It’s been a whole year

[Ulu]

It’s been a whole year Since I posted anything about this silly kit car that I bought, but I started working on it again and so now it’s all torn apart in my garage.

This car came out of South Carolina and I am really happy that it wasn’t all rusty. It has been kept indoors since it was put together and not driven for 40 years or so.

This is a 1973 VW with a fiberglass body kit. It was thrown together in a hurry, and it’s all going to get redone.

I found I could stand the body up and do the rewiring without crawling under the dash.

 

[esoxlucius]

Looking good so far Ulu. And what timescale are we looking at from the jigsaw pieces above to you driving down that iconic californian coastal highway?

 

[Ulu]

It depends on whether the state of California will allow me to license it. I still haven’t been able to get an appointment for the title transfer. Because of the Covid our DMV has been Totally screwed up.

 

[Ulu]

Frame stripping continues.

Cowl and battery tray removed.

Torquing the bolts. This shows the welded appliance or extension to the VW frame. All 4 were too loose and 2 were alarmingly loose.

 

[Ulu]

Patching over a small crack in the fender.

That keyhole-shaped white spot is the hole where the steering shaft penetrates the fender. It's a ragged mess, and the shaft ain't cherry either. The upper image is a reflection in the chrome.

It takes a desperate soul to make a hole that ugly in shiny car.

 

[Ulu]

Here I highlight the crack, shown from under the assembled car. You can see how small the section is there due to the hole.

 

[Ulu]

Mocking up some frame rails robbed from a small tractor.

 

[Ulu]

I’m trying to determine how much the fiberglass has warped since 1980. It’s noticeable. But I can live with it, because I knew this wasn’t going to be a perfect car when I bought it. In the end it’s always going to be a bit of a jalopy.

I towed the chassis to the DMV so they could look at the numbers. They told me to put it back together before they will issue a title.

So I’m gonna throw it back together just enough that it looks like a complete car and has the required equipment.

 

[Ulu]

I didn’t think I’d be working on the car today.

I went and got my second Moderna shot yesterday and the doctor told me that I might feel sick afterwards but so far no after effects.

I got my grandkids to come over and help me In the house and the garage, and they helped me stick the front body clip back on the car.

It’s not secured yet but it’s positioned. I was up late working in the garage and I got a lot done.

The rear crossmembers, parking lamps, front valance and front bumper, rear bumper and rear sub frame are all on. The heater boxes are gone and the “Heater delete” tubes and muffler are installed.
Today I will try to get the front fenders on.

I need to trim the floor pan just slightly before mounting the forward body, and I have to locate and attach the forward crossmember which supports the runningboards and the tail of the front fenders.

The rear body has no rear body mounts and never has had. Basically it was sitting on the muffler and cantilevered from the fenders.

There’s the front fenders, the tub, and cowl. I also still have to install rear fenders and doors and runningboards.

At some point the people who built this car couldn’t get things to fit and they just gave up. That’s because the chassis was bent (!) but with some easy modifications I have taken that out of the equation for the body.

The radiator shell is very much out of square and I need to oversize the holes in the body and get it aligned properly. The mounting of the front body is not going to be finalized. I’m just throwing it together to get an inspection passed.

You folks in other countries where they have engineering requirements for custom cars are not used to the system in California. They’re mostly looking for smog cheaters and insurance frauds. They are not gonna look at my welding or the amount of rust on the frame.

You’ll notice I haven’t bothered to clean or paint anything, because this is all going to come apart again. My wife is going to hate me.

Anyhow, I am tired from all the work yesterday, but the best part of all of this is I was expecting to feel sick today. I was warned by the pharmacist, because he had a mild reaction, but I am having no issues.

The one thing I did not do is sit around and take it easy, And so it’s back to the garage for me.

 

[Poseidon2.0]

Nice car. All I got from the Moderna was a sore arm both shots.