myrtle-the-baja-bug

[myrtle-the-baja-bug]

With my Baja destined to live outside for the foreseeable future it seemed worthwhile making an engine cover to protect the electrics from the elements.

I kept the design nice and simple with some Velcro straps to attach it to the rear bumper and some elastic cord to pull it into the wings a little. The foul weather we’re currently having should put it to the test!

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A few little upgrades on the baja.

Points and condenser replaced with electronic ignition, and a new reversing lamp after I snapped the previous one off pushing the baja into a lay-by when it broke down the other day. The previous one was the £6 budget version so I’m amazed it lasted this long!

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Stock beetle stub axle next to a Porsche 924 stub axle

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A bit of a wash for the baja to get the dirt and salt off her. I’m still super happy that I went with the bold interior for this as it makes me smile every time I drive it.

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I didn’t get round to taking any pictures of the Baja’s interior when I finished putting it in a few weeks back so here it is in all its glory.

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First adult beverage for Myrtle at the pump, and a successful drive out to the bakers arms for pizza.

This thing is damn nippy!

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Out for the first test drive in the baja today! A few further bits to sort before I take it on the road.

The gear shifter needs some further adjustment as 2nd 4th and reverse are a bit tricky. I think this is due to the bus gearbox sitting slightly further into the car so I’ll need to open up the holes in the base plates to give me a bit more adjustment room.

And the brakes are a bit soft so need a bit more tinkering.

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Carpets for the baja’s foot well and tunnel all fitted today, and drivers seat installed. Aiming to take this for its first test drive next week!

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3 out of the 4 wheels fitted, and engine installed. The remaining stock wheel gives you a good idea of how much extra lift the bigger tyres give it. 😁

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Just picked up the baja wheels back from the tyre fitters. Suffice to say they’re friggin huge, 175/80/15s on the front and 235/75/15s on the rear. Bus in the background for scale, even the fronts are bigger than the stock tyres on the bus. 😳

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Rear bench all installed today and making good progress assembling the engine.

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Alternator, starter motor and a few other bits cleaned up and painted for the baja.

The first of the carpets all made up and fitted into the bug. I’ve added some felt insulation underneath them to try and dampen the engine noise a little too.

And fitted the back rest of the rear bench. I upholstered the interior for this nearly 2.5 years ago so it’s nice to see it starting to come together.

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Lots of jobs on the bug over the last two days.

Porsche 924 driveshafts all built up.

Gearbox and wheel arches given a few coats of clear underbody wax and gearbox all fitted (it’s a snug fit under there now!).

My plan for the next couple of weeks is to get the engine all built up. I’m not rebuilding this engine, more of a clean and tidy up. First up, heads off for some new pushrod tubes as the old ones are knackered.

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Baja mountney steering wheel attached, bonnet straps riveted on and gearbox all cleaned up (or cleaned up enough for a Baja).

Next up is getting some underseal wax onto the wheel arches, the gearbox and the rear boot area for some added protection.

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Brakes, steering and fuel tank all reinstalled in the Baja bug. Next up is the gearbox which needs a good cleanup before I can fit it.

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A few little jobs on the baja over the weekend.

The black side trim that I ordered back in December finally arrived and is now all installed.

Gearbox mounts and steering box all painted. I did just intend to clean up the steering box but quickly found that the only thing stopping it from leaking was the 40+ years worth of filth on it so needed to strip it down to replace the seals anyway.

I picked up a big box or two of bits from the powdercoaters so have started getting these components attached. Everything that is usually chrome on a bug has been painted black for this.

And finally I’ve started getting the rest of the brake lines in. I stupidly ordered a set of the hard lines that run from the reservoir down to the master cylinder without realising they’re LHD only. So ended up ordering some pipe off eBay and making my own instead.

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I’m still chipping away at the baja project. The engine is all stripped down now ready for a cleanup, and I spent a good 2 days repairing various rust holes on the tinware as I’m keen to reuse the original stuff where possible to avoid buying reproduction panels (lots of fiddly repairs like this to do).

The tinware is now at the powdercoaters along with a stack of other little bits I had left laying around.

The donor 3 rib bus gearbox turned up last week so just needs a cleanup before being installed, and I’ve just ordered the Porsche 924 driveshafts and stub axles from @porsche_spares_uk to provide drive to the rear wheels.

Hopefully an exciting few months ahead as I slowly breathe a bit of life into the old gal!