That table got dirty again fast, I know I left that spotless after the Titan dumped all over it.

My mom gave me her hand-me-down 1976 VW light blue Super Beetle the summer of 1978, after I graduated from high school...I used to take it into the shop @ the local community college to work on as part of a summer school class in auto mechanics...such a great car...I put a lot of miles on it until I graduated college in 1982 & then traded it in on a VW Rabbit Diesel, which I eventually (in about 1991) drove across the country from NJ to Cali, then put on a container ship in Long Beach & shipped to Hilo, Hawai'i...I drove it on The Big Island until 1997, until I moved back to the mainland (Phoenix, AZ)...I sold my VW Rabbit Diesel to a guy from Alaska who had just moved to The Big Island...I put a lot of miles on those two VW's, & neither one of them ever let me down...so many great memories & crazy times in my Super Beetle & my Rabbit Diesel!

That was pretty cool. I've never seen a beetle walk through like what you just did Wizard.

Greetings from Australia. As a VW enthusiast for many, many years, I found your comments and descriptions were spot on. More proof that the Wizard, really is a wizard. Thank you.

Mrs . Wizard taking the model is my favorite part

We bought a leftover '68 in '69. I was USAF stationed in Texas and it was the first Beetle I ever saw with dealer installed AC! On the expressway it would top out at 62MPH. When the compressor kicked in it dropped to 55.

I had a 1968 automatic stickshift. I used shop vac hoses to bypass the rusted out heater channels, so I'd have defrost. On mine, the defrost came out the bottom corners of the windshield, and that center thing that looked like a defrost was just a fresh air vent. That was my first car. The rust was a nightmare. Cool to see this one.

I can sort of picture the Mr. and Mrs. Wizard driving a vintage Beatle!

I bought a 1971 non-runner as my first car and really learned about cars on that old VW. I got so I could pull the engine in about an hour and changed the clutch on my girlfriend’s 1968 in the parking lot of my dorm in one day! The most hilarious VW story I have was when I had a heavy friend sitting in the back seat and the engine started to die, then surge, then die again. Finally the back seat caught on fire. Turns out he was heavy enough to push the seat springs down and short out the battery, causing the engine to die. As the engine died, he’d come up off the seat as the car slowed which un-shorted the battery and the car started - then he’d fall back in the seat and short the battery again repeating the cycle. That back seat burned pretty quickly so I was thankful I could easily pull it out and throw it out on the shoulder before it took the whole car with it! That’s when I learned that all old air cooled VWs fit into one of three categories: 1) Those that are going to catch on fire. 2) Those that are currently on fire. 3) Those that have been on fire.

A lot of my friends who did their own VW repairs back in the day owned a copy of "How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive". That book was a lot of peoples' intro to DIY car repair.

Brought back some good memories...I have owned a 1970, a 1959 and a 1964. All three were so much fun!

Its so awesome to see the lifts on the back! Im so happy to see how far the Wizard has come from the small shop!

When I was a kid those VWs were everywhere. Don't see them much anymore

I loved my 83 Super Baja Beetle. It had over 200k miles on this car when I retired it to the farm. It was a pleasure to drive. Loved driving on the Colorado mountain roads while on vacation. Drove it everyday to work and finally the salted Kansas roads finally did it end.

Nice... I always liked the old school beetles. That in spite of the fact that the only time I ever rode in one, it very nearly caught fire... I was in the back seat which was getting VERY warm... Then the smoke started seeping in and we quickly shut the car down and bailed... Good times, good times...

I'm glad the Wizard mentioned how much FUN these things were to drive. Not fast...just fun ! Very fast off the line though. 0-20 faster than anything else on the road. But 0-60 slower than everything else. My favorite was shifting without the clutch. There was a sweet spot in every gear where you could just slip it in without touching the clutch. Never seen that in any other car.

I appreciate the enthusiasm you maintain for automobiles. Many top level mechanics seem to have lost that.

The Saturday Morning Joke A pirate walks into a bar with a steering wheel sticking out of his zipper. The bartender says, “Hey there’s a steering wheel sticking out of your zipper," to which the pirate exclaims “AAAAARRRRRRRGH, it’s driving me nuts!!!"

We used to own a 72 super beetle!!! As I recall they had to be rebuilt at regular intervals. We painted it like a pumpkin for Halloween Hahaha. It's original colour was lilac.

I owned a 1976 Superbeetle Wolfsburg Edition. Gold paint and a manually cranked sunroof. I loved that car, it was tough and reliable.

I see a vintage beetle and i Immediately think of Mustie1 :)

I love the wizard’s on camera presence evolution. I love how much fun they’re both having

"It's just like a motorcycle" It WAS a motorcycle engine. In Brazil there were next to no motorcycles during the second half of the 20th century, save for really old and outdated harleys or other rare imports, so an engineer created a series of made in Brazil bikes that used the same 1600cc VW engine. They called it the Amazonas 1600.

Yes, I have replaced the clutch on a very old beetle, done on a barn floor with a few ordiunary tools. I was a "broke" teenager at the time and that beetle was my sole means of transport. I also replaced its pistons and cylinders to reduce the cloud of smoke emanating from the exhaust. I kept it going for quite a few years. Dr Porche was a great automotive desigber. The beetle was easy to maintain.

Your a true mechanic.. When your born with it your stuck with it.. It's how you have fun.

12:34 This bug ALSO uses air from the spare tire, that is what the clear-yellow hose is coming up to the bottle. the shrader valve there can be used to check Spare tire pressure AND for the washer bottle.

I worked in an engine shop in Phoenix in the 70s. I built three of those engines every day from parts on the shelf. You could bring your bug in, get a rebuilt engine in about 90 minutes for $260 (exchange) that was better than the original. I used to go visit my sister in California and carry a spare engine and a jack in the back of my truck. There was ALWAYS someone on the side of the road with a smoked engine. I could get them up and running for about $300. My record for removing an engine is 6:30 in a bus that didn't have the rear bumper installed. I LOVED working on those things! I learned how to drive a 1959 bug when I was 10.

Nobody could call the Wizard a snob when it comes to cars. He has eclectic tastes and knows what he likes.😁 We do see him lusting after some pricey vehicles but he seems equally happy at the lower end of the scale too.

My dad bought one of these when he was stationed in Germany in the mid 70s while in the Army. Ended up importing it back to the states, back when that was easy to do. He later sold it. Gotta wonder what happened to it.

The variety of cars is great. I remember something about the battery under the seat as a young lad. If the springs were weak it would arc so put a bit of Lino over the top. But it’s a part of my childhood and remember them well.

I'm in Mexico and see many Beetles here, with great bodies and no rust. Watched a KZfaq video of a guy that bought one, drove it over the border and said he can register it here in the USA. 😎

My first ever car was a 1966 Beetle with the six volt system. I bought two others afterwards and loved them both. I so wish I'd never parted with them. Lovely cars if driven within their limits and they'd go on forever. Happy memories.

6:50 Do not need to pull starter. Although it's no big deal - and needs to be inspected anyway. I've done in MANY times.

Oh man, my dad had a panel shop in the 80s/90s. I always remember him repairing those heater channels, they were his bread and butter for a long time

Important to check the battery cover (under the seat) ..it can cause a short on the rear underseat insulation causing a fire; also, important to check the rubber grommet on the fuel line/firewall area. Thanks for the video!

on my first car; '67 green bug with corroded heater lever cables, windshield washer powered by the spare tire, and a rebuilt engine that swallowed another valve after only 5K miles (she had 105K when I sold her) BUT her running boards were intact and she was 12 Volts so I could install a Craig 8-Track player and speakers!

Here on Mexico have a shitload of them, even in the family actually have 3. Mine is 94 but carbureted and has some differences about the super beetle. Still that works fine but still leaks oil from the seal of the block (so common). Fun fact: From the 94 models they be made with the fuel inyection system and some rare ones with A/C.

Hey Wizard & Mrs Wizard, I learned how to drive a stick in a VW Beetle Bug & yes, when I opened the bonnet I was bewildered!!!! 😳

When I was a kid, we changed the engine in our 67 on the side of the I-17. I was too young to remember what the problem was. But my grandpa had an extra rebuilt engine that he put in the truck, drove it out to us with a couple big strong friends, there were a few of my dads friends with us. Unbolted the engine, 7 guys lifted the back of the car up to drag the engine out and slide the new one in, jacked it up, bolted it in. We hopped back on the highway and drove to Flagstaff. Years later and I can do that entire swap in my carport in 30 ish minutes on my Baja. These cars are incredible just how cheap and easy literally everything on this car is to do.

My very first car was a 1972 Beetle with a 1600 Dual Port that I did a resto-mod. The engine threw a bearing after spinning the bearing. I upgraded the carburetor to a a twin double barrel Weber carburetor, I lightened the flywheel to just under 18 pounds, the entire fuel system was upgraded, my mentor and I swapped the transaxle over to a type two, the cooling system intake flow was increased by moving the firewall two inches forward and side air scoops added, my mentor and I installed a full thin wall tube chassis for reinforcement and support of the full roll cage we added during the process, full race bucket seats, rear fuel cell was added, and a beautiful repaint from the bare metal up because of terrible patch work. I loved that bug, my stepmother hated it, which helped me enjoy it all the more with the mind game reciprocation of my crappy teenage years. My mother loved it and that only fueled my fire especially on the dirt track. Some days I literally had to negotiate seat time with my mother, she and I loved it so much. 0-60 in about 8 seconds with both of us in it. I did nothing to lighten the car itself other than to get rid of some of the interior because the fuel estate was more important for range extension. My mother was always smiling in that puppy on the dirt track and on the street. One of the local cops took it for a spin and he really enjoyed it, his smile and all the breaks he gave me on the tickets made it all worth it and paying for his eggs out of my pocket for our egg business was even more worth it. Just don't tell my dad, he'd have a cow and I would have to make my first million dollar day happen. The poor guy sold my bug out from under me.

I've done a few clutches, lol. I've been waiting for a vintage VW! Thanks Car Wizard. Hope they fix those heater channels soon, they're structural.

A lot of people think Beetles have bad heat. When the heater boxes and duct work are intact the heat is very powerful.

Brings back memories... There were Bug-Ins in the '80s in Southern California (ref Cal Look Bugs) with drag races, custom cars, hot babes and such. One of the events was a pull-the-engine competition. Two guys pull an engine, put it back in, and drive it a certain distance, or at least that's what I remember. With some minor modifications e.g. a special motor mount modification, two guys could do the pull, install, and drive in less than 10 minutes, maybe less than 5 min, I don't remember, but it was quick . My friends and I could pull an engine, rebuild it (new heads, clutch, cylinders, rods, bearings, cam and a bunch of other stuff) in a weekend, even while drinking beer. It surprises me that the Wizard didn't resurface the flywheel. Or did I miss that while I was typing this tome? We also made "traction bars" out of a couple of battery clamps and a piece of square steel tubing. Those were the days...

I am currently restoring a 1974 Super Beetle and I am loving working on taking the car apart and cannot wait for the day I can drive it down the road. @Car Wizard.... kudos to you for being a Volkswagen beetle mechanic and enthusiastic about working on these vehicles. You are amazing Car Wizard.

My first car was a 72 Super Beetle, I loved this, and remember all the issues, especially the heat problem when I drove it in College in NH.

I read somewhere, and it stuck with me: "Remember, these were designed to be repaired in a 1930s German village. So it's equal parts simple-as-can-be and more complex than you'd want to take apart in your driveway"

Owned 2 of them in my past life, a 64 with a 6 volt system and a 69 and loved them both.

My dad has a 1973 Super Beetle, painted to be Herbie the Love Bug. Love these cars, so simple, you can have tons of fun and never break the speed limit!

Mr. Wizard, Great video, The starter doesn't have to come out. Just take the 4 bolts around the engine out and don't loose the half moon bolt for the starter. If you take the starter out inspect the Starter bushing that is pressed in the Transmission holding the starter shaft.

Way way back in the mid 70s my brother bought a non running 1962 VW beetle. It was sitting in a neighbor’s driveway and had not been moved in a few months. My brother stopped and asked him if he would sell it. Brother bought it for $200.00. We towed it home, pushed it into the garage, and started taking it apart. In a short period of time we had the engine out and sitting on the garage floor. We took the engine apart and found a broken exhaust valve that punched a hole in the piston. We bought new valves, rings, pistons, and bearings and had the engine rebuilt within a few days. My brother drove it for a few years before selling it. It was extremely easy to work on if you had a reasonable knowledge of engines. Little car was a lot of fun.

Just replaced my 1971 beetle's clutch over the summer and rebuilt the engine with an old timer that learned how to rebuild VW engines when he was in the army stationed in Germany. We laughed, we cried, we left a lot of blood sweat and tears on the engine during the rebuild. But it runs. I've been hoping you would do a video like this. Thank you.

Optimistically states that "warm air comes from the engine and warms the cabin". That's the theory, in reality it doesn't. Rear seat passenger may however get burnt ankles!

the toybeetle was in for a headlight replacement i see

I used to borrow an old one of these from a friend many years back; I quite enjoyed driving it - it was comfortable enough for me and with the 1.6 engine the car felt surprising nippy for a car of the 70s. I liked the engine noise too...that characteristic 'ROAR-TWEETLE' when you accelerated away from the lights was a joy. In the end it died because one of the plugs had welded itself into the block and the garage said it was beyond economic repair.

Ferdinand Porsche designed the original Beetle, it's a classic, well engineered, practical car. One of the greatest cars of all time. I always loved these cars. Thanks Mr. & Mrs Wizard.

My first car was a 72 Super Beetle in bright yellow!

The engine is only assembled with four bolts so that is the easiest way.

I worked at a shop in the mid 1970s that specialized in VWs. I lost count on how many clutches I replaced. I got quick after a while and we used to race to see who could get the engine out the fastest. My record was 14 minutes. I drove a 66 Beetle. One customer was going to an appointment and she blew her car's engine coming in for gas. We swapped the motor out of my car (both 1300 CC) and she wss on her way in 35 minutes. She called and asked if she could come back the next day. By that time my boss had rebuilt her engine. She came in the next day and we gave her the fresh motor and put the engine back in my car. Plus I got a bonus for letting her use my engine for the night. I really love working on those cats, just like the Wizard and I don't know why I haven't bought a vintage Beetle yet.

I had a 72 super beetle with a semi automatic transmission. The clutch was in the accelerator. There's something about these cars that make people smile and tell you stories wherever you go. 1972 is also the last year for the flat windshield in these Super Beetles.

I have owned 2 beetles way back when. I need another beetle in my life !

"Give me that they're not here to watch you play with this" You tell em Mrs. Wizard

Brings back the my memory of my first Beetle. I traded a 1st gen Mini Cooper, that was pretty worn out from all kinds of racing, for a brand new '97 Beetle. A week after I got the new car I was driving down a two-lane road north of Tucson and came upon an unmarked 90 degree corner. Forgetting that a VW handles quite differently than a Mini Cooper I just cranked the wheel hard left. Surprisingly, the next thing I know I am rolling over three times. Fortunately, neither my roommate nor I were hurt (we both had our seat belts on). Needless to say, my dad was not pleased that I managed to total a car with only a couple of hundred miles on it. Still love Beetles and wish I had one today. So easy to work on and so many performance parts still available.

Wow. My Dad and I did that 30 years ago when the clutch went out on my '74. Didnt have an engine hoist, so we jacked UP the back end and lowered the engine down. When we went to put it all together, sliding the engine forward we realized the clutch wasnt lined up right with the spline.....process all over again. We used a small dowel rod to line the clutch disc the second time and it worked. Mind you, this was long before looking up information on the internet. We had the BEST VW book ever. It was entitled something like, "Idiots guide to VW". I havent been able to locate that book, but it did have funny illustrations and good pictures.

My first car was a 74 Beatle it was fun to drive and a great first car I even did my own oil changes and valve setting and timing which I can't imagine doing on a modern car lol

Mustie1 does these for fun during his lunch hour ...both hands tied behind his back and eating a sandwich !

I had two of them - a 1957 with the small back window. It also had a gasoline fired heater which put out so much heat you had to keep a window cracked open. It cut the mileage in half! Put out an earth shaking 36HP. Also had a 1969. Had a steel sun roof that didn't drain properly - if I parked the car in a rain storm with the back end facing 'down' the area enclosing the sun roof would fill with water. At the first 'stop' I'd hear a sound like Niagara Falls and, WHOOSH! I'd get soaked! All in all they were wonderful cars. I actually floated the '57 across a stream! (No the heating system wasn't rotted!) If you had a fat guy sit in the back seat sometimes the springs from the seat would sag down and you'd short out the battery (and maybe burn the car to the ground!)

I bought a '71 Super Beetle brand new in 1971, Tangerine Orange. Traded it in on 1974 Datsun pickup. In 2000 rebuilt/restored my Dads '66 bug he had bought brand new in 1966 and gifted to me in the late 80's. VW's held up a lot better than the Datsun. VW community alive and well on the West Coast!

Back in the day when VW actually made a quality product that would last. Long live the Airheads

My dad had a 63 beetle he put 50000 trouble free miles then I turned 16 and started driving it. Karl at the VW garage made a fortune. His favourite saying was its $36 to take out zmotor to repair anything, muffler, clutch, throwout bearing, heater box, clutch cable.

I love the way you explain things. You are so calm and exact. Thanks love your videos.

It's great to see a Beetle in the shop! I've had lots of them from 1950 to 1970. They're fantastic, simple, brilliantly designed cars. Once you have those heaters dialed in they can work great!

Spotted a little Made in Brazil engraving in the fuel pump! I recommend taking a look at the Bettle's history in Brazil! Quite an interesting read!

Hey look, it's Wartortle's grandfather!

My family had a '61 beetle that ran for years and years (Whereas my dad traded the Ford Country Squire every two or three years). Fuel pump failed and it was $7.00. I was flooded in the Albany airport parking lot. Oil change and new seat covers, and it kept running. No touch screens, just an AM radio. It just kept going.

Hi Car Wizard. Helped a friend rebuild the engine on a 1964 Volkswagen Beatle. New clutch, big bore kit (1200 cc to 1380 cc). New bearing, new pushrods, heads were refurbished with new valves, guides, and seals. Ran well after the rebuild. Oil tight. Good project.

Love the air cooled vw content! Have a '72 bug and '76 westy bus!

Washer fluid does not flatten the spare tire ... .. there is a check valve that stops feeding the washer fluid pressure when the spare tire gets to the air pressure needed to drive on so you can not deflate the tire. Mine was a ‘66 1300 in Sea Blue w/ white interior.

HOW LUCKY ARE THE PEOPLE OF YOUR AREA TO HAVE YOU AS A MASTER MECHANIC WITH SUCH HONESTY AND A LOVE FOR YOUR CRAFT .RARE THESE DAYS .

Needs some loving. I used to double date in super beetle in early 70’s. To pull the engine, my friend and I got it down to 1/2 hr to pull the engine. Check the spark plug hole threads. Early models of 1600 needed the threads clean.

this job can be done almost literally in the dark...one of the easiest jobs in automotive repair.

The exhaust doesn’t make it into the cabin ... and neither does the heat 😂

I used to work for the UKs first vw specialists. Yes wizard you are doing all the right things, nice to see it done properly. By the way we used to participate in engine change competitions we managed to take the engine out, then back in in 1 min 45 seconds

Very cool, Super Bug. Brought back some memories for me, my late father worked for VW and was involved in the conversion of the electrical system to 12v in the early 60's back when VW was stating local production here in Australia - in Clayton if I recall, became Datsun's/Nissan's plant latter on and I think is still Nissan's HO in OZ now. I remember helping Dad working on various bug's (or as we called them at the time Hitler's revenge on the world) in the workshop's we had over the years. And torquing that flywheel up with long pipes over the end of the torque wrench, no air or electric tools to help you, way to inaccurate then (we are talking the 1970's) to get to the 380 odd foot-pounds - might be wrong on the figure there but it's just from memory, last one I worked on was in about 1982. I remember we Dad would always grumble about working on them, but when you see 3 or 4 of them a week it would be a pain (hence the revenge comment). But now with so few of them running about it is a probably a joy work on them now and to see the simplicity of the engineering for how capable and reliable they are and give to love to the bug.

I think everyone has a beetle story. Mom’s 74 broke down on the Bay Bridge. CALTRANS came up from behind with the push truck on the bull horn “release the clutch!” And then pushed her all the way to San Francisco. 😂

the only clutch I have ever replaced was on a old school bug, we used a tree, ratchet strap and a skateboard to get the engine out the bottom

Back in the sixties my Dad had a 1963 VW Beetle. That car was alot of fun, really good in the snow. Sometimes he would let either my brother or me (whoever was in the pass seat) operate the shifter he would tell us time to shift and what gear. Heater as I recall was adequate. We live in N.E. Ohio outside Cleveland so we can get pretty heavy Lake Effect snow at times.

I had a 1968 Westfalia ,built an engine for it and used the same engine in a 72 super beetle because I could not afford to build two engines 92mm ,weighted crank line bored case cam and lifters from SCAT as well as exhaust. Oh my how many times I swapped engines to go camping. Thanks for such a cool video and some real nostalgia. Up here in North Georgia you can see many awesome Beetles and Busses .

My first car was a beach buggy and I changed the clutch with my dad and a friend. We did it in our home garage with a few spanners and a ratchet set. I lay under the engine while my dad and my friend undid the engine mounting bolts. I'm not sure I'd do something like that today 😂🤣

they say its a good way to start wrenching owning a beetle. because its a smiple car with lots of parts available and also lot of info how to do things right.

I been finding so many Beetles here in So Cal. But people want WAY to much for them. Amazing cars! I remember back in High School. My friends Beetle blow the clutch out in the parking lot. They are so EASY to fix! We drop the motor. Jack up the back end with those Jacks that 4xers use and replace the clutch in the parking lot at my High School. That was back in the 90's. Still remember that like it was yesterday.

Ah, memories! My Dad had a '71 Super Beetle, lt blue, that he bought used in '78 as our 2nd car. It seemed so uncool - until my older sister got it in HS. We loved it then, lots of fun for both of us learning to drive stick, so the clutch was replaced at least once. But here in the NE, it was the rust that got to to it.

I owned one of those in Shantung Yellow and it was a fine car. Eventually rusted into oblivion.

War Tortle's grandpa, known as World War 2 Tortle

In Europe it was called the 1302 (1300) and 1302S (1600) and was the last of the flat screen designs but first with the new suspension. In 73 they released the 1303 (1300 ) and 1303S (1600) with profiled windscreen, large rear lights and the dash was sculpted with a foam construction. I bought, new in 73, one of the first 1303S, reg OOU 381M in Sumatra Green, Within a day I had to change the tyres because -------- they came with crossply as standard. The cornering was "interesting" at any speed. Subsequently fitted radials and it made it a fantastic car to drive. Fond memories.

I had a few of these over the years, dad did to. I’m here in Kansas with you, so in the winter time I kept an ice scraper close so I could scape the inside of the windshield. My last one was also a ‘71, and I had a personally plate that read. UBUGME. Thanks for sharing your videos. Peace

Wicked Pissah Cool Bug my mum and dad had one When my sister and I were growing up it was yellow.😁

Those engines were bulletproof I still see Beatles in Europe where I’m at quite often

My second car was a '72 Super Beetle. Just the best. Always got me home and I learned a ton!

Enjoyable and entertaining video, Mr. and Mrs. Wizard! My oldest brother had a Beetle back in the late '60's. My dad helped him rebuild and hot rod the engine. We could hear that car coming from a long way off. I do remember riding it once or twice, but I was 7 or 8. I've never had a good close-up look at one, so I appreciate seeing and learning about the Beetle from this video. 40 years ago I got a friend's Volkswagen mini-bus running--it just needed the fuel mixture adjusted on the carb, so it wasn't exactly a deep dive into the engine.

In the mid-70's, there was a real problem with people stealing the engines out of these in the downtown parking garages.