How to BAJA a SUPER Beetle

So...you ended up with a super beetle baja bug. What do you do now?
In this video we explain the steps we have taken thus far to improve the handling and suspension on our super beetle baja conversion. Super Beetles CAN go offroad, especially if you modify them slightly to give them a better chance. This means rally springs, raising the rear torsion bar height, putting 30 inch tires (the biggest we recommend), and a super beetle strut bar support brace. After these tweaks, we feel we have a great super baja bug that can keep up with the other stock suspensions just fine 👌
McPherson struts are not the "death bell" that most people have heard. You CAN make them into amazing offroad mobbers, just take a look at any of the baja bug offroading videos that we have done in the past 😎 feel free to share this video with someone that is a nonbeliever of super beetle bajas 😉
Find the rally spring that we used on our super beetle HERE! vwparts.aircooled.net/Tapered...
Have you seen our ROADTRIP video? We drive the dust buggy 150 miles round trip to Jawbone Canyon and whomp some hill climbs 👌 catch it HERE! • THRASHING the DAILY Of...

[@vintagespeedvw7864]

Great video. Shuts up some know it alls!

[@markperez8265]

nice baja bug. while it is not an ideal front end for a baja bug it should be noted that most rally cars are McPherson strut.

[@oddis-he4853]

Spectacular thank you, I have been waiting to see what parts I can get cheap, but the opening answered alot actually.

[@madandinzane]

I just watched this one again...SO AWESOME! ALL THE UPGRADES! STAY AT IT...THERE IS NO FINISH LINE!

[@dustbuggy]

We will! The best race is the infinite one 😉

[@paulcruzuribe3537]

I think Dust Buggy back then was perfect timing for me cause I have owned and tinkered with my Yuma, Arizona, Baja bug going on four years. I’ve kept tabs since and would love to say keep up the great work guys. Informative, rad, knowledgeable and learning all the time (Spence) and constructive and instructive. Been my pleasure to subscribe and smash the like button.

[@benjaminphillips9794]

I truly dig the structure of the design Spencer did to the front end of that dust buggy knowing the weakness of the front end, it looks to me like it fixed the flaw of the SUPER part of the bug itself.

[@errolwong5044]

Only finding this 2 years later, BUT that strut brace is awesome!! Bolt in too and nice artistice design.😀

[@kyletreder9482]

You two are the real deal ❤️. Great video!

[@bluejack644]

I was going to like this video, but then I noticed that I had already liked it. Evidently I have good taste in baja bug videos.

[@Volkswagenplanet]

Great topic. Soencer did good. I had a 71 super Baja back in the day. 3 in lift all around. Sitting in 31s B.F.s. like you have. I put a body lift on rhe pan to get clearance. Irs alot if work. I now know why you don't see many super Baja being used compare to standards. Boy your right they plow in the front with those tires. In the end I went to 30s in the front on a 8 inch rim. I had a stock 1500 single port. No piwer on the streets at all. Top speed maybe 70. It was way up in the rpms. Good days, good times. Its truely ebjoy watching you guys have fun. Reminds me when I was your age doing the same. Isnt a good feeling when your in the bug, not a care in the world. - KEEP THE VIDEOS COMING - - KEEP DUBBING -

[@marcijunebug]

Great info! Thanks for sharing! 👍

[@nate_d376]

Used to have a bright orange 62 baja. What a load of fun. Now I daily a 69 street racer...lol. Plenty of people have made baja's out of late models, and they are plenty capable, not to mention fun lol. Keep the v-dub flame alive! It's a labor of love to drive an older car, specially a VW :)

[@erisgh0sted961]

That tower brace is beautiful AF. Also I love the curve down instead of solid cross brace. That arch is way stronger than a flat cross brace.

[@VWJawbreaker]

Great video guys! Awesome strut brace Spencer, that turned out amazing! So glad you guys talked about the kids you’ve made! Remember, when going to larger tires in the rear, that also changes your overall gear ratio, taller tires takes more power to accomplish the same results as before. Keep up the great work!

[@dustbuggy]

Thanks gary! We think the strut brace really helped as well, we honestly wish we had made it sooner but we didn't have the knowledge that we do now, it wouldn't have turned out so well! We've looked at other designs online and haven't seen any that incorporated the bulkhead into the brace, which we believe is the main strengthening point of ours 🖒 most others have a beam with a 3 bolt flange at either end and that's it lol. We like this better

[@robotbroken]

@@dustbuggy - Spencer, that bulkhead to strut reinforcement design looks really good!

[@VWJawbreaker]

Dust Buggy plus you have the satisfaction of making it yourself!!

[@dustbuggy]

So true! It feels so much better to make something that improves her instead of buying it ❤

[@zaks9919]

My 1966 VW bush car flexed so much I finally bolted the drivers door shut so I wouldn't fall out & get run over! But driving it was the most fun I've ever had ! I surfed it over small ponds, & drove it through mud wallows , & over dirt hills ,& even jumped a ditch I forgot was there! , all the while laughing until it broke something ., then I'd fix it ,& start the process all over again!

[@TheVoidNoob]

Traditionally pre 66 is best for baja, pretty cool that you made a super beetle work

[@dustbuggy]

Is THAT why there are so many old school bugs as bajas?? I was wondering what was up with that 😅

[@TheVoidNoob]

@@dustbuggy they have swing axle rear suspension and torsion arm front suspension called Kingpin/link pin type which is better for offroad

[@dustbuggy]

Ahhh so those are the ones with the ideal stock setup 👌 thanks for the info man! Always nice to know that much more 😁

[@brandonmehrabi268]

Swing axle is not better for off road but link pin may be. Irs from late beetles is much better than swing axle. You see older bugs as bajas because you can put an irs into a link/king pin bug easily compared to putting a link pin torsion arm in a late model. You can easily turn a late model ball joint irs into a great Baja by getting lift spindles and limiting hooks/straps to prevent breaking a ball joint! Of course no long travel really

[@dustbuggy]

I had heard this! I knew irs was better, but that's good to know WHY earlier is "better"- earlier is easier to convert 🖒

[@MarkLoves2Fly]

I used 2" angle iron, across the towers. It worked fantastic, and I bet yours will be even better!

[@VeeDubP8]

Damn Spence!!! That strut support is sweet!! I think it would work great for street cars also!! Keep up the great work!!

[@dustbuggy]

Thanks veedub p8! We think we can go that much faster now because of it 😁👌

[@Dadwithallthecool]

Back in the 80's I built a 67 Baja Bug...1860cc engine, wide eye fiberglass kit, roof mounted oil cooler in the scoop, cut and turned front torsion axle with coil overs, re positioned rear swing arms 2 notches and coil overs, custom buckets and dune buggy rear seat. Full roll cage, full VDO gauges, KC Daylighters on a roof mounted light bar tube bumbers and a nice quiet exhaust. Ran like a Porsche. I couldnt keep transmissions in it and after the 3rd one it sat for a few years and I sold it...They are fun , simple , incredibly easy to hot rod and I want one again...good luck with your Super... BTW...my list...59,60,61,66,67,69 and 70 super...1970 single cab....wish I still had them all

[@ferp420]

also the subaru ea82 struts fit and are beefier you can use ford tempo springs to realy stiffen them up and get more ride hight out of them

[@Volkswagenplanet]

Great info,

[@michaelmarrett6423]

Not a bad video, but more exciting and fun to watch if you include some exterior footage of the car going through the trail. Love the stabilizer bar between the shock towers! Nice design! Good info on springs, shocks, and tire size too!

[@gladstonbastosdesousa6392]

Ficou massa! Muito bom! Mostra um pouco do motor, parece bem potente

[@mustangmike4078]

I always preferred the look of the super beetle. Got bit by the foxbody Mustang bug years ago and sold mine. Wish I still had it 😔

[@michaelschmidt4618]

Tractor ribbed tires work really good on bugs

[@jrcstudios3803]

I'd love more info on brake upgrades, body mods around engine, and such. I have a 1974 Super B that is on the project table.

[@circuitonetpeixinhos6879]

Very Nice fantastic

[@ChadsGarage1]

Picking up a 71 this weekend and I’m thinking about Baja-Ing it.

[@watchingitallhere]

Man for a modded super that car gets down. Good work.

[@chrislo8110]

hola gracias por los consejos de como hacer un super baja..

[@dustbuggy]

No problema 👍

[@Quackerstacker1973]

I wish I had seen this when I still had my super beetle.

[@ChadsGarage1]

I just picked up a 71 SB. Seriously thinking about going the Baja route.

[@ChadsGarage1]

Guess I already commented on this video. Lol. Sorry.

[@dustbuggy]

All good man 👍

[@Charlie-do6wv]

This is why you need a standard bug, they were made for the punishment off road and on. That brace isn't going to hold up long there are other areas that'll flex,...

[@gregb3924]

Any plans on boxing in the rear trailing arms? You seem to be able to weld/fab so it would be pretty easy to notch the kit for the shocks to pass through. If you're creative you can cut it and use the pieces you cut out to box in the notch too. Thesamba forums have a lot of great info. Nice to see someone still having fun in the bugs!

[@dustbuggy]

We plan on fully building the cage and eventually 3x3 rear and cutting the front for a arms. One day when we get our ducks in a row 👌 just a matter of time!

[@colossalbigfoot256]

I had a super beetle, 73, as my first ride. Those struts were always a problem. With me it was lowering. I want to build a Baja and wouldn’t consider a Super. But after seeing this video I think I want one to Baja. That strut brace is really cool. Do you have plans/measurements available anywhere? Or I’d buy one once the time comes.

[@TheJohnston74]

How much would you charge to make one of them strut braces? I'm doing the same kinda build with a 74

[@ferp420]

ive got a 71 convertable super beetle i want to baja out and i want to use a subaru transmission for the 4wd im not sure what motor yet

[@mikaylagalley7439]

Hey, what kind of struts did you get and where at

[@eaglehaslanded]

Thank for the tip. My friend’s baja bug, running and ready for sand, it is for sale for $3k.... is that too much?

[@dustbuggy]

3k isn't bad at all for a bug that is running, street legal, and ready to go. But I would assume it also has some issues that you will discover along the way, being such old cars. I would always recommend having some cash for any immediate repairs that may come up 👌

[@peterrupprecht4022]

Have you fabed the spindle lifts for sale?

[@stevesaenz2926]

If it's in your budget just beam it. Or just commit and tube the whole chassis and the long run I think you'll spend less money. I've had I don't know how many Baja bugs five or six and ultimately I never got what I was looking for out of it so I went to a builder had a whole chassis built from front to back a arm of course and now I'm saving money buying parts saving money and buying parts over and over until I will be driving this thing saving the two most expensive purchases at the end which will be a tranny and my motor making sure go to the curly Duke off-road swap meets trying to find all my shocks Wheels etc cuz once you upgrade the way you're slowly doing it there's going to be a lot of stuff you can't use granted you'll be able to resell it just something to think about they're still fun regardless!

[@chrislo8110]

estoy trabajando en este muchacho que de nombre llevara rudo.

[@isaiahdortch3237]

I’m doing the same kinda build and aircooled.net doesn’t sell the springs anymore. Any advice?

[@dustbuggy]

Email them and ask them to make another production run. They do in batches every now and then when there's enough demand, that's how we got ours. We kept watching and when they became available we bought immediately

[@isaiahdortch3237]

Dust Buggy thank you very much

[@bluejack644]

Which front suspension design is preferred for a Baja Bug project? Beetle or Super Beetle? I imagine one may be a better design, or easier to upgrade for off road use.

[@dustbuggy]

Definitely not super beetle (if you ask most people). But we actually prefer the super beetle provided you can fabricate some things

[@dustbuggy]

Linkpins and ball joints are considered "better" because they have beams for suspension instead of relying on the body like a super beetle

[@obama2453]

How much roughly did all the mods cost?

[@poeticlydead]

What size are the 4 lug wheels 15" x ?

[@dustbuggy]

30x9.5r15

[@poeticlydead]

@@dustbuggy ment the rims are they factory or wider aftermarket rims?

[@dustbuggy]

Slightly wider 5.5 inch

[@crosisofborg5524]

Best way is to sell the super beetle and get a proper beetle

[@Volkswagenplanet]

What year is your SUPER? U have to keep reminding myself irs a SUPER BEETLE.

[@dustbuggy]

1972 :) the flat windshield fooled us lol

[@Volkswagenplanet]

@@dustbuggy 71- 72, are the best. My current project ( black. Beetle ) is a 72. This is the same car I'm using for all the electrical videos. Thanks for responding as you guts always do. - KEEP DUBBING -

[@dogsandwich77]

I was gonna say, "how'd you get a flat windshield in a super beetle??" Didn't know 71 and 72 had a flat one.

[@mikerosetta9140]

what you need is a ''for sale '' sign had one it didnt work. get out ahead of the buy a regular bug

[@shanepowers7566]

Most any tire is gonna plow in sand like that.

[@RedLooney]

Those aren't stock fenders.

[@williamadamleslie4869]

That’s not a super beetle, super beetles have curved windshields

[@dustbuggy]

The first two years of Super Beetles have flat windshields. We had thought the same as you, and yet somehow still ended up with a super beetle lol

[@josephheston9238]

'71s and '72s have flat windshields.

[@davidhendrickson8251]

to much work for to little gain

[@marz_mitzi]

how to ruin a vw beetle. part 4/4

[@greggalvan1378]

Just sale it an get a bug, you're wasting your time and money