 Beetle - Changes 4
Let's stay with the white VW Beetles from the chapter 'Beetle changes 3' for a moment. At first glance, the changes are not that noticeable. Only the forced ventilation on the rear side windows may be a little confusing.
At least you no longer had to open a window of the very airtight car to close the door more easily. If you look closely, you can see the changed front including fender. This indicates a completely redesigned front end.
There is an official picture where four crates of beer fit into the front luggage compartment. This was achieved by the new front axle with McPherson struts and lower wishbone together with the ends of the stabilizer. The
chassis head was now essentially in two parts and was no longer recognizable.
The steering column bent outwards in the middle and ended in the steering gear, which was positioned low and at the edge, with a connecting rod to the bell crank on the other side. In principle, you only had to swap this
with the steering gear and you had right-hand drive.
The two tie rods, which were now the same length after so many years, came from the connecting rod. The steering damper was added to the ensemble, all very space-saving under the floor of the front luggage
compartment. Above that there was space for the spare wheel lying down and above for two of the four beer crates.
Even the container for the windshield washer system remained on the side. Only the jack was moved under the back seat. These modifications increased the wheelbase by 20 mm, an announcement to the workshops.
Because they almost only had lifting platforms that you could drive into four prepared troughs and lift the car immediately.
You have to think about that. All VWs with rear engines, including types 2, 3 and 4, had a wheelbase of 2,400 mm up to that point. In other words, the changes to the Beetle were out of the ordinary and the Beetle itself would
regret it someday. But they carried on happily, for example with the semi-trailing arm axle at the rear, which had previously only been reserved for the automatic transmission.
The double-channel cylinder heads of the 1.3 liter and 1.6 liter engines later proved to be more problematic. They tended to develop cracks between the two channels, but these were usually only noticed when dismantling.
The oil cooler was now made of aluminum and moved slightly forward. It was often blamed for the failure of the third cylinder.
In 1971, even the contours of the hood were changed again and now had 28 air slots, and the convertible even had more and a different arrangement. A diagnostic connector presented workshops with another challenge, as
they now had to set up a diagnostic station in a suitable location. The aim of fully automatic testing was still a long way off, however, and most of the test points were confirmed at the push of a button.
The rear window was apparently enlarged again, this time by four centimeters. The rear luggage compartment received a cover, except for the 1200. Before the dashboard was completely changed, it received a lever for the
windshield wiper/washer on the right behind the steering wheel.
The rear window was apparently enlarged again, this time by four centimeters. The rear luggage compartment received a cover, except for the 1200. Before the dashboard was completely changed, it received a lever for the
windshield wiper/washer on the right behind the steering wheel.
And why was a new dashboard necessary? Because after the Beetle with the '02' appeared the one with the '03' rear. It now had a curved windshield, which made it possible to have more depth for the dashboard. However,
this had to be taken off from the front hood. The new dashboard was bulky, but looked a little poor with only one instrument.
The new three-legged front seats, which were probably taken from the Golf, were hardly noticeable to the driver. The rear lights, aptly called 'elephant feet', were very realizable. They now always contained reversing lights, not
assigned to the L equipment as in the predecessors.
And because the production of the new VW Golf needed space at the main plant in Wolfsburg, the Beetle was now only manufactured in Mexico and in its old form. Practically all advances were reversed except for the
taillights. Otherwise it would obviously have been too expensive and therefore unsellable.
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