i often screenshot ads of nice mk1s believe it or not! I think these are all with he FA-engine, mostly 74-76: