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Mon Apr 11, 2011 6:46 pm

After looking for couple of months I finally got my Ghia this weekend, I am still scratching my over why anyone would cut the roof and install a targa top but after seeing the work quality " 1/4 inch of bondo" now I know that whoever did it did not really care about the car or that they don’t make them any more, anyway the rest of the body is in a good shape so initially I was going to clean all the bondo cut off the targa lip he added and weld the roof back together but now I may start looking for a body to replace the roof and pillars, any ideas?
I will post pictures soon

Tue Apr 12, 2011 8:35 pm

So today I found a good 74 body that came with good doors etc. The overall condition of the 74 body is good with exception of rusted rockers, I like the body style I have on my 68 but I cannot decide if it will be worth the risk to keep and try to replace the roof from the 74. How hard is it to replace the roof and make sure all measurement is correct ? Anyone tried this before?

Tue Apr 12, 2011 8:46 pm

There are quite a few roofs out there for sale. Check the classifieds.

The roof removal process is not that easy. First question is about your formal coupe. Did the PO beef up the rockers like a vert or did he just cut the top out. If he didn't beef up the rockers, there's a good chance the doors don't close or line up very well.

If the rockers were beefed up, then the donor hood should fit pretty well. The good news is you have both windows in place, so you can take great measurements and slowly fit the donor into place.

It's not an easy job, but doable at home with normal tools

Wed Apr 13, 2011 8:56 pm

Thanks for the advice I appreciate all the help I can get since I am new to this. I bought the 74 Ghia body i was talking about yesterday and the previous owner helped me delivered it to my house today. The 74 came with a lot goodies and I really feel lucky that I found it that quick specially because of the roof, gauges and the awesome AM radio yay.

so I spent an hour and three cups of coffee pondering which method I should use to replace the roof and finally decide to use the service manual by cutting 55mm above the welding seam. Long story short it wasn’t as easy as they made it sound. Overall I think it went pretty good, the two front cuts are almost perfect, the back is a little off the mark because I got scared and left an extra 1cm in the replacement pillars so tomorrow I will be trimming and welding. Wish me luck.

Thu Apr 14, 2011 7:52 pm

Completed most of the roof welding and I have to say that welding is not as fun as I thought :(
this is my first time to weld anything but I think the results was good, I only had to cut one of Pillars to readjust it other than that I spent the whole day welding and grinding and I still have a lot of grinding left to do.

I have a question regarding the smoke window post and the inside roof lip, my 68 didn't have either but the donor 74 does should I cut the post and grind the lip or I am better off keeping them? Also is it possible to replace the two half floor pans without taking the body off the frame?

Any help is appreciated.
Thanks

Fri Apr 15, 2011 12:29 am

karghia74 wrote: Completed most of the roof welding and I have to say that welding is not as fun as I thought :(
this is my first time to weld anything but I think the results was good.
:shock: It's a good job you started with the easy bits first. :wink:

Fri Apr 15, 2011 1:05 pm

Really Need some advice, as you can see I had to replace the roof and now I am looking to replace the floor pans. I really don't want to take the body of the frame because of the replaced roof, the rockers are in good shape. Any ideas?
Thanks

Sat Apr 16, 2011 9:12 am

karghia74 wrote: Really Need some advice, as you can see I had to replace the roof and now I am looking to replace the floor pans. I really don't want to take the body of the frame because of the replaced roof, the rockers are in good shape. Any ideas?
Thanks help?

Sat Apr 16, 2011 10:29 am

I'm not sure how you're going to take this, or what the real implications are, but a 72-74 has some different details than the 71 and down years, especially in the vicinity of the roof and pop out windows.

The rubber for the later cars is more expensive, but also easier to install. I'd consider sticking with that if the parts car has everything you need.

For the pan, do a search on this forum - a friend of mine named "Veteran" just did a half replacement on his '72 with the body on. It can be done, though it's tricky and has its own challenges.

Sat Apr 16, 2011 10:53 am

karghia74 wrote: karghia74 wrote: Really Need some advice, as you can see I had to replace the roof and now I am looking to replace the floor pans. I really don't want to take the body of the frame because of the replaced roof, the rockers are in good shape. Any ideas?
Thanks help? I did it. raise up on jack stands all around. two on front tubes, two on trans support tubes.disconnect cable at carb, disconnect clutch cable and remove clutch/brake pedal assembly. remove fuel tank. disconnect wiring at engine and be mindfull of where they are attached. disconnect rear heater box cables.remove fuel tank.unbolt the pan and body mounting bolts all around except front two bolted to front suspension tubes, which you loosen up so body can pivot. sepparate steering coupler.remove wheels and tires.in rear wheel wells is a point where body is thick. notice a hole on both sides with 2 studs sticking out. place taller jack stands here. used jack and 2x6 ,raise up, remove stands under trans and let running gear drop down while body supported on stands.this helps with rear pan halves, not so much with front pan halves. use this info at your own risk

Sun Apr 17, 2011 7:23 am

Wow :shock: Replace a roof?!?
Your tackling a job that most veteran restorers shy away from. This is your 1st time at welding? From the pics you missed your calling. It is great to see such enthusiasm 8)
Here's a link from the "BugMe Videos" showing floor pan replacement with the body on.
http://www.superbeetles.com/Tech_talk/jul.htm
It's a super beetle but the premise is about the same. Keep up the great work!

Sun Apr 17, 2011 7:16 pm

Marlonius wrote: I'm not sure how you're going to take this, or what the real implications are, but a 72-74 has some different details than the 71 and down years, especially in the vicinity of the roof and pop out windows.

The rubber for the later cars is more expensive, but also easier to install. I'd consider sticking with that if the parts car has everything you need.

For the pan, do a search on this forum - a friend of mine named "Veteran" just did a half replacement on his '72 with the body on. It can be done, though it's tricky and has its own challenges.

Thank you very much, after more measurement I removed the pop out window post and I will be removing the lip as well. I am pretty sure I am better off using the 68 rubber seal as it will somewhat give me some flexibility with the installation.

I ordered two half pans yesterday and it will probably take them week before they are arrive. when they do I am going to revisit the idea of taking the body off.

Sun Apr 17, 2011 7:25 pm

kingkarmann wrote: Wow :shock: Replace a roof?!?
Your tackling a job that most veteran restorers shy away from. This is your 1st time at welding? From the pics you missed your calling. It is great to see such enthusiasm 8)
Here's a link from the "BugMe Videos" showing floor pan replacement with the body on.
http://www.superbeetles.com/Tech_talk/jul.htm
It's a super beetle but the premise is about the same. Keep up the great work!

:D Thank you sir, I think the reason I did it without even thinking twice about it is because I hated that targa top with a passion. I scratched my head more than once during the cutting and welding but I think I got really lucky with the measurement and having few ratchet straps really helps if you work alone

Sun Apr 17, 2011 7:42 pm

Ordered the Bentley manual and half pans, so as I am anxiously waiting for them to arrive I started on gutting the car, so far I removed the engine, most if not everything out of the cabin, gas tank and few other things I can't even remember now. below are the pics and couple of questions :)

Found them underneath the backseat, for a second I thought I found a 60's stash, not quite :oops:

The fuel pump, I don't believe it is the original but it wasn't even connected to anything!!

Ok time for questions :)
The wiring, as you can see in the last pic the only thing missing is a marinara sauce! so my question, is there a somewhat simpler way in sorting this miss? I can unplug, pull and tag but it looks like it will be a major head when time comes to install everything back. any advice is appreciated.
Thanks

Sun Apr 17, 2011 9:35 pm

great job you are doing. Just a note....save all the carpet nails. you'll know why later!

Mon Apr 18, 2011 12:31 pm

karghia74 wrote:

Ok time for questions :)
The wiring, as you can see in the last pic the only thing missing is a marinara sauce! so my question, is there a somewhat simpler way in sorting this miss? I can unplug, pull and tag but it looks like it will be a major head when time comes to install everything back. any advice is appreciated.
Thanks

Save the wiring. Try to tag it as you pull it. I don't have any particular wiring experience but if you follow the schematics;
1968 wiring diagram. Print the diagram out and get it blown up. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/wiring/ghia_67_USA.jpg
I suspect you should find it pretty simple to straighten things up.

In my 1st and only attempt at car wiring I installed a new harness in my 67 with this diagram. 6 years later still no problems 8)

Where in Ohio? I'm in Columbus.

Mon Apr 18, 2011 1:08 pm

Thanks for the advice, I may go the new harness route if I found too many unknown wires. Someone installed an alarm, a cd player and few relays. I am in the south of Dayton area, small world though because the 68 I bought was from Columbus.

Mon Apr 18, 2011 1:25 pm

You can get a new brake fluid resevoir that mounts directly on top of the master and clean out the mess the original location causes. Good work on the targa removal.

Mon Apr 18, 2011 2:43 pm

c21darrel wrote: You can get a new brake fluid resevoir that mounts directly on top of the master and clean out the mess the original location causes. Good work on the targa removal.

I didn't know that, thank you. I added it to my shopping list

Tue Apr 19, 2011 10:13 am

Removed most of the wiring, gauges and the harness, I took a lot of reference pictures but due I found too many unknown wires that have been cut or added because of the alarm system, CD player and who knows what else that the PO had installed in the car so it is confirmed that I will need new wiring : (

Here is how it looked after I was done last night

Note sure what happened here, it look like someone cut through the sheet metal then patched with rivets!! I will have to fix that somehow :?

Silly question but I did search the forum and couldn’t find what I need, is there a quick and dirty list of things that
1. Must replace e.g brake lines, steering wheel Rubber Coupling
2. Check and replace if needed e.g brake Calipers
3. Nice to replace anyway or enhancement e.g.

I am trying to come up with a shopping list and a little of budget control. any help is appreciated.
Thanks