Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rick]

Not a car I've ever owned, but it'd be interesting to pool together everyone's experiences, memories and so on of the air-cooled VW Beetle.

Do you own one now? or back in the day? would you never own one, and if so what is it that puts you off? All experiences and recollections welcome

Rick
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[victor 101]

I got one in payment for a debt, it had been sitting for a year or more, put a pair of jump leads on it and it fired up within seconds, of course this was in the day when fuel stayed fresh, got it welded up and used it for a while before passing it on to my son, last time I saw it was at a show and it had been customised. The beauty of them is you can get just about anything for them, parts are plentiful and custom and tuning parts are well catered for.

[stuchamp]

I've owned two.
Both could be street driven but were rebuilt for off-road use.
Two of the most fun vehicles I've ever owned. They were very dependable even with the beatings they sometimes got.
Best memory was giving my brother a ride and getting way airborne over a jump and then landing on our nose and then sliding sideways without hardly slowing down any. He turned pale and said I was too crazy to be his brother!

Would love to have another one but in stock form, preferably a '67.

My grandparents had a VW Camper Bus in the mid 60's that they drove over the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. I remember my Grandfather saying never again even with the 2-speed axle. It was just too gutless!

[Roger-hatchy]

Came home from Dortmund in Germany for demob with a 1957 convertable, swapped for a cine camera
.
Used it for about four years, and did a good few thousand miles with it.

Then had a ford *&^%$ bigest load of rubbish ever owned.

Then in about 1973 had another 1953 Beetle with a modified engine and gerabox, also the suspension and braked were moddified to handle the extras,
Brakes were from a porche 356 and just fittied in the wheel discs.
Engine, 1600 with twin port heads, had a full race cam, two twin 40mm downdraft sollex carbs, ex porche,
Crankshaft and flywheel lightened toughened and nitrided.
Pistons were lightened, heads were replrofiled and scimmed.
Valves were polished like chrome, still have a couple I had for spares, never needed and they are still look like chrome.
Home made exhaust.
Gearbox was also toughened and a higher diff fitted.

0-60 in just over 7 seconds, had it up to 125 MPH, never did get it flat out
And at 36MPG was not too expencive to run.
Mind you round town, London, it was 18MPG and nevr more than third gear.

Easiest car to work on, Used to Navigate on Rallies for a pal in a split screen beetle, also modded.
He had a piston go on one event in Norfolk, we drove it home. Hampstead.

Next day engine out, replace piston and barrel, test running around the block, all in two hours.

Bent a front axle on Mine, wet leaves and at 30MPH bounced of a curb.
Replacement axle in in about an hour

would love one again, only if it had the same modifications as my 53.

A lot of the part from the type 1 to the type 3 are interchangable.
Even the transpoter axle will fit a beetle, less the bits on the end and the crown wheel turned through 180.

Most of the 40's, 50's and early 60's body panels will fit each model.

I had 60's, 12volt upright lights, wings on my 53 beetle, better to see with on the country rallies, and were slightly wider than the 53's so the 205 profile fitted without any wing mod's.

I used to work for VW in St. Johns Wood in the 70's, so was with a load of competition minded friends, and nutters.
Rallying, Rallycross, Autocross and track

BTW, I like Beetles.

[Jim.Walker]

Never had one. Never wanted one.
As Roger Hatchy says, they had their good points as far as maintenance goes and maybe they could be tuned and we all know the engines lasted and lasted. With all that. Why did I never want one?

Well. First I objected to my nose almost rubbing the windscreen. I always hated the noise they made. I could never decide whether that thing in the middle was some kind of pudding stirrer, or maybe a gearstick. I object to sitting behind a tank filled with highly flammable liquid. And finally (for the moment until I remember other things) the performance in the Derbyshire Hills was abysmal. Minis, Minors, Anglias etc. etc. ran rings round them on hilly roads and used much less petrol.

By the way. I do not remember a split screen version unless Roger is referring to the rear window.
_________________
Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[Roger-hatchy]

As you say Jim
You loves em or hates em

Mind you I have seen Cooper S's pull over for us on Rallies, and my mate Heinz was quicker round Brands Hatch than a Cooper S.

But as you say love me or hate em, I have never liked Fords since owning one.

Can be said, depends on what you were bought up, IE your first car.

Having said that my first car was an Opel Cadet Convertible in 1961, loved convertables since then, never had the incling to go back to Opel though, mine fell over too easy

[Roger-hatchy]

PS.
It was split 'rear' screen, Sorry

[badhuis]

Drove a Beetle for a few weeks about twenty years ago and that was long enough!
I can see the attraction now, being a very different car compared to any modern, but the drawbacks are too big. Very noisy, big thirst, heavy steering, no sporty ride. Give me a Herald, Imp, Minor anytime!

[CMI-Cars]

I have a 1300 waiting for restoration:



And the 1500 beeing rebuild to a fiberglass classic:




My dad had one when he was younger, and allways wanted one.
And guess it moved over to me with time.
But my reall passion is still the Fords
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1938 Ford 10 7W
1948 Ford Anglia E04A
1949 Ford Prefect E493A
1950 Ford Prefect E493A
1952 Ford Anglia E493A
1953 Volvo PV 831
3x1953 Ford Anglia E493A
3x1954 Ford Popular 104E
1955 Ford Popular 104E
1956 Ford Popular 104E
www.cmi-cars.com

[pigtin]

Bought a 1953 standard model in 1964. I had just married, cash was a bit tight and my
Hillman Minx had just died. A 1953 Beetle at £100, only 60k miles on the clock (nothing to a VW) a real bargain. The performance and reliability of the marque was almost legendry at that time. Oh dear, I had not done my homework.

The difference between the standard model, of ten years ago, to the more recent ones were very marked. I soon found this out when I tried putting my foot down and cornering fast.
There was no power from the 1132cc 25bhp engine. In favourable conditions I could top 50mph, but no more. Trying even moderately fast cornering in the wet had the same effect as a quickly executed three point turn. There was no sound insulation to speak of and the noise numbed the brain.
Every few months the clutch cable would break and it was a miserable job renewing it.
In spite of all this I quite liked the car.

Each drive gave a sense of achievement: like having been to hell and returned safely. The heating was primitive to say the least. It consisted of two cable operated flaps to re-direct the cooling air from the engine to the interior. In devising this cunning plan VW had overlooked the effect of even the smallest oil leak.

Of course the 1132 engine didn’t have small oil leaks it had huge ones where the oil cooling tower kept coming loose. The first clue to this was difficulty in seeing through the windscreen and even more difficulty breathing.
The cure of course was simple. Remove the engine completely, strip off all the shrouding panels, re-seal the cooling tower joint and clean every scrap of oil from the engine, paying particular attention to the numerous cylinder and head cooling fins.
If you carried out these procedures diligently you might, just might, have the oil fumes replaced by the slightly less toxic fumes of Gunk.

I survived two winters, faced with the stark choice of hypothermia or asphyxiation.
I chose the former because a large whisky-mac would usually cure it.
After the second winter there was no sign of body rot or the engine ever wearing out. This set it aside from most English cars at the time. But the performance had to be addressed. I sourced a more recent 1172cc engine. This gave me an extra ten horses, which made quite a difference. With fume free heat exchangers I also expected to cut down on my consumption of whisky mac’s during the coming winter.
I never found out if this would be the case having been seduced by the sumptuous and speedy qualities of a Morris Minor Traveller.
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Due to the onset of my mid eighties I'm no longer sprightly and rarely seen in my Austin special. I have written a book though. https://amzn.eu/d/7rwRRqL

[Jim.Walker]

[Ashley]

Pigtin

You've recalled all I remember about them! However, some years (about 30) ago I spotted an absolutely immaculate 1300 on a car lot with 35,000 miles on the clock and decided to try it. It was everything you've said and when it did manage to pass a slow lorry on a dual carriageway, I nearly got blown off the road by the wind it had been shielding me from! I thought it pretty grim and bought a 2 CV Citroen which IMO was rather better if more flimsy. 2CVs are wonderful.

Interestingly my business partner has just bought a 1300 for trials. He's raised the back end, the compression, fitted special rockers to give more lift, twin twin choke carburettors, a special exhaust and MX5 seats, so I'll keep you posted.

I still see the Beetle as a triumph of Jewish marketing skills over Nazi engineering and I agree with the Brit Army Officer who decided that the Germans could keep it. If only our industry hadn't been in such a mess, the Morris Minor would rightly be regarded as the better car.

Ash

[Jim.Walker]

About 1970 I bought an ageing Hillman Imp, obviously also rear engined. A couple of days later I had to make a trip of about 100 miles up the A1. It was a windy day and it took a lot of concentration and effort to keep it on the carriageway, let alone in the correct lane. It reminded me that I had avoided owning Beetles for that very reason, among others.

THAT was one of my fifty or so cars which I kept for less than one week!

As far as popularity of Beetles, Dauphines etc. are concerned I think that we need to take into consideration that in the mid to late 1950s there was typically a waiting list of months or even more than a year for a new British car, while some Continental cars were available immediately "off the shelf".

Jim.
_________________
Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[pigtin]

The difference between the 1300 and the 1953 1135cc VW was similar to the difference between a Rover and a Ford Pop. You had it easy Ashley. I used to dream about the comforts of a 1300.
That should give you some idea how bad the first models imported in to this country were. One thing I forgot to mention. The 53 standard model had a crash gearbox. (all four gears.)
_________________
Due to the onset of my mid eighties I'm no longer sprightly and rarely seen in my Austin special. I have written a book though. https://amzn.eu/d/7rwRRqL

[Ashley]

I rebuilt an engine for one once too.

The campers that are so popular now were b---s for dropping valves.

Ash