What to do with a super beetle?

Well I was given a Super Beetle, but I don't know what to do with it. I used to be big into bugs, but now....meh...I have fallen out of love with bugs and air cooled motors. But a free car is a free car so I want to completely gut this thing and do something fun with it. Give me some good ideas...the weirder the better!

My current idea is a Honda b20 engine and auto transmission mounted longitudinal with r160(or r180) diffs front and rear. I have also been thinking about solenoid controlled air suspension. Kind of a Super B rock crawler if that makes sense.

WRX engine, make it a drift car.

Well, some pock and mix and you can put some 924/944 suspension parts under it. CIP1.com has some interesting parts.

There was a pretty stout Super Beetle posted on here a while back. Full on turbo track/AutoX car....

dune buggy..

LeMons!

I really want to rallycross one. Especially after reading about beetles winning the safari rally outright several times. That's some legitimate rally pedigree right there. I vote rallycross. Hell, you're close enough to me that I'm half tempted to give you actual money for it so I can do it myself.

I learned to drive on a beetle. Some day I will get another.

You could pay it forward and give it to me :)

EvanR wrote: You could pay it forward and give it to me :)

Or me, I need a new DD.

I feel that in the interest of full disclosure I reveal that this thing is not in good condition. It has slight rot in some odd places due to how it was being "stored" and is a horrible shade of matte tan. The engine is locked up. Aaaaand the title is being held by an older family member who signed it over to me but has the title in his safe. He said he wants me to actually finish the project ( which truth be told is his problem not mine) and he said he wont give me the title till I finish.

I am also thinking about a rotary engine, bus transmission, and awd via an electric motor driving the front wheels. Or stretched wheelbase, Mustang II ifs, 4 doors, and Suzuki G10 out back.

The problem is I dont particularly love bugs anymore but it would be fun to make something interesting. The hard part is coming up with a clear and "rational" vision of what I want to do and then coming up with a plan, budget, and checklist.

The car deserves to die by living. I know they rallycross up there by you and we run events down south farther. Put in a running engine and race it. Cars aren't awesome because of what they are, they're awesome because of what they do. Freeeeedom!

Mid mount a 3800 S2 Supercharged V6 and 4T65E(unless theres a beefy enough FWD stick I'm unaware of) longitudinally, AWD like you said. You could make some sort of batE36 M3 crazy Modified AWD rallyX car.

Eh, get it running and patch it up...then drive the hell out of it.

Rotary bug anyone?

Does no one have a current link to the Caddywagen? I drooled over that website for years.

Some random college kid took the pan from a beetle and welded the front subframe from a 70-something eldorado (front-wheel-drive) to the back of it. I was able to find one photo:

Oh my.... I just found it. Here is step 1. Follow the links for the rest. http://web.archive.org/web/20021212201029/www.wsu.edu/~426hemi/stepone.html

Add me to the chorus calling for rallycross.

Let it finish out its life with a valiant surge for a few finish lines.

Curtus73 said: Oh my.... I just found it. Here is step 1. Follow the links for the rest.

Step one: cut a hole in the bug Step two: put some junk in the hole Step three: make her open the bug

Ojala wrote: I feel that in the interest of full disclosure I reveal that this thing is not in good condition. It has slight rot in some odd places due to how it was being "stored" and is a horrible shade of matte tan. The engine is locked up. Aaaaand the title is being held by an older family member who signed it over to me but has the title in his safe. He said he wants me to actually finish the project ( which truth be told is his problem not mine) and he said he wont give me the title till I finish. I am also thinking about a rotary engine, bus transmission, and awd via an electric motor driving the front wheels. Or stretched wheelbase, Mustang II ifs, 4 doors, and Suzuki G10 out back. The problem is I dont particularly love bugs anymore but it would be fun to make something interesting. The hard part is coming up with a clear and "rational" vision of what I want to do and then coming up with a plan, budget, and checklist.

so you're supposed to sink a bunch of time and money into something that you don't actually own yet?

yeah, that's a good idea..

Rule #1

Never, ever, ever, EVER put time, effort or money into a project that you don't have a clear title for.

Lets see...

No title. Locked motor. Rot. Super beetle, so it's not even sandrail-worthy.

Cut the roof open. Fill with dead engine blocks, appliances, anything metal. Put on trailer and earn yourself some beer money at the scrapyard. Send photos from scrapyard and beer consumption party to jackass relative who clearly knows nothing about project-worthy cars.

I agree, the superbeetle wasn't much for hotrodding, owing to that mcpherson strut front end. Can't dune buggy it worth a darn.

Rotted, locked up engine, no title, and you're not interested. Pass it on to someone who is.

So the title is being held hostage? Can you say "Thanks, but no thanks"?

If you insist on not trashing it, non turbo scooby engines are over 120 HP and are availible 2 for $400.

They are faster than you think

I don't question great uncle Frank on the title thing just because he is my godfather and has given me several vehicles over the years. Well that and I don't question him because he is my godfather and that is a big deal in my family.

What I really want is his Immaculate Corvair rampside. But he said I have to wait till he is dead since I didn't name one of my kids after him.

I am very interested in rally cross, but I thought that all of them were at Corn's place or down by Houston?

Sorry if I have been brain dumping but we had an officer shot last night and I have been at the hospital a lot and not getting much sleep.