Newbie-- wanting to make sure

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Tue May 09, 2006 12:51 pm

The only right way to replace the pans is to remove the body. You might as well sandblast and paint. While it's apart, go ahead and replace the acc. and clutch cables, fuel and brake lines, master cylender... check the gas tank & front end. At this point it would be best to pull the motor and replace the clutch and t/o bearing. dont forget the shift bushing directly behind the shifter. When you re-install the body you will probobly find you need to re-wire buggy.... Take it from me, anything you don't do now will come back to haunt you later. Almost all the work you need to do will be much easier with the body off. Dont hurry to get it on the road. Make a check list of things you want/need to do before you disasemble and aquire all parts before hand. If your not sure how to do something, buy a VW manual for the chassis year. if you have any questions, just ask us. We are here to help. Oh yea, most importantly, HAVE FUN!!!!

delsol · Post by **delsol** » Wed May 10, 2006 9:48 pm

Well we have started by pulling the body off, -- actually came off pretty easy. both pans will be replaced first, will pull the front end engine and tranny and sandblast and prime. From there I'm kicking around the idea of using 2*3 inch tubing on its edge where the new pan lips would be, thus creating a lift and also strangthening the sides of the pan, these would bolt to the front end and get welded to the tunnel and torsion. Can anyone think of anything not good about this idea -- please let me know! The tranny is definitely a 58' -- it is a split case unit. I'm thinking about just pulling the whole engine and tranny and pickling it and installing new beefed up units. I'll try and post some pics later. Thanks for all the ideas! Dave

joemama · Post by **joemama** » Wed May 10, 2006 11:25 pm

I have been following your thread, its fun to see ideas for a new build kicked around. I think you need to identify how you are going to use the buggy before you get too far into it. For street with some trail use thrown in, I see nothing wrong with a beefed type 1 transaxle, keeping in mind that for street use you probably want stock ratio 3rd and 4th gear, a pro street type trans would beef up enough for most type 1 engines, and still have freeway crusing ability. If you havent driven a glass buggy, try to get a ride on one, as it will surprise most people how quick they are, even with a moderate power engine. A 1776 to 1914, is plenty for most people. My next buggy will have a home made 1 1/2" lift, created much as you describe, I will extend the side pieces to the front beam for reinforcement, as well as to the rear torsion housing, I dont like the look of a 3" lift, I think it detracts from the stance of the buggy. I dont think a glass buggy is worth trying to make into an offroad rail, they are incredibly agile, and fun at slow to moderate speeds, but for serious offroad use, the limiting factor is the suspension, (not engine power) and it costs thousands to upgrade to anything serious, plus you would probably have to cut up the body. Just my 2 cents worth. Have fun with your planning and building.

fubar · Post by **fubar** » Thu May 11, 2006 2:35 am

I would agree, 1 1/2" lift on the body if you are using the swing axel. If you plan to put more than 60hp in it, it may be a good time to consider switching to a bug IRS torsion and a bus tranny. You can buy a used bus with an 091 trans, and a bug pan with irs cheaper than making a swing axel hold up to abuse. Like previously mentioned, the power to weight makes them pretty snappy with 40 hp motor. 100 hp and paddle tires will toast even a bus tranny if you get too crazy. Trust me. Reverse is a SUPER weak link. You can always build another one, I would focus on getting it on the road. You will meet some interesting people.

delsol · Post by **delsol** » Fri May 12, 2006 11:59 pm

I've decided to go with mildly rebuilt tranny and heavy side cover with a decent mill somwhere around a 1.9 litre motor. The more I think about it I don't see me in the dunes with this so I think i'll keep the bus parts for a rail at a later date-- ya never know... And Fubar -- I hear ya with the reverse being weak -- if it wasn't for that and the spider gears I probably wouldn't have seen the inside of so many type 1's when I was younger. Here are the pics of what has happened so far. Will start to replace pans on Tuesday.

delsol · Post by **delsol** » Sat May 13, 2006 12:03 am

One other question I was wondering was about the torsion sticking out on the rear. I know that IRS has this but I've never seen a swingaxle like this--- has someone added this later? and are all the cover plate bolt patterns the same and interchangeable?

jsturtlebuggy · Post by **jsturtlebuggy** » Sat May 13, 2006 6:17 am

It is 1959 or earlier pan which uses the longer torsion bar. They are 24 11/16" long. They were also used on the early Type III's. IRS torsion bars are 26 9/16" long. They will work unless you use a very large diameter tire. I thing they are 1mm larger in diameter, but being longer should be a softer ride.

delsol · Post by **delsol** » Sat May 13, 2006 1:58 pm

The pan was titled as a 58' -- but could be older i guess, is the longer torsion known to give a softer ride? I will need to turn these up a couple of splines as both sides are sagging a bit. Any need to replace these if i have them out and are they available since they are an older model?

fubar · Post by **fubar** » Sat May 13, 2006 4:28 pm

If you leave that big hole in the pan, the sand , water, beer cans ,etc. will self clean. Plus the added option of a Fred Flintstone style stop if the brakes fail. If you crank the torsions too far, they will pound against the bottom stop..It makes a clunking sound, plus the wheels leave the Earth more often than neccessary. A little down travel is nice to have. Less likely to rollover too.