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Body work

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Body work can be a pain but also a lot of fun to do.

First, you must determine what must be done and what you can afford.  Body work done by a body shop can get very expensive.  Some types of body work can be done by almost anyone given the tools, the time, and a little reading. 

The Tools, you ask?  A body hammer, sandpaper, an orbital sander (a real time saver), a sanding block, body shaping tools.  This is a very short list. 

There some things like a body or frame straightener (cost is from $5000 to $35,000), Equipment to do "leading"  (only about 20 people in the entire USA can do this very well), and Welding equipment.  All of which you should contact an auto body shop to have done, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO USE any of those tools without having the experience in using them or the training.  These tools can seriously injure or kill if used improperly.

Time.  It takes a tremendous amount of time to do good body work and to get the right shape on the body.  I could train a monkey to do body work, but it would not be shaped or done right, and would look like the vehicle had been in a tornado or a tidal wave.

Knowledge.  This can be gained by reading the Bentley manuals, an auto body repair manual by Haynes, or from a of a number of sources.  You can also ask someone that does body work for tips on what to do.  Usually they will tell you.

Something else you should ask yourself, do I want to restore or to customize.  That is really up to you. BUT Our feeling is restoration is the better route with limited customizing.  If your VW has been wrecked from the front or rear, then one option is to Baja it.  We go into Baja Bugs on our Baja Page.  But if your VW is just has dings and dents from the urban battlefield called life, then restoring is the best thing to do.

I know the "trendy" thing is to lower and chop up a VW.  BAD IDEA!  Several problems crop up.  One of which is the change in steering geometry.  This change will make it very difficult to get the vehicle aligned and keep it aligned.  Extending the axles out to put bigger tires on. BAD IDEA AGAIN.  This will cause premature failure of your axle, shocks, steering knuckle, tie rods and several other components. Now you can do it but be forewarned,  the cost will be high to look "cool".   How about lowering?  WHY?  Did VW ship a couple of VW's that are low enough to be vacuum cleaners or street sweepers? NO  Then why in the world, would you want to damage your VW in that way.  "well it looks cool"  Well so does mounting a 50 caliber machine gun to the roof looks cool too, but I bet the local law enforcement would not be too happy about it! 

Lower or Jacking up a VW is a bad idea for two reasons. One it changes your steering geometry.  Two, it also changes your center of gravity.  Don't  think that lowering a VW will lower your center of gravity....IT WON'T.  In fact the drivability of the vehicle becomes much a harsher.  Think of driving your lawn mower down the road and that gives you a pretty good idea of what it will be like.  Also, please tell me where in the world (other than the Autobahn) do you find perfectly flat roads?  In the North Texas area, where we are, we have these funny things called potholes.  Potholes will rip up a suspension system fast, and damage it far worse on a lowered vehicle than on one in which is at the factory height.

Chopping your top or "chop top" is something that any dummy can do, but if you insist on doing it, knock yourself out.  But REMEMBER this: In a sedan, approximately half of the structural integrity is derived from the roof and body!  You MUST reinforce and gusset the major stress points like a convertible. DO NOT try this at home, as you will end up with a hopeless pile of metal that used to be a VW, that now could be used for a Honda, a soup can or a work of "modern art" in your front yard (besides maybe your neighbors will love it, for all of six seconds).  Engine deck lid stand off kits do not promote cooling as well as "whale tail" kits do not promote road stability or cooling.  BAD IDEAS ALL!!!!  Approximate engine temperature on a 70F day, at 50% humidity, and idling is 300F as measured by a candy thermometer on the 3-4 bank, lower deflector plate of the engine.

VW's are meant to be inexpensive to drive and own.  Why would you then want to make it more expensive to drive than a Ferrari? I guess you can.  But what's the point.  If you want a status symbol, buy a Lexus or a Mercedes Benz.  If you want economy, leave your VW the way it left the factory.

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