What did you do to your Beetle this week?

[a.marscapone]

Replaced the rear body mount bushings. No more KLUNK, yay!

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73 Westy
67 Zenith Blue Beetle Sedan
73 Beetle Sedan
67 Lotus White Beetle Sedan - current

[TonyB]

Last week I got the dual brake master cylinder in and bled, the engine back in, complete with exhaust, however when I went to install my rear bumper/cage it became obvious I could have the mufflers of my choice OR the bumper ... I was telling a friend about it and planning to make the bumper longer ... his response was to raise the exhaust above the bumper

This isn't the final solution, but it works for now. I was able to take it on its first trip around the block (under its own power) since 2013 ... Still have to get the lights working before I can get a highway title.

[TonyB]

It's now starting, running & stopping!

I started to try to untangle the creative wiring by someone previous to the guy I bought my 62 ragtop Baja ... There are 5 relays and 2 toggle switches I've yet to figure out what they're for, the toggles don't do anything. Before I started I had both headlights & front amber lights, wiring to the rear lights didn't work/had no power ... I've now got tail, brake and reverse lights but no turn signals. I also lost one headlight

It's so frustrating that I'd buy a complete harness but every one I've seen says it's not a direct replacement, so I'm not going that route.

[deaaaanno.vw1966]

has been covered for a while, washed and waxed it!

[scottyrocks]

This weekend was more like what I did FOR the car.

I built a couple of 2x4 towers so as to get the bottom of the rear apron 30" off the ground in preparation for engine removal.

The first few layers are 15" square, eventually tapering down to 9" square so it's a nice fit at the torsion tubes. Solid as a rock.

The front didn't require such drastic measures. Jack stands on top of enough 1 ft squares of 3/4 pine and ply did the trick.
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“If you care for a thing long enough, it takes on a life of its own, doesn't it? Mending old things, preserving them, looking after them – on some level there's no rational grounds for it.”
– D. Tartt, 'The Goldfinch'

[photobrush]

I traded a '55 Cadillac for it and brought it home!

And then it squatted in its new home, marked its territory, and sniffed my trucks butt to familiarize itself with the pack.

[TonyB]

Sweet!
What year?
And I don't think it should be sitting that low ... Details?

[4bolts]

Finally got my 1500 back together. Leaking oil badly from the oil cooler and push rod tubes. Had some end play, so I pulled it a couple days after I bought the Beetle 2 months ago.
Before picture was the moldy, lichen covered engine. The Beetle was in a wet dirty shed wrapped in a tarp.
After is from yesterday when I finished it.

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1966 Beetle - Euro
1965 Single Cab

[photobrush]

[TryMy66VDub]

I gave mine a quick wash today. I also spent a good amount of time scrapping the old built up grease n stuff from the under carriage. Can’t wait to get this thing running great and get it finished!!

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Some people like cucumbers better pickled. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, please get help. Mesothelioma is the #1 cause for death in men and women.

[TonyB]

For the last several nights I've been trying to figure out the creative wiring behind the dash (I kinda wish I'd taken a picture of it!) ... for whatever reason there were 4 relays behind the dash and a couple toggle switches, drilled through the face of the ashtray ... I had assumed they were for auxiliary lighting as my '62 Ragtop is also a Baja bug.

I finally gave up trying to figure it out and pulled the toggles and relays out along with all the ancillary wiring that didn't connect to the wiring harness. It turns out one relay was for the horn, then one for the right turn signal and one for the left ... these were controlled by the toggles on the dash, lastly I think the forth one was for the reverse light ... which was also a very bright but small halogen lamp mounted on the rear bumper.

I kept the relays as I may use them for auxiliary lighting.

There was also a weird rear lighting setup in the rear bumper, I bought a set of original fender mounted tail lamps, I found the wires for them as he had ran his own wiring and jumped the tail, tag and brake lights from one side (turn's were controlled by the toggles which he had also ran new wires for.

Anyway, I hope to have this all straightened out in the next couple nights and finally take it down to have the non-highway title made highway so I can make it my daily driver!

[Fozzy]

Cleaned out the mounting holes for the bumper brackets. I plan on installing the old beat up bumpers as I'm tired of seeing it with out any bumpers.

Today I installed a new (to me) electronic distributor.. Holy Smokes! What a difference! I need to figure out how to time this thing. I don't want to fry it as right now its in "borrowed" status. I'm not sure static timing works on them?!?!
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65 Sedan..
Adopted 07/15/17
this is the bug I've been looking for..

71 Tin Top Westy
Adopted Dec or so 2017

[TonyB]

[58euro]

Got some spare rims I had sitting in my bug paint stripped back to the original paint. A 8/57 rim and a 8/64 rim. Still need to give the 8/57 rim a clr bath to remove the rust stains.

[Fozzy]

[TonyB]

When I tried to set mine to spec it wouldn't hardly run and then it ran on after shutting it off, and then it wouldn't start so I set it back where I had it and made note in my manual ... I'll likely be rebuilding it next winter anyway as its somewhat a mystery engine; I have no idea how many miles on it ... odometer in the bug it came out of showed 9k miles on it ... I don't know how many times it rolled over, I believe it to be the original engine and that it had been rebuilt at least once ... Due to the incorrect position of the generator and missing bolts from the tin.

If I won the Publishers Clearing House, it would solve a few problems!

[Fozzy]

This is one of the main issues of owning cars that have been on the planet and changed hands so many times. I know in the 80's it was all about doing some odd and somethings iffy things to keep them running and getting around. I have had to work on VW's on nights and weekends to get to work on Monday.. now I do not HAVE to work on things, but finding what IS on these cars instead of what was supposed to be there is the biggest challenge.
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65 Sedan..
Adopted 07/15/17
this is the bug I've been looking for..

71 Tin Top Westy
Adopted Dec or so 2017

[wcfvw69]

[TonyB]

[rstrobel]

I pulled my engine, disassembled the long block, took the heads to a machine shop, honed the cylinders, and replaced the rings. Time to repaint everything and start the assembly!