72 Beetle EJ22 Build

[turboedbug]

Looking great, love the custom fab stuff!

[72marinablue]

The last bit of the intake puzzle coming together. Had to go with the pie cuts for........ consistency sake with the rest of the build :Ds

I made a fitting that slips over the MAF with a very nice interference fit, and welded the tubing to the inside to start the piping. Everything is tacked together but I ran out of argon over the holiday weekend so I'll have to finish next week . The tubing will get a silicone coupler to mate up with the throttle body. You can see the welding wire I bent at the same curvature as the decklid so I could guarantee fitment.









Happy New Year!

[turboedbug]

The last bit of the intake puzzle coming together. Had to go with the pie cuts for........ consistency sake with the rest of the build :Ds

I made a fitting that slips over the MAF with a very nice interference fit, and welded the tubing to the inside to start the piping. Everything is tacked together but I ran out of argon over the holiday weekend so I'll have to finish next week . The tubing will get a silicone coupler to mate up with the throttle body. You can see the welding wire I bent at the same curvature as the decklid so I could guarantee fitment.









Happy New Year!

Looking good!

Sent from my SM-J727T using Tapatalk

[72marinablue]

Ive switched gears a bit and am working on getting my new front clip figured out before I weld it to the car. Working on some support while maintaining airflow and I also made a fan shroud for my Spal puller fan.

[turboedbug]

Do ya have a photo of the front clip from the front of it?

Are u just using a fan to move air accross the radiator?

Sent from my SM-J727T using Tapatalk

[petew]

Some really nice work there.

[72marinablue]

Do ya have a photo of the front clip from the front of it?

Are u just using a fan to move air accross the radiator?

The fan is on the backside of the radiator to create negative pressure and use the radiator more effectively, ill have it wired to the subaru ecu so it comes on automatically. I haven't modified the front clip for air inlets yet but I will be creating a custom kamei spoiler (I have 2, 1 super beetle, and 1 standard beetle spoilers) with integrated inlets to feed the radiator. This means minimal body modification which is what I am after. I don't want it to look like it has a radiator.

[Zaney]

How did you create the raised inner circle for the radiator to mount to on the shroud?

[GS guy]

I'd guess a bead roller with a step die. Super nice metalwork!

[72marinablue]

How did you create the raised inner circle for the radiator to mount to on the shroud?

I used a bead roller with a step up die, I pre stretched the material with an english wheel in the area that is stepped up, thats the photo above where the aluminum looks "arched" on the bench. This helps to reduce oil canning or the aluminum moving around on you so when you roll in the bead the piece stays relatively flat.

[joelzy]

that is some seriously awesome work
I just got a tig welder capable of aluminum and this is definitely inspiring me to get started

[72marinablue]

I haven't updated here for a long time but I am just going to drop all these in here-

After many years I am almost done. So many modifications too much to list. If anyone here is on instagram feel free to send me a message on there @forrest__davis










Well so far I have about 300 miles on the Beetle. It has been pretty hot in the PNW and I was experiencing higher coolant temps then I was really comfortable with. The car would climb up to 210 when in traffic and the fan wasn't powerful enough to get it back down near 195 which is where the subaru ecu shuts the electric fan back off. I decided to nearly double my CFM of the radiator fan and revised a new fan shroud with rubber flaps that should open at highway speeds but close when the fan is running. I also redesigned my 3d printed intakes in front of the Kamei spoiler to get more direct force fed air while driving at higher speeds. This all seems to have done the trick and she stays plenty cool now even in hot weather. I have mostly been working on finishing the interior at this point, still need to do carpet, seat upholstery etc. The latest fab project is a rear seat "delete." I like the way the rear seat looks but I dont plan on ever having any passengers. I have been building this box to go in the same place, allow a bit more clearance than the actual seat to the backs of the recaro's and also function as a storage space for tools, access to battery etc.








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[panel]

Love your car. What have you done there with the t-stat housing ?

[72marinablue]

Love your car. What have you done there with the t-stat housing ?

Thanks! My first fabricated thermostat housing didn't go so well. I used AN lines for my cooling lines so I needed an AN bung thermostat housing. The first one came straight out the bottom and I used a tight 90 degree fitting to send the line forward. This ended up hanging way too low and I smacked it on the first test drive. Luckily I was close to home as all the coolant fell out of the car. The second design I machined a pocket and flange from aluminum and the AN bung comes out of the side so I have way more ground clearance. It now sits higher than the sump.

[panel]

Looks like a great simple solution , well done !