No one that I know of makes the patch panels for this area, I lucked out and was able to find a donor section at the VW shop next to me. It was rusty as well but betweent the two I could make one good one. This is a very labor intensive area to repair so good luck and let me know if we can help, I am a little slow at responding on youtube but feel free to contact us directly through our website or by phone if you have questions.

If you need help with what direction to go with your restoration we will be happy to help you. Feel free to call us and we can walk you through the process. As for the video being no help, it was not intended to be a How-to video. Although KZbin is a great source for information it is above all a free place for people to voice their opinions of how things are done. I can point to several videos on this same subject as this video that members have posted that make me cringe. It does not mean they are wrong. Please take everything you see on KZbin with a grain of salt and continue to educate yourself. Best of Luck

Thank You!

Sounds like you have a major project on your hands! Restoring a car with your dad is what got me started in this trade. Don't get hung up in the little details if it is your first car, stay focused on getting it done. Many people get discouraged and start to hate the project. when it is not the project itself it is the person taking on more then they can do. Stay focused on the big picture and take it one step at a time. Good luck and have fun.

Thank you!

Thank you for checking out the video. I had done a VW nose repair once before that was just the bottom 4 inches. Typical rule of thumb in restoration is always leave as much of the original panel in place as you can. The down side to it was the panel behind the front nose prevents you from working the panel with a hammer and dollie to stretch out the distortion from welding. On the first project we used lead to cover the seam but I told myself if I was to do it again, I was going to cut it across the headlights as done in this video. Taking the headlight buckets out allowed me to reach my arms through the opening and work it very easily. Also patch panels are never a 100% match, so I lined up the headlight buckets first and then brought everything into shape from there. Looking back, I would do it again this way as long as there was no rust around the front windows. If there was rust holes up higher I think I would do the complete nose. Personally I am a fan of www.autocrafteng.co.uk/ as I think there finial finish of the parts is nice, the parts arrive very quick from the UK, and they are in raw metal which is what I prefer. klassicfab.com is another good one. Gerson takes a lot of pride in his parts and finding the best parts he can. There is pros and cons to both but I hope this helps. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

@@KiddysClassics any advice for cutting method to be sure to have a constant gap for welding ? Nice work on this video !

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+Patrick S be careful with the cheap parts - find a good shop that really knows these cars - you will save yourself a lot of money by finding a good Mechanic that knows these cars, dont be surprised if he has a waiting list or is more expensive than a regular shop - he is that way because he is in demand and knows his stuff - in the end he will be cheaper and will steer you away from the bad parts

Unfortunately, that is the truth.

+Jason Cole Every car is different because every cars exposure to rain and moisture would be different. I have seen a few of these cars that are minor in comparison, and I have seen some that were in no way worth saving. My honest answer, when people that come into our shop and want the same repair done is, sell the car and buy a car from out west. The reality is that for us to repair this amount of rust the way we showed in this video is roughly 40 hours of work. Could be 25-30 if the rust doesn’t run so deep. Depending on where you are located shops charge anywhere from $65 to $120 an hours to do this type of work. If you still want to have it done make sure the shop you take it to, corrects that tab.

+KiddysClassics thanks for the response. And I understand your comment on buying a repaired car... unfortunately that isn't an option. That car has been in the family since new and has so much sentimental value. I'll never sell it... only pass it on someday. The rust level looks about the same to the car in the video. I know Supers aren't worth much, but to me this one is. :-)

+Jason Cole I don't know where you are located at but if you have any questions about doing a restoration on your car we are here to help. Our contact information is on our website. www.kiddysclassics.com

+JosephDR thank you!

+jerry henderson Sorry for the delay in getting back to you but the vents in the side window were very clean and not the cause of the rust. The rust is caused by the drain in the rear window. I had many people tell me before I opened this car up that the vents were the problem but there was no water or rust trail leading from the vent opening to this area.

+tiredfingers99 the front pan section was supplied by the customer, I think we got it from pelicanpart.com, so no it was not cut from another car

Daniel Moonasar - We never know what a pan restoration is going to cost until we media blast it to see how much damage is hiding. It also depends on if you want to use original hardware or get new. If you have a pan you are looking to get restored feel free to give us a call and we can discuss your options

Thank you Matthew, as a shop we seldom take the easy road because our goal is to try our best to make it look as though we never did anything. Thank you for appreciating the small details.

Matthew Barnes Did he replicate the original pressing from scratch? Isn't that 1000's of pounds of force used to shape that form?

+tiredfingers99 I am sorry for the delay in responding but there are way to duplicate original pressings and patterns without the use of presses and 1000's of pounds of force. It is all about having the right tools and equipment.

Thank you for the comment!

+DanTheManIOM I hope I am not to late in my response but I would not weld the vents closed as you had commented. I replied earlier to someone about this same thing. The vents behind the side windows were very clean and not the cause of the rust. The rust is caused by the drain in the rear window. I had many people tell me before I opened this car up that the vents were the problem but there was no water or rust trail leading from the vent opening to this area.

+KiddysClassics ok. I was told water gets in, and gets down to the foam and rusts... I have seen many 73-74 super beetles with this issue...Don't tell anyone, I put clear packaing tape over the vents. I did not weld it shut...

+DanTheManIOM I think most people I see assume the rust comes from the vent because looking at the car the vent is the only logical place water would get in - most people dont know about the drain holes in the rear glass area - if you contact me at the shop and I can send you better photos that show the water track - my email is [email protected]

Thank you!

Yes, if the factory would have just bent that tab up the water would have not gone straight to the foam. If you look at the pictures on my website you can see how all of the rust is just in the area of the foam and it starts at those drain holes. As for your question about the lead, I use the real lead. I like its lower melting temp over the lead free stuff. Where a dust mask and gloves you will be fine. Contact Johnson MFG they have the good 30/70 lead you are going to want. Use a file do not use sand paper.

I am sorry for the delay getting back to you, did not see your comment. I used the bloxide weldable primer, great stuff!