This story started when we got the car, a 1972 VW SuperBeetle. The plan is to restore it and then covert it to electric. Note that all future posts will be tagged with Vocho — the common name for VW bugs here and in Mexico.
There is a lot of work to do on the car — not a surprise for a 45 year old vehicle. The plan is to restore the body first, fix any running gear issues and then do the electric conversion. I did my first “repair work” today.
I intended to fix the direction signals but got sidetracked when I found multiple wiring diagrams for a ’72 SuperBeetle, all different from what I have. As VW wiring is color coded I decided that the first priority was to get an official service manual which will have the wire colors in it. So, that’s ordered along with a restoration manual and John Muir’s “Idiot’s guide”. Along with the books I ordered a roof rack, some assorted tools such as the transaxle drain plug “key”, all the rubber body gaskets and new interior carpeting and seat covers.
I am still waiting for that shipment but I had separately ordered door checks. The existing ones were pretty dead and the hinges on the driver door have been damaged because of this. So, I saw it as a priority. They are now replaced and I have determined that the word “universal” means “almost”. The screw holes were a bit too far apart (hammer solved that) and the pin hole was too small (solved by a drill).
I have one new thing to add to the broken pieces list — the choke heater element. I could ignore this as the motor will get tossed but for $19 it is probably worth replacing. We’ll see.
That’s it for today. I hope to have a lot of parts in about two weeks and, most important, the official service manual. I need to know things like acceptable wear to the brake drums — different on the SB than on a regular bug. The good news is everything seems to be available.