73 vw superbettle

tattnall

i recently recieved a 73 superbettle 1600cc engine for my birthday.
first thing i had to do was buy a new engine which had been rebuilt by a local vw specialist.
the engine came out of a camperbus.
my question is : while driving it at speeds above 40 mph i get this horrable shake in the steering wheel,and there is about 1/8 turn play in the wheel also,i would like to know what the steps are to relieve this problem.
the next thing i am having a problem with is :
is this peticular yr bug worth restoring back to factory or is it a non popular yr and i should go ahead and play with it and do some customizing?
if i go factory than how do i go about finding a colorchart for this yrs model for the interior upolstery and the cars outer shell?
if i play with it then i'd lke to do some of what i have heard rumors about: installing a certian porshe engine,lowering a bit,chrome roof rack and body decals,tinted windows,wider rear end,lower profile fenders. and maybe channeling the roof and body out a bit for a lower profile in total
and maybe have the only california trick bug in south florida.
i would like input on how to procede from others who have either restored or tricked out thier beloved bugs. as i have had this for 8 months now and the only thing i have done was take some rubbing compound and a buffer to the paint.

Mr_Shiftright

I think a tire balance would cure your front end "shimmy", but you should also check for bad tie rod ends.

No, it's not worth restoring to original...much better to customize and have fun with it.

The Porsche engine is a bad idea...first of all, Porsche engines are worth more than your entire car is restored, and secondly, it would be a death trap, because the power of the Porsche engine is way beyond your carspresent brakes and suspension. Last of all, if you really want to go for more power, and you upgrade the brakes and suspension, you can build up a VW engine to have more power than a 4-cylinder Porsche engine anyway, and for 1/3 the price.

There are many, many books you can buy to get you started on customizing and playing around with your Bug. A good mag is called "Hot VWs".

tattnall

thank you for the advice,i wasn't sure how rare a 73 vw was and weather it was worth to restore it.take care all.i shall post anything i learn about bugs on this journey.

isellhondas

Had a steering dampner that mounted between the front wheels. When these wear out you'll get a shimmy. They look lke a small shock absorber.

But, don't mess around. Get it inspected by a competent alignment shop that knows what they are doing.

Like Shifty said, you could have a tie rod end about to let go. Not a good thing.

Me, I like my VW's stock. I wouldn't go overboard moneywise though.

tattnall

i crawled under it and looked my the manual i baught from a local vw shop.
looks like on the 73 there is a 2-3 inch diam rubber that the swingarm,tierod is resting on,or places onto.
i agree the shimmy could be tire related,as it did sit for about 7-8 months.
not certian if the tired on it have created a flat spot,never the less 40$ for the set of rubbers.
and another 100 $ for a set of tires and i'll fo from there..

lokki

Back in the early 80's, I had a 73 SuperBeatle;
I had to put (then) about $300 in the front end when I bought the car. I did that AFTER new tires didn't work.

The tires "took a set" or so I was told - they were used to going down the road at an angle, and when I fixed the front end, THEY were going down the road at an angle. I ended up putting them on the back of the car where the bunny hop syndrome wasn't as noticable since I didn't have the money to buy tires, fix the front end, and then buy tires again.

For whatever it's worth.

gt1953

here are a couple of sites to check out for U
www.oriad.com/volkswebbin/wall/technical/index.mv
that site is real helpful.
Heck why not and restore is how many are left that are restoreable. it is over 25 yrs old
Gor for it.

lokki

My nephew just drove a 73 superbeetle from Norfolk Virgina to San Diego; right at 3100 miles I believe he said. The car motored right along, although probably no faster than 60 mph. Other than having to add oil to stay ahead of a leak that wasn't worth fixing at the moment, it did great.

He says that he'll adjust the valves and change the plugs as a reward.... and maybe fix that leak now.

I think that the closest animal equivalent to a VW beetle is a Jack Russell terrier... Ya gotta love em for how tough they are.

Mr_Shiftright

Very tough, well-built cars for their time and price. Probably the weakest link is the engine...most people would be lucky to get 60,000 out of it.