Must get me ears waxed soon . . . pardon?
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Getting the ‘57 beetle back on the road in 2024
- Thread starter bosco659
- Start date
Must get me ears waxed soon . . . pardon?
I haven’t watched the whole vid - kinda long, but reminds me of my project. 
. Copy cats!
Mine…..
. Copy cats!Mine…..
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Well it’s getting close to start seriously thinking about storing the beetle for the winter so I can work on my Toyota Supra this winter. By the time it’s ready for hibernation, I plan to have the suspension, brakes and most stuff other than the engine, completed. The paint on the body is severely faded but I like that “patina”. However there are spots on the body (mainly the roof) that are nearly down to bare metal. I don’t want the surface rust to progress any further so does anyone have any suggestions about what coating I might apply to the badly worn areas to keep further rusting to a minimum. The car will be stored in a dry, but not heated building. My plans for next season do not include paint. If anything I may have it clear coated with a flat or satin finish. I was thinking about an oil based protective coating but thought it may create issues when it comes time for clear coating.
Any thoughts or comments are welcome.
Any thoughts or comments are welcome.
I'd just apply 2 or 3 good coats of your favorite wax if it were me. I use Turtle Wax. It's gonna be out of direct sunlight... UV light, so the wax should last all winter.
Wax and Tar Remover when you're ready for clear coat.
Wax and Tar Remover when you're ready for clear coat.
I use the paste wax.... jus' because I'm old fashioned. I'd guess the liquid kind will work just as well.
Make sure that cover is water resistant/repellent and not water absorbent. That's obvious and you most likely thought of that... jus' thought I'd throw it out there anyway.
Make sure that cover is water resistant/repellent and not water absorbent. That's obvious and you most likely thought of that... jus' thought I'd throw it out there anyway.
If you want to keep the patina you could do what I did on one of my XS2 tanks. I had it Cerakoted. It's a ceramic coating. Stops rust. It could get pricey for a whole car. My tank was $50ish. Since there is no known chemical that will dissolve it or harm it. The only way to remove it is by sand blasting or sanding/grinding. It is good stuff. I think that people that want to preserve patina on cars do it with a clear coat.
As far as storing it for the winter and the roof doesn't leak above it me being me I would just park it. At worst all it should get is dusty. If you put a cover of any kind on it you have to make sure it breaths and doesn't trap moisture under it. I think @gggGary Gary posted a pic of a bike that was destroyed by being stored under a tarp. I think he called it "death by tarp."
As far as storing it for the winter and the roof doesn't leak above it me being me I would just park it. At worst all it should get is dusty. If you put a cover of any kind on it you have to make sure it breaths and doesn't trap moisture under it. I think @gggGary Gary posted a pic of a bike that was destroyed by being stored under a tarp. I think he called it "death by tarp."
Thanks for the heads up on cerakote - I agree it would likely be expensive.
I have a cover for the car but aren’t sure how “breathable” the fabric is. I’ll test it before it gets cold out here. If it’s too waterproof, I’ll find a cheap dust cover for it. The car has lived in many unheated, indoor storage spaces over the past 25-26 years and there isn’t any indication of accelerated rusting so maybe I’m worried about if for nothing. Just for peace of mind, on the roof of the car, I’ll apply some wax.
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If there's electricity a hotrodders tip is an old fashioned 25 watt light bulb left on inside the car over winter.
The slight heat keeps moisture from condensing on the sheet metal.
I suppose the trick is not having it turn into a mouse condo.
The slight heat keeps moisture from condensing on the sheet metal.
I suppose the trick is not having it turn into a mouse condo.
Eastwood has a product called patina preserver. I've never used it, but have had good results with their products.
Thanks - I had a quick look and they list a low sheen clear coat. That would work but I’m out of time for that stuff this year. I’ll use something like that once the project nears completion.
These older beetles have a split case transmission. Long exposure to the elements causes corrosion of the aluminum cases. On the original tranny, the metal along the bottom seam is getting soft from the corrosion and it may begin to leak once on the road. Anticipating this, I bought a spare tranny case that was in better shape than mine. You can see the deformation on the metal around the bolt holes even on the replacement one. I may have a friend put the cases in his mill and trim off some of the bad material.
When I got this tranny it was caked in about 1/4” of muck - dirt and oil. Many hours of scraping got it fairly clean. Tonight I went at the inside of one case half and cleaned up the outside a bit more as well. I think I’ll hit it with the power washer once I get the other side cleaned up too. It’s a long process - washing the one case half took me a couple of hours using mineral spirits / paint thinner. Looks much better now
. Before and after cleaning of the inside of the cases.
When I got this tranny it was caked in about 1/4” of muck - dirt and oil. Many hours of scraping got it fairly clean. Tonight I went at the inside of one case half and cleaned up the outside a bit more as well. I think I’ll hit it with the power washer once I get the other side cleaned up too. It’s a long process - washing the one case half took me a couple of hours using mineral spirits / paint thinner. Looks much better now
. Before and after cleaning of the inside of the cases.
Update on the tranny cases. My friend milled away the corroded metal at the bolt holes then made me some thick washers to compensate for the material removed and to allow me to reuse the factory, hex head fasteners. He did a great job and now I need to swap the internals from my tranny into the refurbished case.
Well it’s been ages since I worked on the actual car and in particular the door. I had to take the whole door apart do I could fix the messed up door latch. I can’t remember if I took it apart this year or a year ago. Anyway I’m getting the car ready to store off site so I needed to bae able to close the door to keep the rodents out (hopefully). I reassembled the door, hardware and glass and installed a couple of the rubber window scrapers. I was surprised I remembered how everything went back together. I’ll do a bit more on the brakes then send it off to its winter home 1-1/2 hours away.
Checked over my work on the right front - everything looks ok so it gets a tire tomorrow. RF brake hardline made up and installed. Not the prettiest but it will do. Tomorrow or Thursday I’ll button up the LF wheel, brakes etc, then the last tire can go on. The area under the brake reservoir looked too nasty so I sprayed a bit of rust paint on it.
More beetle work. I installed the LF wheel cylinder, flex line, shoes and hardware. Tightened the tie rod ends only to find out I didn’t remove the cotter pins when I removed the nuts. Sheared pins were still stuck in the threaded stud of the tie rod ends. I managed to get the old ones out. I wasn’t happy with the hard lines so I removed them and made new ones - better now. I installed new shocks on the front but later decided they would be put to better use at the rear. I’ll move them tomorrow.
I should be able to get the car off of the jack stands tomorrow, then wait for a good day to tow it to its winter resting spot up north.
First pic is the Speedo drive - the cable is driven by the LF wheel dust cap.
Paint wasn’t drying fast enough soooo….
I should be able to get the car off of the jack stands tomorrow, then wait for a good day to tow it to its winter resting spot up north.
First pic is the Speedo drive - the cable is driven by the LF wheel dust cap.
Paint wasn’t drying fast enough soooo….
Looks really nice Vic! Such a cool project.
Looks better now. Fuel tank temporarily in for storage. Adjusted the hood latch, now that works. Just thinking, I should fog the inside of the brake fluid reservoir so it won’t rust over the winter.
Love that last photo with your XS off to the side. Cool projects.
