Super Project '71: Part 14

Having a painted car back and finished in your garage is a great feeling and it is a turning point in the project, a milestone to signify the peak of the struggle to make this Super Beetle into a beautiful, yet functional, road-worthy Volkswagen. As far as the project is concerned, it is all downhill from here, albeit, not easy, but more rewarding.

We have finished the undercarriage, the running gear, the hidden mechanicals. We've scraped off the ugly undercoating, revamped the brakes and suspension, replaced all of the bushings, the transmission, the brake lines, the axles, the CV boots and a host of other things nobody will ever see.

Now we're ready for the fun stuff, the flashy stuff and the things that really makes building up a car interesting, finally. This month we're doing double duty, as we timed it just right (or wrong, depending on how you look at it) to take care of two sections of the project on the same day. On these pages you'll notice that we've taken care of the door and window rubber, along with a couple of the outside seals, but if you skip back to Page 28, you can see that you'll need to tackle the headliner before you consider putting in the rear windows. It is this reason that it worked out well to have both of these stories done on the same day and in the same issue.

For this step of the project we took our Super to Classic VW Specialty's main man Rafael Gutierrez to show us the right way to rebuild the doors, replace the glass and seal it all with Wolfsburg West's rubber. As well, it is a good idea at this time to install the padded dash, as the top screws can be difficult to get in straight with the windshield in place. Also, the rubber from the windshield should butt right up against the pad...at least original dashes do.

There are very few specialty tools you'll need to tackle this step, and if you've got a 5/32 drill bit and a riveter (among the common tools you'd normally have) then you're out of excuses not to proceed on your own. However, if you're hesitant to take care of it yourself (or if there's any other steps you don't think is wise for you to do), contact Classic VW Specialty as they are a do-it-all Volkswagen restoration shop.

Let's get started, but first, since you're working with glass, you'll need to create a safe work environment for your car. Get a flat workspace that's off the ground and cover it with a layer of foam or a couple of thick beach towels. That way, as you're manipulating the rubber over the glass, you won't run the risk of chipping the glass. Remember, chips equal leaks and leaks equal rust, mildew and mold, three things you don't want inside your car.