Louisville 66 Beetle

Here's the spot to show off your 1966 Beetle Restoration projects
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Speedmster
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Louisville 66 Beetle

Post by Speedmster »

Here are a few photos from this past Sunday.
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rcs_80
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Post by rcs_80 »

Very nice! Keep us updated.
Valdez
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Post by Valdez »

very clean. keep it up!
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

We got quite a few parts in last week. We are rebuilding this car to drive, but want to keep it closer to original than custom. There will be some options on the car that it did not leave the factory with. More for convenience and comfort purposes. Like rear quarter glass with pop out kits, but for the most part keep an OEM theme. There is a lot to be said about innovation and new modern technologies, but sometimes I think that pulls from the true character of a classic car.

What are your thoughts on bumpers? The overrides were removed way before I was ever glimmer in my dads eyes. The rear bumper is MIA. Would you spend the extra money on new bumpers with overrides or just get some Euro-style?

We are also looking at a different sound deading material, DynaMat. Yes, it's pricey, but it has a good track record (of what I have read at least) and we figure we could save some weight over the OEM style. Any thoughts?

Over the last 12 years several things have come up MIA. Windshield Wiper fluid bottle and Helphos valve, emergency flasher knob, and headliner support rods. I am, as I suspect many others, would like to find such items. I've been watching Samba for some good used stuff. Headliner rods I have seen in catalogs. 66' looks to have had 5 headliner rods, can anyone confirm that?

This Sunday we will do some more work and a few more photos to follow. Had to take a weekend off last weekend for drill at the Kentucky Air National Guard.
Last edited by Speedmster on Fri May 25, 2012 3:19 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Was there like a screen or a mesh that went behind the horn grills on a 66'?
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Here are a few from yesterday. Mostly did some cleanup perp work. Lots of dust on everything from the car sitting for 12 years. Also removed old sound deading in preparation for new materials.


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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

A short background of our 66' Beetle.

Dad was working at a VW dealership, were he worked for quite a while working up from detail shop to salesman, when he decided to go into in the RV market in 1978 (year edited). This Beetle, painted black at the time, was sitting in the service lot behind the dealership with the engine sitting in the back seat. He bought it for a good price and rebuilt the engine and drove it as his daily driver to and from work.

I can remember him taking me to preschool in it everyday. It has been known to do a few donuts in the snow on our dead end street, but that will never be confirmed. Dad convinced me that a mouse lived in the ash tray, since the ashtray would squeak when opened and closed. Every morning I would have to put a small piece of cheese in the ashtray on our way to school. Somewhere around this time the car was painted white. As dads business picked up the car took on several roles. It was used to tow behind motorhomes when they would deliver units or went to setup shows. It was the vehicle used to shoot around town collecting parts for several years too.

In the 1990's the car was rounded over while being driven back to the dad's dealership. It was put in a garage and sat for several years until the early 2000's time frame when dad started working on putting it back together. He got a roof from a donor car and had that put on.

He had a local VW guy working on restoring the car and business got tight, as did many businesses did, and the project was put on hold. The engine and transmission had been rebuilt, suspension had been replaced, exterior and interior had been painted, and most of the electrical system had been replaced. Yet again the ol bug sat in the back of a cozy garage covered up waiting.

Dad and I wanted a project to work on together. Between his business and me chasing a military career we haven't had a lot of time, but the more we talked about it the more we wanted to make time. So every Sunday we work on the car. No time table, just slowly but surely, little by little.

This car has been in the family for 40 years, and we are working to make it another 40 years.
Last edited by Speedmster on Sun Sep 09, 2012 7:30 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Speedmster
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Sound Deading the name of the Game

Post by Speedmster »

Last week the DynaMat came in and we worked last night to install it. We had spent most of last Sunday cleaning surfaces and removing old materials. DynaMat is not cheap. It was around $680 for 74 Sq Ft. That said, it is very easy to install, and is very thin so as not to get in the way of the interior upholstery. We looked at several other products that friends had suggested but this turned out great. We got about half the car done yesterday.

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We had one hiccup, found a small rust spot in the passenger side floorboard. Going to fit that spot before we put in sound deading material in. Sure glad we found that now rather than later.

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Next Sunday we will finish the sound deading install on the floorboards, L&R rear inside wheel wells, roof, and in the front trunk.
fatalifeaten
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Post by fatalifeaten »

Looking good. I like overriders, but Euro style blades are also a good choice. Wolfsburg West has very good reproduction bumpers that fit almost as if they were OEM. You can get cheaper ones several other places, but you get what you pay for. Another option is to find a set of OEM bumpers and have them re-chromed. From a fit and finish perspective, nothing beats this, but again, the cost is higher.

Yes, there's a grille insert that goes over the horn opening.
http://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/Detai ... 113853643A

Note, unless you run dual horns you'll need a knock-off for one side (also on that page)
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

fatalifeaten wrote:Looking good. I like overriders, but Euro style blades are also a good choice. Wolfsburg West has very good reproduction bumpers that fit almost as if they were OEM. You can get cheaper ones several other places, but you get what you pay for. Another option is to find a set of OEM bumpers and have them re-chromed. From a fit and finish perspective, nothing beats this, but again, the cost is higher.

Yes, there's a grille insert that goes over the horn opening.
http://www.wolfsburgwest.com/cart/Detai ... 113853643A

Note, unless you run dual horns you'll need a knock-off for one side (also on that page)
We are hearing from several folks locally the overriders are the way to go. Yes, more money, but it really shows the history and the cars character.

Exactly what I needed to know about the insert for the horn grill, thank you.
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Stripped both donor doors of there swing windows, door latch assemblies, windows, and window mechanisms. Fun Times. The first door took about an hour, but the second was a breeze. Also worked on assembling the headlight buckets, but the left fender bucket-to-fender lip was pinched in and the seal would not seat correctly. I decided to wait for the VW SME (Subject Matter Expert) to speak his advice.

Does anyone know what the correct bulb is for the front running light?

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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Tomorrow I will be rebuilding our donor door vent wing window assemblies. I have never done this before. Found some information online and wondered if it was good information. I have new rubber to put in.

"Assemble the vent windows. If you have not already done so, drill out the rivet in the top hinge. Unbolt the bottom hinge and the glass should come out. I've never taken the glass out of the frame. Remove both vent wing seal (front part) and the vent wing flap seal (rear part). Install the flap seal, then the larger vent window seal. Trim as required. Reinstall the glass and put a rivet in the top hinge."

Does this sound right?

I've seen a Vent Window Kits but only for earlier models in Wolfsburg West catalog.
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Ok, first, I don't agree with what I read online about how to disassemble the wing vent wind assembles. It's saying to drill out the hinge itself. We op'd to drill out the two rivets that attach the hinge arm to the frame assembly. Your replacement rivets are then hidden. We thought if you drill the hinge out you would still see the rivet that wasn't the same as factory.

Dad installed the headlight bucket assembles and driver and passage door window aluminum on. He also did a few finishing touches on the DynaMat.

I worked on the wing window vents. Only got one done. Getting the new rubber seals clean was hard. Whatever preserving materials the manufacture put on the seals took a long time to clean off. While apart I polished up the chrome and aluminum on the assembles.

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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

I've been reading a book called "Thinking Small" by Andrea Hiott. There is a lot of history of Volkswagen and the Beetle, and it help me understand what life was like back in those days and how the Beetle came to be. Good Read, highly recommend it!
Last edited by Speedmster on Sun Jun 24, 2012 2:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Speedmster
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Post by Speedmster »

Did some more work yesterday on the bug. Yesterday I got the right door wing vent window rebuilt and put in the car. I did some cleaning in the door jam area and glove compartment. I put in the glove compartment bumpers too. Now the glove compartment door opens easily. I also cleaned up both door glass. Drivers side glass has quite a few scratches. Looks like from the old wore out window rubber and and some point someone locked themselves out of their car. Corner edge is chipped. While I was cleaning I noticed something about dash knob colors. The gear shifter knob, parking brake button, and turn signal are grey. I bought ivory for the ashtray, headlights, and windshield wiper. The ivory does not go well with the white paint. The grey looks much better. If any one is interested in Ivory dash knobs I have a few and an ivory windshield wiper knob with push button.

Today, with help from Diane and Elizabeth, we got the DynaMat on the roof. It looks really good, and the sound deading is awesome. I left about 2" from the sides for the headliner to go in. Yesterday I also finished up the DynaMat in the rear wheel wells in the back seat. I really think this stuff will quite the road noise. Character of a car is good, but rattles and white noise drive me nuts. Ok, so I'm already nuts, moving on.

Going to clean up the old window regulators. Can't find any new for a 66'. These work pretty good. 46 years of grease build up will be fun. Wonder how much I will be wearing after it's all said and done.


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