Talk me out of buying a superbeetle, please ;-)

[sammyg2]

A guy I went to high school with has an early to mid 70's superbeetle.
He bought it a couple years ago, it had been sitting since shep was a pup and I'm convinced this thing had 7000 miles on it.
Original tires, original faded paint, original faded interior, original brakes, no wear on the pedals or factory carpet, I checked it out for him and the ODO sure seemed to be correct, it hadn't turned over.
It ran after the battery was replaced and we put some fresh gas in it. The brakes were shot as at least one slave cylinder was stuck.
Anywho he bought it after I suggested he replace all the rubber bits because it had been sitting so long. It hadn't been registered in forever and didn't get a title to it at first but he finally got that all straightened out and it's now fully and cleanly registered to him.

He had the brakes worked on (minimum scope possible) and drove it for a year without any other work on it. It ran fine, no problems even though all he did was put gas in it and drive it back and forth to work.
Then, one day (you can probably guess where this is going) a gas hose sprung a leak and the engine caught fire. A good samaritan had an extinguisher and put it out quickly.

It damaged the carb, some hoses, a little engine wiring, distributor cap and wires, and blackened the deck lid a little. Not much damage considering.
He bought everything necessary to fix it, but he aint exactly handy with a wrench so he never got around to working on it. I volunteered to come over and put it all together for him a while back but he had other things to do and acted like he didn't care so I blew it off.

Now he says he'd sell me the bug for a grand.

I know I could have it all fixed in a few hours, a quick cheap paint job, a little TLC here and there and for under $2k I would have a reliable, clean bug. Which I don't need.
if I bought it I'd do it just to flip it and make some bux.

I don't need the money, I don't need another project, so why am I so tempted?
Anyone know how much a bug like that in good condition would be worth nowadays?

Maybe someone else will come along and snag it up before I pull the trigger. It's in Anaheim hint hint

[BeyGon]

You have two daughters and a wife, don't you ever need a spare car?

[Joeaksa]

Give it a better home than its had lately!

[jtfreels]

if its a 73 or later buy it, you need that car.

[stomachmonkey]

Super Beetle for a grand?

What's the decision here?

Take it.

FWIW, none of us really NEED anything.

[crustychief]

Originally Posted by jtfreels

if its a 73 or later buy it, you need that car.

If it is a 73 or later he'd have to smog it. I agree they are cool cars.

[rouxroux]

That's a no-brainer...buy it or give me his # and I will.

[Zeke]

Bugs are not cool in SoCal any more. Buy it.

[Racerbvd]

I would love to have a Super to play with, you do know that you can, without too much trouble bolt 944 susp on it don't you....

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by crustychief

If it is a 73 or later he'd have to smog it. I agree they are cool cars.

no, '76 or later

Buy it, essentially the same setup as a 911, struts in front, IRS rear engine.

Look for frame head rust, rusty heater channels, these would be deal killers

It probably needs new ball joints, tie rod ends and if you are doing that, put in new struts too.

[Racerbvd]

Originally Posted by Tobra

no, '76 or later

Buy it, essentially the same setup as a 911, struts in front, IRS rear engine.

Look for frame head rust, rusty heater channels, these would be deal killers

It probably needs new ball joints, tie rod ends and if you are doing that, put in new struts too.

Actually, the Super Beetle is where the struts came from for the 924, which grew into the 968, and 68 & newer bettles with IRS (the Auto stick had it in 68) the rear 944 susp is pretty much bolt on..

[tcar]

Is it a flat windshield Super or the later curved windshield?

[VincentVega]

No kidding. Buy it, clean it up and then sell it if you change you mind. Sounds like a cool project. I'd be all over something like that.

[nostatic]

bah - '67 or bust.

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by nostatic

bah - '67 or bust.

LOL my first car was a 67 bug. I think. Mighta been a 65. Nope, pretty sure it was a 67. Had the wider licence plate light thingy but still had the long rear decklid. I been outa bugs too long.

You have two daughters and a wife, don't you ever need a spare car?

I have a wife and one daughter, (and one 11 year old son) and the wifey and the daughter already have cars. I know, I spoil them

I have a 911 sitting in the garage that rarely gets driven so that's my spare car, I really should be focusing on it instead of dragging home another car.
I don't even have room for it unless I park it on the street so I'd have to get it running quickly to keep from getting a ticket.
There is no logical reason to buy this thing but I bet I do anyway.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by sammyg2

There is no logical reason to buy this thing but I bet I do anyway.

Logic is an impediment to reason, which funnels rational thought, which further inhibits the joy of stupidity.

Buy the car.

[widebody911]

Originally Posted by nostatic

bah - '67 or bust.

Pfft! '57 and earlier is where it's at.

[turbo6bar]

Pass on it. Everyone knows you can't turbocharge a superbeetle.

[sammyg2]

Originally Posted by turbo6bar

Pass on it. Everyone knows you can't turbocharge a superbeetle.

LoL the first turbocharger system I ever build was on a type 1. It used a holly 660 cfm center-squirter carb in a draw through configuration.

It idled well, it went like stink at WOT, everythin in-between was one giant BOG! Hey I was 17, what did I know about jetting for a turbo?

My brother had an old squareback and we chopped the roof 4" and filled in the rear windows to make a panel van out of it.
We put the type 1 in it even tho it stuck up through the floor. Kinda made the inside of the car stink with fume and oil smell, maybe a little carbon monoxide too, dunno.
It wasn't very streetable so eventually we stuck the engine in my brother's sand rail. It worked pretty good in that thing until he sold it and kept all the money for himself. Bastage.

[924slover]

IF your looking for people to talk you out of buying a super beetle than you've come to the wrong place....If your looking for people to justify your new purchase than you did come to the right people......