74 BUG AUTO STICK SHIFT

Here's the deal.. I had a 71 autostick. I rebuilt the engine, and alot of people were unable to help me. Like removing the gland nut on the engine required a special holding tool.. no-one around had one. One guy installed the wrong gland nut for me, took me hours to figure out why the engine wouldn't fit back in.. The other shop installed my correct supplied one, but it spun off a few months later cuasing damage because he did not have the special proper holding tool to install it.. ..

Alot of people say they can and will work on the autostick... but unless I knew for sure, I'd stay away. I had way too many problems..

I used to collect autostick parts and kept a couple tranny spares as extra. I sold them for about $100-$150 each. Best thing I think for you would be to search for a good used one, and do it yourself. I've never seen a new autostick tranny. Working on the autostick is quite the task.. those little torque converter bolts.. Buy some spares from CIP1.com before you do anything. Get some spare gland nuts.. because most likely, no local shop would have the parts. Maybe even a spare flexplate. I had spare servos, even the solenoid valves. Fortuneatly, my tranny was never a problem, and I sold the vehicle before it could be!!! Got me a European 1960 with Manual Transmission. I learned how to drive stick in a day. To think I thought I had to have an Autostick..

The autostick is very complex. You got the shifter contacts, nuetral safety switch, special oil pump, special tins, metal oil lines, flexplate, glandnut, torque converter bolts, clutch disc, throwout bearing, vacuum solenoid pump on the firewall, special carburetor intake different pedal assembly.. shifter.. .. etc.. . Things alot of Manual Transmission bug owners never heard of or seen. That is why a large majority of Autostick owners have converted their rides to Manual, or have sold them.

snipped-for-privacy@BROWARDSCHOOLS.COM wrote:

calm down and take the caps off please. what is wrong with yours. clutch, gears or ??? I think the '74s had the Park feature too.

You also have the option of installing a manual trans too! ;-)

later, dave (One out of many daves)

I just did a conversion in a 73 beetle from semi-auto to 4 speed manul and have the good semi-auto tranny and all its components minus vacuum lines if your looking for them.

You always want to replace the bolts that hold the plate to the torque plate after they have been removed, and understand there is also a clutch disc to this set-up. I have customers that are still running with semi-auto trannys so found my self learning real quick how to deal with them.

Mario Vintage Werks resto

I just did a conversion in a 73 beetle from semi-auto to 4 speed manul and have the good semi-auto tranny and all its components minus vacuum lines if your looking for them.

You always want to replace the bolts that hold the plate to the torque plate after they have been removed, and understand there is also a clutch disc to this set-up. I have customers that are still running with semi-auto trannys so found my self learning real quick how to deal with them.

Mario Vintage Werks resto

Hi Frank,

I replaced an autostick to 4sp manual in my first 68' bug. Major headache, I was 16, and did not know what I was getting into. It was back in the 80's so let me dust off my memory...

I bought a 4 speed, clutch assembly, flywheel, gland nut, "normal" pedal assembly and I got started. I found out once I removed the pedals that there was no cable guide tube in the tunnel, so I needed to braze/weld one in. I used copper tubing and cut a hole in the tunnel to do the deed. It was a "mess"

Fortunately, thru the wonder of the Internet, pages detailing the entire process have been archived away:

Speedy Jim

Where are you located? I have 4 Project Autosticks and a extra Transmission. My VW Mechain here in Pine Bluff Ar works on Autosticks as he is working on one of mine and just finished one for soemone else.

Thanks Steven