Video: VW Luggage Shelf Repair

Video Overview:

When we first looked at the rear luggage shelf of our 1971 Super Beetle we thought that a small patch panel would take care of the rust issues we had. A few moments into the repair though we found that the rust had damaged far more metal than we could first see. So, the small repair we anticipated turned into a much larger patch. Either way, we didn’t have to remove the entire luggage tray. Follow along as our tech goes through the repair.

Video Transcript:

Hi! I'm Sam with JBugs.com. We're at a friend of mine's shop, cutting, welding, and grinding our way through some rust repairs on our 1971 Super Beetle restoration. We're almost done with our body repairs and one of the last things we have to do is address our pin-holed rear luggage shelf.

Before we start, we'll make sure to say, wear appropriate protective gear. Work in a safe and well-ventilated environment and only perform work that is well within your capabilities. Cutting, grinding, and welding, can all be dangerous so make sure to use all the necessary precautions.

We start cleaning up the surface rust with a wire wheel on an angle grinder and after a few moments, we discover that the repair will be a little bit larger than we first thought. The few pinholes we saw turned into holy rusted metal. We continue cleaning up the rust and after cleaning up over half of the lower shelf, we finally get to a solid point that we can keep.

So, with a cutoff wheel and an angle grinder, and a Sawzall, we cut out the rear rusted panel and peel it off the rear firewall. We did end up cutting through the top of the firewall so we stitch weld across the cut to make sure the firewall is secure and then we grind down the welds.

We measure the size of the patch we'll need and then cut an [oversize] area from a replacement luggage shelf. The check is fit and we trim a bit more of the panel as needed to get the panel down to a size that will overlay the hole.

Inside the car, we check the fit again and then we drill the spot welds that hold the rear carpet channel to the shelf across our opening. The channel is broken free with a hammer and chisel, the patch panel is slid underneath the channel, then we begin to weld the channel in place with seams every inch or so around the perimeter.

At the channel, the spot welds are filled in and the welds are smoothed out with a flap disc on an angle grinder. We weld the seams underneath the car, then back inside, we seal the edges with self-leveling seam sealant. We seal the bottom as well and once the sealant is cured, we paint the panel above and below with rust converter paint to protect the new metal and treat any remaining rust.

That wraps up the majority of the welding repairs to our body. So, in our next few videos, we'll get to working on the chassis.

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