OT: Super Beetles, Experiences? Options

[rwilner]

The wife likes the old-school beetle, so i've been thinking about surprising her with one for her birthday in January. Browsing the classifieds it seems like you can get a good driver for pretty short money.

Does anyone own one of these? Which years are the good ones? What to look for when checking one out? We're not going to do anything crazy with it -- she'll just drive it for fun on weekends, or as a DD during the nicer months.

I did some searching on thesamba but didn't immediately find this type of information, so I thought i'd ask around here before digging more.

Thanks!
Rich

[VaccaRabite]

Great little cars.

You have to watch out for rust. These cars were not galvanized, and rust like crazy. If you have to choose between a running car that is rusty or a non-running car that has no rust, go with the non-running car.

The engines are DEAD simple to build, and cheap to build as well.

You won't be setting any land speed records in it if it is kept stock.

So long as you stay on the maintenance, they are very reliable cars. Simple machines without much to break.

*edit* HA! I thought I was on NASIOC when I responded to this. You probably already know all the stuff I just said....

Zach

[jaxdream]

I drove a 72 Super for years (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) , loved it , I do miss Elmo (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) . If I were to get another I'd go with the curved windshield ones ( 73+ ) for better areodianamicks . Great car , easy to maintain , inexpensive , just watch your oil levels , don't lug the engine , keep valves adjusted - easier than 914 , all should be good , and they can be made to look sharp .
My $ .02 ....

Jack / Jaxdream

[Mark Henry]

Supers have a more expensive front end to repair, some have a 50mph shimmy that can be a bitch to sort out. A fresh DP1600 goes along just fine.
We paid off a huge chunk on our mortgage because my wife drove a $1500 71SB to work for many years.

Value wise the SB's are about the lowest, most peeps want a '67 or earlier. Standard beetles have a cheaper to repair front end but lose a bit of trunk space.

[Krieger]

I had a 72 with the shimmy and no $ to fix in college. Very scary at freeway speeds. Easy fix.....don't drive on freeway (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) I finally fixed it when I sold it and bought first 914.

[patssle]

Can't speak for your location, but here in Texas I was looking at Beetles/SBs before I bought the 914. It was very much possible to get a rust free running in near perfect condition for around 5k.

In fact I almost bought a convertible Beetle. I could of shipped it to Cali and sold it for almost double the price from what I've read!

[DanT]

I owned a brand new '71 super Beetle (flat windshield) with sunroof and it was a great little car.
With a little exhaust help and good tuneup they run just fine in town and on the freeway. I never experienced any freeway wobble but then again I had 5.5" Chrome steelies with 185s on it...
I have considered finding one and building it up....
Also owned two '67s and I much preferred the '71 for drivability and comfort in stock form.

[Root_Werks]

We had a 74' and loved it. It was pretty much all stock. I really liked the extra room and 'real' windshield/dash of the SB.

Very cool little cars.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

I think 73' would be my favorite year for the SB, no bumper shocks (lighter) and cureved windshield.

[HAM Inc]

I drove a 75 for 10 years and absolutely loved it! It was the first year with rack&pinion steering. It is waaaay superior to the earlier SB's with the steering box.

I softened the front springs with cheap redneck spring clamps. It lowered the to-high front end by about an inch and helped the handling. It was great handling car and very nimble with the rack.

[zambezi]

The front end shimmy on the supers is almost always the stabilizer bar bushings. The stabilizer actually locates the position of the lower control arm. When the bushings get old and soggy they allow the lower control arm to move back and forth changing the steering geometry which causes the dreaded shimmy. I have repaired dozens of the supers with this same problem. Simple change of the bushings and it is a night and day difference in ride.
JIM

[rwilner]

I'm thinking a 73 at least, although i'd like to get one when they started rustproofing the frames...but I think they started doing that after the end of the super beetle (last ones are 74's right?).

I'll keep my eyes peeled in the boston area. I figure 5k should net me a nice ride that's fun around town and cheap to maintain.

Are there any specific areas to check out for rust, like our teeners' hell hole / longs / rear cabin floor?

[aircooledtechguy]

Replace the front idler arm bushing with a solid bronze one (this is the one that causes the shimmy) and replace the rubber bushings with Urethane and it will be solid and have very good handling.

The other nice thing about SB is that the front brakes are larger than a standard beetle. Not flashy, but darned good cars and they are Y2K compliant. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

SB were from '71 thru '79. Standards were available thru '77

[underthetire]

I almost rolled one back in high school. That was scary. Drove ok, I just don't think it handled has good as the early ones, but it may have just been that one.

[kerensky]

I bought a '72 super convertible for the wife, and I had a '74 back in high school. I'd second the opinion on the '73. The flat windshield bugs can be a bit, erm, claustrophobic, and you can really smack your head on the windshield in a wreck, even while wearing a seat belt. As for rust places, the worst is the floorpan in general, especially right under the battery (which sits under the back seat).

Check the frame horns that support the engine - they run on either side of the transmission. The horns are two stamped pieces welded together along the edge flange - our convertible had split all along those seams and the horns would flex under load. I was following her one day and noticed that as she pulled away from a stop light the exhaust tips would point down towards the ground! If they're split but not rusty just weld 'em up and coat 'em.

[EdwardBlume]

Were convertible SBs made?

[rwilner]

Were convertible SBs made?

Indeed there were!

I just found this site, seems like a pretty awesome resource for SBs.

http://www.superbeetlesonly.com/forum/index.php?act=home

[Cap'n Krusty]

Great little cars.

You have to watch out for rust. These cars were not galvanized, and rust like crazy. If you have to choose between a running car that is rusty or a non-running car that has no rust, go with the non-running car.

The engines are DEAD simple to build, and cheap to build as well.

You won't be setting any land speed records in it if it is kept stock.

So long as you stay on the maintenance, they are very reliable cars. Simple machines without much to break.

*edit* HA! I thought I was on NASIOC when I responded to this. You probably already know all the stuff I just said....

Zach

"DEAD simple to build"? A LOT more involved than a T4. The cases are even more likely to need MAJOR machine work, and show a marked tendency to crack. The thrust is usually worn out, the spigots are warped, and studs have pulled out. The days of the $500 rebuild have morphed into the $2500 rebuild, and just knowing what needs to be checked requires experience.

Given a choice, I'd opt for a standard beetle any day. Last one was in 77. The SB cabbie went on until 1979. All, beginning in MY 1975, were L-jet, and CA cars had catalysts, as well as EGR.

The Cap'n

[sixerdon]

Make your plans for NEXT weekend.

http://www.larzanderson.org/Topics/Topic.c...ndarEventId=105

Drive your Karmann made 914 and maybe they'll let you display it on the lawn. If you like VW's, this is their BIG annual event in the Boston area. Maybe one will be for sale or you can network with the owners of SB's.

Don

[bmtrnavsky]

I had a 72 Super, and it was AWESOME! Plan on replacing the floorpans unless you live someplace very dry!

[EdwardBlume]

Make your plans for NEXT weekend.

http://www.larzanderson.org/Topics/Topic.c...ndarEventId=105

Drive your Karmann made 914 and maybe they'll let you display it on the lawn. If you like VW's, this is their BIG annual event in the Boston area. Maybe one will be for sale or you can network with the owners of SB's.

Don

Sounds cool but a little far from CA.. try a new post for this cool sounding event...