My '57 Oval Project. Where do I start?

[Harrison]

20 years ago I would have left this one lying but it's not 20 years ago anymore.

This one is so rough that I'm not sure where to start. The drivers side heater channel is gone. Totally. Missing. The passenger side is present but totally rusted out. So are the wheelwells. I'm thinking I'll start by mounting the doors, setting the door gaps, bracing it at that point and then replacing the heater channels. Problem is though, there's not much solid metal to weld them to. I figured from there I could move on to the wheelwells. Or should I do the wheelwells first?

I've never done heater channels before and have never had a bug this rough. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Jim

[Derosse]

Hi harrison!

This one is rough! looking at the damage i would suggest to get it to the sandblaster first! then make a list of damage and search according to your list for donor panels, good repro panels and so on.
Our oval was in better shape then this one and believe me it's going to be a tough one to get this oval in this shape back on the road.

all the best!

[sunroof]

I hate to say it but I think you should walk away from this one. There are better cars for sale that will cost you far less than it would cost to put this one back together. The only reason to do a car like this IMHO is because the car is somehow special to you.

Don

BTW Here is a car I'm restoring because the car is special to me.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=407138
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Better and better mistakes!

[Last Triumph]

That's got race car written all over it.

[Bret2094]

do you have the matching chassis at least? if not, it's gonna cost a ton just to get set up to do the work, plus the value of the car will be less. I'm a lost cause advocate, but without more to work with, id cut that body up to fund the rest of another project (that front clip, dash, and roof clip could be used to get you a good 1k to start a project with a lil $) Don has a case of the Dedicated and sentimental aspect in his projects, and my 59 is a subject of personal insanity and a quest to learn. sourcing the parts aint easy, cheap , or time friendly, but it can be done, so just think about it before jumping in. also if it doesnt have a title , it complicates things a bit. Not sayin it can't be done, but it might not be in your best interest with a set deadline or monetary cap on budget

Bret
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1959 baja beetle ragtop( going back to Full body)
1959 beetle
1960 Beetle frame Custom buggy
1962 Karmann Ghia
1967 beetle( august 66, first car)
1967 beetle (parts car)

1977 Westfalia Camper

1972 Plymouth Duster

Just another 22 year old jackass who caught the bug, and lives by the motto " NO fatchicks allowed" , I've got too many cars as is (buses N/A)

[sconord]

Grab it if free. That car can be a donor if needed or find parts slow as a project. Just and idea
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[Harrison]

Thanks for the input guys. If it's so rough that I don't even know where to start, it's pretty far gone. I knew that going in. I still had to think about it for a week.

On the flip side, a friend has a FAR better '62 that's complete and cheap enough. So now I'm pondering a full roof swap from the Oval. I want to keep the Oval rear window, dash and droopy Oval windshield. Might go as far as swapping the Oval aprons and doors too.

If I did this, would I be better off to swap the roof in one piece or do the dash/windshield in one operation then do the rear window section seperately? Anyone ever done this? If so, where did you cut it?

Thanks, Jim

[sconord]

If your definitely NOT going to take it, post it for sale here. Don't let it rot when it can be reused. Someone out there will have the desire to fix it
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[Harrison]

Oh I bought it.

Smart move or not, it's mine.

Jim

[auzzie dubber]

good luck when its finished stand back and say i did that not many can say that cheers

[splitjunkie]

[Harrison]

Chris,

I've kinda been thinking along those lines too. I hate to cut up a good '62 and, if I did, my "Oval" would really be a '62.... and my '62 would then be a pieced together mismatched bunch of piece. Maybe I just need to store the Oval and focus on the '62 for now. It's complete with two engines. Wouldn't be a hard project to get on the road.

If I had a good pan for the Oval I could build it from that starting point. Maybe I'll just keep my eyes out for a good pan and tackle the Oval while enjoying the '62.

Thanks, Jim

[splitjunkie]

It is really hard to say from those pictures just how bad that body is.

What I see is aside from the missing parts:

Heater channel completely missing on driver side. You need to brace the car before moving the body or bad things will happen.

Heater channel on passenger side probably rotten.

Probably most of the lower front firewall is rotted away.

lower parts of front quarter rotted away.

The front apron looks like it is either made mostly of bondo or somone fabricated a really bad repair piece for most of it.

Lots of surface rust in trunk area.

Rust on drivers side defrost vent.

Ripped section where beam would be.

Rear apron pretty well trashed but might be salvageable with a lot of work.

Damage to right rear quarter panel.

These are all areas where there are currently really high quality replacement panels available.

They are not cheap but they will fit correctly and are as good or better than the original parts. I would argue that the more expensive parts will fit better and require less labor to install so they are really a bargain in the long run.

The labor to correctly install these parts will be expensive. If you know how to do it yourself, correctly, and aren't in a hurry and can stick with it and assuming the rest of the body is sound, it could be brought back.

Having said that, If you want to bring it back to factory correct condition, then this is not the car for you. As others have said, all of the parts needed will eat you alive.

Now if you want to build a daily driver or beater and correct original parts aren't a concern then it is certainly doable. Still won't be cheap though. It really gets down to how much of the work you can do yourself and how patient you are.
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Chris

You know, a lot of these scratches will buff right out... Jerry Seinfeld

[vwsonmybrain]

[Westy Steve]

My guess is that those who are saying to scrap the car live on the west coast and those saying to save it live on the east coast.

Here's what I'd do. I'd start looking for an early square window, like a '58 to '61 that has a rough body so it is cheap but can run and drive. Then I'd weld a heater channel to that thing and send it to be blasted, and immediately start the metal work and prepping for paint. Meanwhile, have some fun driving your '58 or '59 and making it reliable...good brakes, nice running engine, etc. At some point, when the time is right, transplant bodies.

The beauty in that plan is you'll never be without a Beetle you can drive. Maybe down the road you can find a '57 frame for it, but right now you need so many other things like windows, speedo, engine, etc., that it would probably make sense to buy a whole car somewhere to jump start your project.

Edit: Here's an example. http://nashville.craigslist.org/cto/4944315345.html Doesn't have a 36HP engine, but once you sell off those popouts (I don't think they'll fit your oval), you'd probably only be in this car by $500 if you can haggle fairly well.

Steve
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Have nice 914, want nice Bug

[Major Woody]

I would cut that up and sell the pieces. It's not rare. It's been punched in the front in the back and is rusted to pieces. Reconstructing just the body shell would cost far more than the shell is worth, even if your time is worth nearly nothing. It's got no fenders and all the other parts which you'll have to track down and pay dearly for if you can even find them.

If that was a split, it would be worth saving. Otherwise no.

[Harrison]

I typically mess with early Ford hot rods - where anything relatively decent (that may or may not be running) is going to start at 15-20k. I'm tired of money pits that take years to fund and build.

I'm keeping this simple and affordable. I'm going to build the '62 and not worry with the '57. Thanks for all the advice!

Jim

[Abscate]

I believe that left rear fender is showing a later tailight, so the shell has already had a lot of stuff done. I think your strategy of enjoying a 62 while you gather oarts is perfect.
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.ssS!

[Harrison]

Well, I decided to part this one out. Posted it in the classifieds. Hopefully it will go on to help save others.

I'll be back soon with my new, & much more solid/complete, '62 project.

I appreciate all the input and advice.

Jim

[sconord]

Its better than letting it rot, at least it can be a donor for others.
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