new off roader

[Cubed]

hey everyone
ummm first post and topic and all, about two years ago i bought an old beetle with the intention of building a good off-roader out of it, i am more than half blind and they wont let me legally drive on the road so i've made the decision to let the licence expire and go all out off road racer on it. I have a thousand idea's of what to do and no clear direction as to what should be done.

first of all its a 1300cc FO coded engine but i'm not entirely sure of the year as i cant seem to find the chassis code, i'm also rather confused because it looks as if it was once very well looked after and maybe mildly modified but then was sold off and well
shes not in great shape but nothing detrimental

i was just wondering what the best sort of combo's were for off roading
engine size, dual or single port, turbo, supercharger, n/a carb.
all of this information would be greatly valued i dont mind spending a fairly decent amount on the engine as long as i know its going to be basically bulletproof i was also thinking about using an off road holley carb but i have no idea

I am not hugely mechanical but i know a bit and i like getting my hands dirty and i have a good solid background in electrical, i eventually will convert the alternator to rare earth and massively beef up its ability to deliver power and i'm looking to chuck fans and coolers wherever theyre needed, een make the oil and fuel pumps purely electrical to cut down any and all power sapping from the engine

anyway ive asked many and complicated questions enough for one post. looking forward to your replies

[Cubed]

also i will post pictures later in the week hopefully so you all can see what we're dealing with

funny story, today my beetle beat me up, i was following the line from the speedo because it hadnt been registering properly when i had it driven from the ex-owners house, long story short i must not have been watching where i put my hands because the bonnet arm sprung up and smacked me in the face, broke the skin too, thought you all might find my mechanical stupidity funny

[SamT]

What is your budget for the engine like? Bulletproof costs lots of money.
A 250hp bullet proof VW will cost $8,000+ not counting labor.
A 100hp bulletproof VW may be $3000

[greg mgm]

If you want an all out off road racer, then research race organization classes and build a car to those specs. For example, class 11 is a fairly stock build, but not sure how mild/ wild you want to go.

[Cubed]

Thanks for the info guys im probably going to budget about 3k eventually and 100 hp is easily enough for me to have fun in the outback. It will be a fair while until i have the money. I guess i should start out simple first what are the most common problems i should look out for with the 1300

[The Phil]

first, do yourself, and everyone else a favor, take the 1300 out. put in the closet. save it. they are becoming harder and harder to come by. they are worth some money now. upgrade to new motor, a 1776-1915 is all you really need.
_________________
"In case I don't see you, good afternoon , good evening, and goodnight."

My '66 Baja Build Page http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=456365

Free from the evils of facebook Dec 2012. No other Social Media.

[tbirdscott]

[The Phil]

When it comes to guys trying to restore pre 66 bugs, for street use, they want good condition 1300s. 1300 blocks are diminishing which increases the value per block. same as the guts for it.

so in other words, the less the mileage and the better taken care of the motor the more valuable it is, but only to those who have the car they are trying to restore.

This is what i've been learning down at my buggy shop where i spend a good amount of hours at.
_________________
"In case I don't see you, good afternoon , good evening, and goodnight."

My '66 Baja Build Page http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=456365

Free from the evils of facebook Dec 2012. No other Social Media.

[Cubed]

Excellent i guess ill be cleaning out some closet space tonight thanks for the advice

[Cubed]

how much would a 1915 be?

[The Phil]

take a look in the performance engine/transmission section.

Those guys know way better then i do, or some of us, i imagine.
_________________
"In case I don't see you, good afternoon , good evening, and goodnight."

My '66 Baja Build Page http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=456365

Free from the evils of facebook Dec 2012. No other Social Media.

[Cubed]

thanks again im checking out a 1776 for 3198$ looks good to me are twin carbs better than single off road?
ill do the suspension and that up first and in a year or so sell off the 1300 and upgrade thanks guys

[thext94]

Here's a thread arguing pros and cons of duals vs singles (just so we don't have to start another one here)

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5570839&highlight=#5570839

There's some good info in there

[Cubed]

Thanks i'm still getting used to navigating the site

[Chrisman]

Put some money aside and work on suspension.... Don't make the same mistake I did and spend your hard earned money all on the motor, cause how well you suspension is set up REALLY determines how fast you're gonna go.

[thext94]

[The Phil]

[Cubed]

hey guys whats the simplest and most effective work i can do to the suspension I've got the front springs and shocks and rear springs from a AU falcon which i got for free and im wondering how much the drum to disc brake conversion normally runs and how hard it is to do