Aircooled wankbeetle collection

[derskine]

I was talking with a guy at work a couple of weeks back and jokingly asked if his Beetle was on the road yet (he hasn't touched it since buying it), he said something along the lines of "Fuck off you cunt, do you want to buy it?".

 

A very reasonable price was negotiated and I went to look at it that night.

Of course, I immediately agreed to buy it, as you do...

 

FOAD was invited* to participate in this collection grandeur, and must say a big thanks to him and Nisfan for helping out.

My mate from work is away camping this weekend, but gave me the keys to the garage.

 

 

Sure we can fix cars, but do we know how to use a ratchet strap? Do we fuck!

Took us about 30 mins to get the car tied to the trailer.

 

 

It was a winning combination of bomb squad Tata and german hitlermobile, plus a bonus street pastor lorry.

 

 

 

 

I pissed about with it for a while, but the electrics are shagged and the wiring is a mess, I'll need to rewire quite a lot of it, as a previous owner has started to but not finished it.

 

The bodywork is really good minus a patch of surface rust on the front valance, we had it up on the 4 post, underneath is in extremely good condition.

[derskine]

[dieselassist]

...worth buying if its solid underneath/'heather channels'/sills aren't all lacey... ...after years of 'aircooled' volks spaz'alist' maintenance, farmed out by their silver spooned young owners, most have totally shit electrics anyways... 

...you see a lot of DIY  'unfinished project' beetles for sale where the owner got as far as rippin off the wings n bumpers, one weekend, then threw a tarp over it, so if it were me id raise a glass to your workmate's innate laziness.... 

[Richard]

 

The engine is missing, just as well there's a spare in the boot. © every 1970s comedian.

[PhillipM]

Beetle wiring is supposed to be a mess, it's compulsary.

I will warn you, if you start fixing a Beetle, after a few years, you have no Beetle parts left.

[garbaldy]

I like the original beetles even though they are slow and not very economical and have funny rear end traits if pushed hard,

I would even in that Kermit green.

Nice buy

[Cavcraft]

Another 'like' for these Beetles and they seem to have got past the 'Empi wheels and sunvisor' twattery of the past now, too. 

[cobblers]

I think you can just buy wiring looms off the shelf for these for a couple of hundred quid, definitely worth doing if its a keeper. Top stuff!

[garethj]

Nice!  My first car was a 1200L a lot like that, the 1300s had a Z bar on the rear suspension which helped handling, and of course the 1303 had semi trailing arm rear suspension which made them even more stable.

 

But even the basic Beetle can corner quite well, the whole thing weighs only a bit more than a Lotus Elise, the tyres are narrow which helps for gradual break away of grip and the steering is quite direct.  What you can't do is brake while you're in a corner, if you're pressing on you shouldn't even lift off the throttle sharply in a corner.  Brake in a straight line, look through the corner and gradually accelerate through it.

 

I drove rear engined cars for years and when I transferred to motorbikes I found it easy because I already had the cornering technique.  You think that braking mid-corner in a Beetle is bad, wait till you try it on a bike in the wet.

[mercrocker]

I pretend to hate Beetles (first car blues....) but when I see a save like that it makes me go aaaaahh inside. There will be a massive taste swing to unmolested Volkswagens before long and this one is good and ready. I reckon late European cars will be some of the most highly regarded, too. I agree with comments above too, learning to drive in these things (I also rode motorcycles at the same age) holds you in good stead later on....

[dollywobbler]

NON WANK BEETLE SHOCKER.

[Richard]

I haven't seen one with twin peashooters since the 80s.

[PhillipM]

There will be a massive taste swing to unmolested Volkswagens before long...

Aw, but molesting them is much more fun!

[Alan_Green]

That looks mint (in more ways than one). Preferred metal dashboard type too. What's the back story? Someone has obviously cherished it up until recently and now it's off the road with fairly trivial problems. And you said you paid "not much" for it? There's a tale to tell here.

[Vince70]

Very nice I've had a couple of beetles in the past (1200 and1302)and if the heat exchangers are in good order then it must be a keeper as I remember years ago a mate of mine welded up a late 1200 for me and it was a nightmare of a job to do properly..

I always wanted to get my hands on a nice 1303 but I've noticed the price of Beetles has gone sky high now.. and it seems impossible to get something straight and running for under a couple of grand these days.

It's also rare to find one which hasn't had the original dash facia hacked about to fit a stereo cage in like yours..

I think when I had my last one there was a fibreglass glovebox tray you could buy to fit your stereo in so it didn't damage the facia and kept the stereo hidden away nicely and of your giving the car a rewire it might be worth buying one while your at it.

[Jim Bell]

Narrow the beam, slam it on its arse and cable tie a bmx or pineapple to the roof.

 

 

Said loads of kids with their baseball hats on sideways.

[Jim Bell]

PS. APROVED!!

[xtriple]

Hate Beetles. There, I said it. But, I do like the look of them and that looks nice. I just hate driving them.

 

If it is solid underneath then you're onto a winner straight away and I reckon a new loom would be just the job. Good buy.

[DodgyBastard]

I usually hate the people who drive them.

[John F]

I used to hate Beetles when there were still lots of them around, but they've grown on me over the years. And that one looks nice* in kermit.

[Jim Bell]

[Pillock]

That looks nice

Wiring is always an issue, everyone just adds gauges, fixes problems and puts on extra lights and shit by running wires wherever they feel. Oh, and earthing everything to one rusty painted screw behind the dash.

 

I'd be interested if it's not a keeper.....

[Crusty Sills]

I like Beetles in plain and pineapple flavours and this looks a nice standard one. Keep the rust at bay and get some waxoil or something in the heater channels.

New wiring loom the way to go, I got mine from VW Heritage and it was a good fit.

Thought about making my own but time and laziness meant I needed off the shelf.

[cobblers]

Not just time, buying all the right wire in the right colours would cost more than just buying a ready made loom. A kid I used to work with has made a full car loom using just white wire, but he's a flipping mentalist.

[Jim Bell]

^ it'll be allwhite.

 

 

 

 

I'd like a bug one day. Do give us a shout if you ever fancy swapping it for some pictures of the queen.

[Station]

I'd love one, who cares what they're like overall (horrid).

[Station]

Not just time, buying all the right wire in the right colours would cost more than just buying a ready made loom. A kid I used to work with has made a full car loom using just white wire, but he's a flipping mentalist.

Buy a loom off any car on eBay, you get metres of the stuff in every colour.

[Alan_Green]

That's Mexico City Taxi Green by the way:

[Pillock]

I wired a rally car (so not a whole loom, but the basics to make it go) using only an old loom and whatever my mate's dad could get from work. So partially it was the "right" colours but doing the wrong things, and other times it was just metres and metres of red wire.

 

If you put waxoil in the heater channels, make sure to get it in the square channel and not the heater tube. That will reek

[derskine]

Well update - It runs!

I took a wire from the ignition to the + of the coil and it fired up after some fiddling.

I think it might be running on 3 cyls but not investigated, couldn't seem to go above 40mph.

Nothing electrical works though, not even the alternator.

 

FOAD has a video of it driving I'm sure.