There are at least six different VW pulleys. They all fit on every crankshaft, so it's important to know what you've got!
The one-notch pulley is 5-degrees ADTC (that's AFTER) and is used with the double vacuum distributors, 1971-1973.
The dimple and notch pulley has a small dimple on the rearmost (rear of car) rim which is TDC and a notch on the front (front of car) rim which is 7.5 degrees BTDC.
The two-notch pulley (only about 3mm apart) has no TDC mark; the two notches are 7.5 degrees and 10 degrees BTDC.
The 3-notch pulley has a notch at TDC, then one at 7.5 degrees BTDC and another at 10 degrees BTDC. These are close together and to the right of TDC.
Locate your distributor and find where the #1 spark plug wire goes into the distributor cap. The #1 spark plug is the front right. Remember, FRONT is FRONT! Make a mark on the distributor body just below where the wire plugs in. Remove the distributor cap and rotate the engine with a wrench or socket on the alternator nut until the rotor is approaching the #1 spark plug position.
Remove the #1 sparkplug and insert a plastic straw or rod into the #1 spark plug hole until it rests on the top of the piston.
Move the crankshaft back and forth with the wrench or socket on the alternator nut until the point at which the piston is highest in the cylinder is found (i.e., the plastic straw or rod is at its furthest point out of the spark plug hole). This is Top Dead Center; mark it clearly on the crankshaft pulley with white paint.
