Just a quick update to let you know I am working my arse off to get it ready for the sprayer for Monday the 1st of March. (Well actually the night of the Sunday but yeah)
More flattening off and baremetalling. Doing around doors, the dash is almost done, under seat base is flattened off, roof is bare metalled, rear shelf repaired and my bulkhead mods done. Just got interior and loads of little bits to do now.
Front beam/flipped spindles (done by us) on and gearbox etc all temporary to get it down the sprayers, all being ripped out when its back! :D
Pics! :D

 

Ohh floor safe is also built, will get a pic tomorrow! :D

~Lee

 

Hello all, my name is Serena and I live by the coast.  My husband and me are restoring a 1969 Karmann Cabriolet Beetle.  I bought him in August 2006, and so far only have driven him once (no MOT) :-(  However, since 2008 (cos I had a baby!!) things were started to change.  He was a dull lilac colour and had a vinyl ripped hood, not stock bumpers, dented and filler on all wings like you wouldn't want to know!!  The engine has been rebuilt to unleaded now by us, and now he has a electric ingition, he does start, although we need to make sure the timing is ok.  We have welded the inner wings both sides, now are welding in boot floor.  The front beam and ATS cup alloys have been powder-coated, then the front will be finished.  Hopefully then he will ready for his MOT, if he passes, then he's going to be at the roofers for a new mohair hood and headlining, then to the painters for his new colour.  I will post pictures once things have started, and update blog.

i'm kinda glad im single right now, i've just paid $500 for a 72 squareback, its also got a shit load of spares, the motor runs, a re-build box, all the fun bits i'm missing, its got a mesh visor as well!!!

its spent the last 2 years of its life in a garden very close to the sea with its nose in a bush (steady on guys, i mean a plant!) so the front end is quite nasty, theres a bit of serious rot on the rear right gutters but its not all bad, theres also a second set of mag alloys!!

so i'm thinking i'll make the back end into a trailer, how cool would that look behind my ratty notch???

this car has still got its AUSTRALIA ONLY "TYPE3" badges on its front guards!! they are worth a few quid on their own!! pics to follow wen it gets delivered.

Since this is my blog I will go first and explain my recent Beetle fail.

Currently my car is off the road because the fan has broken. I didnt realise this to begin with but as I drove to town the engine got louder and grumpier as it began to cook itself. I just about made it home with lots of smoke and bad smells coming from the engine. It turned out that the nut fell off the back of the dynamo releasing the fan and also damaging the mount so it wont go back on.

As soon as the weather picks up it will be a tiresome engine out job but it's not so bad as I have such a bad oil leak to attend to I've been speading almost as much cash on oil as fuel.

I've got more far worse stories but lets hear some of yours!

Chris

Well this weekend was rather long and after Sunday night was lashing it down, we took the splitty down to the sprayers this evening! :D

Here are pics of what we got upto this weekend!

Our ramp turned into a work bench! ;)

All turned round and ready to go!

Hooked up on the truck

 

And into the sprayers! Unseen Projects.

Pics of the floor safe for who was interested! This is a pretty cool thing!

Just spent 4 hours cleaning and polishing Stewie ready for DubFreeze tomorrow!

First time going so VERY excited!

Anyone else going?

Sorry for the lack of updates guys, been really busy trying to get everything back to metal for the respray. I am having a chat with the guys who are spraying the split tomorrow about time scale, colour etc etc, so should have a definite date it will be going down the them soon! :D Really excited about this, I am hoping the end of the week but we will see!

Anyways what I have been upto!
Mostly everything is going back to bare metal and here is my progress.

Rear hatch (I picked up from Sweet Rides last year)



Engine Lid (going to need a few repairs :( )



Cab Doors (going to need a lot of repairs! Got some panels and bits to repair on the way!)



Cargo door skins have finally arrived from Autocraft (I ordered them before Christmas) ohh and inner bottom repairs
I haven't got any other pics cause they are already down the sprayers getting the skins and inner on.

Started on the dash, steering wheel removed (with an angle grinder, it weren't moving!)



Rear Valance


Engine bay being flattened off



Also, some filling has started on the body to get rid of any imperfections!







A little bit of welding! (floor is now in!)




The start of my plans for the bulkhead! ;)



Also got my bit of rear shelf to repair mine!



Well that's a big update, hope you enjoyed it!

~Lee

a car "fell" on my squareback, i kid you not, i shoud have taken some pics but the batterys were low! not a great deal of damage but enough to be noticed, the trailer is still on the books, its not affected!

 

ive been offered a 64 ish squareback, its in good condition (for its age) and its got some cherry parts! the only trouble is its 5 hours north of perth! road trip here i come!!  thia one would be a resto n run job! a parts hauler!!

here are a few pics of the "new" type three i purchased, and theres a special pic showing the Oz only type3 badge, its on the leading edge of the front guards schweet looking badge me thinks!

 

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type3.jpg

[IMG]http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type3.jpg[/IMG]

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type33.jpg

[IMG]http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type33.jpg[/IMG]

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type34.jpg

[IMG]http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/type34.jpg[/IMG]

 

 

 

Going to start a Blog about the restoration of my 78 Bay 'Ursula'

 

She arrived about 2 1/2 years ago with no MOT or tax and looking a bit sorry for herself. This was her arriving.

 

Since then loads has been done

Front came off

 

And bottom repaired

Both wheel arches replaced

 

Cab doors replaced.
Sills inner/outer/middle replaced both sides.
Outriggers and jacking points replaced both sides.
Rear wheel arches replaced both sides using cut down outers to replace inner rot.

 

 

Rhs rear corner and battery tray replaced

 

Rear valance inner replaced

 

 

Both rear chassis legs repaired

 

 

 

Engine and rear hatch replaced.

Things left to do:
Lhs battery tray and corner.
Front/rear chassis cross members
Rear valence outer
Prep and paint
Bulid and fit interior.
Go camping and enjoy

Few more pics

Engine before and after

 

 

#

 

Seats Before and after

 

 

And how she's looking at the momment

 

Just another little update to show you what has been going on down the sprayers!
Doesn't look a lot but they have had to make major repairs to all 4 doors and the engine lid, the rear hatch needed a bit of filler but is almost there! :D
Few pics!

 

And Vince posing to show what bits have been cut off this door I bought for use on mine! He did offer to pose nude, but those pics wouldn't be suitable for the web!

~Lee

 

The view from out travellodge window this morning, couldn't believe it lol

 

Arriving at the show, it certainly was DubFREEZE !!!! lol

 

Steve and the boys

 

Some of the bugs and vans

 

I like this flooring, thinking of doing this in our van

 

Nice but Not as nice as our golf he he

 

Check out the snowman on the roof rack lol

 

 

Enjoyed this:

We had to replace the passenger door as it was severly rotten and the wheel arch has also been repaired.

Our eldest boy Keiran also likes to get stuck in. He wants a beetle for his first car (just like his Mum ). Thats my boy !! x

Replacment tail gate and new enine lid been fitted.

Just ordered new rear pillars for both sides, inner and outer valance and two new battery trays so thats being done soon.

All out riggers and jacking points have been replaced, a repair has been made to the front cross member.

These sills are next to be replaced, they ve just arrived so thats this weeks job.

RIght this blog will have to happen one step at a time!

I first got her 2 years ago at Christmas she was a surprise present! I couldn't even drive at the time but I've been obsessed with Beetles all my life!

She was pretty much complete although a lot of stuff had been stripped out and just shoved in.

I cried when I found out that's what I'd got for Christmas! It was love at the first sight of my technicolour beetle and I still love her as much to this day although I daren't look at her much as she is probably rotting right now due to having to being stored outside :( (this breaks my heart)

She fired up straight away first time her little engine whistling away!... 

 

you'll have to wait for the next installment! :) 

xx

Ok here is yet another installment!

Front panel and lower windscreen are now ready for primer.

Repairs on side windows have started! Here they are so far!

R/H/S front floor now welded in.

And have began cleaning off all the primer/rattle cans ready for it to go down for preping!

More updates very soon! :D

~Lee

 

 

Okay, I don't have much to do at the moment... but I was just perusing ebay.fr

Normally everything VW is incredibly over-priced (just hunting for that label I suppose, criminal)

Today I found this... which at first made me do a little mouth-vomit, the kind where you don't properly chuck-up, just a little one into your mouth which tastes hideously aciddy and you feel obliged to swallow, before looking around to make sure no-one saw you...

http://annonces.ebay.fr/viewad/Cox-VW-custom-show-car-des-annees-80-tuning/5002599442

 

Yeah.... 80's tuning....

Personally, I think it needs rescuing from such abuse.

They should have just bought a Golf.

I have owned my beetle for a year now and i still have a lot to do to get her to the standard i want.

My wife and son named her shrek because of the number plate.

Shrek is a 1971 1300 beetle and is pretty much stock apart from the wheels (blue 8 spoke empi`s)

I will be putting some picture on here soon of shrek for anyone interested. 

Well the horn job grew arms and legs. It became apparent that the pedal assembly and surrounding floor needed de-rusting, rust proofing and painting. I figured that there was no point putting the column back in on top of rust. Now i've only done this where the pedals sit, as parts of the floor will need to be cut out and new metal welded in, but i've found that  the fiddly jobs always are the most time consuming, so better get on with something rather than twiddeling my thums. Most of the time's been eaten up with rust treating and waiting for numerous coats of paint to dry. My formula is- Remove as much rust as possible-treat with por15 metal ready (it's a combination Phosphoric acid and etching chemical) not the junk that turns metal black. This eats rust, not convert it, if i wanted lumps of black dead weight in my van i'd fill it with coal. God i hate rust. - por15 anti rust paint ( this creates a oxygen barrier to any remaining rust. It is however  i feel a bit runny and thin, but does dry to a  steel hard gloss finnish. - Top coat with smootherite, only because i've got a big tin of white, and also the rust proof paint is UV sensitive. All the wee bits and bobs were painted with jenolite black coach enamel, which i've always found to give a nice finish and be long lasting. The trick to coach enamel is to ensure it's a cool day to allow the brush lines to level out, if it's too warm the surface will form a skin and not settle. When hard you can also wet and dry sand it then polish it back to a gloss finish. I don't want to sound like i'd endorsing any products, i just want to tell you what I use because there's nothing worse than not knowing what to use. i spent years messing around with guff from local motor stores, with legends on the bottle like " As used by"  "Cures rust for good" "Chemically converts" "All in one" and other such things to entice a young 18 year old lad with an old banger. Hey i even bought a nightrider swooshy light for the front. How cool did I think i was !!!!!   There is company you can order this stuff from called Frost, but be warned, when you get the wee catalogue you'll want everything in it, be sensible only buy what you need, i'm afraid I too was a compulsive "Oh I need one of them people" Go to your local carboot, you'll be amazed at what tools you can pick up, from welders to brake bleed kits. I once bought a 1641 beetle engine!!!!. The best part is, it's usually cheap. Frost is online at WWW.FROST.CO.UK tata for now

 

well back from the workshop and got the horn cable fitted, which was quite tricky as the person before had cut it quite far back on the wiring harness under the floor. However I managed to get enough cable to splice in a piece to connect to the outter tang of the outer column. Wth the regulation amount of rust and crud supposited in eyes proceeded to as Haynes say's "fitting is reversal of removal". A thing i've never understood as the bit you broke, stripped or sheared off never fix themselves when putting back together. However the bottom cover plate was so sad looking, I had to strip, sand, rust treat, acid etch and paint, which consumed most of the evening. The floor around that area is solid and will get a sand and paint before I put it back together. No point doing the work just to let it rot away. Ahh don't you just love rust Oh yeah and a blooming self tapper instead of a machine screw on the accelerator pedal clamps "A hanging offense" as one captive nut will now be stripped

 

Yucky wheel arch being cut out this week and new one being welded in.

 

 

 

All old nasty rust sills all cut out and the lower panel rust is gone, new sills being fitted and side of vanbeing built up.

 

 

Inside view of were rusty sills have been cut away, lots of surface rust to be cleaned up inside

 

 

Sliding door removed for repair

 

 

Sliding door with new panels waiting for repair, hoping that they are doing that this week too

 

 

 

Back panel all marked up ready to be cut away, they are replacing the 2 rear pillars, inner and outer sills and the 2 battery trays, BIG JOB !!!

 

 

 

Thats all folks, i will keep u updated xx

 

At last I have sent off for a paint sample (in an aerosol) for my beloved Cabriolet Beetle, he now goes by the name of "Bugford".  The colour I love is Cadbury Purple,  Autopaints.co.uk in St Helens are doing a aerolsol for me in Metallic Cadbury Purple, cost me £11.68 inc VAT and p&p. 

I am hoping that the colour they send to me will be great, cos I have a image of Bugford in my head.  He has Cadbury purple with a mohair black hood and black headlining, chrome bumpers, door handles etc plus new number plates (in original condition).  He already has 4 x ATS Cup Alloys (and already been powder-coated in silver).  I am really exciting now, just need some better weather (not cold or snowing/raining) before we welding boot floor in, then the back wings can be bolted back on, bumper mountings on and bumpers on, then the back is done.

I was hoping that Bugford would be ready for Volksworld show, but he's not ready yet (no MOT etc), I'm in no rush but hopefully by Christmas, Bugford will be on the road. I CAN'T WAIT!!!

Here's a pic from my new armrests and windowcranks;

And one of me stripping some parts of a (unsavable)1303;

 

As the first time I saw Penelope was on Christmas day at about 7pm it was obviously very dark so I hadn't gotten a proper look at her. Due to all the festivities the next time we met was on the 29th December and I was so excited!

Off we went down to the farm where she was being stored, Steve begun by stripping off the wings and putting them in the shed with everything else. I already had everything for the car as one of the pervious owners had already begun cal-looking her and had already sourced a lot of the parts. So I already had a gorgeous white interior that just needed a bit of a clean, repair panels, full volkswagen carpet set and some random spares we found like some bay window camper glass!

Funnily enough at the time Steve was really not interested in VWs and he didnt know much about them at alll He has always been seriously into his landrovers and at the time he had a peugeot 106! But never the less with the beginning of this project his interest started to blossom!

I have been into Beetles from day one of my life literally! I was driven home from the hospital in my parents '72 Beetle when I was born and my love affair with them pretty much started from there! Although unfortunately anything my dad ever tried to teach me about cars was a far-too-technical-verbal explanation and I am much more visual! So my car knowledge was relatively small at the start but I was an avid learner!

I set to work examining the car visually while Steve worked on the technical bits. I noticed the 'on tow' sign scribbled on the rear window and started by cleaning that off with a scourer and cleaning the filthy windows to make her look a bit less sad! Steve having taken off the wings started looking at the wheels and the brakes and how bad the rust was. It turned out nothing was ceased on her :)

 

THERE SHOULD BE PHOTOS HERE BUT I CANT FIGURE OUT WHICH CODE IT IS OFF PHOTOBUCKET CAN ANYONE HELP PLEASE? AND I'LL ADD THEM IN :)

Next installment- 8th Jan 2008, oil change and 23rd Jan 2008 wheels off.

The plan is to rebuild this beetle to look like one of the prototype's that where build by Hebmuller for volkswagen.(you can find some heb.proto pics in my profiles pic.gallery).

To me it seemed a good idea to start out whit a speedster since the roof was allready gone and reinforcements were welded in nice.

And it came with a good running 1600 cc engine.

Plan is to replace all the fiberglass with sheetmetalparts. It's supose to be a look-a-like and not an exact copy, never the less i will try to incorporate some original details as the big horizontal louvres on the engine lid. Some parts like taillights will be custom made but however will get a vintage look.

This is how the car looked when i bought it:

 

Since that i changed a few things and did some maintenance.

The front suspension was redone and new shocks where mounted all around.

Some bearings and bushings needed replacement too.

A new clutch was fitted

And I had the wheels widened(rear) and powdercoated red.

I also had new tires fitted, at the front 145/65 15 and the rear 195/65 15.

Also i had to make the enginecover stand out a bit for..... well you know why that's done.

after a year of driving to some of the meeting's and getting to know the scene(or where can i get the best price for quality part's),

The car went into the garage and i started removing the fiberglass parts.

In the mean time I got a new gearbox and exhaust system(just waiting to be installed),as well as a dual carb system and a load of other stuff that will complete the finished car.

Sadly just after that the "crisis" started and I was one of many that got layed off by my boss.

So progress went slowly from that time on.

I have been gathering my welding equipment together over the last year( That ment fixing up an old welding machine my girlfriends dad had lying around).

I am confident that i can start welding within a couple of weeks, I preped some sheetmetal parts and will post an update as soon as i can.  

 

Would just like to say Hi to everyone, we have a type 2 1976 Volkswagen Camper who we have named Betty Bloo ( a lot to do with my obsession with Betty Boo) lol. At present she is at Celtic Soul Volkswagen Specialist at Llantwit Major having some welding work and restoration work done. We are hoping to have her back home pretty soon so that we can concentrate on the body work and interior. I will keep you all posted with photos and updates. Looking forward to Dub-freeze at the end of the month.

Hi , i'm Tom 28y old and from Belgium . I'm driving a vw passat break from 2003 as a daily car and have a 1966 11 window golde sunroof bus for the weekends and meetings . She's cumulus white over sea blue , had some great options like a BN4 Eberspacher heater , steering lock , and offcourse the sunroof . She left the factory with a 2 seater in the middle and full rear bench , all in mesh grey interior . Running on 6V with a 1500cc engine , dropped spindels , adjustable beam , and a custom made interior . Planning to do a full body restauration in the future but for now just enjoying her as much as i can .

I also have my own register for 11 window buses with a factory golde sunroof : http://11windowrag.webs.com/  If you know anyone in the wanted section , or just know someone who ownes one let me know !!

That was it for now

greetzz Tom

Well another few nights round the garage and we now have the right hand side corner and side glued on, we first tried gluing the corner on with a cheap sixaflex copy which was a bad idea, after it being "glued" on for 3 days my Dad pulled it back off again and the glue hadn't set, so my recommendation for today is buy real sixaflex its only a couple of quid more a tube and millions of times better.
Anyways I took these pics before we glued it, but this gives you the gist! :D
Ohh yeah also wacked a bit of high build primer on just to tidy it up and keep the damp air off the bare metal! :D :D :D
ENJOY

 

Right we weren't feeling brave enough to do the front, so after spending all this time getting the rest of it right we thought we better get someone who knows what they are doing to do the lower front! So he came into today and this is his progress! :D

 

I am well happy with the results, he is coming back on the 4th of January to fill the whole front and prep it for paint, I am also talking to him about doing the lower windscreen repairs as well! :D

Ohh yeah on Saturday at work, so much of the work turn up that we decided to build ourselves an assistant for the camper! He has all the right tools ;)

 

Well, I thinks its about time for me to start my little project diary! :lol:

Well I bought my splitty 2 weeks and 3 days ago! I have spent nearly every day so far working on it so far.

My splitty is a 1962, LHD (Italian Import), it has bullet front indicators and a small rear window and 11 Windows. It is believed to have been used as a coffin/body carrier for an undertakers in Italy, it also used to have a gas conversion fitted.
The splitty still has the original engine and cross ply tyres on it!

Below are some pictures from when I first got it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here are some from when we got it back to the garage.

 

I will get some pictures up of how it looked after one week and after two weeks soon!

Until then any questions, queries, advice, etc, etc, I would love to hear them!

~Lee[list][/list]

 

Some more pics of it back at the garage after a week or so.

More pics!

Took of tailgate and started sanding down, also managed to get some primer on the right hand side, as I have got rid of the six foot deep paint. Can now see the dents clearly, there is a really nice one in cargo doors! Looking for new cargo door if anyone one has any good ones going?

 

 

Erm we cut most of the floor out!

Ohh and here is another picture of it primered with the tailgate on!

I am renewing the front dampers on my beetle but before i remove the old ones i have to disconnect the track rod ends/ball joints from the steering knuckles.The ball joint is a very tight fit through the steering knuckle.I have tryed putting the nut on a few threads and tapping it with a hammer but i dont want to damage the ball joint (or anything else) so i darent hit it hard.If anyone has got any tips for me on how i can free it i would really appreciate it.

I have added a photo(lots of rusty bits) to try and help explain what i am talking about.  

Is there a VW scene in Italy? There has to be more of them about than there is in France? Well, 65 years ago they were on that 'side'... They should be more popular at least right?

I would be on the right side of the water for the 'bug-in'.... hmmm

 

 

Hello to everybody in Veebo Land.....   Just a quick post to get off the mark...  I intend to post pictures of the resto of my Bug on here and will be looking for help and advice along the way. I'm not looking at turning him into a show winner or anything but I do want to make sure that he stands out from the crowd when finished.....

 

And it seems the beetle is off to bed for a while, with my brothers mk1 Golf...

 

the "new" tail lights turned up today, they look fantastic, the seller had polished them! i didnt see that on evil=bay.

i'll be fitting LED's into the old lights for that modern twist on an old car!

i managed to get my grubby hands on a steel sunvisor to suit the notch as well, its a shame its white! things are coming together!!

the guards are all finished! the primer is looking good, the repairs are almost flawless and that primer looks like your grandad did it!

i'll be fitting them soon, the body works coming along nicely, but no sign of the donor kombi yet!! and i'm still waiting of a price for the porsche rims, the audi RS8's are brand new and a special order, so they are out of the question!!

 

well it all started quite innocentley on the 28/10/08 i was looking thru the \"aussieveedubbers\" when an advert jumped at me!

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=72577

a 1968 notch, minus motor and trivia bits for the ghastly sum of $350 (£200)

well i couldnt really let it pass me buy, so i PM\'d the guy and he called me back, the beast is mine!

i\'ve got to go get it this weekend, then the fun begins!!

first i\'ll have to get it running and licenced (mot\'d n taxed) then when thats done the real fun begins!!!

i\'ll shave the handles and bumpers, fit an IRS, a mate of mine knows of a wrecked kombi, poss 1800 or 2ltr  motor n box, he also knows where to get cheap subis from, a subi motor would be awsome but i don\'t want to put a grill in the front! The paint is going to be wild and clashing, yellow and green with big flake glitter!! i\'d like to keep the same rim sizes as are on it, but obviously they will be 4 stud rims! i\'d like to have the old school street machine look with a modern twist, crystal head lights,plenty of LED\'s and a kicking sound system!

 

keep looking, i'll be posting when i get stuff done!

Yes, I finally have a roof rack. At last a place to put wee Euan's buggy when were out and about in the beetle.
I'm not really sure what kind of Roof Rack it is, but the guy a bought it from, Scotland's VW Legend John Forbes, told me it was a 1960s roof rack. The width is adjustable so I guess it might fit on a splitty as well (if it's from the 60s...)

But well chuffed one box ticked on the big "Beetle Wish list" spreadsheet. Next item to get is an adjustable front beam.

I have had my bus now for around 4 years but unfortunately it got ignored a bit for the first two. As you know they need to be used or they slowly rust away to nothing. This meant that when I finally did get round to working on her I had twice as much to do than I initially thought. The chassis needed patched on the main rails, all the cross members, outriggers, jacking points, sills (inner, middle and outer), front wheel arches, cab floor, front valence and various other patches needed replaced or repaired.

 This was done with the help of a borrowed MiG welder from Hernandez, a ford fiesta bonnet, a trailer tent, a dimplex storage heater, basically any sheet metal I could find as I made a few of my own panels but bought the main structural ones.

Once this had all been done then I replaced the front axle and brake servo. Then all the brake callipers, hoses, pipes, drums, discs, pads and shoes. So it ended up a whole new system. The engine was stripped and rebuilt with a few silly embarrassing errors ( HT leads getting mixed up), replaced the starter motor and the bush to the bell housing but now it runs so the blood, sweat and tears were all worth while.

At the moment I am checking over everything and working through the MOT checklist so I have covered everything before she goes for her first test in 6 years. I found the wiper arms and blades needed replaced so I had better keep at it and see if there is anything else.

I had never owned a VW before so I have learnt a lot about how they work and fit together. It is good to have a hobby.

So that is an overview of the story so far but I will keep you all up to date as to her MOT and the work done once she is a rolling project.

Cheerio for now my spanners are getting lonely and cold.

VWBOARDERX

Hi folks, as youve guessed this is a blog about my camper resto, It's also my first ever blog. My poor van's been off the road for around 4 years now, so it's time to get her back on the road. Over the last few years i've done most of the mechanical work needed, so mostly metal work one 0 one time. I think the learning curve should be interesting as i've never really seriously welded a vehicle before as I only really use ARC on heavy gauge stuff. I've tried Mig, but don't trust that pesky little wire sqiggling about all over the shop, but will have to make friends with it soon.

A couple of days before we were due to leave and the first problem cropped up... Noooooooooooo! puncture in tesco car park.

So, fine, just switch that for the spare right, nice n sleazy. Out comes the spare - oh, and it's got a bit of a bald patch, yeah that's right, just before we put her to sleep for the winter (cosy in the lock-up with friends) some charlie uniform pulled out in front of us and by some feat of driving skill (or miracle) we didn't hit, but those pumped breaks were slammed so hard that we left half the tyre on the road.

Where do I get new ones? Tried loads of websites, rang round a million and one places and no-where gots the ones I need that can get them to me the next day. Crazy internet site said they had them, so I paid, they also said they'd come n fit them the next day, but then I get a call, arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh no sorry, we can't get those til next week. Typical.

Had to get them in a size too big, (thats two big ones) and put them on the back. Super last minute. Not too bad looking, but another £150 I don't have.

Next to France, Charente Maritime. That's a long journey.

Well someone has to be first I suppose...

 If you are reading this then I'm not alone! my work is done and Veebo is alive. Ok so my Beetle is off the road, I'm no good at welding but I am quite handy when it comes to all things web related, so while my ride is rusting in the driveway I have decided to pass the time by creating Veebo.

This is my attempt at creating a cool place on the web for like-minded Air Cooled enthusiasts to kick back and relax. I do hope you like it here. Stay a while, take a look around and become a member, I need some friends here and I hope that you will enjoy making Veebo your own.

It's a bit rubbish being the only member of your own social networking site but I hope that in time Veebo will grow into a thriving community and a valuable resource for everything VW related. I'm still tweaking the site and have not yet announced it to the world but Veebo is live so you never know who could come surfing in at any moment. I'll update this blog with progress on the site, So come on guys, who wants to be member number two?

Well I should be proud of myself I suppose!  I've been caught speeding! Everyone's ribbing me about it but it just goes to show you can still motor in an unmodified bug! (Even if it was only 35!) LOL

Hi, I just found this group. Is almost everyone here located in the UK?

I'm a Brit living in Massachusetts and last October bought a 1971 VW Westfalia on Ebay.  I wanted one from the west coast so I could drive across country. Didn't exactly plan to start in December though and the weather in California is the coldest and wettest for ten years. Yet it's all part of the challenge and the journey, I guess!!!

After 2.5 months on my own, today met a fellow VW Van traveller at a lake in San Luis Obispo. We're meeting up tomorrow late afternoon to camp out in town and then go out to the coast on Sunday if it stops raining.

Done 2000 miles so far and I'm still in California. There's so much to see here and I have to remind myself that this state alone is bigger than the UK.

Cheers,

Carole and the 'YesWeCan CamperVan'  (http://yeswecanjourney.wordpress.com)

I wrote this article back is October 2008 and sent it off to Volks World Camper & Bus, they put it in the Jan 09 issue with some minor alterations... Here is my original version...We hope you enjoy the read!

 

Four months hard graft, working on a new interior, followed by 10 nights, 2021 mile round trip camping in France, which included an un-missable visit to the magnificent Viaduc de Millau...

 

 

This isn't a story about how I, Simon Thompson (serious petrol head), came to own my precious 67' split screen camper back in 95', nor is it a story about the endless hours/years spent transforming the body and chassis into something solid that I'm proud of today. It's a story about planning a summer camping holiday abroad in early 2008 with my wife and being blasé about the fact that I would finish the interior in time for the BIG trip. All this when the interior didn't exist, as the interior was pulled out before its spray job and complete re-build back in August 2003 and since then was never looked at again!

 

Setting the Goal

So first things first - we agreed in February 08, that the last week of August and the first week of September 08 would be the holiday...that was the easy bit. Having watched a programme on Discovery Channel about how the French built the Viaduc De Millau, commissioning our own Sir Norman Foster as the architect, we had to go and look at it for ourselves. It\'s situated just north of Montpellier in the south of France. I wanted shots of our pride and joy next to something modern, magnificent, beautiful and many miles away. So the holiday was named 'Destination Viaduc' and the preparation began by booking the time off from our day jobs to put a stake in the ground and give us something to work towards, but boy did I have some work to do.  This would be the first trip abroad since we have owned the vehicle...

The interior design was simple, I wanted it to be clean, unique, simple on first looks, plush and to have all the amenities of a modern caravan. This meant that I needed to build it myself. Thank goodness for the internet as this helped me research options throughout the project and also helped us plan the camping trip route thanks to auntie Google maps and my wife (Louise) looking into the detail of the proposed journey.

 

 

The interior plan was in my head

So I bought all the tools I thought were needed - new saws, welder, safety specs etc. The list was long and cost over £500 in total.  I knew that if I had any chance of success, preparation here would be crucial. I decided on keeping things as light as possible and bought a mix of aluminium tubing for the framework, various thickness wood ply sheets for everything else and started from the ground up. I had all the plans in my head and could see the end vision.

 

 

 

I took a week off work at the end of April and worked pretty much 14 hours days, every day, to make some initial progress, which proved to be crucial in getting the ball rolling to meet our deadline. I loved it! This continued throughout May before and after my day job, where any spare hour regardless of time of day was spent building the interior. By the end of May the bare bones of the interior were complete and I was ready to start installing all the electrics, heater, sink and cooking facilities, which was no small task in its self. During this time we received the wonderful news that we were to have a baby, due in early January 09.

Before I knew it, we were in the middle of June and I had begun work on a new roof lining. We started the upholstery, covered the bare wood with a leatherette vinyl and painted any other exposed surfaces for some additional protection.

The maiden voyage was a test weekend away and an excuse to go to Bug Jam 22, in July. We enjoyed a good sunny weekend away without any curtains and lots of loose ends and unfinished bits, but it gave us a chance to thrash it out and refine any points. The weekend went perfectly and was a major success. The split charger test worked, running a fridge all weekend and lots of LED lighting and it still started the engine on Sunday! Phew...

 

 

Upon return I started work again to finish off everything else...I cut out all the foam to size and left the camper with a local upholsterer (http://www.surreycarinteriors.co.uk/) who covered the foam seating in off-white real leather. Can you believe that two whole cow hides went into the seating and bedding area which cost a fortune, but the end result was the icing on the cake. We bought the ready made curtains from http://www.vwcurtains.com\ which finished off the project. The curtains arrived on the Monday before we left for France, giving me just enough time to install them.

 

End to end it took four months working on the interior. Check out the interior video...Click here!

 

Let the journey begin

By now the trip was planned in detail and my wife Louise, small bump and I set off from Guildford on Saturday 23^rd of August at 9am, along with Doris (Louise's parents Sat Nav) and headed for Dover with 92,681 miles on the clock. After two hours we reached Dover, which was a great relief, as it would have been very embarrassing if we never made it across the channel!

Waiting in Dover for the ferry, on a gorgeous sunny day, created a lot of interest from passers by, all wanting to look at the camper and ask questions, as Louise and I relaxed in the back with food and drink and the fresh aroma of leather. Amongst the interested spectators were four Americans who stopped by and appreciated the work put in. We got chatting and it turned out they were a US rock band called ‘Ruth', touring Europe doing various gigs here and there. They gave us a signed copy of their latest album before we set sail to Calais.

 

 

 

Once we got to Calais the next few days were mapped out to make maximum progress using toll roads in order to reach the Millau viaduct as quickly as possible. First stop was Reims, home of Champagne, where we cheated and stayed in a hotel, but the journey was pleasant, only gentle hills and one toll road which cost twenty Euros. As it got dark later we realised that I had put the new headlights on upside down and the wrong way around, so they were already Euro compliant.  Perfect - off came the temporary tape!!

 

 

 

The next day, Sunday, we headed further south on very windy roads, and we visited the French F1 Grand Prix circuit, Magny Cours, where there was some bike racing on. It was a lovely run where we got plenty of ‘thumbs up', smiles and tooting from passers by. We crawled up some huge long hills reaching peaks over 1100 meters and enjoyed some magnificent views. We reached a small town called Sazeret, where we located ‘Le Petite Vallette' camping site and there we settled, enjoyed a glass of wine (well one of us did!), super noodles cooked on the stove for dinner and slept inside the camper for the first time. It wasn\'t very comfortable...with my wife being five months pregnant I had to settle for a third of the bed space. Anyway, we had a huge down pour over night, so Monday morning was a lovely fresh start and we left as soon as I could get Louise out of bed, which was about 9:30am. With nothing to put away we were off in no time, for the final fast leg of the trip to the viaduct.

 

 

Once again we were not disappointed with the journey which included more magnificent views. We went off-piste away from the motorways on a few occasions, where Doris got lost once or twice and we admired the countryside - it was great driving. As we headed further south we encountered steeper and steeper hills. Uphill was in most cases quite slow and naturally a big strain on the engine but down hills gave the engine a rest, apart from a down hill speed test where we reached 90mph which was well off the clock, but boy did that put the brakes under pressure! I was glad that 18 months ago I upgraded all the brakes including a CSP disk conversion on the front and a rear IRS kit with the help of our friends at Beetle link (www.beetlelink.co.uk).  This all helps the camper drive at proper speeds, cope with hills and stop appropriately. I digress...where were we, oh yes, we were making good time getting nearer to the viaduct, so we dropped off the motorway for lunch and ended up in a small village called ‘Marvejols\', but the route off the motorway was a very long, wickedly windy, 7% down hill gradient where we almost cooked the brakes. We had to stop three-quarters the way down to let the brakes cool, then we trickled to the bottom of the hill where we stopped for lunch before we plodded on. It was a wake up call, that although we had good brakes, we must pace the poor vehicle when driving in temperatures of over 28˚c down incredibly long steep hills.

 

 

 

After 740 miles from Guildford we reached our target destination in Millau, where we stayed at a lovely campsite which was walking distance from the town and in view of the gorgeous bridge in the distance.  This was a great achievement for the camper, every part of the journey from here on, we saw as a bonus so we had to celebrate! We put the awning up for added comfort, hooked up the electric (as were staying two nights) then walked into Millau town. There was a local food market and all the locals were having a party, we tried to mix in and ended up enjoying a nice restaurant meal and then stumbled back to camp.

 

The next day we left the awning behind and headed off in the camper to visit the viaduct close up. We spent most of Tuesday following the river down stream (which was the old route around the river before the bridge was built) and explored the bridge taking lots of photos. The sky was crystal clear and temperatures reached a scorching 29˚c again - there were no complaints from us! The camper, which is a two tone sky blue, looked at home against the back drop. My description to the sprayer five years ago was for a sky blue finish and these photos show that it was a perfect match.

 

The Millau Viaduct

(French: le Viaduc de Millau) is a large cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the River Tarn near Millau in southern France. Designed by the structural engineer Michel Virlogeux and British architect Norman Foster, it is the tallest vehicular bridge in the world, with one mast\'s summit at 343 metres (1,125 ft) - slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower and only 38 m (125 ft) shorter than the Empire State Building. The viaduct is part of the A75-A71 autoroute axis from Paris to Béziers. It is a truly amazing sight to see and worth any de-tour if you are ever in the area. (*Info sourced from Wikipedia)

 

 

In the afternoon we found a shop, bought some fresh mince and enjoyed a barbeque back at the campsite by the river, cooking our home made burgers and salad with a beer or three. It was fantastic, 29˚c during the peak of the day, cooling off in the evenings.

 

           

1000 Miles...Only half way!

Wednesday the 27^th, day 5, we packed up ready to leave and I cleaned off all the dead French insects from the front of the camper - we didn\'t need any excessive drag! Finally I checked the engine oil level and we were ready for the next leg of the journey. We headed of to the Dordogne (slightly north west from Millau) taking a cross-country route that avoided all toll roads.  This route took us along very bumpy roads that were lovely and windy.  We are still hoping that the mega bumpy trip has not affected our un-born child! Not more than an hour down the road we reached 1,000 miles, a proud moment, so we stopped for lunch on top of a great big hill and gave the camper a rest. France is great for this type of travel as there are plenty of well-equipped road-side picnic areas, where you can have lunch and relieve any load! It was yet another very hot day and the heat exchangers got stuck on. I think the engine enjoyed this problem as it helped dissipate the heat, but the dissipation was on us sitting at the front, so we baked even more! After a six hour journey we reached Duravel, where we located a Dutch campsite with a lovely cool pool and found a pitch for the night. Everyone was very hospitable and our camper looked tiny in the large pitches that were available.

The next day we carried on north-west, heading for La Rochelle, which is a desirable port town on the west coast of France, where we stayed in a hotel to freshen up. The journey proved to be a longer one than planned as the camper broke down just north of Perigueux, where we had just refuelled. I knew it was a fuel problem due to the way we slowly ground to a halt. After a short time we called the AA for assistance, after checking anything obvious of course. Whilst waiting for assistance I started a process of elimination to identify what was wrong. At this point an orange and white bay window (UK plate) tooted as it drove by and so we waved back politely, gritting our teeth with envy. I got back to work and noticed that the mechanical fuel pump ‘Brazilian made' was missing a pin which acted as the pivot point for the pump and thus was not pumping any fuel. As I tried to fit an Alan key in the hole (as a possible temporary measure) the missing pin fell out the back! Bingo, what a stroke of luck, I had the pin in my hand so I knew I could fix it. All this just as the non-English speaking AA man turned up. He didn't want to help, he simply wanted to put my camper on his big bad truck and end our journey. As you can imagine we weren't ready for that, so I waved my arms about trying to communicate that I may be able to sort it myself and carried on trying to fix it. The pin went back in after a gentle bit of persuasion - it was rather a tight fit!  I used super glue on both sides of the pin to avoid any further movement and turned the key to test it. It was fixed - bliss - we were on our way again. Although we had lost a couple of hours with the break down, we were back on cloud nine again and completed the days travel. We arrived at our hotel in La Rochelle just in time for a fresh shower and some moulles for dinner in a port side restaurant. The hotel had underground secure parking, which was great but we only just about got in and out due to lack of clearance!

 

Truck Drivers Arm

So with croissants down the hatch, we checked out and headed off the next day (day 7), north-east towards the Loire Valley to Saumur to be precise. Not far into the journey we passed the 1,300 mile mark and near Saumur we passed 1,400 miles.  The camper was doing well and we were more comfortable with cruise speeds now. It was another hot day which added more tan to my already tanned right arm and we were still baking in the cab due to the fact that I still couldn't turn off the heater, it was either on our feet or in our face! Hot feet or dry eyes, hummm...nice choice!

 

We stayed in a campsite just outside of Saumur for two nights, so we set-up the awning once again. The next day we ventured into Saumur town - it was another market day - and in the afternoon we travelled along the river stopping at a local wine producer, ‘Langlois-Chateau' who has been making wine in the area since 1885. The camper gained great interest in the chateau car park and when we tried to leave the camper ran out of fuel at the gate blocking anyone from coming in or out, very embarrassing. Luckily I had a gallon spare and we topped it up and headed off, with our tails between our legs!

 

 

During our last night at Saumur there was an incredible thunder and lightning storm, the first bit of bad weather all holiday. It was loud and the rain was very heavy on the camper and tent. We thought we were going to get zapped by the lightning! We stuck it out and it had cleared by morning so we packed up before the sun had properly risen and headed east up the Loire Valley. We followed the river to Blois, a small town about 50 miles up stream. Blois was our penultimate night where we stayed in the camper alone at another well equipped campsite. The next day, Monday 1^st September, we set off towards Paris. By this time we were experiencing a small teething problem with the gear selection - we could get 1^st or 2^nd and 3^rd or 4^th with ease but going from 2^nd to 3^rd or 3^rd to 2^nd, across the box, took a couple of attempts each time. This got progressively worse over the last two days but we lived with it and moseyed on. We travelled right through the centre of Paris and saw the main sights, albeit brief encounters just for the photos, as both Louise and I have been there before. We got through Paris with no problems and headed north for our final nights' stay which was to be the grand finale of our holiday - a lovely four star châteaux called ‘Château de Montvillargenne'.

 

 

Another opportunity for photo shoots and time for Louise and I to ponder over the journey with fond memories. 

 

The trip was not over yet, we still needed to head north on the final day, 170 miles to Calais, which was mainly toll roads and motorways. This proved fairly tedious after the whole experience and further more the weather deteriorated as we got closer and closer to England. We still had a ferry crossing and a two hour drive (100 miles from Dover to Guildford) to complete.

 

 

We returned to Guildford safe and well, the camper had done us proud, completing 2021 miles in total, with only a couple of wee problems gathered on route. We averaged 200 miles a day and had to fill up with petrol most days that we travelled. Although we had to fill up regularly, I think it's a blessing in disguise having a small fuel tank as it keeps the weight down!

 

All campsites were well equipped and in most cases the web sites for each campsite (for planning the trip) were available in English which was a great help. For stays shorter than 3 nights we found you didn't need to reserve before hand, you can just turn up. The vee-dub is perfect for this type of trip as you can literally go anywhere and park anywhere, when you get there. The only down side on the size is that it's like a puzzle - every item you pack has a neat home but you just  have to remember where you put everything and sods law proves that the item you want is always tucked miles away or behind/under everything else!

 

We're definitely hooked on this ‘camping in the camper' lark and with a baby due soon, I'd better source some seat belts for the baby seat, so we can continue our travels in the following years.

 

 

I guess the only thing on reflection would be that we may regret having chosen off-white leather seating, as I can't wait for the baby to learn what a mess crayons could do to the interior!

 

Below you can see the route we took and the places we stopped over at, hope you enjoyed our storey!

 

   

this is a pic of my finished pan. its flipped on the side cause their is a little rust at the one spot yet.  in the process of sanding that spot.  gotta b careful tho cause its really thin.

Ok, so what I neglected to include with yesterday's post was what I got accomplished.  So, just let me wrap all this up in today's post.  That said, here we go...

So, having disconnected all the electrical and fuel (more on that later) removed the bumper and muffler yeasterday, I sloted today to get the starter off and make sure I had all bolts accounted for.  With the help of my Suzuki Forenza's rear bumper and it's reverse gear, I pushed Gumby up on the blocks and jacked up the front end so she was sitting level 7" higher than her grounded stance.

Oh, so much easier to work with the extra clearance!  Off popped the starter, the fore-facing engine mounting nuts, then back around to the aft-facing bolts, rear sheet metal, fan cage, oil filler cap, etc.  Then, with some wrestlin' with the engine mount and the 2-ton jack, there she was, Gumby heart, on the floor of the garage accompanied by the sound of falling liquid.  Argh!  I forgot to route the fuel line through the forward sheet metal!!!  The decent of the engine had pulled the fuel line off of the nipple on the fuel tank.  I had to laugh out loud at myself.  I placed some old newsprint down to somewhat absorb and stop the spread of fuel across the garage floor.  A quick trip to the local dollar store and I was back with some cheap cat litter to soak up the mess.

Well, I'll leave that to soak over night and call it a night!

Well, garage trip went well! New exhaust needed - feels like I have a new engine! wish I could drive round rather than work! :(

 

So we started on the engine , the 1300cc needs to get out and a 1500cc engine will come in.

It still is pretty cold to work outside , but i would really like to get it done before the Freddy files meeting on march 14

I just recently bought this beauty from Ebay for only 720 quid. Doesnt look much in the pictures but this bus is about 95% complete, ie all doors are supplied, all windows, Bumpers, Pannels, The engine also came with it but is a non runner. This has been dry stored for 8 years and this definatly shown by the lack of rot. The small sections that it did have in the rear wheel arches, and rear floor pan are cut out ready to be re welded. I also noticed that there is no filler and that the pannels and bottoms of the doors are solid and straight as a die.

Sanded the body down to see want all needs to be done.

Project I just started, Going to be a long term project, its a 1973 Bug with 65 front fenders, KCW 5in narrowed adjustable beam. stock 1600cc. Its needs alot of work, floor pans, couple spots in the wheel wells, interior, both aprons.

Well this is the first post.

 

This is my 1965 Beetle. She's my fifth VW, a 69, a 72, a Mexibug and a razor Ghia being the 4 previous.

 

This is what she looked like when I got her...

 

 

...a bit too slammed for me, especially with the roads like they are soo, with the help of a friend...

 

 

,,,got her sitting like i want  her, backside in the air, proper cal style.

 

...then this had to get sorted. It was knackered...

 

...and this was leaking..

 

...and so was this...

...which made a mess of this...

Still can't believe someone would fill a Beetle exhaust! Still a few bits to go, sorting my lights next, and have to fiddle with the new fuel gauge to get it calibrated properly! 

 

We bought Betty Bloo off ebay, we took a trailor all the way up to Essex to fetch her back home to sunny Wales.

She needs quite a bit of work but thats all part of the fun.

 

Through looking at ebay i could see the world of buggys can be quite an expensive one. Even though they are just running on Beetle gear, the buggy specific parts were fetching a pretty penny at auction. Another thing that can be a pain is the millions of variations on shells and styles there is! I always liked what i thought a buggy was ment to look like which was its original Meyers Manx incarnation. So thats what i was after roughly. As a stroke of luck a friend of mine found a well beat up (snapped in two) buggy in a scrapyard. The floor wasnt a priority but the shell sounded like what i was after. So i paid over a few pennys (£250) This got me the shell, bonnet, dash, another front beam, mothered gearbox, silly wide wheels and a chewed up steering wheel. Not bad really. The shell as to be expected did show signs of a hard life, huge hole in the bonnet drilled holes and cracks everywhere. And several layers of paint, the thing looked like a gobstopper. But to some strange amusment did have sand tucked away in every place you could imagine. So yeah hard life but on the beach.

I wasnt overly sure what style of shell this actually was. Its more or less a GP style shell but as i later found out not quite.

 

From www.BigBlueVW.com

 

On the first day of our trip to Oregon, while we were headed north on the I-5 going through Yreka, California, we saw a vast VW yard from the highway. I took the next exit and doubled back to find Garcia's Foreign Car Clinic. The place was closed, but Garcia and a buddy were there keeping warm in the office. They let me roam the yard for a while to take some pictures. I wish I had a chance to talk to him a little more - talk about VW history! I'm willing to bet this guy knows just about everything to know about VWs...

1974 Jeans Beetle LHD Make: VW Volkswagen Model: Jeans Beetle Colour: Brilliant Yellow L11C Brilliant Gelb Year of Manufacture: 1974 Engine: 1600 cc (Origanally 1148 cc) Original Jeans Denim Seats & Livery -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special thanks go out to John for all his help and info and Laura for her help and understanding -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PROLOGUE She ain`t perfect but she is mine I decided that after a few years of not having another beetle (after I wrote off my previous beetle, causing me to loose my faith!!), my GF found a tired looking bug on Car & Classic, after several days of trying to decide if I wanted to get another and wondering if it was worth the hassle. So if I was to get her I would have to do the work myself for a change, as I have never welded or done any sort of body repair this was very scary!! To learn welding I borrowed John`s welder and after about 15 minutes of practice I started!!!! FOOL!! No garage or proper equipment, during the winter I made a cover from tarp and secured it with bricks!! As you can see from the following logs it wasn`t easy and it ain`t perfect in many peoples eyes, but as this was my first ever full resto without paying for welding, I think I have done a good enough job. Anyway read on for more detailed info............ She is a 1974 European Market Jeans Beetle, they differ from standard Jeans seen by the colour of paintwork and the demin colour. She also has a few original optional extras which are the Padded Dash, Golf Ball Gear Knob, Rear Screen Heater, High Back Seats and the GT Wheels. From what i can find out she is the ONLY one of its kind in the UK and I think only 1 of 2 with the extras left in Mainland Europe, there are 5 in total that I know of but only 1 with all the options that she has, so she is a bit rare and special, one day I will afford a proper paintjob and interior and then show her on the seen............ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th May 2008 After a visit to Stanford Hall VW Show and a bit of badgering from Laura, I decided to go and have a look at a rather interesting beetle for sale. John & Jenn decided that they would come as well, so we went over to Warwick in convoy with “Vicky”. I think the owner was surprised to see a big orange bus turn up outside his house!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sometime in June 2008 The price was sorted and the time was right to collect “Genie” from Warwick. We collected her on the back of a transporter as she was totally unroadworthy, she arrived back at her temporary home on my Nan`s drive. It didn`t take long to find out what was wrong with her, initial investigation should have set off the usual VW alarm bells. So the bodywork bits that need to be done are? Both Heater Channels, LH Front Qtr Floor Pan, Front Bulkhead Inner & Outer, Wheel Well, Rear Closing Plates for Heater Channels, Both Front Inner Wings, Replace both Doors, Respray. Other works included. Sorting out wipers, all lights not working, engine running routhly, brake pipes and shoes (maybe) all round. New Interior!! Or Seat Covers for now!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sometime in July First cut with the angle grinder!! All parts where sorced and work started, then as normal with the British Weather, down came the rain...... A temp cover was setup using some tarp and the carport. Lots of welding and panels where fixed in place. For all up to date pics then click this link - http://s92.photobucket.com/albums/l38/pgb2022c/Genie/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the mean time, I got in touch with Autohaus Feser in Germany to see what info I could get and some freebies.. Thanks to Tibor as I recieved a parcel a few days later with some new window stickers and some number plate surrounds, you got to love those Germans. http://www.vw-feser.de/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All original documentation came with her as well? —- All work was completed by Mid September 2008, I had a week of work and decided to grab some spray cans and get “Genie” sprayed. I know its not ideal using cans but the price has dictated this bit. Anyway not that a bad job done?? Halfway? Almost done? Complete?? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- November 2008 Visit to Germany to see relatives and grabbed a few itmes to finish off “Genie” ADAC Map for area she came from and an ADAC Brass car badge for the bumper to go along with the original ADAC 1st Aid Kit. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Late November 2008 After a visit from John, we found the problem with the brakes and the strange liquid from the rear wheels, “Genie” needs shoes, cylinders and a general clean on the rear brakes. She also needs rear axle seals replacing. Work should recommence over Christmas week. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thats it for now!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21st February 2009 Genie is on her way to BugBarn (http://www.the-bugbarn.co.uk), speak to Ray or Richard... Thats the advert over. She is hopefully going to be on the road at start of March, work and time have taken over so no chance for me to finish her off so she going to get last bits done and a nice MOT - 1st one in 18 Years!!! Hopefully next log will be her all done and on road -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28th February 2009 Update: New fuel tank required and sender, brakes being done, should be back by Saturday 7th March 2009!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th March 2009 Update Genie has PASSED her M.O.T.!!!!!!!! Ok she failed but only on a wheel bearing so as far as concerned she passed, all the welding I completed was good enough, so not bad for a 1st timer!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th March 2009 Update Had her retest today, all ok then on way back to garage the master cylinder went!! Will be completed tomorrow so with insurance cert in hand and V5 plus the MOT i can tax the old girl and drive her properly, pics to follow -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th March 2009 She is on the road, picked her up at 5pm today. Got Tax and M.O.T. Went for a drive to get used to a Bug again and driving a LHD car!! Idle went on way home but a quick call to John and he sorted it for me... Final Fix THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR HELPING WITH THIS PROJECT. IT HAS BEEN A JOURNEY TO GET IT FINISHED AND ITS ONLY JUST BEGUN!! Next thing is a shake down and iron out any problems with her and then start in April to get the rest of the paint finished and a few bits and bobs and then onto Stanford Hall for her first show and hopefully will be entered as a daily drive bug. Oh and for Laura to take her for a drive as well!! EEEK! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14th March 2009 Update Well shakedown is going ok, she broke down twice day after got back from garage, all to do with old fuel lines and rust from the old tank, several strip downs of carb and idle jet and she was kinda working, still kept cutting out when low revs. Fixed this by taking off all the new cheap ass China/Brazilian rubbish and fitted some old bits left over from my old 69 Bug, works a treat no more running problems. Gear change sorted out as well, very babdly damaged gearshift plate, several hits with a hammer cured this as well. All running ok and soon to have a proper run out. Took Genie to see her old owner the other day and I hope he was as pleased as he looked when he spied her sat outside his house, he even took her for a drive which I know he enjoyed, although couldnt get on with the gear change but then he hadnt driven her since 1994 ish I think. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd May 2009 Stanford Hall VW Show Genie made her show debut at the Stanford Hall Show, although only parked in car park and not on disply just yet!! All was well with the drive and she did her owners proud -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28th June 2009 30 Degrees in the shade!! Fixed the heating in Genie, she is now being called “Toaster!!”. However still need to sort out the heater cables so I can turn the damn things off!! Far too HOT!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5th July 2009 BVF Show Went for day out to BVF Show at Malvern, spent a bit of time walking round and then decided to go and join VWOCGB (Been meaning to do this for ages but never got round to it!!) After speaking to the very nice people in the club and telling them about Genie, they very kindly said I could bring her in to go on the stand for a bit. I was very apprehensive about this as she is not fully fit yet and still gets a few comments about being a late beetle. I`m so glad I did cause she had a few visitors taking pictures and wanting to know her history.... Very proud daddy Thanks to the VWOCGB and Clare for all your help and I look forward to showing her at VW Action in September -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd August 2009 Original Grundig Emden Radio taken to John for repair, I hope he can fix -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8th August 2009 More paintwork completed on Genie, “Jeans” logo removed from decklid as European didn`t have this?? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 23rd August 2009 Genie a bit sick, doesnt idle and oil leak. Problem with idle solved as carb nut had come away so air was getting into the intake housing!! Oil leak either appears to be leaking oil filler (oil leaking out and running along the fan housing in the gap) and hopefully with a good clean with brake cleaner I have removed any deposits and should show signs of improvement or it does more likely look like oil cooler as oil is coming out of fan housing on the distributor side of engine, so a run over next couple of days should prove which is which!! Spoke to John about Radio and he has fixed it for me and put new LED into so it lights up again.... 5 Star again thanks John -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 29th August 2009 GOOD NEWS!! Dont have an oil leak, does appear to have built up over some time from a leaking breather pipe and made its way under the fan housing, when I sprayed engine cleaner it diluted it and started running out like water.... BAD NEWS!!! Oops!! Its does have an oil leak!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th September 2009 BEETLE DRIVE - CRICH TRAMWAY MUSEUM Been looking forward to this show for ages, set off at 6am to meet up with John (Vicky) and drove up to Crich in convoy along the A610. We met up the the guys from the VWOCGB and found our spot and parked up. All cars were set up and ready for the show. Great show had by all and loads of pics taken, best of all was being entertained by Brendon (Tigger!!) and his Accordion!!!!!! Thanks again go out to the VWOCGB for thier hospitality -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17th October 2009 After much deliberation, I decided that the oil leak needs to be looked at!! I haven`t taken a bug engine out for about 10 years so was feeling a bit nervous. All went to plan, engine out and tineware removed. Little problems!! One engine bolt missing so Genie been running with 3! And when fan housing removed I noticed that the thermostat and flaps have been removed at some point in the past, probably when the engine was changed in Germany!! New seals fitted to oil cooler and engine refitted, just a few things to put back tomorrow, then will run up and see if problem solved?? Engine Dropped!! Oil Cooler Culprits!!!!!! Then someting strange, when removed tinware, I found a switch with chopped wire!! Apparently its a sensor for Fuel Injection!!! (Thanks to John for info) Sensor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18th October 2009 Oil Leak now officailly cured!!!!!!!!!!! Although another problem is a wobble on front drivers wheel, the hub nut doesnt appear to be tightened properly!! The only problem is the garage that replaced the brakes had tightened the wheel bolts up too much so now I`ve got to get a flame on them to heat them up to undo them!! This should be done in the next few days hopefully... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18th October 2009 PART 2 Wheel wobble sorted, found a better wrench and took wheel off, hub nut was loose!!!! Tightened up, now all ok. Busy weekend but hopefully all problems solved!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6th January 2010 SNOW!!!!!!! No work for a while me thinks as she is snowed in, shame the bloody hills are miles away so cant even walk and enjoy the snow with my bodyboard, times like this when wish still lived in my old village!!

My brother got married in his bug, not literally, I mean, that was the car he used to get to and from the church...

Here it is looking lovely...

This is how it looked under the bonnet when i bought it.

How many different key designs are there?

My Beetle key fits the lock (and unlocks) the doors on the T4 van! Is it a strange coincidence or are there only 5 different VW keys in the world? 

hi again been a very bizzy week, finished mikes splity. the intirior in two tone leather cloth,very retro........... hope you like the photos.

im starting a 1975 yellow bay, only replaceing the cab roof  linning and the rear roof linning around the pop top, hope you like if any of you need any tec info just contact me i be happy to help...bye for now

colin.

hi this is the first of many vans which im hoping to shere with you all, please enjoy and contact me if i can help any of you on any tec questions you might have........... colin

 If anyone is looking for VW auto trimming services have a look under vw services in the classifieds.

colin

While I dream of an incredible golf/beetle hybrid (clearly getting it's looks from Nell the bug) I think I've got to consider what to do when the ice thaws next March / April...

Will I be putting her through the stress of a C.T (French MOT) or should I leave her for another six months and trailor her back to Norfolk?

I was hoping to get her French legal and converted over to left hand drive (keep an eye out for a LHD dash). I really want a metal dash and not a crappy plastic mexican one, because they look shit, though... I may have to learn to weld... can't be too hard can it? I've tried it a few times and I admit I wasn't the neatest of welders, but I suppose practise makes perfect... That battery tray area will probably need some TLC by then too... hmmmmmmmmmmmm

 

James and I did a lot this week.  We wanted to brake the back of the stuff we had left.  This week we have manage to do the following

• Installed new accelerator cable
• Installed a new set of heater cables
• installed a new clutch cable
• Installed the vacuum pipe for the servo brakes
• Installed new wiper grommets and wipers
• Installed new sun visors
• Cleaned up and installed the rear view mirror
• Sort out some of the wiring mess - the ignition circuits are now almost complete.
• Replaced the steering column with the correct one (Had a late column on an early dash - doesn't work).  Did you know their are 3 different type of steering wheel on a Bay.  Which one you use depends on the age of the bus.
• Installed more of the sound deadening
• Put the shiny new VW badge on the front
• Put on the new wing mirror on the ns.
• Replaced the crappy clips used for holding the pop top down with tie down brackets from a Westy roof. 
• Put down the new funky cow print lino in the back of the van.
• Installed the new replacement matting that goes under the cab seats and wraps round to the back. 
• Tidied up the fuel line in the engine bay.
• Installed new fuel line from the tank to the fuel pump (all fuel line has been replaced now)
• The drivers cab door is off to have the pins replaced as it drops slightly and makes it difficult to shut
  

All in all it has been a good week and the van looks like it is nearly there.

Next week is getting the wiring finished, the van running and the roof repaired.

 

I am so lucky to have the help of Jamie.  A lot of the work on my van would have been botched without his patient considered assistance and guidance.

I also have to thank Eric for his help on the engine and big Tony and Everest for the bodywork.

The van is almost finished after 3 years.  

 

 

 

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/100_3423.jpg

 

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/100_3425.jpg

 

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/100_3422.jpg

 

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff192/kombijon/100_3421.jpg

 

 

the front guards are almost done, got some trouble with the primer reacting at the bottome edges of the front guards, the rear guards are all good, the inside of the guards have been liberally painted with a blue enamel paint! 

ive also got a heap of work done to the body of the notch, there were some dodgy bits at the rear window near the gutters, but they've been sorted now!

still unsure about the kombi running gear, one guys told me its a no-boner! but i'm not so sure, i've also found some porsche cheyenne alloys, and some audi RS8 alloys, both look stunning, but which route do i take?? i guess i'll have to wait n see! more next week uh?

Here\'s alink to some more pics of my old bug, I miss it but I wasn\'t pratical with a family so oot with the bug in wi the bus.

 http://s258.photobucket.com/albums/hh241/leeco10/?albumview=slideshow

We moved house awee while back and I haven\'t got my new garage built yet so the bus resto has stalled for the moment, hope to have it ready for bug freeze but I think i\'m on to plumbs lol.

Hi all, I've been working on my split van project since Feb this year after selling my old bug to a girl from the Isle of Wight.

I started with what I thought was a realistic budget of £7.5K, considereing I only payed £800 for the bus I thought this would be plenty. But I when i started working on it, it was bad, very, very bad and needed a lot of new metal. Rot isn't always hard to replace but this bus had botched repairs on top of other botched repairs making it a right royal pain. I'm an marine electrician to trade but learned lots while working on the beetle, so I can do most things myself with help from friends and family, this helps keep the costs down.  

I'm mibbee going to do a resto thread on here if I get time, I've got one running on the west of scotland and ssvc sites.

Here's a link to what I've done so far.

http://vwscotclub.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=6138

Cheers for now, Brian.

Just o say good luck with the new site- looks very promising - Patrick

hello

right here goes i bought my bug just over a year ago as a project for something to do over the winter

I bought it from a well knowen auction site,unseen so it was a bit of a gamble

when it first arrived on the back of a lorry it did'nt look bad,i knew it needed welding, brakes,suspension work and the electrics sorted

anyway i took it off the lorry put the key in and it fired up right away and ran quite good

next was to have a poke around with a screwdriver and find the rust.

rust was found in the normal places as usual,heater channels, sills,door post ,foot wells etc.

(have a look at the pics in my profile and you will see how i repaired the infected areas)

when i gave the firewall a good stabbing with the screwdriver /hammer it kind of died,so i cut the lot out rear floor also

cut grind weld grind and so on for who knows how many hours but in the end sorted.

The brakes were a easy fix ,a couple of pipes replaced ,free up the calipers and fit a new brake pedal return spring sorted

the suspension just needed the tracking done sorted

steering was down to steering box needing a rebuild sorted.

Next was the sparks>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

still fixing that ,it's an old loom i'll replace it bit by bit but make it a type of modular loom,that way any problems and its just replace the offending section.

MOT next>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

fail,bad earth on the tail light sorted

Pass

On the road now. 

Well I'm not the most technical person, I'm one of those office people that don't know how to get their hands properly dirty.

But as I own a true beetle, I need to get up and do some stuff. Already had some things falling of and failing to work, which I manage to do myself, Woohoo! Yeah me!!!

First the RHS window didn't want to close anymore so had to put in a "new" window mech, which I thought would be easy, well it was, just needed to be a bit forceful as I didn;t expect the mech to go between the inside of the door and the quarterlight, ah well learned something new there. Next the window wipers quit on me, but all these needed were just a good greasing up.

So along the way I'm learning new stuff and enjoying hugely (no sarcasm here people).

Now I just need to get the surface rust sorted and then I can get on with the modifications!!

Will keep you all up to date about those!