Beetlebaum: The 1973 Super pulled from a Junkyard

Beetlebaum · Posted: Sun May 24, 2015 7:07 pm Post subject:

This afternoon, my family and I went to the BugOut here in Virginia. I had a whole lot of fun (and got more excited about VWs than I've been in three years!), plus, I bought some essential parts for Beetlebaum. Perhaps soon he'll be functional again.

Here's a cool picture of today's drag racing.

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

And so, when I got home, heedless of the darkening sky, I wanted to do something exciting on Beetlebaum, so I hooked up the aftermarket trunk light which the PO installed but seemingly never had hooked up! The light now has a fully-functioning switch on the dash (with LED light to alert me when it's on!), and it lights up the trunk satisfactorily.

Does anyone know whether I can change out the intake manifolds (bolting onto the cylinder heads) without taking out the engine? I bought new manifolds, gaskets, and boots at the show.
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2003 New Beetle
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caleb0101 · Posted: Sun May 24, 2015 7:40 pm Post subject:

EA812 · Posted: Mon May 25, 2015 10:43 am Post subject:

Yeah just pull the engine it's really easier.
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Beetlebaum · Posted: Wed May 27, 2015 3:19 pm Post subject:

EA812 · Posted: Wed May 27, 2015 5:44 pm Post subject:

joeyk803c · Posted: Thu May 28, 2015 8:09 pm Post subject:

Best part is putting the motor back in! A motorcycle jack works wonders.

Beetlebaum · Posted: Thu May 28, 2015 8:20 pm Post subject:

Well, guys, give a warm welcome to...none other than my brother, using the username DieselDork! And don't worry; I'll be sure to teach him how to post pictures so he doesn't post a topic asking about that! Wink

He's been corrupted and is purchasing a 1998 Jetta TDI tomorrow afternoon, so he's joining TheSamba. Expect pictures of George the Jetta posing alongside Beetlebaum the Super Beetle tomorrow once he gets the car home. Cool

Oh, and tomorrow, I'll disassemble my engine partially so that I may get my intake manifold off; then, I'll inspect and reinstall it with fresh gaskets before putting the engine back in. We'll see whether that fixes my issues! If not, I'll try more troubleshooting. Confused

Also tomorrow: George the Jetta isn't the only car that may come home. I might be purchasing a Toyota Tacoma to replace my dying Contour. We'll see. Eh?

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2003 New Beetle
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EA812 · Posted: Fri May 29, 2015 10:24 am Post subject:

Look real closely at that Tacoma's frame! The 1rst and 2nd gen Tacos had major frame rot issues but not all of them.
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Herbie build
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Beetlebaum · Posted: Fri May 29, 2015 2:42 pm Post subject:

Beetlebaum · Posted: Fri May 29, 2015 5:43 pm Post subject:

Here's the first of many pictures of the new Jetta! And here's proof that my Super Beetle and his Jetta are (peacefully) sharing the driveway while staring face-to-face.

He's starting a build thread here in a few minutes, so I'll link to that once it's up. Sure, I know a water-cooled VW isn't what most of you like, but at least he's been converted to VW in general! Wink

And I'm about to go out to reassemble Beetlebaum's engine once more. I've got new gaskets and such.

EDIT: Here's my brother's thread. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6...highlight=
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1973 Super Beetle
2003 New Beetle
Post your Super here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331999
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Beetlebaum · Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2015 7:25 pm Post subject:

Well, I've been super busy this summer, which leaves no time at all for Beetlebaum. That said, I replaced his turn signal lenses with some newer ones we got from a Bug in a junkyard! What a difference they make!

And, what's this? Something seems to be following the truck!

Meet my 2003 New Beetle with 1.8L turbo engine! It will replace my rusty Ford Contour as my daily driver. The Bug is not in perfect mechanical shape--it's going to the mechanic to get work done to make it stop leaking oil like the Exxon Valdez--but it looks amazing. Cosmetically, the car is great.

Wait, where have I seen this "green Bug on a trailer" thing before? Oh, that's right. I seem to have a knack for purchasing green Beetles that need to be towed home.

Look! Color-matched seats!

And door panels!

Getting it off the trailer at home...

The old and the new: Beetlebaum and his new friend. No name for the new one yet; that'll be determined once I start driving it after it gets repaired early next week!

And yes, for some reason, this New Beetle smells like crayons on the inside. It's a quirk that I actually find hilarious and love.
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1973 Super Beetle
2003 New Beetle
Post your Super here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331999
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73sports · Posted: Wed Jul 29, 2015 7:34 pm Post subject:

It's the leather. I've heard that for years now from people that have 4th gen cars with leather interiors.
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Beetlebaum · Posted: Sat Aug 01, 2015 1:30 pm Post subject:

EA812 · Posted: Sun Aug 02, 2015 4:24 am Post subject:

I like the wheels on the new one. There used to be a black one like that in the hood with them same wheels and a wing on the back. Kinda cool having a new one to go with the old one;)
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Herbie build
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=336044

Beetlebaum · Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 5:11 pm Post subject:

Hey all! Not too much new with me, except that I'll have a lot more time over the next year or so to dedicate to the noble cause of Beetlebaum.

Ok, that wasn't entirely true. I haven't done anything with Beetlebaum, but I did finally decide on a roadmap of how I want to proceed with my slow restoration.

And so...announcing the plan for the next few months for my '73...

Beetlebaum's going to get painted! I'm going to embark on a journey of bodywork and rust repair over the next few months so that I can have him all prettied up by next summer. It should be pretty simple--I'm certainly not going for a perfect paint job, but I definitely want to reinvigorate the look of the car. Also, the rusty spots are starting to move beyond what I'm comfortable with. He will, of course, remain Sumatra Green. Look for that to happen, if I'm lucky, early 2016.

I also plan to get a new headliner and finally clean up the interior a bit more. I'm calling this plan Beetlebaum's Reboot, since he definitely is in a sorry state. And of course, I hope to get him running soon too. But that's the eternal saga, as you know...

Finally, I got my New Beetle, named Jenny, back from the shop on Saturday! She's not in perfect shape--in fact, I'm going to do a good bit of suspension work tomorrow, since a bushing on the control arm went out today. But she's a heck of a lot of fun to drive. Here she is next to a New Beetle that's in rough condition on the inside.

Fun fact: she's a limited-edition "Cyber Green Color Concept", which is why she has so much green everywhere. Only 2,000 of the green ones were made.

And here she is with Beetlebaum.

Oh, and, if anyone near Virginia has a rear driver's side original German fender for a 1973 for sale, please let me know. My current fender is a Mexican replacement and is shaped slightly differently than is an original one, so I want a German one for when I repaint the car. Thanks!
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1973 Super Beetle
2003 New Beetle
Post your Super here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331999
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Blue Baron · Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2015 4:31 pm Post subject:

Congrats on the Turbo. It's very nice. But our hearts are with Beetlebaum.
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Beetlebaum · Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 9:34 am Post subject:

Beetlebaum · Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2015 12:56 pm Post subject:

Aaaaand...

Beetlebaum is back! Well, sort of. I actually did something somewhat worthwhile to him today, so, that's a good feeling.

First, I washed his windows, since, when the tornado came through, a lot of weird sap-like fluid ended up inside Beetlebaum all over his windows. (Yeah, that means that he's been gross for over a year now...but at least I finally fixed that!) Now his windows are decent enough that I don't hate their condition anymore.

Secondly, I finally managed to get the fresh air box open after much struggling. What a sticky gasket thing that was. I vacuumed out the (surprisingly little) leaves and debris from it and tried to get the fresh air fan to work, to no avail. That was a disappointment, but at least I got him cleaned up in there. And, most importantly--and perhaps most surprisingly, given the condition of the rest of the car--there was no rust under the debris in the fresh air box!

Finally, because I finally had the box open, I replaced the windshield washer fluid hose that goes in there, but I have yet to reconnect it to the steering column.

So, there you go: as is my norm, when cooler weather rolls in and it begins to feel like fall or winter, I did some good work to the car. Dancing

Here's his fresh air box for anyone who is curious how a 1973 Super Beetle fresh air box looks on the inside. (And that way, if anyone Googles the thing, they can find a decent-ish picture. I had a heck of a time finding any good pictures of the inside of the thing.)

(Oh, and I finally hooked up my radio again. I appreciate that sort of small thing, and it made working on him much more pleasant.)

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1973 Super Beetle
2003 New Beetle
Post your Super here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331999
Beetle Bums VW Club Member

Beetlebaum · Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2015 4:10 pm Post subject:

Alrighty, so, it's been almost a month--and I've accomplished nothing except figuring out the direction in which I need to take my restoration.

The fan for the fresh-air box is still seized, so I just shut the box and ignored it. Wink

Shockingly, his paint has begun to fail and fade at an alarming rate lately. Beetlebaum is going to enter into what I'm calling a "grunge phase", because he's going to look like the typical project car, full of primer and such. I'm also going to tear out his nasty OG headliner (which is all shredded apart in places) and shall make him a new headliner out of fabric from a local store.

Basically, I've had a reality check of just how much work Beetlebaum needs since getting that 2003 New Beetle. Shocked

Also, what would you all suggest I use to get the road junk out from under the fenders? I want to clean that area and put some undercoating on before my Super starts to rust away even worse.
_________________
1973 Super Beetle
2003 New Beetle
Post your Super here: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=331999
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Beetlebaum: The 1973 Super pulled from a Junkyard
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