The work begins

Veronica with her hips and ass removed.

Click on images to enlarge.

Work has now begun on Veronica's restoration. 
The engine has been dropped out and the rear wings removed.
When the wings were removed we found some rust holes in the body seams.  Nothing too major though but there was more, and worse, in store for us on the front (more on that later).

Some rust and holes around the left side seam but nothing major

The right side driveshaft leaked some transmission fluid onto the floor but it seems that is normal when the car is up on a lift and the suspension is at its fullest extent.     We will replace both driveshaft boots anyway as a matter of course.

The engine is now out and on a bench ready to be compression tested by attaching an electric motor to it in order to crank it over.

The engine out and on the floor

Based on that test, we will decide what to do with the engine, whether to swap it out for a reconditioned/new unit or continue to strip down the original one for refurbishment and cleaning before re-assembly.   So obviously we will need a complete engine gasket set which will hopefully stem the 2 or 3 small leaks that the engine has.  But we`ll find out all of this as the engine is stripped down.
Any parts that need replacing will be.  We may replace the piston rings anyway regardless.

The transmission and the leaky driveshaft boot.

We also took a look at the brakes which seemed fine in general but there was a small leak on the front left cylinder.  So for the brakes the intention at the moment is to replace the rears completey with new drums, pads, cylinders, springs etc.   For the front we want to do a conversion to disc brakes.  Disc brakes are obviously more efficient and they were also an option on '69 models.

Next week sees the front wings coming off and the engine compression test and subsequent strip-down.   Oh joy.

Inside the bonnet revealing the wiring.

The week ahead

Next week will see the beginning of the restoration process. 

We are going to start by dropping the engine down and inspecting all the parts to see what needs replaced or refurbished.   Before all of that we will perform a compression test to make sure that this engine is worth working on or replaced with a reconditioned unit.

If he engine in useable, which it certainly seems to be as she drives well,  we will determine which parts, if any, need replacing. 
Once the engine is completely stripped down the parts will all be cleaned up before going back on the engine.   I will set about reconditioning the tinware while Tito works on the engine.   All sercivable parts such as spark plugs, fan belt etc. will obviously be bought new.   Hoping the rain holds out because its been tipping down this weekend.

Meet Veronica

Hi everyone,   this is Veronica Wilkinson (VW).  She is my newly acquired 1969 Beetle (1300cc).  

I have often toyed with the idea of buying an old car and restoring it but I never thought it would be something I would ever get around to doing.

Last week though all of that changed when I saw Veronica in a street about 2 minutes walk from me and she was for sale.  41 years old and a classic and very popular car.   I was tempted enough to enquire about her.

After a 30min test drive, which went well, I had pretty much decided that I wanted to bite the bullet and take on this project.   The bodywork has some rust and rusty bumps, but nothing major.  The chrome-work has wear and tear and can maybe be cleaned up but I`ll likely replace it all.   Mechanically she runs ok but needs a tune-up and my mechanic friend Tito and myself will be stripping it down, cleaning and refurbishing the engine if it turns out she engine is worth keeping.  

Underneath, we saw a couple of leaks from the engine, one from the gearbox.  Seems these are just down to gaskets so hopefully no biggie there.  The floor is all weatherproofed and is solid and straight.  Ball joints are tight, sub-frame is good and general condition is surprising for a car of this age.

We will need new shock absorbers and we noticed that the where the exhaust fits onto the engine, had both sides loose and out of alignment which probably explains the excessive fumes we were smelling while she was running.

The interior shows its age a little.  

Blue leather seats which are cracked and off colour in places.  Blue door cards are hastily screwed in.  Heater system doesnt work and some knobs need replacing as well as the centre ring and badge of the steering wheel.  All lights barring the reverse lights work as do all the dials.

So, looks like we have our work cut out starting with the mechanical side, then we`ll likely strip her down and start restoring what needs restoring.  Eventually working on the body to grind off all the rust and prep her for a new paint job.  Then we can concentrate on electricals and replacing the hood liner, interior parts and exterior chrome parts before putting her all back together.

Something like that anyway.   It's going to be a long hard but hopefully fun journey.

So stay tuned to see Veronica get turned from a tired 41 year old into an all new looking fully restored bug.