VW New Beetle

I have a 2003 beetle and it took me forever to figure it out. By the time I did I decided to take pictures of it and put it on the web to help others. Volkswagen is getting more and more complicated for us "volks". My website can be found at: http://www.uahardwick.com/tech/2006/03/how-to-change-taillight-on-new-beetle.htm

PROBABLY one of the little tiny itty bitty gears has stripped

=Answer=Wrong again! The original heading to this question was" How do you change the thermostat in a 1998 Volkswagen Beetle". The thermostat is not assessable by any way of removing any under engine shielding and further, trying to give a layman's attempt at defining the molecular thermal expansion reletivness of the thermostat is ridiculous. It is accessible by way of the second response to this question and replaceable by explanation of the second answer to this question as well; and therein should not be dispelled per the last response (Both responses are correct and incorrect). The last editor suggested the procurement of a manual, to assist in changing the thermostat, good advise. However, I have performed this repair myself, with the use of a Volkswagen manual adjunct-ed with a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering and went to grad school and completed my masters degree in applied physics. I say this to not sound pretentious, but to give credence to those looking for true advise in both a practical and philosophical sense. By way of their use of syntax, the first response was clearly not jesting, and the last was surely inept at trying resolution. Do as I suggested in the second response to this question and you will find your self literally hand held through the process.

both answers are correct. old beetles were air cooled, new beetles are water cooled. The first answer given was either a joke or hugely ignorant. VW Bugs are air cooled and don't have coolant hoses, thermostat housings, coolant, a temperature gauge, radiator, hose clamps, etc. It is also a potentially catastrophically bad assumption that any thermostat will fail in the open position. All mechanical thermostats have moving parts and can fail in any position. VW Bugs use a tiny accordion looking thermostat that is attached to shutters on the fan shroud. When cold the thermostat pulls the shutters closed to impede the flow of cooling air. When hot the thermostat expands and pushes the shutters open to allow airflow over the engines cooling fins. Changing it is a piece of cake and in fact much easier than the original answer. It's done from the bottom of the engine. It's the only accordian looking thing under the car. You will need to remove a piece of cooling tin on the bottom of the motor to get access to it so in addition to a flashlight and screwdriver bring a 10mm wrench. (Now would also be a good time to get a couple cans of brake clean and use them to clean off the oil and dirt on the bottom of the engine and cooling fins). If you have further questions or need more instruction I strongly recommend you get a used Muir Manual from Amazon and thumb through the section on cooling. In my opinion VW Bugs should have been equiped from the factory with the Muir Manual.

*********Below this line is the original terrible answer************

Replacing a thermostat is a relatively easy task. If your temperature gauge is running way down on the low side and your heater isn't putting out much heat, it's time to replace the thermostat. Here is a description of how to change a thermostat. The exact location of your thermostat may be slightly different but most of them are near the top radiator hose in the top of the engine. The thermostat is normally in a housing which is at the engine end of the top radiator hose. Drain the coolant into a drain pan - toss it down the john - it's the correct way to dispose of it. Take a screwdriver and remove the hose clamp from the top hose where it meets the top of the engine. Get a flashlight and see if you can peek down the hole and see the thermostat. If it is faulty it will be open. Not all thermostat housings are identical but typically it will be held on with two bolts. Remove them. Tap the thermostat housing with a wooden block or a soft faced hammer. It should pop off easily. You can then see the thermostat. Lift it out. Don't sweat the gasket - you are going to replace it anyway. Use a new gasket. Scrape EVERYTHING off both mating surfaces. Use a single edged razor blade. Apply some blue rubber sealant to both sides of the gasket. Then grab it between your fingers and "squeegee" any excess off. You don't need a lot of sealant. Make sure you put the gasket on the right side of the thermostat. The stat will normally fit into a recess in the engine, the gasket goes on top and the housing on top of that. Wipe a bit of blue rubber sealant inside the hose, put it back onto the housing nipple and clamp it back in place. You should probably drain all of the coolant by draining the block but if you can't find the small plug it the side of the engine don't sweat it. You should mix antifreeze and water in a ratio of 50-50 and replace what you drained out with the fresh mix. If you can't get all the replacement mix in while it's cold just warm it up a bit and watch the level drop as the thermostat opens up. Then add mix until it is totally filled. Replace the radiator cap and put a quart or so in the overflow bottle (which you should have drained previously). Mine is on the bottom radiator hose.

more than 21.500.000 beetles.

The key by self can be bought for 75.00 if you need pad and all will cost about 250.00

In general, no. Like all things mechanical it will depend on several factors. If the engine overheated prior to the timing belt failure then most times the problem is a faulty water pump impeller. Replace the water pump. Until the engine is back running it is difficult to know if there is damage to the head. Check for any signs of water or oil leaks aorund the headgasket. If leakage is present it would be recommended to remove the head for inspection. A broken timing belt can cause other damage such as bent valves which would necessitate head removal and or replacement. (Comments are directed toward the four or five cylinder in-line engines.)

Search the value at www.nadaguides.com Under the page "Collector Cars"

unscrew it and screw in the new bulb

The fuse layout diagram for a 2000 vw beetle is on the panel that covers the fuses. The fuses are located on the side of the dash on the drivers side. When you pop off the cover, there should be a fuse puller and a digram of the fuses on the cover that you just popped off.

Top of the bell housing on a flat square stamped into the transmission case will be three letters.

It should.. I have a 79 1600cc in my 65 beetle.

if it is the original vw beetle all you have to do is move the seat as far forward as possible then your seat is off of the tracks. on the newer bettles i do not know how to remove the seats.

remove and check left rear taillight and chece cerguit boare for continuity on all terminals if negative repair or replace board

If you want to you could remove the light socket and put in an outlet then plug your light into the outlet.

Step1-If you dont have a chilton manual, they are about 15$ and worth every penney!..........Step 1.5...Disconnect negative battery cable. Step2-Insert a 1/2" drive ratchet into the tensioner pulley's center and force it in the relaxed position.(depending on if you have A?C or not it will need to go clockwise or counterclockwise.) Remove serpentine belt from alt pulley. (You may want to change your serpentine belt at this time, they are 30-50 bucks and really easy to change.) Step3-The book says to unplug the wires going into the alternator, but I found it much easier to remove the alt bolts first and rest the unit on the fan shroud while unplugging the pesky little clips that hold the wires on. i REMOVED THE POSITIVE BATTERY TERMINAL AT THIS TIME. The lead from the alt to the positive terminal of the btry has a rubber boot on the alt body that you must slide back to reveal a 10mm nut holding it on. Remove this, but save the nut. Step 4-Remove the two short bolts on top of the alt. I think they are 10mm. Remove the two long bolts on the bottom face of the alt. if the wires are disconnected, then simply remove and replace with new unit. Installation is the opposite. Getting the belt back over the pulley can be tricky, so you may want someone to hold down the tensioner while working the belt over the alt pulley. Note !!!! DO NOT HOOK UP THE BATTERY CABLES UNTIL YOU ARE COMPLETELY DONE. Have your auto parts store test your old alt. It may just need a 40$ voltage regulator. Also if your handy, remove the voltage reg ON YOUR OLD ALT with a #20 torx bit and inspect the brushes and shaft. if they are good and you just need a volt reg, you can have one on the shelf! GOOD LUCK! Wade

It is located in the engine compartment, passenger side, under the windshield plastic cowl. You have to remove 4 screws to see it.

Put both hands on that large center panel in the middle of your dash and slide it toward the front window. It should just pop off. Under that, you will see that there are three star screws - undo the right two so you can lift out the entire right plastic dash panel. Carefully lift it up, unpopping the press-down connectors. You will also need to unplug the right speaker wire. Lift out the right panel and you will see another (12"x8" or so) cover with 5-6 screws on the top of it. Undo these and that is where you will find the cabin filter. It's not hard to replace, just intimidating to rip your dash apart. It all goes back together pretty easily.

Yes. Open your trunk lid and on the left hand side (the side of the fuel filler cap) there should be a label that says manual fuel door open. The switch is white and close to the top right by the fuel filler cap on the inside of the trunk. You may have to pull back the carpeting a little to find it as it might be tucked behind. Give it a pull and the fuel door should open. Best of luck

I want to replace an ac swicth bu i don't know the procedure

special key only a Mercedes dealer can provide

3.5mm