First car and a bugd to boot!....some assembaly required..

[cyrus-the-virus]

Finaly got a good deal on a car! A 1968 VW bug, 4 speed manual. Got it for free, just got to put it back togeather again.

http://www.putfile.com/album/184382

Honestly I'm looking forward to working on the car! But I got a few questions if anyone cares to answer.

Are there any bad things I should know about the bug(or this year of but in particular)?
Anything you would recomend me doing to this car?(besides the obvius driving it)

Just thought i'd share it with you guy's

[MoeMag]

Well to start, the engine goes in the back there on that spline shaft sticking out.



Other than that, its a bug. grab a wrench, some bailing wire and it will run forever.

I used some bailing wire I found on the side of the road to fix my throttle cable one time. worked so well... it stayed in there for about a year until I took it in to get tuned, and they said they put a new cable in for me... told me I didnt have to pay for it if I didnt want too.

[cyrus-the-virus]

Well to start, the engine goes in the back there on that spline shaft sticking out.



Other than that, its a bug. grab a wrench, some bailing wire and it will run forever.

I used some bailing wire I found on the side of the road to fix my throttle cable one time. worked so well... it stayed in there for about a year until I took it in to get tuned, and they said they put a new cable in for me... told me I didnt have to pay for it if I didnt want too.

haha, good to hear. Hey how hard are they to work on? I haven't had the time to look into it too much.

[Lohman446]

The torque spec on the big nut on the flywheel (the gland nut) is something like 250 foot lbs (double check that number in the manual) and they mean it - don't tighten this far enough and you destroy an engine.

There a fairly cheap rebuild if you want to get into it, however being a cased engine its harder than most people would think to get everything lined up when doing it. There are plenty of VW fan clubs out there and parts suppliers to keep it running for years.

They were never overpowered by any means, playing it the 40-60HP game stock - if you start building them higher you need to worry about the transmissions that were not made to handle a lot of power.

The heater systems suck, basically using exhaust to heat the vehicle. Never ran one in the winter though

[doc_Zox]

John Muir is your lighthouse

http://www.amazon.com/Keep-Your-Volkswagen-Alive-Anniversary/dp/1562614800

http://www.type2.com/bartnik/tech1.htm

http://home.arcor.de/silke.fokken/sounds/

[neppo1345]

I didn't know the VW bug was a mid engine

GL...keep us updated.

[sandfreestyle]

If you really want to get serious into it, look into a long travel a-arm conversion in the front and like 3x3 trailing arms in the rear. You can also do a Subaru engine conversion if you want to. Just need to look into an uped transmission like a build sand box or a Mendeola if you have a ton of money to spend ($7000 starting).

IMO, do a baja bug project. Tons of fun to play with and very reliable. They are also not as expensive to do as you would think.

[punkncat]

Dude!!! Nice find, for free no less.

First thing, West Coast Metric. Pick up a book. They have EVERYTHING you need for that car. They did actually get in some trouble a while back for using actual VW symbols so some of the parts no longer have the "official" logo on them.
Up until very recently (if not still) those cars were still being made new in Mexico. There are a ton of really good factory spec parts avaiable for them. Just as a hint use the good Bosch or Ellis electric components, its worth it.

Those things are SO easy to work on, and very few tools needed to do it. A few hints I may suggest through my experiance with them. Change oil frequently, and check the little screen in the "oilpan" often.
Keep some helicoils handy for when you inevitably strip the spark plug hole. Using anti sieze will help a lot with that problem.
If you plan on actually using the heat make sure your collectors are in good shape. The heat is generated from the cooling fan blowing forced air over the exhaust and then into vents in the car. If the collectors are bad then you will be poisoned with gases. If you do not use the collectors make SURE that you correctly seal the port holes out of the fan shroud or you will overheat your engine. As a side note to this, ALWAYS carry a clean towel in your car for rainy days. Unless you are moving very little air blows from the defroster. You will have fogging issues....
Make sure your lugs are on tight, those cars will rattle them loose.
If that is the one with drum brakes (I cannot recall what year they switched over) carry the modified spoon with you always. You will need that to adjust out your pads to have working brakes.
Watch the rear floorboards they have a tendency to rot and put your foot through at the worst time.
Make sure your battery is secure in the engine compartment, unless it is moved under the seat.

I could go on for days....enjoy your Bug.

[cyrus-the-virus]

lol I will. I'm planning on taking out the back seats and replacing them with speakers so I don't have to worry about anyone putting their foot through the floor


I guess I have a lot of work to do looking into everything you people have said, deffinetly a lot more help than I got on pbnation =/

EDIT: One other question, would this year of bug have power stearing?

[punkncat]

lol I will. I'm planning on taking out the back seats and replacing them with speakers so I don't have to worry about anyone putting their foot through the floor


I guess I have a lot of work to do looking into everything you people have said, deffinetly a lot more help than I got on pbnation =/

EDIT: One other question, would this year of bug have power stearing?

No year of bug had power steering. You were lucky to get air on one of these.

[cyrus-the-virus]

No year of bug had power steering. You were lucky to get air on one of these.

not even the newer ones?

I've been looking around at bugs for sale, these things seem to be going for a lot! I'm seeing a $4K avrage around here!

[maxama10]

Make sure to flush your radiator!

[MANN]

I wish you all the luck in the world. I have friends that have restored a few of them (I still dont understand why). I have worked on them enough to know if someone gave me one (today) I would smile, and say thanks but no thanks. I would have taken the challenge when I was younger, but not today. I am sure you will have no problem getting it back together and running. If you have any questions post them, and I will try to get answers for you.

If nothing else you have ~ 400 in scrap metal.

[cyrus-the-virus]

lol don't worry I plan on it.... people here have helped more than the people on pbnation automotive(who coulden't really say anything besides "lolz phail" with the engine at the front)

[edweird]

I still want to Rod out a VW bus, best of luck with your new project