A 67 bug I'm consideing has a dodgy clutch - long way from the floor and very shuddery so I'm guessing the early signs of being on the way out.

This does not concern me - the bug is still very much worth considering.

Of concern is the gearbox. My current Beetle is a 66 (one in the Avatar and signature) and its gearbox is very notchy - click-click to go from one gear to the next and a very very short throw.

The '67 I'm looking at has a very long throw and the box feels very doughy no sense of home for the leaver in any of the 4 forward gears. Feels fine when driving and no noises. Goes into reverse fine.

Is this normal? Symptomatic of problems ahead of just characteristic of different years. The '67 is a 1300 Deluxe.

Is clutch replacement easy? Expected cost?

Are Beetle gearboxes for 1300's easy to come by? Cost?

Cheers

sounds more like the rear coupling is shot
Feels like a wooden spoon in a bowl full of dough
$10 fix - no problems

Also sounds like it has a short shift kit on it

Clutch replacement - $400 with new kit with pressure plate ??
Maybe + $80 for machine fly wheel
Add for remove and replace

Say $600 - $700 if you get a shop to do it all

I would check the bowden tube before pulling the clutch. If they don;t have the correct amount of bend in them they will shudder.

The bowden tube is that black rubber thing near the gearbox that the clutch cable runs through, kind of like sheath. It should have a bend it in.

I had a shudder in my 60 beetle.....................ended up being the clutch disc, had a broken piece of metal that made the disc thicker in one spot (by bugger all).........Replaced the pressure plate and disc and the problem went !!

Clutch kit was about $150 including a new thrust bearing, clutch plate and pressure plate (Tooley Imports at Waitara)

Driving the car into my garage and then driving out with the new clutch fitted was about 1 1/2hours.

As for the "spoon in porridge", like Bizarre said just replace the rear linkage as well as the bush in the tunnel.