914 Pan and Beetle Body

Hoxviii · Post by **Hoxviii** » Wed Jan 01, 2003 7:25 pm

Would it be possible to take a 914, build a beetle style roll cage for it to stiffen the pan, then remove the 914 body from the pan and replace it with a beetle body? I know the 914 and beetle have the same wheelbase, but the 914 has a wider track. Anyone know if this extra track comes from the suspension or the pan actually being wider? I know the back seat would have to come out of the beetle to keep the mid-engine format, and I have no qualms against shortening the ends of the 914 pan if the pan is longer than the body. Anyone think it's feasible?

Bleyseng · Post by **Bleyseng** » Wed Jan 01, 2003 8:16 pm

No, because the 914 body is unibody, there ain't no pan like a beetle!
Geoff

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76 914 2.0L

Mark the canuck · Post by **Mark the canuck** » Wed Jan 01, 2003 9:13 pm

HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! tooo funny!!!

NO!

Hoxviii · Post by **Hoxviii** » Wed Jan 01, 2003 9:49 pm

i know it's unibody, but i thought it still had a backbone.

Hoxviii · Post by **Hoxviii** » Wed Jan 01, 2003 10:35 pm

i know it's unibody, but i thought it still had a backbone.

porsche_914_freak · Post by **porsche_914_freak** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 1:46 am

technically speaking, yes it has a backbone. actually 2 of them, one on each side, and it would take one hell of a plasma cutter to get it apart, and then its not like a pan or frame on a normal car, it would all fall apart without the sheet metal.

i have sawed up entire 914's before and seen what lies beneath the sheet metal.

youd be amazed at how strong the roll bar thingie is, its like double reinforced corrigated steel sheeting that would easily withstand a rollover, i was actualy quite impressed at the inner workings of the 914's unibody.

vujade · Post by **vujade** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 6:21 am

Hoxvii

here is a link of a guy who mated a beetle body with a 911 pan. This is much more feasible. All you have to do is find an old wrecked 911. This will make for a much better setup then a 914 because of the 911's better suspension & brakes. It would make one awesome German Looker

http://w1.877.telia.com/~u87727402/

Dave_Darling · Post by **Dave_Darling** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 8:07 am

I dunno that I'd call the 911's suspension "better" than the 914's... Better suited to a Bug body, certainly. Different in the rear, very much yes. Better? Eeeehhhhhh....

--DD

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1974 VW-Porsche 914 2.0 (Type IV powered!)

Pelican Parts' 914 Tech Geek http://www.pelicanparts.com

John Kelly · Post by **John Kelly** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 8:43 am

I'm planning to put the 914 rear suspension and structure under the back of a Ghia, and I expect it to be difficult, but there is room for it. I think you will find that the Beetle body is not wide enough to accept the rear suspension mounts of the 914...at least not without serious modification to either the suspension or the body, or both.

John www.ghiaspecialties.com

Bleyseng · Post by **Bleyseng** » Thu Jan 02, 2003 9:04 am

John, That's been done before and was a slick job. They had trouble getting everything lined up (rear supension points) but was very trick in the end.

I think it would be easier just to built a tube frame using 914 supension parts and a bug body.
Geoff

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76 914 2.0L

John Kelly · Post by **John Kelly** » Fri Jan 03, 2003 8:05 am

Hi Geoff,

I'm a fan of using whatever I have at the time to do a project, and I have a 914 so I'm going to give it a shot. Having the bulkhead structure and mounts already built may be an advantage in saving time. If it does not work out, I will build a tube frame. I'm trying to limit the time I spend on the suspension so that I can actually get the gullwing doors done in a reasonable amount of time.

Thanks, John www.ghiaspecialties.com

Hoxviii · Post by **Hoxviii** » Sat Jan 04, 2003 8:59 pm

Once I read that the 914 comes apart without a body I started thinking tube frame. The main reason I was looking to put a Bug on a 914 was to maintain the mid-engine configuration, which would go to rear engine if I put all the driveline in a bug. Would there be any feasible way to do a tube frame around the existing structure and then peeling the body off, or would I be better off measuring and setting up a set of jigs and getting rid of everything but the motor and suspension and then bolting that stuff on? I have full rod, MIG, and TIG capabilities, so that is no issue. Also, like another person said, it all depends on what's laying around. I have a line on a SOLID flat-window super beetle with no motor or trans, and a 914 rust bucket runner. See where the combinations start clicking? As a startup for this project I'm looking at about $100 total for the cars.

Mark the canuck · Post by **Mark the canuck** » Sun Jan 05, 2003 6:03 am

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Hoxviii:
<B> The main reason I was looking to put a Bug on a 914 was to maintain the mid-engine configuration, which would go to rear engine if I put all the driveline in a bug. Would there be any feasible way to do a tube frame around the existing structure and then peeling the body off, or would I be better off measuring and setting up a set of jigs and getting rid of everything but the motor and suspension and then bolting that stuff on.
I have a line on a SOLID flat-window super beetle with no motor or trans, and a 914 rust bucket runner. See where the combinations start clicking? As a startup for this project I'm looking at about $100 total for the cars.</B><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Tube frame from scratch is the only way your going to do it. The 914 is uni-body, the body is the frame. Also as others here have said, the wheel base is different and the 914 is for sure way wider, which means you will have to narrow the front end or run real wide fenders. At first glance the front end might look like a supers front, but they are totally different. For one thing the strut mounts are wider than the bugs (less fenders) body

Hey, anything is do-able, but unless you are willing to spend thousands of hours and have deep pockets, I think that this project is doomed to fail.

Buy the 914, if you can get it for $100 and part it out, make some cash towards a solid bug. Maybe even keep the engine for a T4 conversion.

IMHO this is a no brainer, I wouldn't do it.

Hoxviii · Post by **Hoxviii** » Sun Jan 05, 2003 12:43 pm

My original plan was on parting out all of the solid body panels and interior parts, and just hold onto the motor, trans, and maybe the brake assemblies and then put them onto a bug. Looks like my original idea is the one that's going to happen now. Now it's time to get that '72 shell. . .

Mark the canuck · Post by **Mark the canuck** » Sun Jan 05, 2003 1:47 pm

1/Save the engine (if it's a 2L cool).

2/The trans will be a PITA and it turns the wrong way for rear engine (5 speeds in reverse) real hard to flop the diff. I would much rather have a good bug trans, I have never seen a good swap.

3/Front brakes are almost the same as a late T3, much easier to put (bolt on) Ghia discs on.

4/The rears can be done, I have them on my bug, you need to fab brackets etc. and you need the proportion valve or an expensive aftermarket one.

You could put the tach and speedo in a bug but not much else.

FYI I own a couple of bugs, a '74 914, '71 square and a bus, plus I owned a bug resto shop for about ten years.