buying a 1959 beetle. What to look for?

Hi All, been looking on this forum for ages and am looking for some help in buying a 1959 beetle I have been given 1st offer on buying.

I have always loved the beetle, ever since we had one as a family car when I was a little kid! I now have a son who loves them and used to want to get into everyone we saw. I am hoping this beetle will be a project for us both. I have been trying to find the threads on what to look for but can not find them. Can someone help please?

I am a mechanic so that side of things doesn't worry me, but just need to make sure the body is okay. The car has not been driven for a few years and has been stored inside for years as well. I have known of this car for at least 20 years, was a little old lady owner.

Its a non runner with a damaged left front guard, what do you suggest I offer? Thanks for any help you all can provide!

pics would help but these are very solid cars

check for rust under battery
and door pillars
also front fire wall lower corners joining the pillars....
make sure it def is a 59 as 60 was built in Aus and rust prone...

price depends if all std and no odd changes, on grd damage tails and semaphores are there an/ or working......so could be $2500 to $5500(with orig radio
tyres are a small cost. I have snowflakes, hubcaps, sema-parts speedos orig radio, wheel dress rings doorhandles and locks incl eng lock and more
can see car for u, if in Bris to fully assess!...just email

Thanks for the info. I will be taking photos tomorrow when I go and have a close look at it. I am pretty sure its all standard, old grandmas car, and although it has not been run in a while, I know it was driven in to the shed in the 1st place.

So if I am right, among other things, I am looking for rust where the door hinge pillar meets the floor and also the heater channels? So an aussie built one is not as good a base as import?

Where will the chassis number be? Under the rear seat base? Anywhere else as I think the interior will be full of spare parts! How do I identify the exact year and build country from the chassis number?

I am hoping the owners manual etc is in the glovebox to help with all this! Will let you know how I go!

fill in your location and peeps will know if they cab help

yes yes and yes for your answers

behind the spare wheel can be an id plate

also a date stamp on the speedo back under bonnet ....may say 9/1958 add ca 6 months and its a 59

RUST is the big issue

So I have taken a few photos, which I will try and get on here tomorrow. The car is an Australian built 1960 model. It has a square fuel guage in the dash next to the speedo. What model does them make it?

The car has done 77,000 miles. I was able to speak with the original owners family, who could tell me about all the dents etc on the car. The original engine is missing and the front bumper and mounting brackets, bonnet and impact damaged by a pole hit.

The spare wheel area and the left front guard have been lightly damaged at the same time. The body was rust free in the areas I have seen to check, the car has been garaged most of its life which has helped.

The floor pans are good too from above and below. The car is going to come with heaps of spares, like a disc brake front suspension and another, bigger engine.

Some how the battery area has caused a fire in the base of the back seat, but the rest of the area is okay. Its a 6 volt car, what is involved in changing to 12 volt?

The fuel gauge wasn't fitted to Aussie VWs until the second half of 1961, so this car may be later than you think. What is the chassis number? Look on the back of the speedo for a date stamp.

The Australian models and the major changes are described here:

http://www.clubvw.org.au/austvw001

Chassis number information is here:

http://www.clubvw.org.au/vwchassis

ditto Phi, lif its a 61 it should have the towel rail bumper tops
or
the gauge was retro fitted

Some Photos of the VW. Chassis number is 2756513, which states its a 1960 model, So does that mean the fuel guage was fitted later? What do the knobs on the dash do?

Damage that will need to be repaired. Can panels be bought for here is is it small enough to straighten out? Last photo is on the base of the pillar on the left. Looks okay?

RF pillar base area. The rego expired in 1997, So its been off the road for a long time, so I understand it will need a full restoration, all door seals are stuffed etc, but does the body look good enough to do? Mechanical side for me is easy, body stuff I am happy to learn, but don't want to buy a basket case. Thanks again for all your help.

Knobs are if still fitted correctly top lights,wipers bottom is choke next to ashtray

looks like a good car to resto and its all there

silver wrote:looks like a good car to resto and its all there

That was pretty much what I was thinking. I know it needs work, but a hell of a lot less than some of the ones I have seen. It has the semiphores that were working when it was parked in the shed, but the original owners had fitted the front guard indicators and things like that, but all the trims are there which would make things easier too!

buy it......thats in great condition 👍

It looks to be all original paint, so once a good panel shop pulls out the front (about 2 hours work max) that car would buff and detail up really well. If it was mine, I would just give it a full detail and only replace the rubbers etc that really need to be. Its a "survivor" car, so its worth more $$ in good original condition than restored IMO.

Craig Torrens wrote:buy it......thats in great condition 👍

It looks to be all original paint, so once a good panel shop pulls out the front (about 2 hours work max) that car would buff and detail up really well. If it was mine, I would just give it a full detail and only replace the rubbers etc that really need to be. Its a "survivor" car, so its worth more $$ in good original condition than restored IMO.

The paint is all original, I am told except for the right front guard which has been replaced. I was wondering about giving it a polish and see how it comes up! What would it be worth as it sits now? I am buying off a friend and want to do the right thing by all involved!

Mate thats the buissness right there!Dehenie?fuel guage is a nice ittle plus! that peice alone is a few pennys.Hope you spend a little time researching what you may have here as it has rubber floormats etc and looks super orignal.A full resto or a half ass job will ruin what looks to be one of the better finds of late.Best of luck

Just looked at those photos again,mate thats a spectacular bug.Check out the thread on carl and emilys 62 beetle it had a simular feel and came up a treat and is still quite orignal.

So I have just bought this car!!! Awesome! Will hopefully bring it home on Wednseday, take some photos and then put in the shed. Might not be working on it for a while, but that gives me plenty of time to find out more about the car and what I want to do with it. How do I find out how it left the factory, with what options etc? Looking forward to getting started on this project. Just have to finish a couple of others first!🙅

Sorry but there are no surviving Australian factory production records for individual vehicles - they were destroyed decades ago (the factory was sold and renovated in 1968, then again in 1976). As for accessories, they were not fitted at the Clayton factory, but rather by the VW dealerships prior to delivery. This includes things like mudflaps, rood racks, headlamp grilles, seat covers, radios etc etc.

If the car still has the original owner's paperwork - owners' manual, service booklet and paperwork etc etc - you might find out some more details.

That fuel gauge for example is a VW accessory.

Bugger! OOps sorry thats Toyota! Hahah!

I know it has all the books etc in the car also with every receipt they spent on it I am told! Will have a good look though all that as soon as I pick it up and go from there!

I had it confirmed today, the engine that comes with the car is a 1600 tp motor. I believe this is a good base motor because it has better heads? Where can I find out more about these motors? Is this a motor I will have to have engineered to fit for rego?

Twin-port 60-bhp 1600cc engines were not fitted to Beetles in Australia until the Superbug (Macpherson strut Bug) in 1971. These were 12-volt cars.

Your car would have originally had a 36-bhp 1200cc engine to go with its 6-volt electrics. These had an integral generator stand - that is, part of the crankcase casting. From 1961, the new 40-bhp 1200 had a separate bolt-on generator stand, as did all later 1300, 1500 and 1600 engines.

36-bhp parts and motors can still be sourced, but are expensive! 1600cc engines are the standard rebuild and replacement size nowadays. So long as you keep the engine stock-looking, with standard VW carb, air-cleaner and exhaust, you should be fine.

The year-by-year Aussie changes, and differences from German Beetles, are documented here:

http://www.clubvw.org.au/austvw001

Thanks for information, that's a great help. The beetle we had when I was a kid was a superbug! Might have to just clean up the engine to get it registered and then trick it up after that!

harasn wrote:

Craig Torrens wrote:buy it......thats in great condition 👍

It looks to be all original paint, so once a good panel shop pulls out the front (about 2 hours work max) that car would buff and detail up really well. If it was mine, I would just give it a full detail and only replace the rubbers etc that really need to be. Its a "survivor" car, so its worth more $$ in good original condition than restored IMO.

The paint is all original, I am told except for the right front guard which has been replaced. I was wondering about giving it a polish and see how it comes up! What would it be worth as it sits now? I am buying off a friend and want to do the right thing by all involved!

It's either late 1959 or early 1960...and very solid-looking. The paint [Alabaster?] would be 'Duco' lacquer, and should polish up well. It should have the 'softer' rear torsion bars, and a front anti-roll bar.

Potentially a great little early Beetle. 👍

what is the date stamp on speedo back? then go then add 6 mnths!!

bushed wrote:what is the date stamp on speedo back? then go then add 6 mnths!!

Once I get it in my garage on the weekend, I will have a look and let you know. The chassis number says its a 1960 model, as does the rego sticker. I will also look at the service books and work it out there.

I am not sure the paint will polish up, but I will certainly have a good look at it and have a try.

Yes your chassis is definitely a 1960 model - it's between 2528668 and 3192506. Your chassis number of 2756513 comes just over a third of the way through the 1960 numbers. For Australia, these numbers were assigned in batches by Wolfsburg and stamped locally as the cars were built. Given the Australian production year began at the start of the year, after the workers returned from the Xmas-New Year break (NOT the previous September, as per Germany), I am guessing your car dates around Easter 1960 or shortly after. As Greg says, the early 1960 cars had 'Duco' lacquer but this changed to baked enamel halfway through 1960.

It's defintely NOT a 1959 - it has the dished steering wheel with horn ring, and also push-button door handles. Originally it had no fuel gauge, and just used the reserve fuel tap on the floor, near the high-beam switch.

Beetles were in big demand in 1959-64 - in fact the 1960 model is still the highest-selling Beetle year in Australia (although 1964 sold more cars overall, thanks to the Type 3). They would have been sent to dealers and sold very quickly after coming off the line. After 1964, local sales dropped off and unsold cars began to accumulate in VW storage yards and dealer lots. By 1967, for example, a car could have been sold many months after it was actually built. This is especially true for the last year in 1976. The last one was made in July 1976, but dealer sales were recorded up to May 1977!

Yep, Phil...early 1960 looks right. 👍

Just a tiny correction - the late 1959 also had the dished steering wheel, along with push-button door handles, front anti-roll bar etc. As you say, in July, 1960 paint was enamel, plus blinkers replaced semaphores, and a few other slight changes were made. Still 36hp though.

You guys are awesome with all you know about these cars! I did not know they had a reserve switch for the fuel tank, did wonder how far they could go before running out! Like a motor bike!

Trailer all booked for tomorrow, so I will have more details on the car tomorrow when I go through the glove box with all the books etc in it! Can't wait!

All the door seals etc are stuffed, am I going to have trouble getting them all or will saying its a 1960 Australian built car be enough info?

1960 beetle will be enough info. Easy enough to get most parts for Volkswagens! 👍 Unlike a lot of other makes 🙂

Where are you located? We can tell you the closest and best place to get parts 😵‍💫

you have the rest of your life to learn
that car is no basket case a rare find in such condition

get it clean it out touch up rust inhibitor and use it as a rat until you have the $$ to repaint you can do bits of mechanical upgrades step by step.

I live in Lara, suburb outside Geelong in Victoria. I imagine there should be some good places in Melbourne to get stuff from? I know there is a geelong company around, but they have just moved and not sure where to!

I stuffed up the trailer booking for today to pickup the car, so will get it tomorrow morning. In a way it worked out well as I went out and sorted through all the parts and started bringing some home! I have a motor, a full front and rear suspension/gearbox off something with 4 stud wheels and front disc brakes and a gear box with bolt in driveshafts. I will post some pictures so you can tell me if they are worth keeping and using or not.

Had a fun day getting all this stuff home, but I want to only keep what I am going to use. I have another full gearbox andfront/rear suspension coming home tomorrow to, but it is the 5 stud large wheel centre pattern set. I notice the set I have home has ball joints on it, when did they change to them?

coletrickle wrote:Just looked at those photos again,mate thats a spectacular bug.Check out the thread on carl and emilys 62 beetle it had a simular feel and came up a treat and is still quite orignal.

Thanks Cole, It's nice to know you remember our car.

Here is the link to our 62
http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=96490&page=1
and to give you a comparison here is the link to our 68.
http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=97513&page=1
Which might give you some inspiration to have that damage repaired rather than cut cutting and replacing panels.
Especially since the nose crunch damage in front is/was similar.
An old panel beater once posed the question.
If you simply replace panels on a car rather than repair the originals, is it still the same car?
It's only original once and it appears that you have a fantastic mostly rust free original car.
That interior looks fantastic.
and are those the original cardboard covers in the front bonet area?
If so they also look in great condition and very hard to find.

I would encourage you to find one in worse condition if you want to go down the restoration route.

Depending on how much you bought it for you have a chance to get your money back on that in long run if you go down the preservation route.
In my opinion the classic car scene here is way behind that of the USA, Europe, and the UK. However have a look on sites such as http://www.thesamba.com/vw/ and have a look at the cars that bring the big money.
Of course it's your car to do with as you please.
But you really do appear to have great base for a 'survivor.'
Let it be proud of it's age.

I would even encourage you to find a correct year engine for that, or better yet try and find the original one.
Why is it missing???

May I suggest one important question to ask yourself if you are considering the restoration route. Because top restorations cost a bomb.
Is this the model of car that I always dreamed of to restore?

If it isn't then move this one on to someone like me🤓, and keep searching for your dream model of car.

We would all like heaps more photo's please.
Welcome to the wonderful world of vintage VW ownership.

Thanks Carl and Emily. I tried to find your thread from the earlier posts with no luck.

I have the car home now and have taken heaps for photos which I can post up if you like. I had a very light go at polishing a small area and was amazed to see it start to shine! Might go down the clean up route! I have always liked these cars and already looking forward to starting it.

The original engine apparently suffered a broken crank. Not sure how that happened, I have been able to get the details of the person who has it, but it was taken over 18 months again so not holding my breath!

I have a few projects around the house I have to do before I start getting the car back on the road, but my wife is now liking the car, rather than wondering if I had lost my mind now its out of the dusty shed it was in! She has also given my a time frame to have it back on the road by, its 60 birthday! haha

That's great that you have a lead on the original engine. I would definitely track it down if possible.
Even if you do nothing with it and put in another engine.
If the original stays with the car it probably would make it a more desirable car in the future if your circumstances change and you decide to sell the car.

Yes, definitately post more pics when you can. We all like to see them.

I noticed it still has a dealer service sticker on the drivers door jamb. That's very cool. Our's has one that looks the same. I would leave that there when you clean it, adds to the history of it.

Your dash is very cool. Nice and clean. YOu even still have the horn ring. Usually they are snapped off.
I would urge you not to cut the dash for a modern radio like so many have been.
and as previously said that probably dealer fitted fuel gauge is super cool, and the fact being your model you also have the benefit of a reserve tap. That was deleted for 62.5 model. and the more common fuel gauge became standard. (unless you bought a 'standard' model car)
Here is a post about standards.
http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=99135&page=1

It's great news when our better halves support funds being spent on these little cars. I'm sure you both will have a great time buggin' about when you get it on the road, but enjoy the journey getting it there.

It'll be great to see another one back on the road.

You really do have a great little 'diamond in the rough' there , fantastic find and save.

Carl

just to add to the allure....

August 59 chassis no started at 2528668 as has been mentioned earlier
December 59 chassis no were 2801613 (as per my VW factory workshop book, blue folder)

so late 59 chassis at least......

Hey Phil, I don't normally argue with your facts as you are the MASTER 😉😉

oh, forgot to say that the Geelong business you were refering to is Gary at Wolfsburg Automotive ph 03 9988 0799. Good guy and knows heaps about old VW's, in fact was there today.

Also try Boris at VWDS in Sydney 02 97891777

and I'm sure there are some others in Melb as well.

The back of the speedometer has 5.60 stamped on the back, among other numbers. So may 1960 build? I have put the car in the garage and rearranging the rest of the space to work around the new toy! Looking forward to working on it, so I better hurry up and get the other jobs done! Will post some more photos soon. I need to know what some levers are on the floor at the front and stuff like that, hope you guys can help with that!

Some more photos as requested! This is an awesome little car, everytime I am in the garage, my 11 year old son comes out and sits in the car, playing around! When I stir him about it all he says is "What? I can't help it, I have loved Herbies for as long as I can remember!" How cool is that! Can wait to get started on it!

Can any of you guys tell me what these levers/knobs are please? The rubber floor mat is in fine condition except someone has fitted speakers in the rear and cut the matt to run the wires. ggrrr!!!!

Seats are in okay condition, considering the age. Are the taillights the correct ones for this car? I have all the service books and I think almost every recept for anything done to the car, heads reconditioned, seat belts fitted and all that sort of stuff!

On the floor the lever is for the reserve fuel tank and the button is for high beam 🙂 Push on, Push off.

Think you're meant to have different tail lights to that? Someone else will confirm...

adlbeetle66 wrote:On the floor the lever is for the reserve fuel tank and the button is for high beam 🙂 Push on, Push off.

Think you're meant to have different tail lights to that? Someone else will confirm...

So the lever, which I first thought was just a hook on the firewall for the carpet is for the fuel reserve? I had seen the headlight switch on the floor. What is the knob next to the seats then?

I have the same faded light for the right tail light, so not sure if they are original or not. It is not meant to have the front guard indicators, so am not sure if they changed the tail lights too!

Those taillights are correct. They are the taillights fitted to Australian cars when the front blinkers were also fitted in 1960 Australian VWs had these until halfway through 1962. The Australian factory had some 'crossover' and often fitted older parts to newer cars until they were used up. Dealers of the time also updated older cars with newer parts as required or requested.

Those taillights were unique to Australia and Italy, so they are almost impossible to find NOS now. They were never fitted to US-spec or UK-spec cars so the American/UK VW parts places don't have them.

http://www.clubvw.org.au/austvw001

The knob under the seat is the position control. Lift the knob (to rotate the shaft) and the seat can slide forward or back. The larger knob on the tunnel, just next to the gearstick, is the heater control. You turn the knob and it pulls the heater cables, which open the flaps in the heat exchangers and the fan pushes the hot air into the cabin through the footwell vents and the windscreen bottom corners. The mid-1962 model added sliding covers for the front floor vents, and also rear outlets under the back seat.

You should buy a glovebox VW Owners' Guide ('Instruction Manual)' , which covers all the issues faced by new VW owners. They usually come up on Ebay. Keep it in its grey vinyl folder, with your service booklet, dealer folder and accessory booklet, in the glovebox.

Does this car have semaphores?
It's a bit hard to see in the pics.

If it does then the tail lights are not correct.

If it doesn't then like phil says they are correct and rare.

I notice that the front indicators appear to be in different positions on each side.
So there is a chance you have a replacement guard on there.

and in the front guard I notice its painted black. This should be body colour from factory.
So check for rust repair patches most commonly down near the heater channel.
This is a common repair.

Atleast they didn't cut your door cards for speakers. Install of speakers like that is part of it's history, common for the era.

Still a lovely original 'time capsule' bug.

I think I already have that book in the glovebox with the car! I will have to sort something out with the taillights as wont pass roadworthy faded! I have been spending heaps of time on the net researching everything I have, need to separate the 2 sets of driveshafts from the gearboxes so they are easier to store and things like that! All fun! Turns out the engine I have is a 1200, so atleast that will be easy to register the car with! This is all fun!

Carl and Emily wrote:Does this car have semaphores?
It's a bit hard to see in the pics.

If it does then the tail lights are not correct.

If it doesn't then like phil says they are correct and rare.

I notice that the front indicators appear to be in different positions on each side.
So there is a chance you have a replacement guard on there.

and in the front guard I notice its painted black. This should be body colour from factory.
So check for rust repair patches most commonly down near the heater channel.
This is common repair.

Atleast they didn't cut your door cards for speakers.

Still a lovely original bug.

The car does have the semaphores in the pillars, so what lights should it have. I know the right front guard was replaced previous to the hit in the front. I was also told it did not have the front guard indicators, that they put them on, that's why one is in wrong spot too! Its a good little car. Looking forward to working on it too. Are there any good vw clubs/shows I should attend/look at? I am in Geelong, Victoria

Ahh,. if it has semaphores then it would have had plain red taillights. and nothing on the front guards as you say.
What gave it away for me without being able to see the semaphores was the position of the lights themselves.
Somewhat lower than on my '62.5
I'm not up on the different types of red only tail lights, I'm sure someone on here will know and chime in.
Installation of indicators was a common 'upgrade' and might have happened early on in its life if they used 50/50 tail lights. (that's what yours are incidentally.)
You could possibly look at fitting the common tail lights like on mine to get you through road worthy, then keep an eye out for some 50/50's if you are going to retain the indicators.
I would, but maybe get the semaphores working also.
All part of it's history.
Very cool.

wow there are so many changes from year to year, makes it hard to work it all out. I will be getting the semaphores working for sure, I was very happy when I saw this car had them, always wanted them for some reason, lucky last model to have them by the sounds of it. So should the rear lights be like the flat lights on an oval window? Need a picture! haha! Then I know what to look for.

I will have to start going to swap meets and stuff like that for some of this stuff. I have a trip planned to America in feb/march next year, so might be able to find some interesting things over there! Already seem a rear view mirror and twin sunvisor kit for it.

yep, the rear lights should be the same as mid 55 to 59 Beetle so what is usually referred to as 'oval taillights, not to be confused with the 53-54-early 55 lights which are usually called..... opps brain freeze.....

So also shouldn't have the front indicators on the guards....

also. what do the door handles look like? push button or pick handle??

now looking at the photos of all the other bits, the front end is later as it has disc brakes and probably 4 stud

the gearbox without axles is an IRS also later so won't be of use to you, best to sell at a swap meet or via the parts selling forum here, ditto the front end.

When you get the bonnet fixed whatever you do don't let them swap it as that bonnet is very hard to find......

Are you going to DoVW next weekend?

lou0060 wrote:yep, the rear lights should be the same as mid 55 to 59 Beetle so what is usually referred to as 'oval taillights, not to be confused with the 53-54-early 55 lights which are usually called..... opps brain freeze.....

So also shouldn't have the front indicators on the guards....

also. what do the door handles look like? push button or pick handle??

now looking at the photos of all the other bits, the front end is later as it has disc brakes and probably 4 stud

the gearbox without axles is an IRS also later so won't be of use to you, best to sell at a swap meet or via the parts selling forum here, ditto the front end.

When you get the bonnet fixed whatever you do don't let them swap it as that bonnet is very hard to find......

Are you going to DoVW next weekend?

The door handles are push buttons I believe, Put the key in the lock and then push in that area to open the door.

I was wondering if the ball joint front end could be used as would be better for handling etc and also put disc brakes on it, but I want to keep the original 5 stud wheel size. Is that possible easily?

I had worked out the gearbox was of no use as mine is swing axle, are the gears etc better and can be swapped into the other cases if needed? Is that a full syncro gearbox where the early boxes are not?

What is the differences in the bonnet that I need to look for? Better get a good panelshop on side! Lucky I have contacts in the trade!

I just discovered the Day of the VW event, Am trying to organise it as we speak! Is it a good day?

Thanks for the info!

So you should have the snowflakes?

The earlier ones are referred to the heart-shaped?!

Cheers

should be a good day. i am coming down from Brissy on business so will combine, lucky me!

so, yes push button handles which is okay.

front end won't fit. You can use the discs on a link pin FE but requires machining etc and not generally done. If you are staying with the original engine then brakes should be okay as long as you rebuild them.. I'd change the wheel cylinders, hoses and maybe even the master cylinder and maybe get the drum machined if they are not too worn.

You can get after market 5 stud disc brake kits, Boris and all the other shops have them now. $500 to $600 from memory...

no gears are interchangeable between those two that I know of, but I'm no gearbox whiz.....

with the bonnet the thing to look for is the little black badge and how it connects to the bonnet. Someone might correct me but I think the black badge has 3 tabs whereas the earlier oval blueish badge has only 2 and obviously from late 62 early 63 no badge hence no holes in the bonnet.... And the VW emblem up top is different as well...

I know you're watching Phil, so can you confirm, should this have a 36HP engine or early 40HP? being it was Australian made and not CKD, ( I think) it would be the first of the 1200 'fresh air' 40's????

We'll have to catch up next Sunday if you make the show.....

thanks Denver, heart shape was what I was after.....

So I will chase down a set of snow flakes for the rear and keep the panels as original as possible.

In what way does the front suspension not fit?

As I don't have the original engine and I don't think I could cope with the slow pace of the 36/40hp engines, I was intending to put a bigger, faster engine in it, but keep everything else as original as practical. Was thinking disc brakes on the front to be safe, and also use the ball joint style front suspension. Sounds like that wont work?

Just organised the doVW day, so will be there! Looking forward to our 1st VW show as an owner. Shame I can't drive my car there! Will bring my son with me! Are you bring the Karman ghia down for a run as its your cruiser?! haha!

I thought the 50/50 tail lights were only for the 1961 year beetles?

pyoties bro wrote:I thought the 50/50 tail lights were only for the 1961 year beetles?

I know this car had the front guard lights added and suspected the rear lights had been changed at the same time to put the indicators on. Car is a 1960 Australian build for sure!

I have just worked out why I can not use the ball joint front suspension beam as the parallel bars of the beam, are different distances apart compared to the king pin front beam. Interesting! Seems I am learning something new everyday at the moment! haha

haha getting too old to drive that far in the old girl, plus my other old girl is coming with me so she insists on flying....

funny enough my Ghia has been to DOVW in 88, 89, 90 and 91 before we moved back to Sydney..

will have owned her for 30 years in January 2016.....

I'll be hanging around the VWDub stand with Boris and Michael just ask for me there..... or around the swap area.....

lou0060 wrote:haha getting too old to drive that far in the old girl, plus my other old girl is coming with me so she insists on flying....

funny enough my Ghia has been to DOVW in 88, 89, 90 and 91 before we moved back to Sydney..

will have owned her for 30 years in January 2016.....

I'll be hanging around the VWDub stand with Boris and Michael just ask for me there..... or around the swap area.....

Cool car to have had that long!

I will come to the show for a look and learn. I don't know anyone from on here, so look for the guy in a Subaru hat with his son with him! haha!

So I spent today in the garage removing the driveshafts from the spare gearboxes. I still have one that I can not get the driveshaft nut loose as the gearbox is not in the car so no real helpful weight on my side! ggrr!!!. Will have to work on that one. Pretty cool setup on how the shafts stay in the gearbox and all that. I have had a good look at the 2 front suspensions and can see why the ball joint setup wont work. Are the calipers for the brakes any use when I put discs on it? I was reading the owners instruction manual and found out my VW is a delux model. my wife thought that was funny as it has no features, how rude. She did like the fact it should have snow flake tail lights as we ski as much as we can, so gives us a link to the car with that too! My son later on when he was in the car, asked if it had air conditioning! haha

aircon is the qtr windows harasn

deluxe did have special seat covers, 2 inside sun visors, self cancelling blinkers and a windscreen washer system with 2 speed wipers
that's deluxe for 1960 !!

oh and wheel trims called beauty rings !!

Snowflakes often come up cheaper in the USA so keep an eye out on thesamba.com !

🙅 plus 30% now due to low Aussie $$
plus postage
plus waiting 🙄

is not cheaper this year...👍

adlbeetle66 wrote:Snowflakes often come up cheaper in the USA so keep an eye out on thesamba.com !

Even just looking on the different versions of ebay, I am amazed at all the stuff you can still get for the vw. My car has come with a steel sun visor over the windscreen. Was this an option? I have only seen mesh ones previously!

I am on holidays for 6 weeks next year in the usa and Canada. Might have a look around at what I can post back!!! Any suggestions?

1500 vw stores in Cali

bushed wrote:1500 vw stores in Cali

wow! Any suggestions of the 1 or 2 I check out?

notbeen there yet
have my own stash...avail to you now. lol

This might help 🙂

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=109588

You'll pick up a few things on Sunday I am sure!

yep the sun visor was a dealer option. I actually have a mesh one still in the plastic bag and with the VW label and part number.....

see you on Sunday...

So I went to the DoVW. Was very interesting. My son and I spent a couple of hours walking around and talking to a few people that jumped on us as soon as we were looking at their cars! haha! I did not find where you guys were all hanging out, as I was to busy looking at everything! I have never been much of a car show guy, but it certainly is different when you own one of what your looking at! I was surprised at the amount of not restored or deliberately aged cars! It has certainly helped us decide what we want to do with our car.

Can someone tell me what the big barrels are on the side doors, some sort of heater accessory? Cant see out the door window with it on! I don't want one, just want to know what they are.

So the plan is to restore the car mostly by our selves as best we can. Keep it looking as original as possible, without being silly. I will upgrade the brakes to discs all round, engine to be a basically standard but rebuilt 1600tp motor and put a small turbo on it. Was originally thinking a bigger sized engine without a turbo, but gets a bit expensive in parts when not standard pistons etc. I have been reading so much on these cars its not funny, Wife thinks I am obsessed! haha! want to make the right decisions!

One concern I have is the seats. As you can see from the photos the tops are a green/blue colour with white/cream on the sides, with the door cards matching. I have checked the TMI website and any other web site that I can find, to see if I can get replacement covers, I have not seen anything the same. Is it because its an Australian built one? I saw 2 cars at the show with the same seats as mine, one was in worse condition than mine, the other looked like new but the door cards were a different colour to mine. Any suggestions? I deal with blackmans leather through work, so I could get them to make some up, but that would cost heaps more! So much to learn!!

One last thing, where is the best place to get a workshop manual for my car, will it be the same as the overseas manuals?

Sorry for the long post, but this is fun and I have not even touched the car yet! haha!

The window thing is probably a Thermador Car Cooler. They were a US accessory for cooling cars without any power input. They used a mesh cloth and a water bath. As the airflow mooved through the cooler at speed, the wet cloth would evaporate and cool the air, which was then directed into the car.

The Aussie 1960 model is practically identical, mechanically, to the Euro/US model, so any Bentley/Haynes/Clymer manual will be fine. Only from 1965-68 were there significant differences. The Aussie manuals were published by Scientific Publications / Gregory's - these often come up on Ebay. Here's a new one, but sometimes older (cheaper) ones are also listed:

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Gregorys-Owners-Service-Repair-Manual-Volkswagen-Beetle-1100-1500-1954-1971-/201127026706?hash=item2ed41ae012:m:mpuPNdiqXhGOQQ7DWaQUEBg

Phil74Camper wrote:The window thing is probably a Thermador Car Cooler. They were a US accessory for cooling cars without any power input. They used a mesh cloth and a water bath. As the airflow mooved through the cooler at speed, the wet cloth would evaporate and cool the air, which was then directed into the car.

The Aussie 1960 model is practically identical, mechanically, to the Euro/US model, so any Bentley/Haynes/Clymer manual will be fine. Only from 1965-68 were there significant differences. The Aussie manuals were published by Scientific Publications / Gregory's - these often come up on Ebay. Here's a new one, but sometimes older (cheaper) ones are also listed:

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Gregorys-Owners-Service-Repair-Manual-Volkswagen-Beetle-1100-1500-1954-1971-/201127026706?hash=item2ed41ae012:m:mpuPNdiqXhGOQQ7DWaQUEBg

So like an evaporative cooler like we have on houses these days.

Thanks for the info on the owners manual!

Yes, or you may hear the term 'Swamp Cooler' made in the brand KoolAir

adlbeetle66 wrote:Yes, or you may hear the term 'Swamp Cooler' made in the brand KoolAir

Swamp Cooler just sounds healthy doesn't it! haha! Did a search and there are heaps of them you can get from the olden days! I am amazed I had never seen one!