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Can you put a 1300 front apron on a L BUG

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DylanTheDubber Custom Title Time!

1,252 posts · joined Jun 2009 ·

#728886
Hi everone , Could you put a 1300 front apron on a l bug and cut just infront of the windscreen of the l bug to fit the longer 1300 bonnet. for the rest of this year im going to be thinking of diifferent ways i could go with my project bug that will start hope fully next year to be finished in time to get my licence. So here is what i want and am considering different options to make it happen.
I want to have 1300 gaurds at the front.
IRS Rear suspension.
L Bug rear gaurds.
L bug dash ( which meens i need an l bug)
But i dont liike the shorter bonnet and te superbug apron.
Lol im a bit fussy ar'nt I.
All these are not concrete ideas and i dont NEED everything to be this way but im just trying to find out the best model beetle to go with.

helbus Administrator Mad fabricator, paint and body

7,386 posts · joined Sep 2002 ·

#728888
Because of the strut front end, the shape of the bonnet, guards, the panels the guards bolt to, and the apron are all differently curved. None of them are interchangeable. The actual curve of the bonnet opening is wider and more rounded, as is the bonnet, and where the guards bolt on. Sorry, but a Super front is a Super front.

You may prefer a 1302. Volkswagen S. They are a Super model. They have an older look with the Super mechanicals like IRS and strut front end. L Bug rear guards will go straight on. They have old style flat windscreen and dash. Someone else will fill you in on the other models with padded or later dashes.
EJ22 into Bay Microbus - Finished project build thread- click on this spot here for info

colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728897
Mate, I dont like the bonnet much either. but the way I see it is this.....

- you get a 68-70 1300 or 1500 with the beam front end and swing axle rear, get it lowered and shove L bug rear gaurds on and get a camber compensator so it feels better in the rear.

- get an L bug with the mcpherson strut front and IRS rear, which feels more like a modern car, has a better turning circle. Can chose between flat or curved screen.

Id say, that if your not looking to spend alot, there is no point trying to change front aprons and the bonnet, its a big task.

Not to burst any bubbles, just wondering what your thoughts are on orginality.... (ie, do you rather a stock looking car or something that is away from its original form - lots of fibreglass..)

If I was in your position.... id do alot of searching for a bug you really like, save lots of cash and buy something. rather than spending your money on body modifications, try and find something really solid (no major dings or rust) and spend your money on good brake upgrades, suspension upgrades and nice wheels.

In saying all this, everyone has their own tastes.

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 ·

#728900
you need to start the impossible hunt for a 74 on south african bug

thats what they are
Lbug dash and windscreen with a standard torsion bar front end and gaurds

bit of a factory abortion but dont tell dubb61 i said that 😂

colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728905
^ what are the down falls of those SA bugs?? Are they IRS???

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 ·

#728909
nah they got all 6 volt suspension

link pin front, swing axle rear and wide 5 drum brakes all round

colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728910
sounds terrible...

HappyDaze Superannuated

2,887 posts · joined Jun 2009 ·

#728915
colonel mustard wrote:sounds terrible...
What's so terrible about link-pins,swing-axles & drum-brakes?
I'd rather wear a Beetle out by racing it than by polishing it!

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 ·

#728923
nothing
he's just spoilt with discs, struts and IRS 😂

h fractals - an ever changing lifestyle

7,671 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#728925
anything is possible with alcohol, gas axe and a welder..
fractal geometry; the inner most limits of mind altering abuse

Fantasy http://seventhchronicle.com

Z = Z2 + C1/r = 1/0 = infinity

Barrels www.barrelman.com.au

VW Workshop - aircooledgarage.com.au
allcooled.com.au

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 ·

#728934
unfortunately thats been proven in nearly 800 pages of bastards and abortions on thesamba

DylanTheDubber Custom Title Time!

1,252 posts · joined Jun 2009 ·

#728936
Thanks guys for the quick replys. In regards to colernal mustards question, I dont mind a bit of fiberglass here and there and i love heavyily modded bugs but not to many mods. I think i will be going with an l bug then. i want to customise the l bug dash if i get an l bug. like this one in the photo.

Thanks guys.

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colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728937
Joel wrote:nothing
he's just spoilt with discs, struts and IRS 😂
well.. yes I am.... but what is wrong with it, is its a late 70's car running 60's gear.... thats a bit silly.....

trickysimon 100km/h is only 9 seconds away

1,473 posts · joined Dec 2007 ·

#728960
Could say swapping elephant feet taillights of a >73 is silly🙄

colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728963
trickysimon wrote:Could say swapping elephant feet taillights of a >73 is silly🙄
I don't understand. Do you mean "off"???
Do you mean you could put elephant feet lights on an earlier bug???

Joel Now containing 100\% E-Wang

9,368 posts · joined Feb 2006 ·

#728966
colonel mustard wrote:
Joel wrote:nothing
he's just spoilt with discs, struts and IRS 😂
well.. yes I am.... but what is wrong with it, is its a late 70's car running 60's gear.... thats a bit silly.....
south africas a third world country
vehicle safety clearly wasnt parramount there, so they didnt update with model changes like most other countries

hell in 1975 you could still buy a brand new splitty that looked like our mid 60s splittys

trickysimon 100km/h is only 9 seconds away

1,473 posts · joined Dec 2007 ·

#728967
Thankyou for picking up on my spelling error 🙂
I guess all that posting really did make you wise 🙂

colonel mustard Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,829 posts · joined Feb 2009 ·

#728969
It's just the internet.

Anyway, I still don't know what you meant by that post...

68AutoBug Beetle Restorer - Experience over 138\% - YIKES --

11,654 posts · joined Aug 2002 ·

#728994
DylanTheDubber wrote:Hi everone , Could you put a 1300 front apron on a l bug and cut just infront of the windscreen of the l bug to fit the longer 1300 bonnet. for the rest of this year im going to be thinking of diifferent ways i could go with my project bug that will start hope fully next year to be finished in time to get my licence. So here is what i want and am considering different options to make it happen.
No...No..No..
I want to have 1300 gaurds at the front. Early or Late??
IRS Rear suspension.???
L Bug rear gaurds. L tail lamps on any guards.
L bug dash ( which meens i need an l bug) YIKES

Dylan,
You don't really want an "L" or 1303S Super....
only good thing they had was the IRS rear end... IMHO
My 68 automatic beetle also has IRS rear end...

but it also has the tail lamps I like... amber red clear
I have a 1976 engine lid with all the vents..

Now, a 1300 beetle was also made in the 70's..
it had the vertical headlamps like an "L" beetle..
Bumper bar was late model... so thats not what you want

but You can of course have an "L" Bug with fibre glass front guards with sloping Porsche headlamps...
these may still be available??? and at a cost...$$$



it would be much easier to buy a 1968> NON Super beetle and bolt on the early type of guards you want..
and early front bumpers too if you like them...
You can make a beetle Your individual creation..
any tail lamps you want... rear guards are very similar.
I built My beetle to what i wanted in a beetle...
Now I have it... lol

cheers

LEE

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- Helping keep Air Cooled VWs on the road - location: SCONE in the Upper Hunter Valley - Northern NSW 320 kms NNW of SYDNEY---

68AutoBug Beetle Restorer - Experience over 138\% - YIKES --

11,654 posts · joined Aug 2002 ·

#728998
It will be an eye opener for you Dylan when you see the South Africian 1303 beetle....

elephants feet tail lamps... but they don't fit into the rear guards like L beetles here.. weird...

torsion bar front suspension, swing rear axles, 5 stud wheels.. Drum brakes...
basically a 1962 beetle chassis with a "sort of" L beetle body....
its metallic green...

cheers

LEE
- Helping keep Air Cooled VWs on the road - location: SCONE in the Upper Hunter Valley - Northern NSW 320 kms NNW of SYDNEY---

VWCOOL 23 Windows of Awesome

5,158 posts · joined Jun 2003 ·

#729010
Yarpy body on an IRS/BJ or '68 Auto pan sounds like a good thing...
Pay your debts, CxxT

DylanTheDubber Custom Title Time!

1,252 posts · joined Jun 2009 ·

#729031
Yes , i Saw them in one of the VWMA issues not long back. But I would rather a povo pack beetle but don't want it to be known as povo pack. But Realy thats the beetle look i like because it's got the torsion bar front with the 1300 and 1500 front cut of the body like bonnet apron so on. And (I think) it has irs suspension. And i guess i would have to do lots of ugrades , say d and discs all round , upgrade the torsion bar suspension with all nothathane bushings or something like that. And not to mension the 1300 motor which i would'nt be using i would get a 1600 beetle motor and use it untill i have a couple of grand to build my own performance motor thats about a 1915cc(1916cc) or bigger but would'nt mind an 1835cc or there abouts so long as it has plenty of take of in it.

DylanTheDubber Custom Title Time!

1,252 posts · joined Jun 2009 ·

#729032
Lee , Also i do like the look of yours and like the bulge rear apron. Also the intierior looks good too with the customised dash for those extra guages. Looks great and i like it but all i would have to do to want it for myself is put a manual gear box in it and put l bug rear gaurds. I Do see what you said about the different elephants feet, i've wounded why they were like that.