This! Since this Beetle is basically a Mk.4 Golf I'd bet shocks/struts and rear axle bushings are way beyond their life.
Ever "unbeat" a beater?
- Thread starter svtrit
- Start date
This! Since this Beetle is basically a Mk.4 Golf I'd bet shocks/struts and rear axle bushings are way beyond their life.
I tried doing that with my '95 Eagle Talon. Was hoping to have a neat little daily driver, but quickly realized you can't turn a hoe into a housewife... It's still riddled with little issues here and there and the poor engine is tired. It sat around for a while and it didn't do the car any good. It has a Stage 2 clutch that really is not meant for daily driving as well. Pedal feel is fine, but is grabby as it an be. Makes it interesting sometimes. For now I'll drive it on the weekends till I get the title (if Penndot ever stops draggin their feet) and sell it for something more daily drive able. I did manage to get it through inspection so that'll be a plus selling it. If I had the space and time id already be doing an engine swap and stripping the body down, but ain't nobody got time for that.
Does still clean up nice (despite the ugly fart can exhaust...)
Does still clean up nice (despite the ugly fart can exhaust...)
back in the late 60’s-early 70’s a high school buddy’s summer job was making one decent vw beetle out of 2-3 wrecks and selling it to newly arriving students in our university hometown. working at home, on his own schedule, with a cold afternoon beer liberated from his dad’s fridge, beat the heck out of picking tobacco.
o.p. has done alot of nice work on his beater vw. since the beetle is now out of production might he sell it to an aficionado for a decent penny and get something newer?
o.p. has done alot of nice work on his beater vw. since the beetle is now out of production might he sell it to an aficionado for a decent penny and get something newer?
This is "in progress" for my $600 '99 Corolla. My son in law wanted this mechanically sound car out of his driveway. It has lots of little issues which I get to address. I'm driving it 20 miles to work without issues. So far: 2 tires, 3 door handles, sway bar links, muffler (found a new one in the salvage yard), headliner (YouTube), $5 wheel covers (FB), and soon- Rust-Oleum paint job (YouTube)
I'm having a blast with this. It sure beats sitting on the couch watching TV!
I'm having a blast with this. It sure beats sitting on the couch watching TV!
Nick1994
$100 site donor 2024
I'm not sure my Jeep has ever been a beater, but it has needed a LOT of work to get to where it is now. Could still use some tinkering on interior parts. Needs a headliner a the lower dash panel, it's cracked.
But mechanically sound.
But mechanically sound.
All the time.
Used to like the saturn s-series. They responded well to seafoam or plain water piston decarbonization. EGR valve cleanouts. Throttle body cleanings. Plugs and wires. Coolant temp sensors. 15w40 oil.
They would burn oil and go into knock retard. The PCM would remember that "event" for ~200 miles making the accelleration doggy and non-linear. The above tweaks would get them running great again.
We have state inspections here so I'd typically buy something where the sticker ran out, and get it to pass. Back in the day these would go for $250-400 all day long.
Used to like the saturn s-series. They responded well to seafoam or plain water piston decarbonization. EGR valve cleanouts. Throttle body cleanings. Plugs and wires. Coolant temp sensors. 15w40 oil.
They would burn oil and go into knock retard. The PCM would remember that "event" for ~200 miles making the accelleration doggy and non-linear. The above tweaks would get them running great again.
We have state inspections here so I'd typically buy something where the sticker ran out, and get it to pass. Back in the day these would go for $250-400 all day long.
jagdriver727
Site Donor 2021
Why was it a fail? Rust issues?
As a father of 2 by blood and 2 by marriage, I’ve observed that few kids put in the sweat labor that we do. Ive maintained and detailed 3 of the 4 significantly, slowly learning that they don’t care that much about it themselves. it would bother me at first, that what I prepared so diligently became a rolling box of used kleenexs, spent water bottles and just everyday straw wrappers and sonic cups. So I shifted my efforts. While they are still in my care I change the oil and will occasionally wash the exterior, but unless they engage in further care I’ve stopped. Once I stopped, they started doing a little bit themselves. And if someone gets a wild hair to do a thorough cleaning, I’ll pitch in and help and if asked show them how. But doing it all for them, nah. If they dont notice their level of mess, they won’t appreciate my level of clean. Cars and insurance for kids are expensive. If they want “nice” I want mine to help make it that way.
all that to say to the OP, fix the mechanicals and make it safe. Do all that right. Interior? suggest to her that you will help as long as she’s out there with you so that she appreciates what’s happening here. no knocks about my kids - all make good grades, mostly doing really well, son is rotc and making his own way, but I saw no Fruit in them from the *extra* efforts I put in.
all that to say to the OP, fix the mechanicals and make it safe. Do all that right. Interior? suggest to her that you will help as long as she’s out there with you so that she appreciates what’s happening here. no knocks about my kids - all make good grades, mostly doing really well, son is rotc and making his own way, but I saw no Fruit in them from the *extra* efforts I put in.
No, it was the carb. I spent a fortune having it completely rebuilt by a company that rebuilds them for show cars, and it would not run on ethanol gas. I think the tank of gas I got had more ethanol than just 10% because it has been running fine the week prior to filling up at the Shell station. The gas was a boiling in the float bowls and flooding the engine out to the point it wouldn't even idle at stop lights. I had spent so much money on this car by this point and it still wouldn't run, so I gave it up. I found out later that I could have just put a different carburetor on it, but the appeal was gone.
1982 Mustang GL 3.3 — Postimages
Probably the biggest mistake I ever made. I have sooooo much into this car... My BIL has it now.
When I got it, it was International Blue on top of Yellow on top of original Cordovan Maroon.
Every panel has been reworked or replaced.
I believe it was drag raced because it had a Mickey Mouse cam in the original big block. It now has a mild Crane. If I ever touch it again, I will stab a nice hydraulic roller. I think Mark bought a nasty 454 to install for fun while he details the numbers motor and engine bay.
The 3:36 posi will get sideways in 2nd gear with too much throttle. Yes, the posi is new too. Sheesh. Mo money...
Lars Grimsrud built a Quadra Jet for me. That's what really opened up the torque curve...
By the way, I never put the top up. I gave it to Mark with a new weatherstrip kit and vynal top. He got them installed...
The top photo has the original 15x7 Corvette Ralleys; the bottom has the aftermarket Wheel Vintiques 16x8 Chrome Ralleys and 255/50/16 Comp TAs. They make it sit lower. Lower is better. From the side, the 50 series tires give it the perfect stance.
So yeah, I unbeat a beater.
en I
When I got it, it was International Blue on top of Yellow on top of original Cordovan Maroon.
Every panel has been reworked or replaced.
I believe it was drag raced because it had a Mickey Mouse cam in the original big block. It now has a mild Crane. If I ever touch it again, I will stab a nice hydraulic roller. I think Mark bought a nasty 454 to install for fun while he details the numbers motor and engine bay.
The 3:36 posi will get sideways in 2nd gear with too much throttle. Yes, the posi is new too. Sheesh. Mo money...
Lars Grimsrud built a Quadra Jet for me. That's what really opened up the torque curve...
By the way, I never put the top up. I gave it to Mark with a new weatherstrip kit and vynal top. He got them installed...
The top photo has the original 15x7 Corvette Ralleys; the bottom has the aftermarket Wheel Vintiques 16x8 Chrome Ralleys and 255/50/16 Comp TAs. They make it sit lower. Lower is better. From the side, the 50 series tires give it the perfect stance.
So yeah, I unbeat a beater.
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The thought has crossed my mind, however, my daughter is now getting involved. We gutted the interior to fix the headliner and sunroof shade, which led to scrubbing the yuck, and painting a few pieces. She’s falling in love with it.
having to do a catalytic converter now too, as the flex pipe is shot at the manifold.... doing rear shocks while I’m at it.
I paid for a lot of my college by “unbeating beaters.” Trick always was to find one that really had nothing wrong other than what I could simply fix and needed a really good cleaning. Trucks always sold really well too. They seemed to hold up better over time.
jagdriver727
Site Donor 2021
I would have dropped a 351W in it and not fooled with all that... I understand your frustration though.No, it was the carb. I spent a fortune having it completely rebuilt by a company that rebuilds them for show cars, and it would not run on ethanol gas. I think the tank of gas I got had more ethanol than just 10% because it has been running fine the week prior to filling up at the Shell station. The gas was a boiling in the float bowls and flooding the engine out to the point it wouldn't even idle at stop lights. I had spent so much money on this car by this point and it still wouldn't run, so I gave it up. I found out later that I could have just put a different carburetor on it, but the appeal was gone.
1982 Mustang GL 3.3 — Postimages
postimg.cc
That was a really nice looking car; close but probably better than my "barn find" one-owner '93 notch. Wish I owned it.
My Caddy cost me $250. Body was ratty but solid with minor damage but no rust. Ran perfectly but trans was bad. First 2 days I owned it, a friend and I spent both days cleaning it up (the trunk contained half a barrel of trash, two old tires, a broken 4-way, and a dead squirrel), swapping in a junkyard TH400, changing the leaking valve cover gaskets (and discovering a neglected engine loaded with crud), flushing the coolant, getting a good battery, doing the brakes, throwing together a temporary exhaust system, and putting on 4 good used tires to replace 4 different brands, two different sizes, and three radials and one bias ply. A few weeks later, I replaced the ratty old carpet and scored a matched set of non-wire wheelcovers. It cleaned up surprisingly well, and I drove it...put over 60K on it, including a drive from New England to Arizona and back. (If you're curious: 9000 miles of 1500 mile changes with 15W-40 Delo to try flushing the glop out.)
A few months after that, I decided to fix the balky power seat motor. That entailed removing the seat. With the seat out, that seemed like a good time to fix the headliner that was held up with packing tape. At that point, my wife noted the paint on the roof was badly lacquer-checked and the landau top was pretty ratty. With the seat out, it would be easy to pull the rest of the interior and paint the car; she suggested the shop that painted her Grand National...and the snowball began rolling. A year and a half later, the entire body had been stripped to bare metal, completely repainted in Tuxedo Black, the landau top deleted, the headliner and front seats redone, the front suspension rebuilt with Impala SS parts, and the rusty decklid replaced. Engine/trans went back in, drove the car another ~10K miles...then the head gasket went.
Hitting swap meets to try and find someone parting out a Caddy with a good engine, I found someone selling a stroker that had been in a Chevelle that got wrecked. I bought it...starting the second snowball rolling.
A few months after that, I decided to fix the balky power seat motor. That entailed removing the seat. With the seat out, that seemed like a good time to fix the headliner that was held up with packing tape. At that point, my wife noted the paint on the roof was badly lacquer-checked and the landau top was pretty ratty. With the seat out, it would be easy to pull the rest of the interior and paint the car; she suggested the shop that painted her Grand National...and the snowball began rolling. A year and a half later, the entire body had been stripped to bare metal, completely repainted in Tuxedo Black, the landau top deleted, the headliner and front seats redone, the front suspension rebuilt with Impala SS parts, and the rusty decklid replaced. Engine/trans went back in, drove the car another ~10K miles...then the head gasket went.
Hitting swap meets to try and find someone parting out a Caddy with a good engine, I found someone selling a stroker that had been in a Chevelle that got wrecked. I bought it...starting the second snowball rolling.
Pics or it ain't real...
This year went through and brought the old Festiva back to life, all new suspension, steering rack, hoses, brake hoses.. anything on a 30 year old car that should be replaced. Not many would of did it but it's a fine car. Runs, drives and still gets over 40mpg. I rarely see it though since my wife loves driving it. Since I've did it to the Festiva I'm debating on throwing some attention to Focus. New cars are too dang expensive. After replacing the head it runs darn goods and shifts perfect. Debating on redoing the rear suspension, fixing some of the rattles... maybe even play with replacing the rocker panel. It's a cursed car though, finally got it to stop leaking oil (VC gasket I hate felpro) and coolant (new reservoir). Decisions decisions..
