Carpet color/pattern correct for 1974 Options

[jhynesrockmtn]

Hi, working away on a refresh of some items on my Bumblebee. One of the items I want to address is the cheap carpet kit it has that has not been installed very well to boot.

I am going to place an order for a kit. The question is which color. I want to go with the German Loop. There is a black, early charcoal and late charcoal.

Which color is the most appropriate for a Bumblebee with a black interior.

[wonkipop]

@Mikey914

you have to be cautious these days matching carpet to original samples.
its all 50 year old material you are dealing with in original cars.
it seems not only was the brown carpet notorious for fading, it looks like the later type of black carpet also fades significantly.

here is some shots of that very original 06/74 1.8 i had on file.
with carpet lifted to show areas that have not been subject to UV exposure and wear.
its actually pretty dark in terms of both the thread colors.

(mind you, i will bet the black stayed stable for a lot longer than the brown. the brown carpet resistance to UV could be measured in days instead of years. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) )

in the last image you can see just how much fade there is in the original carpet exposed to UV.





also. mr. b will be dead right with his tracking of the precise week it switches over to the later carpet. its got nothing to do with limited edition production. its there in the 1.8s as well - just we never got the date narrowed down as close as he has. but our 1.8 data confirms his.


------

and why do they change the carpet?

this tells you why.
they start up the production line in 04/74 for the scirocco at karmann.
or at least that is the date most sources give for when the scirocco commences.
i have read other sources which indicate early pre production cars came down the line in oct 73 and they were gradually running batches of cars sorting out the line from oct 73 to march 74 before scaling up to full production but only for domestic and european supply.
the lines were further expanded in 1975 as production commenced for the USA market with the 76MY. at that point the 914 was restricted to a corner of the factory and a dribble of production.

here is the color/interior palette for the 74 scirocco. its the german brochure and its dated 01/74 for printing.
you will recognize everything in it pretty much. bit by bit the 914s received these fabrics and changes in material beginning with 75 MY 914s in earnest. but a bit also dribbles in at random points along the way with 74 914s. (as we have been finding out even the AFM unit for a 6 pin 74 injection loom gets revised quite a bit internally for later bosch spare part replacements).

as a side note the scirocco, golf and passat (rabbit and dasher in the USA) also had plastic fuel tanks. world first in a car. in may 74 the 914 received the plastic expansion tank on its fuel tank as part of this innovative product development. its all connected to the water cooled car R&D updated materials. there is other stuff along the way dotted throughout the 74MY that makes me think the 914 was benefiting from approaches to materials and components being developed for the new water cooled models. all of which no doubt were aimed at better outcomes in terms of manufacturing cost amongst other engineering considerations.




i've never found a good picture of a 74 production scirocco (which is actually a 75 MY, even though production starts in 04/74. but this is a 76MY produced in 75 showing the carpet.

[cholland_]

as a side note the scirocco, golf and passat (rabbit and dasher in the USA) also had plastic fuel tanks. world first in a car.

Do you have a source on that? I've spent much time with mk1 VWs (including currently restoring an early '75 Scirocco), and I've never seen a plastic fuel tank.

[b]but this is a 76MY produced in 75 showing the carpet.

Based on the steering wheel, single wiper and silver cluster, that is for sure a 1977 model. I will say, the original carpet is my '73 914 and my '75 Scirocco are both very similar pile.