Overlay Panels for a Car Project #8: Car Modifications Revealed

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Most of this part is taken from one of the later comments in the previous part. I have been holding back the details on how the car is going to be modified. duckmilk noticed that the wood panel layout had an odd shape around the back fender. The reason for this is the car will be modified using a conversion kit from Smyth Kit Cars . The kit will result in the beetle having this kind of look:




There will be a few personal touches, but the most significant by far will be the wood panels. The taped layout shown in the last part shows how the panels will follow the body lines of the step side bed.

 
A picture from part 3 shows the templates for the bed sides.

 
Once the tailgate is installed I’ll add a wood panel to that as well. 
 
The kit will be installed by Michael at Irregular Transformations. He joined here to follow this blog, but he may do a few comments or posts here eventually. The kit arrived at his shop today.


We are working through the timing for when the car gets delivered. I’ll try to provide updates as the conversion progresses. 

12 Comments

That's a super modification for any car, and a Beetle Woodie truck will be a real eye catcher. You are going to have fun in this project once complete, and everywhere you go people will be in awe of your new ride. 👍👍
Haven't seen a Beetle truck before.   Interesting.    

Ron

I have one question:  Does it turn into a pedal car or maybe Fred Flinstone propulsion?  Where does the engine go?  

--Nathan, TX. Hire the lazy man. He may not do as much work but that's because he will find a better way.

Looking forward to seeing more of this!

May you have the day you deserve!

Nathan, you may be be thinking of this.

As for the Beetle the engine stays in front.
I didn't realize that they moved the engine to the front on the modern versions.  

--Nathan, TX. Hire the lazy man. He may not do as much work but that's because he will find a better way.

Looks amazing Steve - really well done!!
To be clear, the photos are from the Smyth website. Mine will take several more months.
Note to self: Never create an account late at night.
Additional note: use complete email. 

Logging in again was fun! 🤣

It's looking good Steve! I've got a few miscellaneous pieces left to paint then I can put the paint booth away for a while and start baking (seasoning) your fiberglass parts. I'm almost finished narrowing a Roll & Lock tonneau cover to fit an Audi then I can see where to add a rain gutter to the tailgate skin. I even found a R&L to narrow for my beetle. 😁

Pretty things roll out the front door but really it's a daily quest not to burn the place down or blow myself up.

Thanks for the update Michael!