I now have all the vw bug front sway bar weld plugs in place. I drilled small dimples into the sway bar itself to inset the weld plugs. The dimples will insure that the sway bar and the sleeve are as one. I slowly placed each weld to try and retain the original tempering by not over heating the unit.
I have been waiting on a piece of steel tubing so I can complete the front sway bar. Now that it’s here, I can start the modification on the front sway bar. I need to remove 4″ of the sway bar for it to fit with the front end of the VW bug. As you can see I have cut the bar at a 45 degree angle to try and keep the torque from twisting it under load. I will then put a variety of plug welds through the tube into the bar itself.
I am now completely finished with the VW bug’s internal coolant tubes. I am now planning the plumbing to the engine itself. There is a lot of plumbing to do so I need to make sure that everything will fit.
I now have a new slide show on the new “MR2 VW Bug pics page 7” page. MR2 VW bug pics page 7
I have to insulate both the main coolant tubes. After I cut and cleaned up the ends I wrapped the tubes with some high heat insulation and then completely wrapped both tubes with foil tape. The foil tape will add a reflective component to try and retain the heat inside of the tubes and out of the passenger compartment.
I now have the hydraulic clutch line in place and I have checked it for leaks. I am trying to finalize the main coolant tubes so that I can apply the heat insulation and install them for the last time.
The VW bug’s clutch is hydraulic and will need a line run from the front to the rear of the chassis. The hard line will attach to a braided stainless flexline connected to the clutch slave cylinder. Since the line will run through the chassis, I will feed it through from the back and attach it with clamps inside the chassis.
The radiator will be in the front nose of the VW bug. I need to run coolant tubes from the rear to the front. I will be using 1.25″ aluminum tubing for this. After I get the tubing mounted to the frame I will remove it to apply the heat shielding.
The e-brakes have now been cabled up and I got my new rebuilt steering rack in. I have installed the steering rack and it works very good. I have a lot to do before I can put the VW bug body back on.