HEY GUYS IM TAKING THE BODY OFF MY 63 BUG TO REPLACE THE FLOORPANS AND AM HAVE TROUBLE REMOVING THE BODY. I REMOVED THE 2 BOLTS AT THE REAR BY THE SHOCK TOWERS, THE 4 INSIDE IN THE BACK THE 18 ON THE SIDES AND THE 2 BY THE BEAM. I HAVE BEEN PRYIN AND SHAKIN THIS THING AND NO BUDGE. i HAD THE CAR HANGIN FROM THE FRONT AND REAR BUMPER BRAKETS AND THE PANS STILL WOULDNT MOVE. AM I MISSING SOMETHING LIKE HIDDEN BOLTS OR IS THERE JUST SOME KINDA TRICK TO POP OFF THE BODY. PLEASE I AM IN DESPRATE NEED OF SOME EXPIRIENCED HELP AND ANY KIND OF ADVICE WOULD BE APRECIATED THANKS IN ADVANCE MATT N SAC

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you did dis-connect the steering shaft, and the 4 - 17mm bolts on the bottom near the framehead, (n/t) (chris) (03-Jan-01 17:10:31)

you DONT need to take the body off to change floorpans...UNLESS, you want to turn a 6 hr job into a 26 hr job!! (n/t) (03-Jan-01 17:43:52)

shutup, if you leave the body on, it makes the job that much harder. you have no room to work with. and there are welds you have to break off underneath the heater channels. MATT, theres more>>> (Anthony S.) (03-Jan-01 18:11:36)

what welds are you talking about? (n/t) (03-Jan-01 19:41:42)

In the very front, at the corners where the two bolts are, is a weld seam that has to be cut off. (n/t) (Anthony S.) (03-Jan-01 21:45:56)

Your not incinuating that the welds hold the body to the pan. Because if you are there are no welds that hold the body to the pan it is all bolted together. You may be thinking of that bead that VW laid on the pan securing it to the chassis right where the two front bolts go on either side towards the outer edge (n/t) (03-Jan-01 21:59:00)

Thats what im talking about, of course the body is bolted to the pan, i know that it isnt welded. i was talking about the seam on the pan to the framehead. you cant chisel it off tooeasily with the body on it. (n/t) (Anthony S.) (03-Jan-01 23:05:54)

HEY!!!!!!!!!!ANTHONY S YOU FLAMER!!!! why dont youSHUT UP!!!if you did lots of pan work ,YOU WOULD know how a pan can EASILY be replaced in under 3 HRS [1 side] call any resto shop to learn somethin before YOU TELL OTHERS TO SHUT UP!!! a very pissed of fred STANSKI who has replaced more pans than you can imagine with the body ON! (n/t) (04-Jan-01 21:03:18)

I agree take the Body off. Also you may want to consider saving your old seat rails and putting them on your new halves. The metal seems to be very soft and the seat actuation can be difficult. I did one side at a time so I would have a reference for the other side. Becareful when you weld it in it is very easy to burn through the thin pan material. Do small stitch welds, and use a good seam sealer like the grey 3m brand on the inside and use a urethane caulk on the bottom lap joint . It makes the job look ultra clean. If you havent purchased the pan halves look at Cal Imports catalog they have two kinds. One is made of heavier guage steel, buy it. I had a fatso sit on mine and he left his ass print on the pan where the seat rails. Its little details that can make the job so much nicer and durable. Good Luck--Matt (n/t) (03-Jan-01 18:59:18)

Go to your paint store and buy Sikaflex. It is a totally killer Urethane sealant. Works real nice. (n/t) (Steve Arndt) (04-Jan-01 10:18:16)

There are two more bolts(10mm thread) that thread into the rear torsion just above the spring plate cover. They may be covered in sealer. (Lanny) (03-Jan-01 19:24:03)

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Ok, so you got the 2 on the back outside side that connect to the shock towers. you got the 4 inside underneath the back seat. but there are 2 more back there, a little bit farther back. one on each far side. that clears all the bolts in the back. now for the front. you have the 2 on the beam, but there are 4 more underneath the car, on the frame head. 17mm, 2 on each side, very close to eachother. might be covered in grime. you have to take those out, it would help to put those back in the hole once the body is off though, so you dont lose the clip, my friend lost the clip inside that little channel. there should be 14 bolts off the front and rear combined, plus the 18 bolts on the pan sides. you should have 32 bolts all in all. if you need any help, just drop me a line, ive done this job a couple of times already. Hope this helps

Anthony S.

Another trick, drill 3/8" holes along the new pan edge about 1/2" apart.Spray weld through primer, lay the new pan in. Weld through the 3/8" holes (plug weld) Don't be shy with the heat, practice! Also, beef up the insert for the pedal stop. Good luck!

Lanny