Replacement Headlight assemblies

[bbearls]

I'm about to go crazy! The headlight assy's on my Bug were getting pretty rusty inside, so I decided to replace them. They were Hella units. First I ordered what they said were replacements for that year from Jbugs. There were several differences between the old and new. The headlight adjusting screws, rather than being at 2 and 7 o'clock, were at 5 and 7. The chrome ring had a different profile which kept them from fitting to the headlight buckets tightly. I returned those and found some on ebay (from JMA, I think). The picture on the ad matched mine exactly. I received them today and, of course, they're almost exactly like the Jbugs units, except the lens profile is drastically different. I just sent an email to JMA to see what's up. In researching it, I find that they use the exact same photo on all their headlight assemblies, no matter what year or if it's a Porsche or what.
Right now I'm ready to disassemble my old assemblies, strip the paint and rust, repaint them and reinstall them.,. Has anyone had similar problems with these replacements and is there a fix??? Thanks/Bob

[Roadbug]

You had you own question answered correctly. Most old cars have a
rejection reaction just like hunan organs. I alwys recommend original
parts unless there is no choice.

Right now I'm ready to disassemble my old assemblies, strip the paint and rust, repaint them and reinstall them.

[Blue Baron]

Yes, aftermarket headlight assemblies are ill fitting and low quality in every respect. Look for original assemblies or restore your old ones.

[bbearls]

Yup, started refurbishing the old units today. Rust is pretty light and nothing nasty.

thanks/bob

[bbearls]

Got the headlight assemblies all cleaned, repainted, and re-installed. I must say it looks pretty darned good...and much cheaper than buying new ones.

I also got the bug running again (after 6 or 7 years of sitting in the shop). I had the gas tank cleaned and, when I tried to start it, no gas was getting to the fuel pump. I blew out the line from the engine back to the tank and after that it was smooth sailing. I changed the oil twice and the filter screen once.

Now I find that the brakes are almost locked up. It won't coast downhill in neutral, so guess I'll have to tackle a brake job. I'm pretty certain the master cylinder is shot. Watch this forum for my cries for help!!!

Bob

[darzoom]

You may want to pull the filter screen off the bottom of the tank to make sure there is no debris. You may have cleared a hole for now but if there was a lot of debris in the tank it may settle and cause problems later. You may find the screen gone as over time they rot out depending on what is in the tank. Just a thought.

[bbearls]

didn't see a screen of any kind on the bottom of the tank. Just the fitting that the fuel line hooked to.

[darzoom]

It should look like the photo....If the filter is gone, you can buy the whole assembly for around $15. I would suggest you add if missing as well as have the inline filter between the hard fuel line and carb in the engine bay.

[darzoom]

BTW, orginally there was no inline filter between the hard line and the carb as many run now. The filter was a combination of the tank filter and the pump filter. The pictures show pumps both old and new. The old pump had the filter screen behind the brass nut on the pump. The newer sytle had the filter screen under the pump dome. You may want to check these filter screens if you have not done so.

[Blue Baron]

If there is no filter, you may want to add one of the ordinary plastic types. I always install it in the fuel line just ahead of the engine over the transmission. If the car hasn't run in a very long time, you'll also want to replace all the gas hose front and rear with German braided gas line.