Project '66, Father and Sons

[Stock66]

I figured I would start a thread and try to stick to it to post our progress on a 1966 beetle that we purchased a little while back. I always worked on cars as a kid with my dad when growing up and my dad would always tell me that one day we would build a car or hot rod together. Well that day never came and I always thought it would have been pretty awesome to do that. So for the past few years I decided that I would definitely do one with my boys, although they won't be driving for a few years yet they have a lot to learn about mechanical concepts and how vehicles work. So I've already learned it's not always easy to get them to help out. I'm sure it will kick in soon or not.
I always loved the way classic VW's looked and thought it be a great first car for us to do together. So after looking for a few years I think we finally found the right one. It's a 1966 standard beetle that was originally Pearl White that has lived in Arizona for what I can gather all of its life. The engine was swapped at some point with a 1600 dp and has already been converted to 12v. When we looked at the car it seemed pretty solid from what I could tell. I was still nervous since I hadn't worked on a beetle before and really didn't want to get into one that needed a lot of welding and patching. But the one we found had been hit in the front pretty recently and needed a front clip replacement which by the way was included with the car along with plenty of other new and used extra parts. After a bit a haggling and research I bought the car. This is what it looked like.

[drscope]

Looks like you have a GREAT start! Good luck and keep us posted!
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Mother Nature is a Mean Evil Bitch!

[Stock66]

Figured I'd post some more pics as we got the car. I forgot to mention is was running and driving when I purchased it, although I'm not sure it was very safe not knowing the condition of the brakes and suspension was like a rock.

Probably the cleanest part of the car!

[Stock66]

So after much back and forth and trying to decide where to start with the car we just starting pulling things off and cleaning up what we could.

Since I didn't feel comfortable with my welding skills, I found a local shop to do the front clip repair. So that's what we started with. The car came with a new aftermarket Brazilian clip that I wasn't sure I wanted to use but after much debate we decided to use it.

Started gutting the front end so that the fabricator could focus on his job.

Hooking up this sketchy bar for the first time, Also came with the car

The end result

I don't like the fact that the access holes aren't like factory

[sportin-wood]

Looks like a cool project! The boys will enjoy it as long as they don't lose interest and get to do some of the work themselves. Make sure to take lots of pictures - before & afters are always cool to look at once the project is done.
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Paused 66 project bug
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"Relax, all right? My old man is a television repairman. He's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it." --- Jeff Spicoli

[Stock66]

So once we got the front clip sorted out we figured we'd work on brakes and suspension. So we ordered some stuff from CIP and started with upgrading to a new dual circuit MC since we found the one in the car had a broken mounting tab.

Pretty Crusty

So I decided to try EvapoRust and soak all of the hardware and bolts etc.
This is how they came out after soaking overnight after these results I decided to lay the backing plates in a 5 gallon bucket and soaked those as well.

Front brakes all done and all OG hardware except for the shoes

New brake lines and Hoses and Dual Circuit MC

I think I'm pretty happy with the results, lots of patience.

[Stock66]

So while doing the brakes we also decided to take care of the front suspension as well. the Ball Joints were shot and apparently replaced at some point in time and not done right as we soon found out upon removal.

Rented the press from O'Reilly's worked very well. was nervous something was going to fly out and take off my leg. You do need the Ford Taurus adapter for the lower BJ.

Came with the car

Trashed, no wonder the suspension was banging and didn't move much.

So we also ended up going with some 2.5" drop spindles from Pete @ AirKewld while we were at it. I think it was a great deal considering his package includes the inner bearings and new outer tie rod ends. We will definitely be dealing with them more in the future, if we decide to do a beam or airbag suspension. They really know their stuff.

[Stock66]

So while the tank was out we cleaned it up and got some POR-15 on it. the PO apparently replaced the OG one probably when the front was hit with this one. The inside was pretty clean and not rusted so just needed cleane dup on the outside and put a new fuel outlet on.

[Stock66]

Next came the Jack Resto.
We are still in need of a jack handle if anyone happens to have an extra one lying around...

Wire brushed the heck out of it

I do believe it's the little details that count.
What do you guys think so far?

[Stock66]

So once again we've come to a critical point and need to really decided what we are going to do about the paint. After much back and forth and trying to decide what color we wanted to get the car painted, my oldest son really likes the Blue colors, as do I, but I thought in this case we should try to keep the car as original as possible since it was in such good shape. The car had been re-sprayed once on the outside but the door jambs and dash hadn't been touched from what I could tell. I decided to make an executive decision as they say and take the 66 back to its original Pearl White even though the boys weren't so sure. I keep assuring them it will look awesome ( I hope I'm right).

So with that being said, even though I hadn't planned on it, we turned this project into a full body off restoration!

Interior gutted

Not too bad considering this was the worst off it all, I'll take it!

So after what seemed like a hundred bolts ( only snapped two off, one fender bolt and one rear bumper bolt) and with the help of a good friend the two of us were able to lift the body from the pan no problem.

One small problem, I miss calculated the size of the body and my trailer, due to the body flaring out, oh well we made it work. We will have to do something better to get it back home.

[inzel]

You are doing an excellent job. I bet you and your boys are going to be extremely happy when you are done. Keep the pics coming!

I also have a 66 which is about 95% complete but its always a work in progress. Especially once it becomes a daily driver haha.

I am thinking about putting on a narrowed beam because I get some rubbing on turns which annoys me.
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--inzel--

66 Bug
69 Fasty
Old school Sandrail

[Stock66]

Thanks Inzel!
I was wondering about rubbing as well and started talking to the guys at AirKewld since they are practically in my backyard. Learned a lot about the narrowed Beams, etc, lowering stuff and ended up doing the spindles for now.

So how do you like Spokane? I'm considering a move and am looking at the NorthWest. I see your an IT guy like myself.

[Stock66]

Well some of the chassis work actually started before we decide we were going to take the body off. Boy if I knew we were going to take the body off I would have waited....so much easier.

I didn't plan on having it media blasted because it really wasn't in the budget and I didn't think the rust / corrosion was all that bad.

PO cut this at some time, not sure why. clutch tube?

Treated with a rust inhibitor / encapsulator

POR-15 Gloss

Inside the tunnel doesn't look all that bad. Not sure if I should treat with some spray wax?

No Heater boxes hooked up currently so I figured we'd cap the channels off to keep them free of stuff.

Found out Oven cleaner works great on the old carpet glue

[bigdog1962]

Looks great! I hope my front end comes out as good as yours looks. I found someone who would said he would replace my front clip but he would have to work it in. Two months later, he's got the old one cut off and says he hopes to have the new one on this week. I'm not holding my breath though. Keep up the good work!

[Stock66]

Thanks bigdog.

It's not perfect but did turn out good. I had the opposite happen to me, I told the guy( Day X Day autobody in Gilbert, AZ) to take his time and 4 days and $200 later he said come get it.

He is also doing the paint and rest of the body work for us.

They do great work and very reasonable

[jzjames]

Pictures look great. Your replaced front clip doesn't look bad, maybe you could doctor-it-up to make it look more original.

'66 is a great year, here's my old one. I drove it coast-to-coast 3 times.

[eyetzr]

car looks great. Trying to figure out PO's work has always been a brain scratcher. I have cut access doors for clutch cable opposite the pedals for ease of repairs & access doors for starter repairs. Keep up the good work.
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I think he meant "rare", as in "not well-done"

[Stock66]

Now with the body off we have much more access to work on things and clean up the grimy tranny a little easier.

I also made some access hole covers to hide the ugly holes the po cut in the tunnel

I have to admit seeing the bug this way was really cool!

When disconnecting all of the wires, I felt better leaving everything hooked up to the engine ( not sure why, just made sense) and just pulled the harness through to the rear of the car.

We are going to get a Wiring Works harness to replace the old stuff, you can probably see the hard start relay in the picture, not sure if we need to keep this after we re-wire.

[Stock66]

Now this thread is pretty much almost caught up to where we are currently at. We ended up removing the engine from the tranny to get better access to clean the chassis and transmission up and inspect the clutch, etc.

Cleaning the tranny is a real pita. but we are getting it there.

And I fixed / welded one of the heater cable tubes that was flopping around due to the po replacing the battery tray. I think I def. need to take some welding classes. Where's the nearest lesson at..Sign me up! lol

[Stock66]

Engine 1600dp

anyone see anything I should really attend to?

I think I'm leaving it as is, the clutch and throw out bearing were recently replaced.