VW Beetle Convertible 1303

Starting point

A 1976 VW Beetle Convertible 1303, a family heirloom, was to be brought back to a high gloss. The paint showed severe UV damage. It is a single-stage paint without clear coat, which had been polished several times over the years and worn away in the process. Nobody could say how much dead paint had to be removed and how much margin remained for polishing out the scratches underneath. The shape of the Beetle makes polishing harder still. The aim was not high gloss at any price: the Beetle was to keep its patina while the UV damage had to go. The interior, chrome and hood also needed attention.

Work

The grey headlining in artificial leather, with its straps, was cleaned completely with a special plastic cleaner. The genuine leather upholstery was cleaned intensively and treated with a UV protection cream against sun damage. When the front and rear bumpers were removed, iron fallout came to light on the chrome. It was removed completely with the workshop’s iron fallout remover, without polishing the chrome, as the product attacks only the oxidation and spares rubber and other materials. The paint was carefully polished up in many stages, primarily to remove the UV damage on the single-stage paint, always with the risk of striking through on edges and curves. Finally, the original paint was sealed with the LZ 730 brilliance sealant.

Result

Panel by panel, the dull body parts could be polished to a deep, high-gloss red. The chrome is free of iron fallout, the headlining and leather are clean, and the leather is also protected against UV damage. In the workshop, the Beetle Convertible regularly drew customers who shared their own memories of the Beetle.

Workshop archive, original report. Product details reflect the state at the time.