Hi, I started a thread on another forum but thought I'd add my buggy here too - as you're all buggy enthusiasts.

I'd been hankering for a fun self indulgent project that was retro, iconic and topless - And could be towed behind the T4 campervan.

I figured a beach buggy ticked all those boxes and more. Plus it's an air-cooled VW with no heating for our chilly British climate but roofless for those lovely summer days...

It's  currently yellow with an attempt at a WWII bomber mascot emblazoned on the bonnet and hips. But underneath there's evidence it started life orange.

The tale begins as many do with an eBay listing that's near enough to take the missus to as well...



Thankfully my wife is pretty understanding when it comes to the number of cars in my quiver! And it's a beach buggy! Who wouldn't want such a fine example of mindless simplicity and unadulterated fun?! Thank you Mr Meyer.

So I headed over to the seller to check the buggy over. He had it for about a year but it'd never left the trailer. Not even fired it up, so it was no surprise then that we couldn't figure out how to get it started. Once we got power to the coil the 1600 burst into life!

Long story short - a deal was struck and it arrived on my driveway that evening!



I took it for a short drive around the neighbourhood, the magnificent exhaust announcing to my neighbours that it had in fact arrived to disturb their tea time.

Now it sits waiting for me to begin the inevitable process of making it mine...

For fun I made a video: https://youtu.be/peOkc888doY

Happy days.

A drivable project and a nice easy tow behind the camper van. Plenty of info on here buggy and towing wise. enjoy your buy.

Great intro video and your smile will only get BIGGER looks good. 

Hope you keep showing us your developments. 

Cheers H

It`s a hi from me 

Excellent light touch video showing you know that essentially its a good un and just needs fettling up to sort where the weather and time have degraded seals etc.

It's given me a solution for if a gear shaft needs a new knob - I've already got some insulation tape !

Let us know if you keep it essentially rough and functional or go for a significant face lift with shiney bits.

Thank you guys!  I appreciate you taking time to drop in and add feedback.

It's not going to become a show buggy like some of the beauties on here, I like the way you put it "essentially rough". It's got 58 years of history - I think I'd like to hold onto at least some of it while I add my chapter. How I don't know yet...I've got a fair bit to do in the mean time.

Well you have posh wet gear so it's an all year bit of fun.

Yes that's true Hugh. I may need one of those heaters from CBS!

Once I had a chance to start going over the buggy, I began identifying what I want to change, what needs sorting and dreaming a bit.

I don't know anything really about these flat four air-cooled engines so I'm looking forward to learning. What I do know is this thing sounds fab when it fires up!

I've got a massive history file and back in 2000, only about 2000 miles ago, this bug got a rebuilt 1600 motor with twin 36 Weber's and some other smart bits.














It starts on the turn of the key and idles smoothly with a raspy rumble through those trumpets. I figure I'll leave it well alone for now but start tidying bits up.

There's a good few other things that need sorting out first like the gear shift which I managed to 'break' leaving it stuck in gear. Turns out the coupler on the shaft came undone while I was trying to man-handle it into reverse - So that was my fix mechanical fix.

Connect the breather oulet next to the oil filler cap to the air filter intake. 20mm id hose at breather end. At air filter diameter may reduce and you may have one without connection. This is quite important to maintain crankcase ideal conditions.

Hi @Paul1953, thanks for pointing that out. My filters don't seem to have a place to connect a hose to. Can I use a crank case filter on the outlet - I've seen that done on other beetle motors?

After lockdown ended and we shot off to France, Spain and Portugal in the campervan without the buggy. Now the weather is getting pants and the cold makes me lazy but I'm getting stuck into fixes.

Firstly I needed to get that awful looking snarking bumble Bee off the bonnet so I could feel like I was accomplishing something on this 58 year old.





There was a good idea at the start but the execution was just, well how can I say politely, not my cup of tea. If the face had been more pleasant and not something that reminds you of a snarling mother-in-law then this graphic could've worked for me. Remember the Hornet on the Jordan's F1 cars? Those were very cool. No I don't think I'm going to do that!

Anyway pictures tell the story...













With buxom bumble bee gone from the bonnet it was time to try polish out that colour fade.




Out came the cutting paste and polisher.







Off for another drive!




Then I removed all the fake carbon vinyl sticker from the sides as well and made another video cos some people liked watching the first one: https://youtu.be/ZxJTBZhHUOI

Happy days!

Yes that wasp was pig ugly.

Looks sooo much better already.

I thought the wasp would have looked better without the Dracula fangs, but the Buggy looks so much better without it   

Hi just like to add looks much better without the wasp. 👍 Deb

Definitely agree, looks so much better now - and what a great colour!