Semi automatic dubs

Can anyone give me a quick rundown on the semi auto in dubs. I dont know much about them at all and was just wondering what they are like, how they work, problems, cost of changing car to manual.

any advice/ info much appreciated.

depends what model bug as to how easy the conversion to manual is

superbug and Lbug autos have the cable conduit installed so change over is a breeze but the 1500s dont have it and installing the conduit is PITA, involves welding in some brackets and cutting some access holes in tunnel

they work well when theyre going fine, but are a pig once they start playing up, i havent owned one by my best mate has had 2 of them
parts are getting hard to get and they have shocking accelaration and fuel economy compared to a manual bug but are nice to drive in stop-go city traffic

nmenz,
www.vwar.org for all your autostick needs/questions. There are a few of us here on AVD who pilot semi-auto's.

Problems? Mostly previous owners and unfamiliar mechanics😂 .

They can and do break, but by and large, fairly reliable (all things being equal).

Weak points? Vacuum servo rubber diaphragm, vacuum hoses (needs a specific type) and gearstick points/electrical seem to be the most popular problems.

As Joel says, fine for a daily driver but forget big HP numbers.

Swapping to a manual? Well you need a manual box, shift rod, clutch, pedals, flywheel & whether or not the chassis has been fitted with a clutch tube etc etc.

IMHO...if you want oodles of power via upgrading -> go find a manual car.


Regards
Ctefeh

If you go manual give me a call im always on the look out for semi-auto stuff especially the flex plate and torque converter.. I love my semi autos :P

I rekno they are an awesome fad. Stock wise, not zippy, but none the less make awesome cruisers. parts are rare as heck. maintenance ain't too bad once u have a full idea on the whole system and workings.

As said, u can get some semi auto pans with clutch tube in place, making it a VERY easyh bolt in and bolt on swap. THATS IF UR VERY LUCKY. The majority don't, and require u to instigate some form of incorporating a clutch tube (like oem) or u zip up together some aftermarket hydraulic setup. involves cutting 2 inspection holes in the tunnel, and drilling one at the back. It ain't hard if u have a welder and angle grinder happy. Manual pedal assembly and gearbox bolt straight in. clutch tube is the only challenge.

semi autos still require u to change gears, u just shift without a clutch pedal. instead u have a switch in the gear lever that turns on a solenoid that disengages teh clutch via a lever hooked up to a vacuum line allowing u to change gears with ease. vacuum line is connected to a canister which is in turn hooked up to ur engine intake manifold.

Yes the name 'semi-auto' is a bit of a misnomer, as they really more a clutchless manual than an 'automatic'. They use a modified manual gearbox but without the 1st gear - it only has what would normally be 2nd, 3rd and 4th gear for the three speeds. Instead of a clutch there is an auto-style torque converter and associated plumbing. In the cabin you have a gearstick, but instead of a physical linkage to the back, there is only an electrical connection. There's no clutch pedal.

Neutral is in the normal place. With the engine running and your foot on the brake, you select any one of the three forward gears - Low, which was to the left and back; or First, to the right and forward, or even Second, which was to the right and back. Release the brake, accelerate and away you go. To shift, just move the lever and it changes. If you changed enthusiastically, like a manual with no clutch, performance was only mildly less than a manual. If you were lazy you could just leave it in Second and it would just slush slowly forward with the torque converter doing the slipping until the speed built up - glacial acceleration and bad fuel economy but no shifting. Or you could just use First and Second for 'in-between' performance. It was up to you.

Reverse was left, down and forward. Being a 'semi-auto' there was no 'Park' position, and as there was no physical connection between the engine and wheels, you couldn't use the engine to 'brake' the parked car like a manual. You had to make really sure that your handbrake was on!

They were available only on Australian '68-70 1500 Beetles, then '71-75 Superbugs. The Porsche version of the time was called the 'Sportomatic'. The Type 3 and the Kombi had conventional 'full' automatics.

Phil74Camper wrote:Reverse was left, down and forward. Being a 'semi-auto' there was no 'Park' position, and as there was no physical connection between the engine and wheels, you couldn't use the engine to 'brake' the parked car like a manual. You had to make really sure that your handbrake was on!

Phil, they brought out park position when Sbugs started cos when the handbrake cables snapped there was no way to hold the car

i remember a 72 sbug we used to service at the garage having it

Hiya Phil,

Phil74Camper wrote:The Porsche version of the time was called the 'Sportomatic'. The Type 3 and the Kombi had conventional 'full' automatics.

Being the historical type you might be interested to know that the hardware for the AutoStick was NOT developed for use in a Volkswagen vehicle.

The system was originally designed by Fichtel & Sachs for use in a Mercedes vehicle. The actual development of the system took place in the fifties with the system showing up in Mercedes products in 1957 (or 1958). the system, being wholly owned by Fichtel & Sachs was sold to other carmakers of the period; NSU and Opel being customers.

Meanwhile VW had been producing the Saxomatic (also a Fichtel & Sachs development) transmission for sale on Europen cars during the early sixties. VW had however determined that a little something more was needed for the US market. VW was looking at an increasing share of their US market being taken by Japanese imports that did feature automatics as an option. Basically, they wanted something to appeal to housewives and students.

So, in getting together with Fichtel & Sachs, VW decided to go with the AutoStick system as an option for their big 1968 redesign program. It became available as the M-9 option with the beginning of production in 1968. This option was in production well into the 1976 model year. Most sources list 1975 as the final year for AutoStick production (to make way for the new Rabbit which did feature an automatic option) but VW had AS parts left over from the 1975 production year. True to its bottom-line nature, VW went ahead and used those parts on its 1976 production line constructing a few hundred 1976 AS cars. Having one of those would be quite the rarity these days!

Hi Joel,

That's very interesting, as several of my reference books say that the Park semi-auto box didn't appear until 1975 on European models. I used to have a '72 Superbug S and it didn't have the Park position. Maybe they came in earlier for export models? I have a 1974 Australian Superbug brochure at home ('still the world champ') but it only mentions the semi-auto box as an option without going into details. The Australian-made '76 was also a 'bitzer' of left-over parts but the semi-auto was no longer available for that one.

Thanks Mike for the extra info. Yes most of the VW improvements from the early '60s on were for the US market - a pity we missed out on most of them in Australia (at least while the local factory was operating). I have a local magazine road test somewhere of an early '60s 6-volt car with the Saxomatic conversion; something of a revolution for the Australian market of the time.

One point which doesnt seem to have been made here is that the 'standard' beetle (prior to the introduction of the Super Beetle) semi autos were always IRS suspension, while the manual versions were swingaxle rear suspension. So thats the beetles from 1968 to 1971 ish.

So, they are a desireable base vehicle to build a late 60's bug that handles the best. It wasnt until 1976 that you could buy a standard beetle with ball joint beam front end and IRS rear suspension in Australia......

I reckon a rack & pinion L Bug, with a full auto gearbox, driven by a torquey type 4 engine would be an absolute hoot....

Yes the 1968> semi-auto beetles had IRS rear end...

I believe this was because You can bump the gear lever knob forwards or backwards which will put the car out of gear...!!

Going round a corner at 100 KMH and suddenly going out of gear would be dangerous with a swing axle....

I have heard of a few conversions - type 3 fully autos into a beetle chassis... in Australia..

needs some major modifications as the fully auto gearbox is much wider than the standard or semi auto gearboxes...
but nothing IS impossible... lol

LEE



All beetles sold in the USA from 1969> had the IRS rear end..
but never ever had front disc brakes....

Phil74Camper wrote:Hi Joel,

That's very interesting, as several of my reference books say that the Park semi-auto box didn't appear until 1975 on European models. I used to have a '72 Superbug S and it didn't have the Park position. Maybe they came in earlier for export models? I have a 1974 Australian Superbug brochure at home ('still the world champ') but it only mentions the semi-auto box as an option without going into details.

this one was a very late either 11 or 12/72 but didnt have a padded dash, but like lee said the semi autos were fully imported which was probably why

my mustard 12/72 Sbug had a padded dash, but ive only ever seen one other Sbug with one

i know for sure 73 Lbugs had park, first semi auto i ever drove was one

The Semiautos had to be IRS. I if you look at where the diff is located it is further forward to make room between the engine and gearbox for both the clutch housing and torque converter bellhousing. To make the gearbox still fit in thd standard position they ditched a gear (normal first) to make the box shorter. Because of where the output shafts come out of the gearbox they actually run slightly rearwards to the hubs. If they were swingaxle they would be seriously toed out.

Also with regards to what I said above the semiautos have a different length driveshaft to a manual. They are slightly longer due to having to be on that small diagonal angle.

Phil74Camper wrote:In the cabin you have a gearstick, but instead of a physical linkage to the back, there is only an electrical connection.

I'm sorry Phil but this is incorrect. They do have a physical link to the gearbox. You still have to change the gears because it is essentially a manual box with a torque converter. You just don't have to do the clutch work. I've replaced a shifter rod bush in mine and can vouch for them having the rod. Smiley

naturally You are correct smiley

I still haven't replaced the bush on Mine as its a low mileage car.
I have a couple of spare bushes..

I also have a new set of points and servo repair kit
[both in the USA]

do You have the spring on Your car??
it was missing on Mine, but have fitted one, and it pulls the gear lever to the right..

it also makes My gearshifter vibrate when I accelerate...
so, either more grease in the shifter base or I move the base slightly..

LEE

I'm fairly sure mine does have the spring because I remember dropping it repeatedly while putting the rod back in. Was a PITA to get the spring hooked back on. I don't have spare points. Last parts I got from USA was 3 vacumn diaphrams, 5 gearbox sump gaskets and a few new flex plate bolts. I think I may need new points soon as in the last two days mine is starting to get a bad habit of getting stuck in neutral. I'm going to have to pull the gearstick apart and clean the contacts and reset the clearance.

HI

I also have a couple of spare gear shifters, clutch servos etc..

and a plate gasket [also from the USA] which I have never used as yet even though I have used two gearboxes..

I did use stainless steel allen headed bolts at one time cut to length.. but used loctite and a nut on the plate came loose...

I managed to get 4 good torque converter bolts with the last gearbox i bought..
those bolts are usually lost when they are pulled apart to sell...

I even used hexagon headed Hi tensile bolts at one early stage.. had to grind a socket to fit .. lol

have You thought about using a relay for the control valve?

that would save Your gearshifter points from burning...

cheers

LEE

Can you push start a semi-auto like a manual can be?

Some say that if you have vacumn in the tank you can turn the ignition on, put the car in gear, hold the gearstick sideways, get the car up to speed (pushing/rolling downhill). Then you release the gearstick (drop the clutch). Theoretically if you were going fast enough the torque converter would lock up and this method should work. But I have tried a number of times to roll start my semiauto down a hill and have so far been unsuccessful. That's not to say you can't, I might be doing it wrong.

68AutoBug wrote:I did use stainless steel allen headed bolts at one time cut to length.. but used loctite and a nut on the plate came loose... I managed to get 4 good torque converter bolts with the last gearbox i bought.. those bolts are usually lost when they are pulled apart to sell...

Yeah, the ones in mine car are currently ground down allen headed bolts. That's why I bought some. Next time the engine is out they're getting swapped.

Yeah thanks Smiley, I made a couple of mistakes there - been 15 years since i owned a semi-auto. Yes of course they still have the shift rod - you are right.

I couldn't find any Australian VW ads that mentioned the semi-auto - this one is from Canada.

My 71 was an auto and it has got an automatic badge on the decklid.

71-BEETLE-SEDAN wrote:My 71 was an auto and it has got an automatic badge on the decklid.

All of the semiautos had the 'Automatic' script on the decklid. As far as I'm aware Volkswagen made no mass production automatic Type 1s. Someone by all means correct me if I'm wrong.

No, there never was a fully automatic Type 1. Beetles only ever got the semi-auto, which as everyone has described, was a three-speed manual with an automatic clutch and a torque converter. It could never change gears by itself, like a 'real' automatic. Volkswagen just marketed it as an 'automatic', even though it really wasn't. An 'AUTOMATIC' badge on the back looks more impressive than 'SEMI-AUTOMATIC'.

The Type 3, Transporter, Type 4 and all subsequent water-cooled models all got 'proper' full automatics. VW doesn't offer 'auto' boxes on their new cars any more - now they are 6 and 7-speed 'DSG' gearboxes

Hiya All,

The rear decklid badging of VWs is pretty interesting in that it seemed to be, in many cases, specific to the market in which the car was being sold. In other words VW may have called what was essentially the same car different names in different markets.

This certainly seemed to be true with the Automatic Stick Shift (it's given name in the North American market). When the AutoStick (common terminology for this car nowadays in the USA) came out in 1968, VW mounted this badge on the rear decklid of USA bound cars......



A lot of AutoStick people here in the States covet this badge and want to pop it on their decklid. However, it is really only correct for AS Bugs made in 1968. That's because VW, with their eye on economy, ditched the special decklid badge after the 1968 production year. They went back to using the standard VOLKSWAGEN decklid badge. But they still wanted to distinguish an AutoStick car. So VW had their dealers mount a decal in the rear window..................



Sometimes the dealer did mount the decal, sometimes he didn't. In any event these decals had a fairly short lifespan of a few years at best before the sun eventually took its toll of the decal. Decals were applied from 1969 through 1972 (quite likely longer but that is the last date for which I have actual records) here in the States.

I have that badge above on one of my auto stickshifts. The other one just has "VW Automatic" on the back without the stickshift scribe.

the 1500 semiautos had the VWautomatic script and possibly Sbugs but i have a feeling Lbugs just had Volkswagen L same as manual, but thats easy enough changed

smileyman3000 wrote:Some say that if you have vacuum in the tank you can turn the ignition on, put the car in gear, hold the gearstick sideways, get the car up to speed (pushing/rolling downhill). Then you release the gearstick (drop the clutch). Theoretically if you were going fast enough the torque converter would lock up and this method should work. But I have tried a number of times to roll start my semi auto down a hill and have so far been unsuccessful. That's not to say you can't, I might be doing it wrong.

Yes,

it IS possible to tow start a semi auto beetle...

but You had to be towed about 60KMH [from memory] to start it...

I have never tried this... lol

Lee
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Mike

the autosticks were always called the semi auto beetle in Australia...

but officially in Australian VW Advertising they were called automatics

Lee

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Joel,

I believe ALL semi auto beetles sold in Australia had the VW AUTOMATIC badge...

apart from the odd early one with the autostick SCRIPT badge..

LEE

Does anyone want my automatic badge ?

Does it have the 'Stick Shift' script?

Nope, wish it did but t doesnt.