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Double-0-3

14K views 150 replies 8 participants last post by  fatboyhog1 
#1 ·
I thought I would start a new build thread featuring my two 1303's.

I hated Beetles once I became a teenager, purely because my parents had owned nothing but and all my friends parents had 'nice' cars, well ones with heaters! And once I passed my test I longed for a Ford Mexico. I count get insured so I got a Mk1 1300E instead, yet the day I passed my test the first car I drove was my mums 1303!

But at 18 I got my first bug, and the bug. I had a few different guises over the years but never owned a 1303, probably because I always loved the Cal Look, and as Bug Jam No1 had just happened that was where I was at then, and going forward.

Fast forward to 2010, my Dad was in the grips of prostate cancer and dementia had just kicked in. But before he became really ill he gave my his 1303. A car he purchased new in 1973, and hold loads of memories, and now I was the custodian.

Move on again to 2012, my mum decided to quit driving and could I sell her Beetle. A car she owned from only when it was only a couple of months old.

Yesterday I travelled 300 miles by train to north of Newcastle, then drove from there back home, 282 miles by road in 1303 No2, which was my mums car!

I'm well chuffed to own them, and well chuffed they are back together again, all be it on a different drive.

So both cars have every MOT from new and a shed load of memories.

I plan on updating this thread from time to time, but I do plan on starting a new thread for my dad's as photobucket have destroyed the one I had, and also a new one for my mums. Each car has a different plan so best to do them seperately.

But for now here are some pics of the two together
 

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#88 ·
I recently purchased a radio blank, thanks Gary, because I will eventually be housing the radio in my glovebox along with the heated seat switches.
But that's a winter job, so I have an old JVC head unit sitting around so I installed that, but the fit is poor, so I have purchased one of these below off ebay. Its done by a 3d printer apparently and it may be ok until I move the radio. I'll post up my findings when it turns up.
In other news, I've wired in the clock, a usb point and now I can at least play my music, downside to that is my phone now works as well, don't have to answer it I suppose:lol:
 

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#95 ·
I also added some chrome slats to the rear deck lid. I have had these years. I was going to run without the Kamei cowl but as its parked on the drive, the amount of rain as we approach Wimbledon, plus the small marks and scratches created by said cowl, its staying!
I have a couple of sets of gen VW ones, the square type, but I thought the individual ones looked nicer. They must have been fitted once as they could do with a bit of fettling to make perfect, but they're pretty well hidden by the cowl.
 

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#96 ·
One thing I have noticed when I drive this is that I constantly have to drive with my foot flat to the floor? I think I need to spend some time getting the accelerator cable set right, and I think the root of the problem is actually the pedal travel. Engine out on a test bed, its definitely 'freer'. I've not put a new peddle in though so I'll have to take a look :confused:
 
#98 ·
I drove my Dad's one for the first time in about three years, I loved it, very thought provoking especially as we've just had fathers day.
As with any cars I drive I religiously change my fuel lines. Probably the lack of use, but these were bugged at every point where a clip was required, check these people.
I had gone for a facet electric pump, mainly because I was only going to use it occasionally. But I do that with 03 No2 and haven't had any major starting issues. And as I hate the sound of the leccy pump I've gone back to mechanical. I used one of Heritage's new ones for modern fuel.
I drove this for about 5 minutes but it pulled really, really well. Which has highlighted No2's issue more so.
 

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#100 ·
I did have a slight hiccup though.
When I undone the clip form the fuel pipe to the Kunnifer pipe by the chassis horns, the kunnifer pipe broke, right by the frame horn! I wouldn't mind had I been forceful with it but it basically crumpled a few centimetres below the clip. I guess its a good thing its done it now, it was clearly about to go. It leaves me with a problem and ball ache going forward but as the body is coming off I can worry about that then. But it slowed this eager/impatient beaver down. I purchased 5m of R9 fuel line from M7 for next day delivery, went to my local auto factors and got some P-clips. Pipe turned up Saturday and yesterday I finished the job off by running the pipe and clipping it out of the way along the pan edge. It'll do for now and gets the car to the lock up soon.
I didn't take any pics at the time, plus my old bones are still recovering from crawling around underneath, I'll take some when I replace it.
 
#101 ·
I take after my Dad in many ways and hoarding is one of them. I've had to be really disciplined in the garage and throw house paint away, kitchen cupboard fitting, fuse wire, all sorts of crap that you keep because 'you never know'. But things I'm glad of are old magazines. I have all the Volksworlds and do look through them from time to time, mainly when I'm looking for something particular(I wish they'd index them:lol: But as they don't answer emails anyway, I won't suggest it :lol:) So when my mum was tidying out my dad's stuff after he died he took some of his collection of Safer and VW motoring plus a few others. Mum had already thrown some, good knows what else.
Also in with the mags were price lists from Limited edition, Autocavan, Henley Beetle's and few others, how about todays suppliers do B289 prices for nostalgia's sake :lol:
 

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#102 ·
As I said my dad was a hoarder when it came to VW's. Another thing I'm glad he kept from his first, turns out 52-55 Beetle, was the toolbox. Ive had it years, it has one spanner and the medium screwdriver missing. I bugged the screwdriver in the 80's and got a telling off for that, especially as I painted another one of his screwdrivers and tried to cover up my tracks, but not sure what happened to the spanner. I've never really looked into what year it was or what was missing until last Friday my Hayburner mag turned up, thanks guys btw, and they're was a spread on it.
So I found someone on ebay selling the spanner I'm missing, thats on its way to me, that leaves the hunt for the correct screwdriver.
 

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#104 ·
Its been a year since I posted on this. Its been quiet from my project point of view but obviously a odd year regard the world to say the least.

So just thought I would do a small update. I finished the car last summer, well phase 1 I guess, just getting it to a point that I could drive it. And then in August we got given one months notice on the unit we was renting, old man had sold all the units to his son and he had spent the previous 12 months getting planning permission to turn them into bungalows. No real issue with that but I just wish he had told us we would be need ing to look for something else. It made it a real panic. Anyway we found somewhere really nice. It is just a barn though on a working farm and unfortunately we share it with pigeons! Moved the cars in in October, its bloody freezing up there, but dry, so just decided to leave them until spring and then work on the few niggling things I had found and the other 1303. Then Covid happened. Because the car is stored on a family farm and with the lock down, I'd not been near them until a couple of weeks ago and really missed them, more than I thought actually.
I now have the one that was my mums back home. Serviced it, checked the R9 fuel line and all cracked!! New last year as well. I've fitted new and added some ethanol mix from Frosts that I was reading about on general chat, time will tell I guess.
I was getting a bang on the drivers side when going over speed humps or a pothole. So I've raised the Kerscher an inch, problem solved, and I had a bit of play in the bearing that side so adjusted and all nice and no grumble. I've changed the rear light to clear Hella ones rather than the tinted ones, I prefer them and my mate said they're a lot easier to see when I'm braking:lol:
The front corners of my windscreen are leaking, never had this before so it'll be coming out in winter, new rubber, again, and see if that sorts it. Been collecting parts, as usual with me over the last year. Been working through this odd time still, but we took a hit on a salary reduction that has made things tight, but we have our health and currently both have jobs, so can't complain, it is a hobby and others have it worse than I do, fingers crossed for them.
Anyway here are some pics from when I collected one.
 

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#107 ·
‘The front corners of my windscreen are leaking, never had this before so it'll be coming out in winter, new rubber, again’
If the rubbers still soft I’ve had some success with... wait for it
Captain Tolleys creeping crack cure :lol:
Had an annoying little leak on t25 screen no reason for it and it fixed that after removing a couple of times and still leaked
Nice to see you back Phil
Car looks good especially picture of front
Looking forward to another 03 build on here
 
#108 ·
Thanks Darren, its good to be tinkering again.

I have a set off cal look 1303 rubbers for it so I'll be fitting them in the coming months and I also have a windscreen sealant especially for heated screens so I'll use that also.

Do you remember I had a problem where I felt I wasn't getting full throttle? Well I got to the bottom of it. It was the accelerator pedal. The floor stop on the back of the pedal was hitting the floor well before the accelerator 'rod/arm' had reached the limit of its travel on the back of the pedal, like 2/3rds of the way. Pedals look like they have never been apart and I believe the floor to be original so not sure why that was, anyway cut the stop down a little and now it drives really well and is quite nippy. I love an easy fix.

I too am looking forward to another 03 build. Metal wise my dads one is sound, its all cosmetic. I'll get some pictures today and start listing out my plans for his and also my mums.
 
#109 ·
So 001 was my dads. I had big plans for this bug and have now owned it for 10years and not really done anything with it and that is a real tragedy. I always thought that I should do a nut and bolt resto on it but that really would have been missing the point as to why I’m into these things in the first place, and that was due to my dad and the bond and need to do something with him.
Over the last 10 years I have collected some nice parts to add to what between the two of us is 60 years of Beetle ownership and the trinkets that brings. It’s time to get some of these parts on the car but I plan to leave it close to where he had it when he done a light resto in 1992 and when I took it out of his garage in 2010, and drive it. It’s taken me too long to come to this conclusion but it’s hard to explain, but I feel really happy with where I’m at with it and the spirit I’ll be attempting to do it in.
Hope that makes some kind of sense?
002 will still be my fun car and possibly my daily.
 
#110 ·
001:
A bit of back ground. When I sold mums car I took these high backs out of it and fitted them into 001. Dad took 001 of the road in 92 and removed the seats as they were knackered after over 300,000 miles, and fitted some golf seats. He never drove the car with them and i never really liked them so sold them on a few years ago.
The car left Wolfsburg with a red interior including cloth red seats so in 2016 I purchased some TMi covers and today I fitted them.

Before
 

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#112 ·
I purchased a land rover defender heated seat kit of eBay also in 2016 so that’s going on as well. It looks a great bit of kit, clear instructions, backs and bases for two seats and all pre-wired.
 

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#114 ·
Forgot to take pictures of the rears, but you can just about see them.
Well pleased with how they have turned out, lots of little cuts on my hands and the ache with all the pulling and pushing, but worth it.
 

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