I first met Jake about six years ago. It was at a car show and he was standing beside his truck with an engine on a stand that had been at full-rev for almost the entire show. I thought that was pretty brave so I talked with him for a bit and ended-up taking home a business card. Two years later, I had an unfortunate situation with a less-than-honest mechanic and was looking for someone who could get my car back on the road. I found Jake's card in the back of my glove box and gave him a call. One bug, one bus, and several thousand miles later, I'm still happy...
I had my 1973 Super Beetle for seven years; and it had served me faithfully as a part-time daily driver and show car. After all that time of driving it though, I was looking for something with a little more power. I called Jake to ask for a simple quote, and ended up describing my car to him and the type of driving that I normally do. I explained that I wanted something I could drive on a regular basis, but would also have plenty of power.
After a few more phone calls I decided to visit him in person. The first thing I noticed was the amount of detail and care that went in to keeping his engine room clean. I had never seen anything like that before in a garage. The countertops and floors of his engine room were spotless, and it smelled of cleaning solution. I then got a tour of the rest of the shop and same amount of detail was evident behind each door.
When we finally started talking about my engine, it turned out that Jake asked more questions than I did. I eventually settled on a 1776 that would run with dual carbs, re-worked heads, and a bunch of go-fast goodies on the inside. The engine never failed me. After driving it the 150 miles home, then back up to Jake's for it's first scheduled check up, I joined him and some other people in Hippie Days, a multi-state drive. I pushed the car to its limits that weekend - often hitting triple-digit speeds with Jake in his car right beside me. I drove a total of 700+ miles that weekend and not once did I have to raise my deck lid for anything other than to show someone my new engine. For the next year and half, I drove that car more than I did my new Jeep. I took it everywhere, no matter how far away - and never once had a problem.
I eventually traded my bug for a great looking 1972 Campmobile with 82K miles. One of the main reasons the guy agreed to the trade was that my car had a Raby engine in it. As luck would have it, my new bus had a bum engine. After six weeks of owning it, the bus landed at Jake's shop. Once again, he was the one asking all the questions. Knowing that buses typically have a reputation for being less than dependable, I wanted something that was not going to leave me stranded. This time I went with a 2.0 Type 4, dual carbs, even more power modifications, and again - the heads got a ton of attention. In the past two years, I've put over 9K miles on my bus and new engine with no worries. Among other mountains, it's climbed the Blue Ridge Parkway fully loaded with my family, dogs, and stuff in 4th gear and never once stumbled.
I've met several VW mechanics in my travels. Some good, some not so good. Jake takes the time to stand above and beyond them all. His level of air-cooled engine knowledge is pretty high, and he's always testing things to make it even higher.
Sean Harris
1972 Campmobile
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