We've always been an aircooled family. I started autocrossing bugs and dunebuggies in the mid-sixties. My kids both got old VW's along with their first driver's licences and we built them little hot rods. For a number of years my older son autocrossed a Ghia, first:



And finally hard-core, with a 2270 T4 motor:



While the younger son autocrossed a 58 ragtop bug, this one:



Getting a front wheel off the ground at Marina:



Both mostly in northern California. The younger son is now in Texas racing motorcycles so the older son bought his ragtop. For a while he kept the hotted up 1776 motor (the younger's first engine build, revved like crazy, couldn't seem to break it) but after he saw the huge balls the WRX motor gave the 914 (which was actually his project), and especially after autocrossing it himself in the shakedown phase after construction, he's going watercooled too. If you don't want to see how low you can go in defiling classic German automobiles then shield your eyes. But if you want to see some classic coolness in pursuit of modern speed then take a look at this:



And this:




Megasquirted Subaru EJ22. Tell the truth, is that kid gong to have fun or what? He started it for the first time on Sunday. Hasn't been driven yet, but it won't be long now. Whole build is at http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic...&highlight=, with the Subaru stuff starting about page 6.

I'm proud of the boy, you can tell. Sorry Concours Wonks, this family is apparently on a Mission from God to modernize old German iron, picking up the technical evolution from the point when VW and Porsche dozed off. It means in a family that at one time was almost all aircooled we have only two left, both mine, an old BMW airhead and a Suzuki DR650SE dualsport.

MAN this is fun!

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Nice Enkei 92's! Cool bug!

Totally badass - right in so many ways - it's an old Vdub, it's hot rodded and it's using a reliable, modern engine w/ at least 4x the HP of the original

All I can say is wow!

Your older son is in modesto right?

We need to get together sometime.. I dont see to many younger guys with german cars around here... Most are sporting something Jap..

Not to mention your son has some talent!

Awesome ! ! ! ! !

Jack

Contact him in that The Samba thread. I don't think they cruise much any more (they called it "hunting Hondas") because most have new babies, but sometimes still get together to compare cars. Last time I was there it was the In-N-Out up on I think Standiford. Find out when and go take a look. There's a guy with a K20 in the back of a street bug that runs consistent low 11's. One has a Subaru EJ22 engined bug with dual Webers and hidden nitrous. Another has (or had) a turbocharged Starlet with full coilover autocross suspension. That was Jeff, the ringleader, (55superbeetle) who's now in the middle of putting an LQ4 V8 into a 242 Volvo that will be the "family car". Seriously talented group, and all Modesto.

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That sounds like the group I need to be hanging with! I'll hit him up on the samba, I spoke to him once when he was looking at a white volvo on Tully.

In and out is still the hot spot, couple weeks ago it was close to 200 people in that parking lot.. And it wasnt even summer! I hope the cops stay away like they have been doing, and people stop doing burnouts, because the get togethers are a very good thing for our my agegroup.. Keeps them out of trouble..

very cool!

Big air-cooled and old VW nut myself. Probably always will be.

My son is a 3rd generation hotrodder in the Stein family. He is building a notchback Mustang....66, IIRC for the street & track. I luv a good tradition.
Here's a pic of my fathers brother taken in 1958.....he was the cause of it all.

Ahhh 6 or 8 strombergs? About 53 or 54?

It looks like the single ohc suby is a better fit in the T1. The plugs seem much easier to get to and also it leaves more side clearance.

My 58 rag top is now a pickup. It looks perfect for a mid engine suby. A few years ago I had planned a fi v6 fiero auto tranny transplant but the rear suspension seemed a little tough unless I tried to use the fiero cradle with coilovers.

324 Olds with 6 97s on a log manifold.
That was taken at a Seafair Trophy Sports Car race at Bremerton in 1958. Jerry Grant drove the car.....he was first into the first turn. Then the brakes went, then trans gears till only 3rd was left.....then it went. The 40 Ford club was happy, they'd made their point.

Bitchin.

I'd have a different opinion if it were a 57 or earlier though Don fuck wit da oval or split to much brah

Too late. I said a Mission from God, making the World a Better Place, so don't come by and everything will be fine. But if you leave it lying around...







That was Jeff's car (55superbeetle), the guy who did the work on my 914. It was built to be a street/track car representing VW Trends in their publisher's "Import Challenge", against hopped up turbo Supras and the like. To get the job done it got a superbeetle pan head grafted onto the kingpin pan, stiffened with a full cage. All coilover suspension, suspended Tilton pedals, Corvette brakes behind narrowed Corvette wheels. Started out with a turboed 3 liter Type 4 with Scat splitport heads, ended up Subaru STI. Very fast, looks good, and vastly improved over that silly 30 horsepower lump with skinny little drum brakes and 145 tires.

No rust, Scotty. All Modesto, Andyrew.


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That shot at Marina Airport is just down the street from me. I'm going to have to watch for that ragtop in the future. Never see any teeners out there tho. Lots of miatas, 510s, even a viper once... never a 914. BTW, Modesto was just voted one of the top ten worst cities to live in the US. I suppose the judges weren't into cool cars.

PCA plays out at Marina as well. You'll see a few 914s there for those events, at least.

--DD

I used to be there, but the rustoration and move north have me away from the Marina scene at the moment.
Keep your eyes peeled for an all-yellow 914 at Marina turning times in the top 10. It's Bill Charon (spelling?) and he is a very approachable, DIY, nice guy.

Thanks for all the positive comments! I can see where people are coming from who disagree with modifying classic cars. Sure, nobody likes to see something rare and valuable get hacked up just for amusement, then abandoned after it's ruined. But at the same time, is that any worse than letting it sit out in a field rotting into the earth because you're too afraid to touch it? I feel that careful, tasteful, well-thought out modifications are not only acceptable, but respectable. Hackjobs, well, are hackjobs. I hope you don't see my car as a hackjob though.

I got the 58 mostly buttoned up last weekend. Taking a break right now from raising the rear about an inch, to avoid scraping that stainless exhaust any more. I love how the front scoop turned out nearly invisible:






And here's a couple shots of the engine almost finished. I am still working on building an intake tube that will lead to an air box mounted above the transmission (not in the engine compartment.):




And another video, with a muffler on it and running just a little bit better:
http://www.youtube.com/user/55superbeetle#...u/1/VNkMcqk4cis

I'll try and have some driving videos (perhaps with a little bit of tire-spin?) in the next couple of weeks as I get more things buttoned up and the tuning worked out a bit more.

Nice ride!

Here's an iteration of that car that I'd forgotten about. The younger son knew I didn't much like turbos so he did this literally when I wasn't looking:



It was a sweep-the-floor setup. Ingenious, no? No lack of imagination, anyway. It actually ran and was evidently pretty strong, from what I understand, although it would shoot an occasional major flame out the exhaust. And that was a problem when a policeman had pulled up behind him at a stoplight at night and was squinting into the engine compartment, trying to figure out what the hell that was all about, just when the engine shot out one of those six-foot flaming farts. Instant fix-it ticket. Since he was a poor college student he couldn't afford to re-plumb everything, and was the end of the turbo.

I can't remember if that was before or after he had a 2.0 914 engine in it, best autocross configuration until this Subaru motor. So I guess at one time the car did have some Porsche content.

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this thread kicks ass... these cars are great... like something right out of my dreams!

I LOVE IT!!! Much to be proud of there!!

Vintage Nazis be damned!! I too love the old, classic styling with modern, go-fast goodies and technology lurking under the sheet metal. Hopefully in a few years my son will want to build a fast car for himself. Currently his dream is a McLaren F1; I keep telling him, BABY STEPS. This dad will be 100% behind it!!

Cars just bring families together. There's a saying, families who pull parts together, stay together. O.K., I just made that up, but it seems to be true. . .

I love this bug thread

http://www.volksrods.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13467