TheSamba.com :: View topic - Swedish '59 bug from belgium

Fri Sep 23, 2022 1:45 am

Hi from Belgium

Since I have already learned a lot on this forum I would like to take a moment to share my beetle with you.
It is a 1959 beetle that was imported from sweden in 2015.
I did already have a 1960 beetle 7 years ago.
What have i learned from my 1960 beetle? That I will not mount an extremely narrowed front axle.

Now my 1959 patina beauty! 8)
From very far away this is a beautiful car but when you look closer you see the imperfections.
The paint is poorly done and has many drips....
The car already has some serious rust spots that I am going to address.
Mechanically a lot has been renewed though

The gearbox and brakes received a complete overhaul

The engine was replaced by one from 1969 with 1500cc
A lot was replaced
Engine: sheet metal partly renewed / repainted, gaskets inlet and exhaust renewed, seals oil cooler replaced, new v-belt, new spark plug wires, new spark plugs, new crankshaft pulley, new rotor + distributor cap, new contact points and condenser, new fuel hoses, new ignition coil, new fuel pump + fuel pump support, new valve covers + gaskets, new clutch/pressure group/pressure bearing, new crankshaft seal, new throttle cable, valves adjusted, carburetor and ignition tuned by Leo de Ryck

- Electrics: new 6V battery, rear lights wiring harness renewed, completely new battery cables + ground strip gearbox
- Suspension: four new shock absorbers, front axle stop rubbers renewed
- New window rubbers mounted on fixed side windows, windshield and rear window; new windshield (star was further cracked during disassembly), NOS snowflake lenses mounted in taillights, license plate light seal replaced, new trim clips and caps

Interior:
- All original interior, roof liner in very good condition (once replaced), driver's seat cracked (new fabric included for repair, this can still be done by agreement at time of sale)
- Rare triple MotoMeter instrument in dash
- Original Ra-Bambus rack
- Double sun visor
- Swedish front lap belts

Otherwise, there is some work on the body but this is a largely original 63-year-old car.
That there are some spots after all these years seems normal to me. technically OK I thought more important + some patina? I LOVE IT
I am fortunate to be able to do a lot myself at night school, we have all the tools and materials there.
The door is the first job I will do there.
At a further stage the body will come off.

[img]https://i.ibb.co/YD8Y4bs/
303611830-996110087848890-712723182093285194-n.jpg[/img]

This weekend I am going to install a battery key from Hella.
Lowered spindles are also ready to install.
At that time the link pins are also going to be renewed.
I did give the spindles a coat of paint to prolong their life, though

I am also working on the new wheels 8) 8) 8)

Fri Sep 23, 2022 7:16 am

Very beautiful car 😀

Fri Sep 23, 2022 7:35 am

Nice bug

Sat Sep 24, 2022 11:37 am

Quickly fitted a battery key today.
It is a hella one.
The ground cable is self made from 25mm² and the battery cable is a 35mm²

For now it is just in the car but the bumper plate under the rear seat is currently made out of some kind of cardboard.
This I am going to make in aluminum or stainless steel and then build the key in it

Sun Sep 25, 2022 7:30 am

Very nice Beetle. Too bad the taillamps are mounted too high. Just last week a man at work brought his black mostly original '60 Beetle to the office. It also has a 1500 engine, though he converted his car to 12 volts. Has same wheels as yours- painted factory stock two-tone- though the tires have whitewalls.

Sun Sep 25, 2022 11:08 am

Rome wrote: Very nice Beetle. Too bad the taillamps are mounted too high. Just last week a man at work brought his black mostly original '60 Beetle to the office. It also has a 1500 engine, though he converted his car to 12 volts. Has same wheels as yours- painted factory stock two-tone- though the tires have whitewalls.

i have some fuch wheels but waiting for my tires 8)

Thu Sep 29, 2022 10:05 am

Photo with my other toy

Finally got my new wheels
Empi fuch rims in 4.5 and 5.5 wide
Rear 195/65 front 155/60 falken brand

They are still dirty from the tire grease but I will polish that up.
I didn't have any lead left to balance them but I'll do it on Tuesday.

I also want to paint the center caps to break up the whole thing a bit

Wed Oct 05, 2022 10:47 am

extra pictures

Sun Oct 09, 2022 7:22 am

Let's see pictures with the wheels mounted :-) how will you make the change to 5x130?

Bests

Antoine

Mon Oct 10, 2022 11:40 am

TRS63 wrote: Let's see pictures with the wheels mounted :-) how will you make the change to 5x130?

Bests

Antoine

Hi

i dont need to change :wink: mine are 5x205 8)
First i need to mount my dropped spindels before i put the wheels on Antoine

Fri Oct 14, 2022 11:53 am

time for a little update 8)

opted for swan neck mirrors after all.
maybe not the best to see anything but i just like them!
Some pictures how to mount them

Sun Oct 16, 2022 12:25 pm

Here I am again

Keep posting , maybe I can help someone through the pictures. :lol:
Already started disassembling the original spindles today.
That goes very smoothly and easily I must say

The spindles are now off.
At work I will have to use a press to get the bushings out of the spindle holder.

So that will be for the next few days.
Then also paint some parts (brake plate, steering rods...).

Mon Oct 17, 2022 6:52 am

Nice car! Are you going to use wheel studs for the Empi Fuchs? Also, I understand that when using the Porsche center caps, some have encountered clearance issues with those wheels.

Mon Oct 17, 2022 8:48 am

Very honest and clean car brother. Keep up the good work.

Tue Oct 18, 2022 4:34 am

sportin-wood wrote: Nice car! Are you going to use wheel studs for the Empi Fuchs? Also, I understand that when using the Porsche center caps, some have encountered clearance issues with those wheels.

True, the centercaps come against the wheel bearing protective cover at the front.
You can't remove these because your speed cable is in there.
However, you can put a spacer so your wheel will be more forward.
That way your center cap will fit.... There are also companies that make wider caps.
I am not going to put centercaps on the front for now and I am going to polish the caps of my bearings. In the future I can look for spacers but then you would already have to put a narrowed axle or your wheels will come out too far

Tue Oct 18, 2022 4:36 am

hobthebob wrote: Very honest and clean car brother. Keep up the good work.

thanks for the fine comment
Currently working on replacing the king and linkpins.
I am doing everything at leisure because the winter season is about to start in belgium.
That way I can also renew the wheel bearings and paint some things on the steering gear

Tue Oct 18, 2022 7:23 am

Wily wrote: sportin-wood wrote: Nice car! Are you going to use wheel studs for the Empi Fuchs? Also, I understand that when using the Porsche center caps, some have encountered clearance issues with those wheels.

True, the centercaps come against the wheel bearing protective cover at the front.
You can't remove these because your speed cable is in there.
However, you can put a spacer so your wheel will be more forward.
That way your center cap will fit.... There are also companies that make wider caps.
I am not going to put centercaps on the front for now and I am going to polish the caps of my bearings. In the future I can look for spacers but then you would already have to put a narrowed axle or your wheels will come out too far

I purchased these center caps recently for mine. They don't look as nice as the Porsche caps you have, but they will clear the speedometer cable, and I wanted to avoid the wheel spacers if possible.

Tue Oct 18, 2022 8:38 am

Quote:

I purchased these center caps recently for mine. They don't look as nice as the Porsche caps you have, but they will clear the speedometer cable, and I wanted to avoid the wheel spacers if possible.

You can find those with porsche logo below
Maybe something for you? will match the rear ones

https://www.johnbrownwheels.com/product/foosh-rais...POm_L3saK4

Tue Oct 18, 2022 2:42 pm

Removed the linkpin bushings today.
I also removed the kingpin bushings because they were in poor condition.
The new kingpin bushings are in the caliper and next week I can visit someone to use a vw 224 tool. You need this one to ream the kingpin bushings a bit. Then the lowered spindles will come on and the wheels will get new bearings.

We are trying to do everything ourselves hence everything is taking a little longer

Wed Oct 19, 2022 11:38 am

When I feel like it I always do something small to the car
Today refreshed some parts with rustoleum paint.
This protects against rust and suddenly looks much fresher