I think the spare tire carriers were originally black and not body color.  Might indicate it's had a re-spray, so look for other signs of same, and corresponding quality of any body repairs done at the same time.

I've driven quite a few 460 g's, some of all engine trans types and I can say this.  If you're going to drive a 460 G, get used to feeling like you're driving with your foot to the floor a lot of the time.  This feeling gets stronger as you go from sea level flat land into steeper higher altitude stuff.  FWIW, the 230G is second worst in the power/torque category only to the "nearly undriveable" 240GD.  230GE's and 300GD's are pretty okay at lower altitudes and relatively flat lands.  Even the top of the line, power AND torque wise 280GE is a little anemic in the mountains (But I put 100k mi. on mine commuting from 5 to 9k ft every day, so it's all in what you can accept).  All of the above take for granted a factory specified state of tune.

My guess is the 230 you drove is probably about all you're going to get out of that motor.  If it seemed objectionably slow, then IMHO, the 230 is probably not for you.

-Dave G.

Edit now--- alloy wheels and corresponding wheel arch extensions were also not original equipment in 1980.  Lots of people added them later to "gussie up" an older truck but be aware that they also sometimes go with "cosmetic" upgrades a-la the possible respray above.  Check carefully for body rot in all the corners and crevices.  Here's hoping it's as nice as it looks at first glance.  Looks like a nice truck.

There is a previous post on this G Cabrio.  If I remember correctly, the G is a 1979 make.  You can do a search by typing in "Missy" or "OR Cabrio."  Have you read any previous posts on this Woody?  Other than that, it sounds like you found a very nice and well-kept G. 

"OR Cabrio" -- I meant "OR clubgwagen cabrio." Hey, does anyone know what happened to the "Edit" feature for our forum. I cannot seem to find it. 

Nevermind.  Edit button just came up a few seconds ago when I clicked refresh.

If you want to go 617A, get a 300GD to start with.  Bell housing is the least of your worries.  The 230G doesn't have a return line to the fuel tank, so that would have to be fabbed (it exists in diesels and in "GE" fuel injected trucks), The 230 also has no oil cooler, and a 2-core radiator where the 617a will be happier with the oil cooler and 3-core rad that come with a 280GE, and a 300GD comes with at least the oil cooler and some folks find the 300GD radiator okay as is too.  The 617A motor will bolt up to the trans that's behind the 230G, but you'll need to find a flywheel to put on the 617A.  If you start with a 300GD, you'll have the flywheel and just need to have it re-balanced to match your donor motor.

My personal order of preference for 617A swap is:

1- 300GD - starting with this one, the whole swap is an afternoon's work, plus time to have the flywheel balance matched if it's a manual truck.

2- 280GE  Tougher than 300GD, but issues are with adapting systems that already exist on the truck, no new systems required

3- 230G - at least the trans and bell housing are right, but there are missing systems to be created on the truck

3a- 230GE - darned near the same as 230g with the plus that you have the fuel return line, but the minus that the starter is on the wrong side.

I can't talk inteligently about what it takes to do a 240GD.

In my opinion though, finding a "good truck" is a lot more important than how easy the swap is.  Any of the swap issues will be one-time things to be dealt with.  I'd take a 230G that was really nice and exactly what I wanted (engine not withstanding) over a ratty 300GD.  Remember you're buying a whole truck, not just an engine swap base.

And as far as the re-spray goes, it's impossible to tell from pictures whether it's been done, but careful observation in person will tell for sure.  FWIW, I never share this kind of information with the seller.  It's no use to "ask" if it's been painted, it only puts people on the defensive (as you've ssen) and frankly it doesn't matter.  Only you (or me) as a buyer can determine if the vehicle is right for you, by your own observations and those of your agent(s).  If you decide it's for you, hand over a check.  If you're not interested, a polite follow up call informing the seller of same is good courtesy, but if asked "why", I just put it off with, "I'm not sure I'm ready to buy right now and would like to look at some other options."  Going into details only upsets people.  That's my experience anyway.

-Dave G.

Seems like from your observations and the great info Carlos added and others added, the truck might indeed be all original.  Sure is great to be able to have talks like this with people all over the world all at once.  Everybody gets to learn new things, not just the person asking.  Very cool.

"...I want torque, not horsepower..."

Well of course horsepower is just a product of torque x rpm and a unit management constant, so the two aren't mutually exclusive. 

But I think what you're trying to say is that you want the engine to produce it's maximum torque in a rev range that you can use in your normal driving.  I was after exactly the same thing when I switched from M110 (280GE) to OM617A, and I feel like I got it in spades.  The truck isn't ultimately any faster or more powerful (maybe on paper, not to the seat of my pants) with the diesel, but the diesel makes it's peak torque at about 2800 RPM, where the peak on the gas motor was up around 4700. 

The real life scenario this translated to was this.....going up a hill at 55 mph with the gas motor I'm doing about 3500 rpm and as the car slows going up the grade, less and less torque is available (since evenat 3500 you're below the peak and sliding backwards as revs drop) so the car slows more, until ultimately I have to downshift to a) get a lower gear to multiply torque and b) spin the ngine faster to make more torque.  With the diesel, I aproach the same hill and as I start to slow down from 3500 rpm, the engine actually produces MORE torque as the revs drop so even though I slow down a little the torque curve sort of "rises to meet me" at some point and the car stops slowing and continues up the hill at aconstant speed without the need to downshift.  Both engines produce very nearly the same peak torque, the diesel just produces it's peak at an rpm that's more useful to my driving needs.

Of course a big ENOUGH hill can still cause a need to downshift if the torque available at peak can't keep the car at speed, and then the only choice is to go slower in the lower gear.  But in general, the "driveability" of the diesel better suits my needs.  A second BIG factor for me was living at 9,000 ft, the turbo helps a lot where the normally aspirated gas engine was really sucking wind and a normally aspirated diesel was even worse due to the diesel's greater compression ratio resulting in lower ambient air pressure having even greater effect on the motor due to the greater multiplication factor (22:1 compression instead of 8:1).

There's lots of info elsewhere on this forum on the pros and cons of adding turbo to a 617 vs using the 617A.

Good luck!

-Dave G.