Anyone thinking of going the rat look can feel free to come here, to this topic, for ideas, support, and less derision than you might expect at those other shinier threads...
we need to know:
year, model, how long you've had it, if you've been taking drugs, what it looks like now and what it will end up looking like. I'm going the rat look the easy way... and eventually my car will fall apart around me. so who's doing what to their whichnow?

I get the feeling my baja may eventually end up as a "rat baja" as the paint work is getting worse and it's looking rattier but it will still be mechanically good just wont look it. I like the rat look a lot, it's different.:thumb

I am sorry to say this, but I am restoring our rat look Beetle to be very very very shiny after Christmas.

<ducks for cover> :P

I’ve been working on mine for many years now and believe I have gone beyond the “rat look”.
I like to think its more the “krapp look”
Will post some photos soon

:vader


Darth

this is definately for me then...and the rat look isn't intentional!
i'll get a pick up soon. it looks like the biggest rat at the moment..it's tops. however i hope i don't get pulled over as i'll definately get defected

no ratty cars, but one seriously ratty bike. frame colour bleached almost white on top, most parts original or scavanged, and chrome on every square inch of chrome.

year: 56
model: oval window
owned: 2 years
drugs: yes please
now: yellow
soon: rat

trying with this,,, i hope theres no rules to this look,,,,

gonna rat up the '54
Bigger engine,
slammed,
BRM's
Interior is ratty, exterior is starting to look a bit shabby.

X2, '60mdl bug plus a '75 dual-cab ute.
Will post a few photos soon.The ute is getting a helping hand with the rat paint look, brush on rust!!

on starting a rubback for my 71 bug streeteri found near terminal cancer in the rear panel above the deck lid and below the jackpoint behind the door. i have rubbed it totally back with 400 grit and removed everything . the rust was also present in the front floor sills. i then bought a rust free pan and shell off the forum to use as my street project and the 71 is just siiting out the back catching the weather. was going to wreck it but i just carn't do it so now going to ute it and leave it in the rat look. any ideas how ive seen some on this forum but im not sure what the requirements are in regards to where you can cut the floor pan and where you would need to reinforce etc. the rust in the rear of the pan was so bad that when i jacked the car up the whole panel just buckled but the front part of the pan is in good nick and all killrusted except for the sills which i am going to reweld. any ideas

Our 1970 Beetle was close to the rat look, just needed to be slammed with BRM's all round.

The paint was worn through to the primer with surface rust, and the seats and trims were torn, but everything was still pretty strong.

Sorry guys, but I resprayed it instead.

ive had my 56 oval for about a year to 2 rescued
from an ex boyfriend of a girl that chopped the roof half of flared guards etc im going back to the rat rod look matt black standard guards white walls etc:repuke

im staring the rat process today in time for sundays EURO DAY...:puke

Hmmmm, I have taken many years to perfect my own masterpiece. My one before this (uni days!!!) had the shiny red /meets/ cheezy grey primer mismatched look, had dodgey shockies so got grinder and modified rear fiberglass guards.....much quicker than actually fixing suspension!....have piccies somehwere....

My current baja is a visual feast, the contasting panels provide texure and depth to the overall composition..... ( those who may have seen it at the ettomongah pub would have noticed the interior design work: full of crap theme..I did fumigate it though, got rid of the cockkies! Oh and my modified extractors are the best,,, one side has the "beetroot tin wraparound hole caus i have blown budget at mo on gearbox" (TM) Kit installed...) .

I figured I will shout it a $2-pac matt crap black paintjob on red bits, just to unify the colour,,and then save up for plates "FESTY" Beeeeeewwwwwdddiiiieee moite!


I wuvvv mah bug!

gotta say, that is cool. what motor have you got? what year was it before it was butchered?
party on
:bounce

Go the rat baja! it is unique. I love the look, keep up with it.

:thumb pmsl. I am working my way up. It only has 1600 twinport but I don't really mind. I am eventually going to put all chromie bitz on engine, firewall etc, so it shines out of the 'baboon butt' style cage and crud paint...hehehe,,,,,have decided though the dodgey homemade cage has to stay..especially the plastic ties being used as iprovised hinges! I have a set of laminated windows I will eventually put in, so I can treat the rust around the rubber, and also because I can't see out of the back window very well as the obvious home tint job installed by the previous owner has gone to shit.lol very much a boy car.lol. The looks I get when they realise its a chick behind the wheel.hehehehehe! My car is definately suited for the 'Modern Miss' with ADD!
:sandrine

careful about the chrome louvres that fit on the firewall, might not matter that much on a baja with all that air around the motor, but it tends to cut the amount of air that you can feed the fan. it ends up kinda close to the intake, and can up the oil temp a few degrees....
a 1600 TP is the best platform to start building a monster motor anyway, so be happy

I see a set of nice heads, twin kadrons and a chromed baja merged exhaust in your neear future

boozer, you too should have gotten round to this by now, pour some TLC on your speed gland

BTW is that the Maheno in the background?

Yeah but theres a few problems with that. I run a 1500sp and i have very little money and it will be spent on getting my baja and engine as reliable and bulletproof as possible. Out of the old saying "when building an engine you have three things- performance, cost and reliability. you can only choose two." I would always choose reliability first with the most emphasis and then cost. I can't see the point of having a baja or whatever with a engine that produces unbelievable, fantastic power if it breaks down when you most need it out in the sticks somewhere. I'd rather have a less powerful engine that was almost bulletproof and able to take a lot of punishment and still keep going. which is why I like my 1500 at the moment. The previous owner thrashed it with little to no maintainence, since then we've done a partial rebuild, and fixed all the problems (hopefully, but probably not) and kept it well maintained. And it's kept going even when the carb is so shot that everything moves and rattles from wear on it (am looking for new or reconditioned replacement Solex 30-Pict 2), when it had water in the carb and on most contacts at Fraser and wouldn't idle and backfired badly on deceleration, and when it was completely submerged underwater in a fast flowing creek at my farm. Untill it dies my 1500 will do fine and suits my purposes well...