Honey I Shrunk The Car!

"Broke It ... in half", might be more accurate. Well, it's not really broken. Funny thing about these Bugs is they are meant to do this. Actually they're made to go together this way. I'm not sure there was much intention for them to come apart once they were put together. 41 years and lots of exposure to the elements - it's time to come apart. Enjoy the slide show.


All in all it came apart easier than I could have imagined. Cutting those stubborn bolts (really sawing, with a cut-off tool) turned out to be too slow. Keeping an open mind and knowing that there's frequently a better way, I changed to the air-chisel. I like the air-chisel. Just go around the bolts like opening a can of sardines. That was cool! And fast!

There were a couple of unexpected snags. The videos I am using to guide me (mentioned in an earlier post) used a later model Bug with different suspension (and suspension mounting). When the back half of the chasis was supposed to lower down, it stayed put. It didn't take long to see the hang-up. Once a couple nuts were removed, the sway bar was seperated from the chasis and down came the back end. On the front end, it too didn't come down either when I lowered the jack. This car has had multiple repair jobs done to the floor pan area. One set of these repairs included welding a plate of steel to the floor and the side of the passenger compartment (probably a heater channel patch). Well the floor is designed to "bolt" the the heater channel, not "weld." A little more time on the air-chisel and problem solved. The front end of the chasis lowered out of the car. Since the chasis is sitting on dolleys it rolled out from under the car quite nicely.

This was a measurable accomplishment. The best plan now probably includes a pause. I'll examine the extent of damage and construct a plan once I know more. I already know that some of the major panels on the front of the unibody and chasis need to be replaced. I had not counted on this. I don't think it prevents the job from moving forward; it just causes me to think longer and be more careful. When it's all over, these two halves have to go back together. One wrong measurement or weld something in slightly out-of-line and the bolt holes won't line up. If that happens I may just set it on fire. Just joking! I really do need to be careful at this point and not get in a hurry. The door openings are already wanting to pinch (close in at the bottom) due to the lack of support since the heater channels are so rusted out and can't keep the car "stretched out" at rocker area. What I'm saying is it may be a while before the next post. By the time I make a plan, order parts, etc it could be a little while (couple weeks or so). Keep in touch!