My new-New Beetle Rebuilder - GA

[dluney]

Hello all. I am a long time car guy with a history of convertibles. As there are few with 4 seats (and my wife and I have 3 girls) I was after a Beetle for the family. I bought a 2006 convertible today at an insurance auction. Pictures follow.

I am pretty well versed in Miatas and British cars. My VW history is limited but includes SCCA racing in a Scirocco and Rabbit. So I have a few questions that I hope some of you NB experts can help me with. The passenger seat airbag is blown. I need to know if I have the easy entry option? Are there aftermarket front bumper covers available? Where is the airbag module? Thats it for now but I am sure to have more once I pick up the car and get started on the rebuild. Any other words of wisdom or used part sources in/around the Atlanta are would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

[Toad]

Well, hello from a close neighbor!

To state the quickies:

There is no easy way to replace just the passenger airbag. If it did go off, the seat cover is also now destroyed, so the easiest thing is to find a whole matching seat from another 06+ new beetle and swap it in.

I'm not really sure if there are aftermarket replacements for the bumper covers yet, but there should be. If you know someone who works at a body shop, or an insurance claims adjuster, they can get you the info you would need. You might also want to give world impex, gap, or most online places that say they can get anything, a ring and see what they can do for you.

The airbag module, I believe is on the center channel in front of the shifter (at least that's where it is on a mk3). You will have to get the whole center stack of the dash out, and then the lower dash plastics to get to it.

The best place to get used vw parts would be VW City. They are highly recommended from most Atlanta area owners. There's also pull-a-part, but good luck getting anything from a newer vw before it's stripped. If you want something new, and napa, orileys, etc just inst cutting it for you, you can try Impart in Austell. I know it's a drive, but I used to live in Mableton, and they are completely awesome if you need any specific fluids.

Also, if you really want to get into the techincal stuff, i recommend getting a vag-com cable. It will read almost any computer or module in the car, including the airbag module. I know they're pricey, but they're worth it. I have one, it's paid for itself already.


Well, i think that's enough to get you started. If you need any more info, don't be afraid to ask. I haven't done any work on 06+ or convertible models.. but if you need actual help, they can't be that different.

[dluney]

Thanks Toad, very helpful!

I know the whole seat will need replaced, but in order to get the right one I need to identify if it has the Easy Entry option. That may be obvious to me once I pick up the car later this week.

[scarabY2k]

Just wanted to give you a welcome to the org

Success to you and your beetle rebuild. Keep us posted and start a photo journal here- we'd like to see the transformation.

Also keep posting and I hope you become active here, especially with our GtG's- The Atlanta area is a very active new beetle group!