This is probably gonna seem like a very unintelligent question for people in the know, but this has been bothering me for a long time now.
Beetle restorers are like, omg check the heater channels, make sure the heater channels are not rusty, heater channels are a big job to fix if
they're rusty, heater channels heater channels omg omg. It's always the first words spoken but they never say WHAT they are and what the purpose of
them is!
I'm going to be buying my first Beetle in a few weeks, so it's pretty important that I get this info downpat before any money changes hands. So any
general points of what to look for when buying a used Beetle would be very helpful while you guys are around! I'm thinking of a 60's Baja because
they seem like very cool and fun cars.
they are the channels that run along the bottom of the doors on the pan.
they run from front to back one each side.
They're called heater channels because they channel the heated air into the cabin for cold frogs. I think they are an integral part of the strength of the pan / vehicle.
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Yes they are structural
Water gets in usually from the A pillar uner the hood
The A pillar rots out and breaks away at the base near the bottom door hinge
Water also pools on the bottom of this channel and slowly rots the base away
Can sometimes be hard to see the full extent of damage as it is covered on the boot by the pan
As effectively it is what the pan attaches to
Hopefully my phone skills work here
https://www.google.com.au/search?site=&source=hp&ei=AOSLU9iLIcrs8AXe-...
Just google "VW heater channel repair " and look at what comes up
My tip is just to look underneath everything.. cars often look nice and shiny on top but look under the carpet, under the rear seat, get on the ground
and check the pan, the battery tray area, open the doors and look at the bottom of them. Check under the boot liner in front and underneath the spare
tire. Rust = $$$$ especially if you aren't doing the repair yourself, don't be fooled it IS worse than what it appears to be. I was also told to
take a magnet and it quickly showed underneath a nice shiny fresh paint job was a lot of bog!
Good luck!
if you can get a paint thickness gauge, even better!
The old run your fingers underneath the heater channel, and if they come out bloody, dont buy it!