what to do with a bug thats been sitting

[The Law]

forgive me if Im in the wrong place. this car was found literally by accident. a relative passed a short time ago. while trying to get their affairs in order we came across a title for a 1972 volkswagen beetle. figuring it was just an old title we dismissed it. some time passed and a neighbor mentioned that my relative also had a garage down the street. well to make this short the bug was inside. we are not car people and not exactly kids either. and no this is not exactly a diamond in the rough. more like a rough diamond. Intrigued, we opened the door and the keys were in it. SO now what. my elder brother wants terribly to start it. my knowledge of cars is putting a baseball card in the spokes. we did some searching and saw we should turn the pulley. we did and it turned. i wont let him turn the key. im afraid that the wires might be old and if we put a battery on it and turn the key we might have a melt down or fire. Any suggestions?

[wcfvw69]

Your best bet would be to take it somewhere to have it assessed. As you know, you should never just try start a car that been sitting for extended periods of time. Fuel tanks can be full of bad gas that's now varnish. Seals in engines, transmissions, fuel pumps, carbs will dry up. Fuel lines get brittle.

Someone who's familiar with bringing long dormant cars back to life should be the folks you have do this.
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[AZSCAWPION]

What do you think your ultimate goal is? Are you looking to get it running and keep it? Are you planning on selling it? Are you just curious to see if it runs? I think all make a difference as to how you approach it. That being said, does the neighbor know when it was last run? It might not have been in running condition even when the relative was alive, in which case you could be opening a huge can of worms (not to mention wasting your time and money)
If you find that it ran when it was parked and has been sitting since then, there are definite steps to take to get it running. At the very least would be to set up an auxiliary gas tank/can since the fuel in it is likely bad. It will get more involved the longer it has been sitting. If you're up for it, the steps are pretty straightforward but will require some basic automotive knowledge. I think the key is knowing whether or not it was running when parked and how long it's been sitting. And honestly, what you feel you are capable of.
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[AlmostHeavenWV_VW]

[Starbucket]

Google VW clubs in your area and ask them who to take it to or they might just come over and help you figure it out. Do not start it until all fluids are changed, rubber hoses are looked at, tank drained and carb cleaned out. What makes you think its sat a long time? remove the gas cap and take a sniff you will know fast if it's old gas.

[The Law]

The gas tank is empty. I don't know what the plans are for the car. I would assume sell but would have to be discussed. I did look up some places as mentioned. Nothing really close by. The neighbor said last time he saw the car out was 2015. Out driving that is. I'm certain we could get someone to look at the things you all have mentioned. My concern is wires that are 46 years old having power run through them when the key is turned. My brother says I worry to much. Been saying that for 62 years.

[sb001]

I'm going to go completely against the grain here, based on my own personal experience-- my 69 sat for 8+ years in my folks' garage before they gave it to me, I just charged the battery, pulled the gas tank and sloshed some Berryman's fuel cleaner around in it and poured some fresh gas into it, drained any old oil out and refilled with fresh 10W-30, and fired it up. It actually ran although sputtering like crazy, drove it around the neighborhood a few times, parked it, changed out any rubber fuel lines, rebuilt the carb with a $20 carb kit from O'Reilly's, and it ran pretty well after that.
If it was running as recently as 2 years ago, and kept in a garage all this time, I would just follow the preliminary steps I mentioned above (if you're sure there's no gas in the tank, I probably wouldn't even bother pulling it- just pour some fresh gas and maybe some fuel cleaner in there,) refill with fresh oil, charge the battery, and fire that sucker up! Just have someone standing looking right at the engine bay to check for leaky fuel lines, etc- and just shut it back down if you see anything like that. This isn't to say I would try to drive it much (if at all) since there could be tire/ suspension issues, etc-- but just seeing if it fires up I don't see any issues at all with that.
People on here worry too much, you will find that out very fast if you hang out on here any length of time.
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[The Law]

Thank you. What about wiring. I don't t know why but that's what bothers me the most. I mean like inside the car. Don't want anything to short. I don't know

[sb001]

[The Law]

I will try but I am challenged by technology

[mark tucker]

you could send it to me, Ill give it either a good home or a proper funeral, witch ever it needs.

[sb001]

[Randy in Maine]

Suggestion...

At the top of the Samba forum is a "Community" section. See if there is a VW Club close to the car. Call them and see who they would suggest you take it to to evaluate the shape it is in. Figure out if it is something you and your brother want to dump a few hundred bucks into and to allow decide with facts and estimates so figure out what you want to do with it.

They are a fair amount of work compared to a new one, but pretty fun to drive for some of us.

[bluebus86]

Ask a friendly person that is knowledgeable of cars, need not be Bugs, to take a look, they should be able to tell you if it is safe to give it a go. peer into the gas tank, look under the tank, car and engine for condition of hoses, if good fill her up with a gallon of gasoline. check wires for damage, cabin, engine, trunk, starter area, if not chewed by rats or otherwised damaged, hook a battery up. check engine oil level, The give her a go, it may work, if not, tow it to a place to be worked on.

before driving that brakes need be inspected, tires checked, gear box oil checked, lights checked, etc.... You need to make sure the safety stuff works.




the danger of putting gas in the tank is if it leaks, hence only a small amount is used after the hoses a visibly checked. be ware of open flames

the danger off hooking up a battery is in a short, caused by damaged wire, pretty easy to spot this before hand.



Now if there is gasoline in the tank, and its decades old, it should be siphoned out, and fresh gallon installed.

Dont expect this however....

https://youtu.be/yyy3hVIgJM8


Good Luck, Bug On in Your Two Hundred Year Old Volkswagen!
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[The Law]

I got pictures under seat.

[The Law]

[The Law]

Engine pictures I hope

[andk5591]

The car looks pretty clean and has had some relatively recent work done on it. In all seriousness, if it were me, I'd check the oil, hook up a remote gas can and throw a battery in it and see what happens.

BUT you are not me. If you don't know what you are doing, and you admit that you don't, start calling around to local garages and tell them that you are looking for someone to look at an old bug. What will happen is one or two names will pop up a few times. Contact them and have them look at it.

And you may find who had worked on it last. In fact ask a neighbor...they probably know....
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[The Law]

Thank you for your advice and for taking a look. I will call around tomorrow

[bluebus86]