Driving my beetle today and all was fine then i accelerated hard from the lights, for the remaining few minutes of the drive the engine was
hesitiating alot when trying to accelarate again and also backfiring heaps. Not knowing much is there something stuck in the fueling or anything like
that and can someone tell me what to do in the most basic way?
Thanks
hopefully something stuck in the idle jet
What sort of carbs do you have??
Dual Kadrons. It was only serviced about 150km ago at Vintage.
have a look and see if something obvious like the linkage has disconnected from one on the carbs
sounds like a fuel/carby problem....
accelerator pump leaking or blocked??
Does it idle OK???
if it does it seems like its the accelerator pump on one of the carbies
LEE
Quick eyeball check of the linkages and the spark plug leads is an easy one.
I was on a run once where the Beetle was running rough all of a sudden, but I didn't have a chance to check why, and after an hour of driving and
getting to my destination, I had a quick look and found a plug lead off. 1 hour on 3 cylinders!!!
It idles ok when warm even accelerating it really struggles and shakes and backfires every second pretty much. The leads all look ok i think, i
couldn't really get my hands around to check the front one but i'm sure they where ok.
Where is the accelerator pump and how do you check whether it's leaking or blocked? 
Start basic checks...fuel filter and the gap on the points...
the accelerator pump is located in the carburetor...
its a small square shape with 4 screws to undo to check the square diaphram...
Every time the accelerator is pressed the accelerator pump squirts fuel into the engine...
but - if its NOT idleing correctly...
could be a spark plug lead loose...
make sure the leads are on the spark plugs correctly...
Take the top off the distributor - unclip the two clamps..
spray inside the cap with WD40 or similar and wipe it dry with a cloth...
also wipe the rotor - as cracks can appear in Dizzy caps in which the high voltage spark can short circuit...
the cracks can be not Visible...
it sounds like the engine is firing wrong....
No leaky exhaust or inlets manifolds???
I don't think its the accelerator pump...
You can't really drive without the accelerator pump working.....
check wiring to distributor and to the coil....
LEE
http://community.webshots.com/user/vw68autobug
I have twin Kadrons, and this is pretty much what happens if the linkage falls off one carburetter. Move the linkage, and check that it is still connected to both carbies.
Have a look at the points (possibly closed) and condenser,even though iy sounds like a classic fuel problem.Look outside the square because it is not always what it seems.
take it back to Vintage
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I've double checked the linkages and it seems good. The fuel filter has a bit of dirt in the bottom of it. What do i need to do to clean it? Sorry if its a stupid question but a don't want to do anything bad. Is it just a case of cleaning it out and putting it back on or do i need another one. Will fuel come out while the filter is out? Any tricks to doing it?
have you got another coil you can try?
sounds like the mainifold may be loose and its sucking air n causing the backfire
get yr 13 mm spanner n check tighten all the nuts
also check the exhaust flanges as well
Have you been using the same fuel all the time did u change n put crappy stuff in ??? can also cause problems
No the fuel is 98 and was running fine a few days before. Don't have another coil. I'll try to tighten the manifold just need to get to it first.
I couldn't get to the front manifold nuts only the rear ones. Got maybe a quarter turn from the left one and less from the right.
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Agreed! Maybe they forgot something (it happens) or something has gone wrong since. you never know when parts on old cars are gonna give up.
I figured i'd try changing the fuel filter and if that doesn't work take it back to Vintage. It would cost more in petrol to get to vintage than the
price of the filter so i got nothing to loose and a bit more experience with my bug, plus i wasn't real keen driving that far the way its running
either 
did u check tighten the exhaust flanges and pipes as well
I tightened everthing i could get to and nothing seemed loose so i'm hoping its just the filter. If this rain stops i should be able to change it
today i hope.
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have you been using the same fuel all the time are u using a good brand from the same place each fill
or r u getting it any where
u may have picked up some junk
The fuel was Caltex 98 octane. Was good for 3/4 of a tank so i'm assuming it's not the fuel. By the way, where do you all get your fuel filters as i went to Supercheap and they didn't have anything for beetles. Does it matter which one you use? There was a ryco which looked like it would fit ok.
Woo hoo, beetle is now running normally again. Not sure what it was exactly as i unplugged all the leads and tightened everything i could but it
wasn't the fuel filter as i didn't replace that. I guess it was the leads so thanks everyone. 
thats the ones... get them from classicveedub.com.au
simple easy fix
you wont find anything at cheapskate auto cos bugs never had filters originally
most ppl just run those shitty $2 clear ones like colonel posted which is a fairly wasted exercise as theyre only rock catchers
for about $10 more you can get a metal EFI filter which is 100x the quality and filters 100x better
they also last on average 30,000kms
just find one that best suits your bug
from memory the one im using is for the 2.6 mazda bravo/ford courier but early EFI nissan pulsar ones work well
they are a different size to the genuine fuel line though..