Hi All, I am new to this site and moving closer to another VW after a hiatus of too many years.
Looking at a mental bug here in SA, drove it yesterday and I reckon it could put my WRX in the shade.
Was 'loud as' in the cabin, any suggestions on noise suppression so it could be a daily driver?
The missus wouldn't want to put the kids in it as it was, so need a solution. I was in love.
Any advice or experience?

Best investment you could ever make is Dynamat. Give Al a call at Das Resto Parts

http://dasrestoparts.com.au/interior/miscellaneous-interior/dynamat-xtreme-bu...

Hi
You can sound proof the inside of Your beetle with sound reduction products..
I just used PVE Yoga style mats glued with contact adhesive

all around the engine bay - in & under etc..
above gearbox - behind side trim, behind rear mat carpet etc..
weighs nothing and is very inexpensive compared to the special sound reduction products like dynamat etc...

and get a quieter exhaust system...

LEE

Wouldnt the paint on the motor be enough sound deadening?

^

No, because the paint is pretty loud as well

Hi Kev

Yes, I refilled the rear of the roof corners etc with the pressure pack expandable foam... water proof and doesn't cause rust..

if there isn't anything between the roof and the engine compartment and You have Big carbies...
then, as Kev said, the induction noise from the carbies sucking in air can be very noisy....

Lee

ear plugs!

Thanks everyone, What a speedy repsonse.

All sorts of suggestions from ZEN yoga to the builders best friend. What a repetoire....
On reflection I think Lee & Kev have it pegged.
The carbies are massive, I reckon they were Twin 44 Dellorto's.
Can they be silenced enough?

The exhaust is from the States and I know it was a big contributor to the noise. Sounds great outside the car....
He has another Exhaust which he ran on it previously that was too "Zingee" what ever that means & he says lost power when Dyno'd.

Excerpts from the add:
Has counter balanced crank blue printed
2180cc motor cost in excess $15k
4 wheel disc brakes
IRS rear
100hp plus at rear wheels revs to 8k

Now I know building up a car is $$$, especially hot motors, but what would one pay for a 68 Beetle with the above.
Body in otherwise original condition inside & out, was apparently an old blokes car that has had a heart transplant.
This motor was apparantly in a Manx beforehand.

This is to be my wife's 40th b'day surprise and her 3rd Bug.

What do you reckon folks? Can it be tamed as a civil daily driver or am I letting hp cloud my judgement?

All comments welcome.
Cheers,
Marty in South Oz.

Hope it's not gonna be a daily driver, an engine like that is gonna make a Commodore look cheap to run.

An air box intake is the only option for shutting up twin carbs.

I was starting to build one for mine before I swapped.
My twin Webers on the motor way was like having a WRX with a 5" canon aimed in the window at your head.

Sound proof the hell out of it and inside the cabin be as quiet as a new car, no worries at all !!! Dynamat as others have said is excellent stuff... not cheap, but well worth it. Places to hit are all the flat panels - rear firewall, inside quarter panels and doors and centrally down the roof. Also having a good quality rubber backed carpet will wonders for sound insulation.



As for induction noise from the carbs, fab up an air box for it and that'll make a huge improvement... some posts on here of people who've done the same thing with Webers, will see if I can dig 'em out.

The airbox will rob some top end power, but most likely give back some mid range. In my book that'd be a good thing... especially for the missus driving it... I mean who the hell wants to spin to 8k all the time !?!?

On the $$$ side... tough call, but IMHO take the parts list and "cost in excess of $15k" with a grain of salt... especially for someone to quote "100hp plus". When it's supposedly been dyno'd there'd be an exact number. Providing the body checks out OK instead base it on what the car is worth TO YOU... if it's too low, the guy will say no and then the negotiating starts.

Hopefully some of the SA based guys will chime in, and maybe take a look see with you to get an idea on $$$.

Good luck !!!

oh btw - whatcha gonna do if you get the car, but your wife doesn't let you drive it ???



Not been able to find the thread about Weber airboxes sorry, but I know both Gracey and fullnoise on here have done them, so maybe flip them a PM.

Gracey's even used parts readily available from Bunnings Speed & Marine !!!

How is the gearbox mounted? Solid? if so, the noise will travel through the whole car.... rubber mounting will help but limit how much you punish the car when you drive it....

After sound deadening the baja to the absolute craziness, a quite exhaust is honestly what i believe is the key to reducing a HECK of alot of noise. VW's also tend to have loud induction noise.

Sound deadener makes a big difference, but its no miracle worker.

Barls had a pretty neat airbox setup on his Type4 engine.

As Chris said all the soundproofing in the world is not gonna stop a droany muffler or intake roar but it will help

mod cars are not nice to drive in the traffic .
not sure its a good idea , if there is more money to be spent.
I would say it would be a weekeend car.

I've seen the ad for this car (without seeing it personally) it is awsome value. My only concern is air cooled motors like the one in this vehicle require a lot more maintenance then the average modern motor. The maintenance is time consuming and expensive is you don't have the knowledge, ability to do it yourself.
As previously stated, it would make an awsome weekend car.
It does look like a nice car.
Cheers Dave

run turbo tops on the carbs , you should be able to get down to 13l per 100km if u baby it , but good luck

This thing sounds like a weapon!
Handing it over to the missus would frighten the bejeezus out of me!
Brave people.

Depends how old and soft you are. I dont think I could ever drive an aircooled vw as my daily drive ever again.

Thank you to everyone for their contributions.

I will be going to have another look and will keep in mind all of the advice and relevant points made.
The car would be a second car to use when one of us is off to work, so not so much everyday. Shiftwork - Nurses.
As we live in the Adelaide Hills we don't have to fight the traffic so that is a plus and we get those quiet roads home.
But are we too soft for going back to an aircooled daily driver? I guess we will find out.

We both had VW's as Teens & in to our 20's until we were wooed by aircon and creature comforts, so I know they need a certain looking after.
Ron Vis was my 1500's 6V's saviour, where ever he is I wish him well.

My wife sold her Ducati 900 when the little bloke came along so I'm not too worried about handing a mental VW over to her, she can drive/ride.
Mind you I took the last fine for the team.

will keep you posted....

Cheers and have a good x-mas break,

Marty

Noise issue may be a consideration for shift workers.

I used to have a Supercharged 1776 in my bug when I still lived in town and if I drove my bug out here to the farm at night to spray it used to wake the whole neighborhood.

They used to hear me for about 2-3 blocks

Lots of diffrent ideas and sugestions but from some one who uses a way hotter aircooled vw as a daily driver yes they can be loud but unreliable and require lots of maintinence only if itys not built right.But as the common sense officer putting everything aside i would like to point out your wife use to ride a ducatti 900 on the road.I'm sure if it is to loud you could put dual quietpacks on it but i use earplugs and i dont have a radio or any interior only 2 seats.As for spending more money on fuel than one would in a commodore "JEEBUS"i have spent more on fuel than I have tied up in the bug and it might look cheap but it ain't,But i can tell you nothing will make you smile like merging in 'my' bug!And its a surpise, just get it, you know "YOU"want to.