Will a vw 009 distributor work in a 36 hp?

That Bosch distributor is one thing that scarcely changed from one year to the next. As I recall, you can even find that same distributor on the Volvo 122s.

BTW, if you can find a scrap 122s, grab the tie rod because it will allow you to replace your tie rod ends on your VW. Same size, same length, but the tie rod ends are screw-on rather than swaged.