Eric LeClair - Volkswagen Beetle: How to Build & Modify: How to Build & Modify

CarTech, Inc.

838 Lake Street South

Forest Lake, MN 55025

Phone: 651-277-1200 or 800-551-4754

Fax: 651-277-1203

www.cartechbooks.com

2020 by Eric LeClair and Susan Anderson

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission from the Publisher. All text, photographs, and artwork are the property of the Author unless otherwise noted or credited.

The information in this work is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. However, all information is presented without any guarantee on the part of the Author or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of the information and any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Readers are responsible for taking suitable and appropriate safety measures when performing any of the operations or activities described in this work.

All trademarks, trade names, model names and numbers, and other product designations referred to herein are the property of their respective owners and are used solely for identification purposes. This work is a publication of CarTech, Inc., and has not been licensed, approved, sponsored, or endorsed by any other person or entity. The Publisher is not associated with any product, service, or vendor mentioned in this book, and does not endorse the products or services of any vendor mentioned in this book.

Edit by Wes Eisenschenk

Layout by Connie DeFlorin

ISBN 978-1-61325-547-6

Item No. SA486

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: LeClair, Eric, 1966- author. | Anderson, Susan, 1968- author.

Title: Volkswagen Beetle : how to build & modify / Eric LeClair, Susan Anderson.

Description: Forest Lake, MN : CarTech, Inc., [2021] | Item no. SA486.

Identifiers: LCCN 2021058707 | ISBN 9781613255476 (paperback)

Subjects: LCSH: Volkswagen Beetle automobileMaintenance and repairHandbooks, manuals, etc. | Volkswagen automobilesCustomizingHandbooks, manuals, etc.

Classification: LCC TL215.V6 L433 2021 | DDC 629.28/722dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021058707

Written, edited, and designed in the U.S.A.

Printed in China

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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Title page:

Photo courtesy Pete Skiba.

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by Paul Cave

This book is dedicated to those who cant leave well enough alone.

To the tinkerers.

To the dreamers.

To the volks who haunt swap meets and roam car shows.

To those who keep files stuffed full of ideas and shelves full of parts.

Most of all, its dedicated to the next generation of air-cooled Volkswagen ownersin particular, those who find room in their hearts, garages, and bank accounts for the most iconic model of them all: the Type 1, the one and only Beetle.

May you find inspiration in these pages. Whatever you do to your Bug, wed love to see it and hear your story.

As with our first CarTech book, How to Restore Your Volkswagen Beetle, this new primer on customizations and modifications took an entire village of VW experts to create.

People reach a point in middle-age when they become more acutely aware of time passing. As Airkooled Kustoms gets closer to its two-decade anniversary, the drive to keep the air-cooled Volkswagen hobby going is growing stronger too. Writing a book (or multiple books) is no easy task.

Having a writer in the family makes such a project possible, but in the ordinary course of business, we all tend to stay in our own lane: The body guys weld and grind. The paint guys wield paint guns and polishers. The mechanics wrench and eat jerky. The writer wrangles squiggly letters.

Producing this book, as with the last one, stretched us all. We wanted not only to introduce Beetle owners to the world of modification possibilities but also to some of the craftspeople, artists, and suppliers on which our shop relies to create highly personalized air-cooled VWs and Porsches. We are grateful for the generous input from these partners. They wrote notes, subjected themselves to rigorous interrogations (okay, friendly interviews), and took time away from doing what they love best to help us get this book into your hands.

We also want to give special thanks to Everett Barnes, founder of TheSamba.com, for allowing us to include excerpts from their extensive glossary compiled by thousands of Volkswagen lovers over the course of many years.

When someone drives or drags their prized vehicle to our shop, we fully understand the solemn trust that is placed in us. Car owners hand us their memories and dreams. We strive (in all things) to do it right. Many of our clients come from far away. We will likely never see their Beetles again after they leave the shop. However, we will always carry the satisfaction that comes from helping a Dub owner achieve the dream that they brought to us.

In an age where new cars come fully loaded with technological marvels that were unimaginable to early Volkswagen owners, it takes a certain kind of driver to appreciate the Beetle. Despite the popularity of the new Beetle, for the vintage crowd, there is no substitute for the original. While its unlikely that a bone-stock-loving purist would ever crack the spine on this book, we want to give them a shout-out of appreciation. And for those of you who recognize the blank-canvas nature of your Beetle, we wish you the courage to try new things and the bank account to accommodate your wildest dreams.

Thank you, also, to CarTech. There are so many different makes and models in the automotive world, and youve published books to serve enthusiasts of every ilk. We appreciate your contribution to the Volkswagen-loving community and are proud to play a role in keeping the hobby alive.

By Paul Cave

Founder of VolksAmerica
and VolksMania magazines

I know of no other classic car that intrigues and radicalizes a nation of crazy car drivers more than the VW Beetle. It is easy to get hung up on a variety of older automobiles to the extent that they drive you to distraction, but the charm of the Beetle is that it hangs around a lot longer than most others. What entices the Beetle lover is a machine that has a pretty face, demands of it the attention of a Tamagotchi, and gives back with the affection of a purring pet. Do tortoises purr?