The super beetle was the worst car they made. triple track seats ( good luck with that floor pan) pollution control engine, Mac Pherson struts ...awful just awful. pre70's cars only. 67 68 69 are the best of em. 67 is a one year car though so parts do not interchange with other models. Sheet metal mostly, but still. Also the most desirable.

Here's mine, for inspiration.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...2-29-08011.jpg

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j..._1658-copy.jpg

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...C_1665copy.jpg

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...C_1664copy.jpg

I don't watch the VW prices, but did a little browsing in the classifieds and I wonder how profitable flipping this car would really be. $1,000 to buy, how much to fix and prep and paint, then your time, and you might get what for it?

That said, I think it would be a fun little project.

There's a 1000 dollar one around here and I couldn't get away fast enough. Needs seat covers and wax, that's it.

The Supers aren't generally liked by the ACVW crowd because they looked sort of bloated in the front, they were heavier, and didn't have the standard Beetle front suspension. Because of that, they don't sell very well, unless it's a Cabriolet. Fixing up, and flipping it may leave you with more in it than it can be sold for. Also, many of the parts available these days are very bad quality.

The reason I have one is because of what Byron said earlier about the interchangeability of 944 brake and suspension parts, and any Beetles interchangeability with 914 engines and gearboxes. Having all of the design similarities gave me an easy opportunity to make it into a completely different car that doesn't drive like a boring Beetle, or an amped up hotrod either.

What disk brake kit is that?

Oh gosh, I shouldn't keep coming back to this thread. So I could get a cabriolet SuperBeetle, bolt in 944 suspension and brakes, and a 914 motor? What would it drive like - I imagine reasonably quick, good roadholding, not at all like how I remember Beetles? A friend used to have a cab Beetle, I liked it a lot. Another friend used to have a Baja Bug, that was fun too. How much HP can you reasonably get out of a 914 motor? Dang, I am getting interested in this.

It is not so much the horsepower, it is the lightness. A SB cabrio is almost the same weight as a 914-4 and is WAY heavier than a sedan, especially if it does not have a sunroof. How much juice can you reliably get out of that pancake 4, say north of 2.2 liter displacement?

What is the power to weight for a 944 turbo? How would that suspension on an 1800 lb car perform? People who talk about the problems with a Super Beetle suspension never drove one that was sorted at all, only with clapped out struts and worn springs.

You put new stuff on, maybe some braces in the back and under the hood, you have a stiff chassis, disc brakes and wider tires and you will hand a 911 its ass on any track where the poor aero doesn't hurt your speed too much.

Craig, the brakes are all straight off an '86 944S. The front spindles and strut tubes are off of an earlier 944, but I don't know what year, and the rear control arms, and spring plates are off an '86 951. The master cylinder is for a 930. The only mods I had to do were to cut the spring perches off of the strut tubes so I could install threaded collars, install a tie-rod flip kit on the spindles because the 944 spindles have different tie-rod orientation than a Beetle, and I also had to remove some steel from the bases of the rear shock towers so the spring plate adjustment bolts would have some working clearance

jyl, mine drives sort of like a 911, but it's not quite the same because of the longer wheelbase. It's feels more forgiving, and having less weight behind the rear axle lessens the pendulum effect. I made aluminum braces to tie the rear frame horns to the rear shock towers, and tie the shock towers together, plus a brace in front to tie the strut towers together, and also to the framehead. That did wonders for the rigidity of the chassis, but it's still not as stiff as a 911 tub.

Tobra, you're right about power-to-weight. I have about 160 hp from a 2270, and maybe about 2100 lbs of car. The spring rates are kind of steep. I used 944 torsion bars in back, and aftermarket Superbeetle springs in front that were rated @ somewhere like 85 lbs/in, and have out-of-the-box Bilsteins front, and rear. I had to send the fronts back to Poway CA. to have them shortened 2"

Yeti, you need to go post some pics of your car over on superbeetlesonly.com, those guys would all be sportin' woodies over that thing.

Thanks for the mojo, but frankly their site administrator, James (superman on SBO! forum) and I have butted heads more than once on Germanlook.net, and probably wouldn't tolerate me.

My car was an original Sport Bug, which meant that it had special stripes, seats, steering wheel, road wheels, and paint. They think I'm a heathen bastid for modifying it.

I had 7 different bugs back in the day but never a Super for the above reasons.

My last Beetle circa 1988 with the GF behind the wheel. I miss the car but not the girlfriend, she was a beeaych :)

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...l533i/joy2.jpg

Well, Super Beetle Verts aren't cheap, and you can get around 250hp, but it will cost you, you can get some pretty good HP out of a Type 1 engine as well..

yetibone, nice bug!!!!

<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6r1Unv9L39k&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6r1Unv9L39k&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6pAVQUwXG84&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6pAVQUwXG84&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

Beautiful Super Yetibone:)

Superbeetles are faster then Ferrari's ;)

YouTube - Beetle vs. Ferrari

Sammy, if you are buying it to make some bux, skip it. If you are excited about having a project, going back a ways to your roots, and having FUN - GO FOR IT !!!

Cheap fun at that. I know a guy with a sweet orange 63 with a 1600 transplant and one of those huge fabric sunroofs. I love that car, even though my 78 Targa is the bomb.

Have cheap fun, enjoy life, and know that you aren't likely to get upside down on this one. ;)

Hm, cab Super Beetles are not that cheap. Looks like $4-6K for a clean-enough driver. Then $2K for the 944 brakes and suspension? Not sure what for the engine, supposing want about 150HP? Just in parts and outside machining, all work DIY, what do you think it would cost to yeti-ize a SB cab?

You can do the brakes and suspension for less than $2k if you find a 944 lacking enough value to justify it's necessary repairs. Or you may find someone that's upgrading to S4/951/968 brakes, and will sell their old parts for cheap. Even though the ATE calipers are bottom drawer parts on a 944, they're a shade below overkill on a Beetle because of the weight difference. Building the braces for the frame horns, and strut mounts, however is not that much cheaper than buying them already made unless you have a TIG, and a lathe you can borrow...

The engine, as with any, can be as fast as you can afford to make it, but even a bone stock 2 litre 914 is 43-47 hp over a stock Type 1, with a gob more torque, and will last a very long time because of the extra heat sinks on the heads, and aluminum case. All that you have to do is convert the cooling system, and nix the D-jet (or sometimes L-jet) for a pair of carburetors. A stock tailshifted 914/901 gearbox mates right to it, has the right ratios, and is relatively easy to convert to a rear-engine configuration.

The ideal scenario would be to find a rusted out '72 914 2 litre, and an early '80's 944 with a broken belt for the two parts cows.

I'm interested in this because 4 years in the PNW have me dreaming of a convertible to make the most of our five minutes of sun per day. . .

Was also thinking about VW Rabbit cabriolet which I'd GTI-ize, 911SC or Carrera cab, or BMW 3-series convertible. All quite different cars, since it would likely eventually get driven by a kid (after the obligatory initial years in a Volvo tank) the 911 is probably out, and the Beemer is questionable.

I just sold a 944 roller for $500, so they are out there...

Go for it. Everyone needs either a beater or a project car that they can mess with on weekends. My '14 ($250) fits that bill perfectly! Wouldn't have it any other way.