What is the worst thing you can do to your beetle? Of course the first thing that comes to a beetle owners mind is no performing oil and valve adjustment maintenance. I don’t want to downplay the importance of those tasks, but there is another very important thing beetle owners need to do regularly. The beetle needs to be driven.
Your classic beetle was meant to be driven. Cars that sit idle encounter many problems. Brake cylinders can freeze up, rubber gaskets can dry out, gas gets bad (regardless of additives). These are just a few examples.
Of course, if you are storing it outside and not driving it, you may have unwanted visitors making nests inside the engine and maybe even behind the fan. Many an engine was blown due to obstructed air flow from mice nests in the fan area. In addition, we all know what mice can do to wiring and electrical issues are horrible to deal with.
Obviously there are other concerns with storing any classic vehicle outside. The harmful effects of weather and sun on the body. When I purchased my 66, the original paint was peeling due to sitting in the California sun.
Also, folks that don’t drive their vehicles on a regular base tend to lose touch with how they run. There is something to be said for knowing what sounds “right” and what sounds “off” when it comes to how the engine runs.
John Muir, the VW guru stated “Feel with your car … Use all of your receptive senses … the type of life your car contains differs from yours by time scale, logic level, and conceptual anomalies but is ‘Life’ nonetheless.”
In addition to the way the engine runs there are other things that are just as important. For instance, like how the car is handling. Lets not forget the detrimental effects of letting a car sit on it tires in one spot for months on end. One, you will probably end up with flat spots, and secondly you may actually get deterioration underneath the tire.
Unless you have your battery plugged in while it is stored, you can be pretty sure it is going to do a slow drain. If you let it go too long before trips, it probably won’t start. Worse yet, you may damage the cells if the battery gets low enough. Back in the day batteries weren’t terribly expensive, now you need a home equity loan to buy one. I have an Optima 6-volt battery in my 66. The current cost for that battery is $250.00. There’s no doubt in my mind that I will be looking for a cheaper alternative when that one dies.
Not driving it regularly may make you forget about the needed routine maintenance. Even if your classic beetle sits, it’s still going to need oil changes and valve adjustments. So don’t get apathetic or think “Well I haven’t driven it that much so it’ll be fine”. Oil degrades over time, and oil is the life blood of your vehicle.
I am not saying it needs to be a daily driver, but it does need to be driven, even if just once per month. Starting it and letting it just warm up in the driveway is not enough. If nothing else join a VW club so you get it out on a regular basis.
