VW Beetles (old air cooled)

coffeehound

What do people in the know think about beetles? They were ridiculed on Top Gear but I don't know why exactly. Are they terrible to drive?

On paper they sound like a good bet for tightwads:

- Simple design and construction so easy to fix
- Cheap and plentiful aftermarket parts
- Old enough to be tax-exempt
- Classic car inexpensive insurance

Not sure what the fuel consumption is like.

Be good to hear any info / opinions / advice, thanks.

worried_jim

coffeehound wrote: »

What do people in the know think about beetles? They were ridiculed on Top Gear but I don't know why exactly.

That'll be Adolf Hitler. You may have heard of him.

daveyjp

No different to any 40+ year old car.

They have to be easy to fix because they have always needed regular maintenance.

They are noisy, slow, no power steering, weak brakes, dodgy electrics, freezing in winter and they never break down when it is convenient!

You can't jump in and run it for months and expect it to keep going.

Fuel consumption will depend on how good you are at tuning carb motors, but 25 or so would be considered excellent.

A good one is many thousands, similar money would get you a car you can rely on.

MovingForwards

I've got one, if you are gona get one join a few car groups and get a feel for what is actually involved in owning/running one.

No the old ones dont have power steering/servo assisted brakes. No they dont have a radiator which needs anti freeze/summer coolant.

Yes, they do require TLC and yes you can maintain them yourself if you are so inclined to do so. Yes you can bump start them.

Some MOT stations are a bit difficult to deal with as they are used to modern cars, unless you have an old school guy they could fail you on something that isnt a failure ie brakes.

Parts are reasonably easy to get hold of, like many repro products you get what you pay for (all the original mouldings were destroyed so parts can be a !!!!! to fit).

Petrol consumption varies between engine sizes and whether the original carb / oil pan has been replaced with KnN type filters and after market carb.

The heater works by way of drawing heat from the engine, under the rear seats and into the cab. It also runs through the heater channels either side of the car and into the front footwell and vents by the windscreen. As long as it is set up right you will be warm.

I dont see my bug as being noisey, unless you are keeping it in a garage or have an enclosed space then the noise would annoy your neighbours if you are going out early or coming home late.

If you think they are good cars for tightwads then stick with a more modern car.

Depending on the age you buy it would be tax exempt.

Depending on the age and what mods it has it may or may not be MOT exempt (many a debate has been had about this on the car groups).

It does have cheap classic insurance some pay as little as £50 py, but you have to take into account the miles are restricted.

iolanthe07

If you do buy an elderly Beetle, make sure it has a 12 volt electrical system. I had one many years ago which had a 6 volt electrical system and it was an absolute nightmare; the headlights were like a couple of candles and starting usually meant a push.

forgotmyname

coffeehound wrote: »

What do people in the know think about beetles? They were ridiculed on Top Gear but I don't know why exactly. Are they terrible to drive?

On paper they sound like a good bet for tightwads:

- Simple design and construction so easy to fix
- Cheap and plentiful aftermarket parts
- Old enough to be tax-exempt
- Classic car inexpensive insurance

Not sure what the fuel consumption is like.

Be good to hear any info / opinions / advice, thanks.

Define cheap to fix? Big question is can you weld?

coffeehound

Thanks for the useful infoz and advice, folks, lots to ponder there. No I haven't tried welding, a good point to consider.

Joe_Horner

forgotmyname wrote: »

Big question is can you weld?

Won't need to with an MOT exempt one.... :eek:


(kidding btw!)

No experience of Beetles, but did run two 6 volt aircooled Dafs as daily drivers for about 5 years. That included plenty of long distance trips (the longest was Anglesey to Colchester and back in a day) and even tackling the M25 with a trailer in tow.

Perfectly doable, and can be just as reliable as moderns if you keep on top of the (fairly minimal) maintenance requirements.

Really understanding how basic points and coil ignition systems work is 90% of the battle - unfortunately it's the part of mechanicing that most amateurs - and a lot of pros - seem to struggle with. Being able to quickly find and cure voltage drops goes a LONG way to curing most non-starters!

Being able to weld is definitely helpful, but avoiding the need to isn't that hard as long as you start with a reasonable example - cavity wax (in the cavities AND underneath) will hold back almost anything thats not already rusted through and is easy enough to do with aerosols.

knightstyle

Just to say I had one of the 1950s ex army ones with tiny twin rear window, no fuel gauge, you used a dipstick, and very narrow tyres which meant the back kept trying to catch up with the front if you cornered at anything over 30mph!
Main problem was the rust in the A frames and front floor so I ended up swapping it for an old Standard van.

Gloomendoom

coffeehound wrote: »

Thanks for the useful infoz and advice, folks, lots to ponder there. No I haven't tried welding, a good point to consider.

I wouldn't worry about it. You can always pay somebody to do the welding for you. Welding is a skill that can't learnt overnight. If you want to save a few pounds, do the prep yourself.

I wouldn't have any qualms using a Beetle as a daily driver. That said, back in the 80's I used to work as a mechanic in a garage that specialised in air cooled VWs. Never owned one myself though. I don't like the way that the windscreen is about six inches from my face.

Savvy_Sue

Have you ever driven one? I used to be able to borrow one occasionally: I found it really difficult to 'place' the car because the wings just disappear, so I didn't know where the corners were.

And then there was the day I put the handbrake on, and it came up, and up, and up ... yes, the cable had snapped.

However, better than the Hillman Imp ...