RHD 67 Euro restoration - under trunk

[67EuroWPB]

Hey Samba family

We just acquired a RHD 1967 VW Beetle. We are in need of pictures of the wiring for the dash, hood latch/cable, suspension under the tank.

We have searched all kinds of ways throughout the site and google and just cant find all what we need. We are putting it all back together.

We appreciate all your help. Thank you.

[meranda]

Australian RHD 1967 cars would be no good to you.You will need a friendly British owner.
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Currently filling the garage
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Alfa Guilia sedan

[finster]

not sure what the problem is to be honest. the bonnet release is on the same, lhd, side so is no different. the ignition, lights and wipers are also in the same place. although the speedo and fuel gauge are on the other side the wiring will go to the same connections. looking in my haynes manual for a rhd wiring diagram and they're all lhd ones.
also not sure what you mean by suspension under the tank. again most of this is the same as lhd it's just that the steering box is in a different place and the tie rods will be swapped over.
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"we're here on Earth to fart around" kurt vonnegut

nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect...

[viiking]

[ashman40]

I will comment based on having to maintain my RHD '75 STD Beetle in Japan with US spec parts and a US manual.

- It was clear afte a while that the foundation of the Beetle was the LHD model and the RHD was modified just minimally so you could drive from the right seat.

- The steering column is exactly the same as the LHD. This means the turn signal lever and ignition switch are on the "wrong" side when compared with other dedicated RHD cars.

- The pedal cluster is basically an extension so the pedals on the right actuate the accelerator and cables in their LHD positions in the tunnel.

- The brake MC is reversed and mounted on the right side of the tunnel. While it is not too difficult to find aftermarket RHD MCs they all seem to come with just a single brake switch which means you cannot get the brake warning light to work and you don't have the redundany brake switches even though you will have dual hydraulic brake circuits (front and rear).

- The dash initially looks like a mirror of the LHD but because of leg positioning, the speedometer is offset towards the center.



This means the fuel gauge (smaller) grill will appear smaller than the LHD one and the speaker grill will appear larger. This also means the chrome trim for the dash panels will be different too. Longer/shorter for their respective panels. The fuel gauge chome trim is not just the LHD trim rotated 180deg. It is a different trim. Compare it with a LHD pic and you will see the short side of the trim is just a nub compared to the LHD one.
The speedometer itself is the same as a LHD Beetle, but requires a longer cable so it can reach from the left front wheel hub to the speedometer on the right side of the dash.

- The leg position is a problem because in the left seat the driver's right leg can run parallel with the center tunnel so the accelerator pedal is right there next to the tunnel. But at the right seat, the driver's right leg cannot run parallel with the heater channel all the way to the pedal... the heater channel bends inward before reaching the "Napolean hat". The accelerator pedal is set closer to the center even though it sets next to the inner bend of the heater channel.



In the above pic you can see the accelerator pedal is almost centered to the seat position. This means the driver must pivot slightly left even though the accelerator pedal is as far right as it can be. In fact the pedal overlaps the front end of the heaater channel. The seating is a bit odd and may initially feel cramped but you get used to it.
The pedal cluster is mounted to a steel plate that appeared to be welded to the floorpan. The floorpan itself appeared to be the standard right side floorpan from a LHD car but modified as needed.
The speedometer and steering wheel are moved left (towards the center) to accomodate this slightly angled seating position. This is why the RHD dash panels are different sized than just mirrors of LHD ones.

- For the steering shaft and steering box, this means the mounting point on the front beam will not be a mirror of the LHD. The RHD steering box itself is the same unit as the LHD one. The steeing box is not symetrical. The input shaft is not centered, it is offset to the left of the box. Here is a pic:



When mounted on the left of the tunnel this places the pivot point for the steering arm closer to the center of the car than the steering shaft. But when mounted on the right side of the tunnel the same box will place the steering arm further away from the center. There is some compensation since the steering wheel and driver position moves the bottom of the steering shaft closer to the center tunnel. The geometry is not exactly the same. Some of this is fixed by the RHD steering arm which is different from the LHD one. But the steering box will need to be mounted differently based on the steering column position. The tie rod length adjustments can make up for the rest of the differences. My best advice would be to loosely mount the steering box and adjust its position so the steering shaft is centered in the steering column. There is a welded pad which aids with mounting the steering box. This will not be in the correct position if using a LHD beam. You can often do without this pad and just snug the steering box clamp down. Or you can tack some welds to simulate the pad and prevent the steering box from shifting around on the beam. The steering stops too will need some customization. I'm not sure you could cut off LHD steering stops and weld them on to the right side of the beam. I would think not.

- The tie rods themselves are the same just parts swapped 180deg around. Even the steering damper is the same. The way the damper mounts will need to be customized if you are using a LHD front beam.

- The wiring is also not the same. The rear to front main harness still runs up the left side along what is now the passenger seat, but now has to cross to the right side of the dash. This means the wires need to be longer. You need to look for a RHD wiring harness. Or, extend a LHD harness so the wires can reach the new position of the speedometer and fuse box. The wires/circuits are functionally the same it is only their length that is different. So you will probably not find a RHD wiring diagram unless someone made one. This applies to the horn circuit as well since it is still mounted on the left side. BTW, fuse #1 is still closest to the left door.

- Everything behind the A-pilar is the same as a LHD Beetle. Even the dome light is still on the left side of the car. THAT was annoying.

- As mentioned, the early style hood release is below the glove box on the left. My '75 Beetle had the early style gas filler door that didn't lock. This avoided the need for a longer release cable. The glove box door and box itself are mirror images of the LHD ones but use the same hardware. You can find fiberglass RHD glove boxes in the aftermarket.

- The shifter is the same as the LHD. Reverse is left and down. This means all the shifter hardware is the same.

- The wipers on my Beetle were LHD. This meant that they didn't provide the best view. They came a rest on the left in a horizontal position and swept right. At the full right position they left a large unswept area at the right end of the windshield. The wipers were clearly designed for LHD.

I can't think of anything else. Maybe someone else will chime in. Some of the pics above should help you.
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AshMan40
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'67 Beetle #1 {project car that never made it to the road }
'75 Beetle 1200LS (RHD Japan model) {junked due to frame rot}
'67 Beetle #2 {2019 project car - Wish me luck!}