Classic Beetle with new heart

After more than 200,000 km, the original Volkswagen Fuel Injection became unreliable: old wiring and parts increasingly difficult to get. Time for something new with higher reliability, lower fuel consumption and modern components.

The Whole Picture

Since 2003, Paul has been driving his Volkswagen Super Beetle with a 1600cc fuel injection engine. The car was imported from California, and Paul is the third owner. An engine overhaul was done in 2015 because the engine had excessive axial play. The engineering and injection otherwise remained original.

After the overhaul, the Beetle embarked on an impressive European tour. Paul steered him through Germany, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, England and the Czech Republic. Of course, he did most of his mileage in the Netherlands. In total, the car covered about 40,000 kilometers since 2016.

Problems along the way

During a vacation to the Czech Republic in 2024, the car noticeably declined in performance. It had previously been suspected that an injector was malfunctioning, but no proper replacement could be found on short notice. As a result of this malfunctioning injector, combustion was not complete and the catalytic converter began to fill with soot. It eventually stalled completely and the Beetle had to be repatriated to Holland.

Time for an upgrade

Back in Holland, a decision had to be made: either convert the engine to a carbureted version, or opt for a modern fuel injection set-up. In consultation with Sander and Ingmar, Paul chose the latter.

Sander got to work building a VW Airhouse Special. Key upgrades in a row:

• The helical gearing of crankshaft and camshaft was replaced with straight gearing
• A new camshaft provides better cylinder filling
• The displacement was increased to 1776 cc
• The engine was equipped with modern sensors: for crankshaft position, camshaft, air intake temperature, throttle valve, oil pressure, oil temperature, cylinder head temperature, choke valve and lambda sensor.

The result? A modern engine where the tuning is done with a laptop – only the valve clearance is still done manually. The ECUMaster Black ECU controls everything: injection, ignition and other engine management tasks.

Modern technology, classic charm

With the old engine, it became increasingly difficult to find parts – often they had to come from America. In contrast, parts for the new engine are, however, easily available. Sensors, injectors and pressure regulators are standard parts of the modern automotive industry. Moreover, the ECU comes from a European company that controls thousands of vehicles – from daily drivers to rally cars and vintage cars.

Ready for the future

The build-up was followed by the first test: the “fire up. The engine ran its first hours on the test stand, followed by an oil change. Then the engine was hung back in the Beetle on the dyno bench. That way we were able to dynamically test the handling and further refine the tuning.

The final result

And the results are there to be seen. The Super Beetle is now more reliable, stronger and more fuel-efficient than ever. In short, ready for many new miles.
A classic beetle – with a modern heart.