slowbug wrote:Hi all,
Just thought I'd tack on to this thread and introduce myself too.
Welcome
I bought a beetle because I was sick of having no mechanical knowledge and being screwed by mechanics, and I wanted to start on something simple.
So I bought a '69 1500....1 owner and been garaged its entire life. A stepping stone to bigger and better things....
BUT what I didn't know is that these little cars make you fall in love with them!!!
69 is a good year (actually every year is a good year :-). And yes, they are addictive.
My wife became enamoured also....and insisted on her own kaferwagen....a '64 which had also benefitted from a cosy little garrage to sleep in.
Sadly my wife has never caught the bug - she'd rather drive around in a Ford with the handling of a wet sponge!
They,ve even got names for christ's sake!!!
That's the thing about beetles - they all tell you they have to have a name and they aren't happy until you find one that suits. I have Bertie Beetle (a 1970 bug I bought brand new - yes I'm that old), and Bradley (a 68 with a 71 1600dp engine I bought whilst Bertie is being slowly restored are being squashed by a nasty Ford (no - not my wife's Ford!).
Well what i've found is that everybody loves beetles.....kids wave at you, all my mates want to have a drive (and they are secretly looking in in the the trading post for beetles ;) )
So its VW's for me.
The only thing that irks me is that everyone feels they must pass you, no matter how fast you are driving, just because its a beetle. So 1st project...turn slowbug into fastbug:cool: the beetle is the ultimate sleeper: just to surprise a few of these clowns in theit falcons and commodores,
Just have to work through out what every one is on about with regards to power....stroker v 1915...94 v 90.5....SHEEZ
Well - there are lots of choices.
A couple of tips. Stay with the thick walled cylinders, 85.5, 90.5, 94 . They will give you longer life (usually) than the thin walled 87s and 92s (though some folks report good lives from the thin walled types).
Don't try to take the 1969 H series case past 1600cc. The high magnesium content of the older cases means they are more prone to cracking (they get brittle with age), and are best kept stock or at the largest - a set of 1600 P&Cs (my 1970 H series 1500 has these).
The cases with AS21 or AS41 stamped on them have a higher aluminium content and make better cases for upgrades.
You can do a progressive upgrade as money allows. For example, a set of 90.5 P&Cs will work OK with an otherwise stock 1600 (same 34PICT/3 carby and vacuum distributor), and will give you extra torque around town, but not much extra top speed (limited by the carby size), then as money allows you can add twin carbies, good exhaust system, mild cam and so on, and still have a reliable engine.
Just remeber that power costs money - there is just no way around that.
And make sure your brakes and suspension are up to it - it's no good going faster if you can't stop and turn first.
Regards
Rob
Rob and Dave's aircooled VW pages
Repairs and maintenance for the home mechanic
http://www.vw-resource.com
