A few years ago I owned a beautiful Purple 73 manual Bug and I loved her, then after a close call in the rain one night I decided to give her up. I've morned her ever since.
I've just left my job as a Sales Rep and thus lost my company car and I've decided to buy another Bug! I found one that seems OK, but it is a Semi-Automatic. Are there any problems I should be aware of with these gearboxes? Will it be a lot more trouble than a manual?
they're reliable...............well considering the car is now 35yrs old ! Its just the semi auto's are becoming hard to find, and parts are also hard to find. I knew one person paying over $2500 to fix the gearbox !
Its not that much, but it involves sourcing a manual box (easy - expect to pay about 200-300), you need to weld in a clutch tube (not too hard), modify the shift mechanism, and get a manual pedal assembly (easy).
I dont know how much it would cost, but I dont think it would be more than 500 or 600 all up including purchasing the gearbox
i drive a semi-auto.. and am all for keeping all semi-autos that way.. BUT!!!
great thing about these cars is that if you DO convert to manual it has IRS and you know 100% it came from a factory in Germany.. as all were german imports..
also check the badge on it.. see if it is an AUTOMATIC Stickshift.. or a VW AUTOMATIC badge.. the auto stickshift is extremely rare here in australia.. and i believe i have the only one on the original car.. there r a few repro's floating around.. but im keen to find another real one here🙂
they are a lot of fun to drive - not having to bother w/ clutch, and you can take off at the lights in any gear.. and you wont stall!!!!!.. as reliable as a manual.. no loss in performance (range 1 acts as the range 1 + 2 in a manual)
every week i see atleast one in the trading post.. so parts may not be as hard as you'd think.. but theyre definatley a lot harder than a manual.
