Beetle or Super Beetle?

mainly. There's lots subtleties. Like today, I went to get wheel cylinders for the front brakes and found that they're different parts because on the Super they're mount upside down thus the bleed valve is opposite.

Different stuff off-hand is:

1) windshield 2) dash 3) defrost fan and piping 4) M/C 5) all front suspension parts

Ahh, the windshield and dash are the same as a standard Bug in '71-'72 Supers.

1973 was the first year of the curved windsheild super beetle.

dt

David Gravereaux wrote:

Super Beetle doesn't sound all that super, if that's all there is.

My wife is tempted -- merely tempted I should say -- to get a beetle.

1971 seems a good year since all my vast Wonderbus experience will help me with her beetle. I know enough to mess it up real bad real quick now. Did VW make super and not-so-super beetles in that year? And is the super beetle significantly better than the regular beetle?

-- Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott

71 Type 2: the Wonderbus 84 Westphalia: "Mellow Yellow (The Electrical Banana)" KG6RCR

Yes they made both std and super beetles in 71. That wa sthe year supers were introduced. The 71 supers would have the same straight windshield that std beetles have. The dash is probably also identical to a std beetle of earlier years. The Curved Windshield supers had a totally different, padded and contoured dash.

Front suspension is of a McPherson strut type, i.e. "modern". Best known for it's tendency to start "shimmying" or vibrating at speeds around

40-50mph. Very annoying. Do a search on "Super Beetle Shimmy". It is a result of worn out components that can be replaced. Few people actually know or bother, so the chances of ending up with one that HAS this problem, are high.

Rear suspension is of a double joint (also referred to as IRS) type, meaning the wheel camber angle doesn't change when the suspension moves up and down). Should be MUCH better and safer to drive than a std beetle.

The supers, when equipped with the 1600cc engine, came standard with front disc brakes from the factory, in Europe. I seem to remember they were equipped with drum brakes for the US market still.

Basically, anything from the dashboard back is std beetle, except the rear suspension.

Jan

On Fri, 24 Sep 2004 21:00:49 -0400, Jan Andersson scribbled this interesting note:

Jan,

Here in the US every regular (aka "standard") Beetle I've seen that is post 1968 has the double jointed (IRS) rear axles. Even the 1968 Auto-stick Beetles have that "IRS" type rear end.

And yes, of those years, they all seemingly came with drum brakes. In the US. That I know of...

-- John Willis (Remove the Primes before e-mailing me)

The autostuck always came with IRS, or so I have heard.

In the "rest of the world", the std beetle came with swing axle rear end until the end of production... at the very least until 1988 they did, that's the last year I have worked on.

Jan

I classify Supers as:

71,72 Struts vs torsion bar suspension (resulting in roomier trunk), new hood (unique to these 2 years only), new front apron with grill slots for optional air conditioning. 71 had 2 sets of rear deck lid vents; 72 introduced the 4 vent type. New brakes. Still had the STD flat windshield and dash.

73,74 Curved windshield, which resulted in redesigned and deeper padded dash(DOT required safety change I understand), new interagted forced air vent system(eliminating the separate fresh air fan box), and also a new hood without the fresh air vents (which were now integrated into the body just forward of windshield), new master cylinder, new "elephant foot" tail lamp lenses, new 3-point front seat mounting system(changes both seats and floor pan). 74 introduced a new steering knuckle for improved handling, which resulted in a change to the strut design(not interchangable with 71,72 type) and also the spring dampened bumper mounts(look like horizonally mounted shocks).

75-79 Last of the major changes, with fuel injected engine/fuel system, rack and pinion steering(vs all earlier worm/roller types).

Deb 71SB

this change took place in 1972

72 was also when the wiper switch moved to the steering column...

------------------- Chris Perdue "I'm ever so thankful for the Internet; it has allowed me to keep a finger in the pie and to make some small contribution to those younger who will carry the air-cooled legend forward" Jim Mais Feb. 2004

Now if only we could figure out the whole hood emblem thing...

*dons fireproof suit* :-)

come on now!!! it was just plain FUN to know Lauren was turning blue.....LOL

------------------- Chris Perdue "I'm ever so thankful for the Internet; it has allowed me to keep a finger in the pie and to make some small contribution to those younger who will carry the air-cooled legend forward" Jim Mais Feb. 2004

Thanks Deb. Excellent info.

These features were not unique to Supers.

In 72, but during the 73 model year.

Good point. However, the front apron louvers are a dead give away for a Super. After that, the other changes I mention help narrow the range of years for that model. It's an exercise I often play when spying another SB around town. Occasionally, after a stand-off evaluation, I'll approach to check out the dash VIN and verify my guess of the year. I'm sure many STD owners can do the same from just a few visual clues on those types. Ofcourse, modified and non-US bugs may throw all this fine knowledge right out the window.

Deb 71SB

i have owned two 72 beetles...one i baja'd one i used for parts...they both had the column mounted wiper switch and three point seat mounting system....not sure if the seat mounts were a change over year thing(meaning that maybe some

72's had em late, but early didn't) but i do know the wiper switch was indeed moved from the dash for the 72 model year....it was all incorporated in with the "new" steering column...

------------------- Chris Perdue "I'm ever so thankful for the Internet; it has allowed me to keep a finger in the pie and to make some small contribution to those younger who will carry the air-cooled legend forward" Jim Mais Feb. 2004

system....not

If these were 72 model year cars (112 2....) then the floor pan halves must have been changed as the three point system was definately a 73 model introduction, for all European built Bugs.

not sure peter....they were 1972 models, and had matching numbers, but it has been ten years since i sold the second one...i did manage to figure based on limited info at the time, that the 72 i baja'd was a very late model....the pan seemed original but no guarantee wheni was the xxxth owner....

------------------- Chris Perdue "I'm ever so thankful for the Internet; it has allowed me to keep a finger in the pie and to make some small contribution to those younger who will carry the air-cooled legend forward" Jim Mais Feb. 2004