What did you do to your Bug Today?

[Scat Adams]

[slagathor]

spent the past 2 weekends polishing all the oxidized paint and then waxing. i had removed all the trim, bumpers and roof rack to get it all cleaned. spent sunday putting it all back carefully not mess up the work i did.

i was so exhausted from the work, and it was 100 degrees out, that i didnt take it for a drive

[Silverchain337]

Got my butt kicked by the horn for a couple hours I'm new here. This is my first beetle. I quickly found the wiring is super simple for the horn but every terminal I touch just crumbles and everything is dirty and has corrosion blah blah. Just redid all the connections and it was good. I soldered the ground onto the steering shaft with some heat shrink over it. Figured that'll keep it from getting too dirty too quickly. We'll see!

[Gr0unded]

Been chasing a hot running engine for far too long, decided to take matter in my own hands. Each night this week, spent about 1 hour in the evening doing little by little to take the engine out. As Dexter says, "Tonight's the night". I need to be more careful when taking the engine out as I didn't make sure the bottom bolts were fully out of transmission before lowering!

Pictures of what was found

Before:

Anybody want newly rebuilt Kadrons?
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B r i a n
1976 VW Type 1 Beetle - Standard

Stop Dead Photo Links! Post your VW photos to the Samba Gallery!

[Rome]

Brian, what's the plan now after you reattach the firewall bottom seal? Go to a stock carb & manifold, or upgrade to dual-throat carbs?

[Gr0unded]

[Gr0unded]

Installed the missing hoover bit and also some air straighteners into the dog house shroud.

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B r i a n
1976 VW Type 1 Beetle - Standard

Stop Dead Photo Links! Post your VW photos to the Samba Gallery!

[BCE56]

New pedal assy for the Frankenbug. The old one had deteriorated to an alarming degree. A huge improvement!

Some progress on paint remediation: applied touchup paint, a few areas still need some work. It should be ready for polish & wax soon.
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=BCE56=

'86 Syncro Tintop EJ22, OBD II SmallCar adapter plate conversion
'96 Volvo 850 Turbo
'69 Frankenbug now driven daily.

[Gr0unded]

Replaced the engine mounts with earlier style. Got this from Topline.

This tool made changing out the carrier bolts an easy task.

I also replaced the front engine bay seal. The previous one was torn.
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B r i a n
1976 VW Type 1 Beetle - Standard

Stop Dead Photo Links! Post your VW photos to the Samba Gallery!

[chaselikethebank]

Cleaned up the front with a wire wheel, soap and water, de-greaser, metal prep and then POR 15. I'll hit it with top coat on my next day off.

[BCE56]

Finished touchup painting. Not perfect but better than it was...
Polishing and waxing today.
Cleaned interior and windows, inside and out.
Detailed tires and wheels.
Stopped for lunch.
Reinstalled molding, door handles, decklid latches, emblem and script.
Ran out of daylight.

Tomorrow: Wipers, bumpers and running boards.

LATER
Results are in:
Touchup paint 7/10
Polish & wax 9/10
Reassembly and trim etc 10/10
Curb appeal 9.5/10 (Was 6.5/10)
Car cover 9/10*

I am satisfied. (Pics to follow.)
Regrouping now.

On to the next fiasco!

*IPC #10050 Inexpensive, good fit/quality. "All weather breathable material" has already provided excellent protection during two rainstorms.
Easily deployed but somewhat difficult to stow. I will have to ponder this.
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=BCE56=

'86 Syncro Tintop EJ22, OBD II SmallCar adapter plate conversion
'96 Volvo 850 Turbo
'69 Frankenbug now driven daily.

[Cusser]

I installed a Group 26R battery from WalMart today ($70 exchange) into my 1971 Convertible, to replace the "correct" Group 42 battery I'd actually purchased in October 2016. 9 years on a battery in Arizona may be close to the record. The 26R has more CCA than the Group 42 battery too.

I had to modify the little bent rear bracket a tad to hold down the rear of this battery; however decades ago the stud on the pan had broken off so I drilled a hole close to that and inserted a hex head bolt from underneath to serve as a replacement stud, so maybe why I needed to bend that bracket slightly and elongate the hole a little today.

Yes, I will cover the positive battery connection to insulate that from the rear seat, but I haven't had rear passengers in years.
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1970 VW (owned since 1972) and 1971 VW Convertible (owned since 1976), second owner of each. The '71 now has the 1835 engine, swapped from the '70. Second owner of each. 1988 Mazda B2200 truck, 1998 Frontier, 2014 Yukon, 2004 Frontier King Cab. All manual transmission except for the Yukon. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335294 http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_page.php?pic_id=335297

[Glenn]

My car has been in storage for a few years, "ran when parked", I just have other things going on in my life.

I had it tucked away in the corner of my garage, well, I needed to move it since i'm having some work done, so I moved it into the middle of the garage. I decided to change the oil, even though it only had 48 miles on it but it is a few years old. The car was covered but there was some accumulated dirt around the bottom and even on the roof. I gave the car a "sponge bath", my driveway is steep so not able to wash it. And today I gave it a fresh coat of wax.

Still looks good.

Maybe Spring 2026 is the year I put some fresh gas in and drive it out of the garage.
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Glenn
74 Beetle Specs | 74 Beetle Restoration | 2180cc Engine
"You may not get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get"

Member #1009

#BlueSquare

עַם יִשְׂרָאֵל חַי

[Cusser]

[Glenn]

[Cusser]

[69CalLookBeetle]

I just picked up my 69 from getting nearly every mechanical part repaired or replaced. It basically drives like a brand new car.

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1962 Beetle Sedan - Back on the road after 17 years
1969 Beetle Sedan - Soon to be back on the road... hopefully

[Danpa]

Might not seem to be a big deal to most but, first wash by me EVER!

When I bought it 18 years ago, I drove it about a mile, had a buddy flat tow it home and immediately started to take it apart. Since July, I've put about 1500 miles on it.

Dan

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67 Beetle (gone)
68 Bay Window Double Cab (gone) sob, sob!
64 Beetle (gone)
77 Scirocco (gone)
73 Squareback (scrapped)
70 Beetle, Finally back on the road after 18 years!

[Gr0unded]

Installed Awesome Powdercoat metal cylinder deflectors.

I need to clean up picture taking skills, see my notes for adjusting valves in the background.

A little tricky to install with pushrod tubes in the way, but made it happen with care.
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B r i a n
1976 VW Type 1 Beetle - Standard

Stop Dead Photo Links! Post your VW photos to the Samba Gallery!

[Amsoiltek]

Tonight I swapped out the 009 dizzy for the correct one, a 205AN DVDA, and with my new battery-powered timing light, I was able to set the timing, check dwell (50°), and set idle speed. I also fixed a booboo on my radio install. I had the battery and key on wires backwards. Tomorrow night, I need to aim the headlights.