ShopTalk Forums | Aircooled VW Tech & Restoration Help

If you build an angle iron mount, make sure to support the cell along the bottom, and not just around the edges, but a couple of straps to support the center. I did mine the same way, put it as low and far back as possible while still fitting my seats back far enough. It kept my package tray open to haul a little gear if needed.

Can you operate the window handles easily with the cage in there? I remember some cars having clearance issues with the cranks with those cages.

Looking good Kyle, I like how the cage fits tight to the body.

On my dads Baja we were going to notch the front of the package tray to get the cell to fit back as far as possible without being to high up. His has a 3" body lift.

Thanks for the input guys. The cranks operate, but just barely! The vent windows have plenty of clearance. Once I get my seats in this week, I'll be able to tackle the cell location.

Got a little done after work. I tacked the seat mounts in and sat down. I think I have the position just right. It's a delicate balance between helmet room, visibility, ability to use the parking brake, trying to stay centered on the steering wheel, comfort in reaching the controls including those in the middle and on the passenger side, and of course, most important, the ability to comfortably rest my left arm on the window sill while driving! There are a lot of things I didn't have to think about in Bajamungus' previous incarnation. Strangely, the seats ended up about exactly where they were before. It'll end up sitting about 1" higher than it is in the pics once I finalize the mounts.

There's even a bit of play room with the 20 gallon fuel cell. I'll want some sort of firewall and I like Cameron's idea of cutting out a bit of the front of the package tray to slide it back a couple of inches.

The one thing I am going to change is the tubing I used. I'm going to go with something like 1 1/2" .120 rectangular tubing and use double shear tabs. I'm pretty sure with the five point harnesses and the upgraded power and suspension that the mounts will be under a bit more stress than before. Better safe than sorry, literally.

Will that fuel cell fit on the package tray? It will be a bit higher(cg) but give a ton more seat room, plus a nice flat area to put camping stuff.

I've thought about that, too. It would be quite a bit higher, but makes the gear more easily accessible and gives me a good spot for the battery. Decisions!

Steve asked some good questions on FB, so I'll address them here as well.

Are the mounts tied into the cage? Not at the moment, the mounts are from tunnel to heater channel. The shoulder belts will be tied into the b-pillar hoop however.

Tilting seats? I'm thinking about bolting the front mounts and using pins for the rear to make that happen.

On attaching the seat frames to the cage. You could run a piece of 1 1/2 tubing between the A and B pillar. It will be tough to get in there and weld all around though. Might have to lift the body up to get a 360* weld.

I'm with Richard on this one. The fuel cell goes up on the package tray. The space is just so much more usable.

It looks like a natural fit there. Lots of room for easily accesable gear, too.

I got the frame of the cell mount mostly built today. There are two straps underneath as well. I still need to mount this to the car itself, trying to figure out the most secure way to do this...



I assume I only need a vent and one line to the fuel pump, correct? This is a carbureted car.

I like the idea of the weight down low like it is here. Very clean looking setup.

One line to pump, electric? If so, Keep pump as low as possible and make sure you have good ground. Not sure which of those items were our culprit but after eating up a few pumps we now seem to have something that works.

Mechanical pump.

i put a coarse screen filter before my 'lectric pump and then a large paper filter before the carb. Paper filter is in an aluminum housing and the element is replaceable.