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Old 04-03-2014, 06:57 PM   #1
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1972 Vw lil bugger- need serious advice. Floor sag.

Hello everyone

This is my 1972 Vw lil bugger, super rare and super ugly and super awesome!

I have started to gut it and have come into a huge problem, big time outer floor sag over the years have messed the seating and counter up.

I'm guessing the sag is 3-4 inches. The inner side is screwed into the frame of the beetle, but the outer just met the outer wall framing..nothing there to support the weight

Is there any chance of replacing this floor and getting things back to level? All plywood construction, I'm scratching my head because of how to take the structural side of it, cut out the floor and pull the unit up to get it back to level hieght and replace the floor.

I've done a shell of airstream before but this little bugger has my brains scrambled.

Any advice would be awesome
Thanks in advance
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Old 04-03-2014, 07:01 PM   #2
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More pics
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Old 04-03-2014, 07:04 PM   #3
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Shot of the seat sag caused by the floor
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Old 04-03-2014, 07:06 PM   #4
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Shot if the side of one of the 2 floor panels showing how bad it got
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Old 04-03-2014, 08:55 PM   #5
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This is awesome!! Where the heck did you find it? I have seen them but thought they were all gone! I scower Craigslist daily and missed it as a vw enthusiast I'd love to see it! Get that baby going

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This is mine
Is it still running the original pan? That could have something to do with it as the factory metal is super thin
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Old 04-03-2014, 09:00 PM   #6
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I got it up here in canada, originally an California beetle. Yes still original pan but that has nothing to do with the sag.... They never put crossmembers on where they did the extended floor panels on each side... Hence the sag from the weight unfort.

I love the thing but I'm worried I might be treading some deep water here!

Nice beetle!!
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Old 04-03-2014, 09:12 PM   #7
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It looks like that's the main stress point to where you step in. My logic would think that it would attach somewhat like the body of of bug? What's the possibility of bracing the walls side to side, corner to corner and the lifting the coach off the replace the floor that way. This is pretty similar how they will do a floor replacement on a full sized trailer. I am guessing the actual living quarters can't be any bigger than 7x5, four able bodied people should be able to lift that and rest it on saw horses.
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Old 04-03-2014, 09:24 PM   #8
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Ya that's pretty much how I did my airstream except the stream was much better framed lol

Ya I guess you could get some 2x's and create a frame holding the 2 together and try to lift her off the chassis... That's a **** ton of work but I'd be afraid of it holding together properly and not twisting.... Comes Down to how good you secure it I guess!
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Old 04-03-2014, 10:03 PM   #9
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Lol I see your local pm me if you want a hand there is 2 things I love working on vw and Rv's lol!!
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Old 04-04-2014, 07:37 AM   #10
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Hahaha awesome Mitch
I will for sure
I'm in calgary right now but I'll be hauling her back to Vancouver in about a month if I can figure out the floor problem
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Old 04-05-2014, 09:25 AM   #11
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Here's a quick video your of the whole thing and the problem

Best fix idea is to remove the outer shell which is dry and straight, and rebuild the bottom foundation and reattach the shell.

Thoughts?

1972 Vw lil bugger restoration - YouTube
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Old 04-05-2014, 09:37 AM   #12
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Wow besides a serious design flaw it looks really solid the only thing that I can think of other than my first suggestion is gently jack up the sagging portions and brace it with angle iron from side to side attaching at the heater channels, on either side and the center tube. Then piece together the broken lumber. I'm geussing this run through your thought plans already, but would it work ?
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Old 04-05-2014, 10:09 AM   #13
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It could ya... But worried about the jacking.
If love to leave the body on and be able
To fix it but I have doubts.

All that chip away and small rot also in the engine compartment area I'd like to fix/ re-do for longevity and strength issues.

What your saying makes complete sense tho that's how I would fix the problem. I just don't think you can jack it up.. Maybe I'll try again with a 2x4 same length as the floor board
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Old 04-05-2014, 11:07 AM   #14
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Go one step further, fab up a 2x4 set up that will make a right angle so you can support that weak section where it attaches to the pan, if you put 2 2x4 together and notch out every 6-8 inches so you can slide in the bracing and weld it up.
This is a very rough drawing but kinda what I'm thinking

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