hey ya'll, i'm new to beetles, and i just bought a project, and i was wondering how to tell if i bought a super beetle, or just a beetle. i was always under the impression that a sunroof made it a super beetle but i was told that that isnt always the case, like i said, this is my first beetle project.
Thanks,
Tom

 

It's simple. The front apron (area directly under the front hood) on a Super curves under and is louvered. The apron on a regular beetle points straight to the ground. Looking at the front shocks is another easy way. Bugs have shocks, Supers have struts.

The sunroof has nothing to do with it. Supers had a different type of sunroof, but with the aftermarket parts that have been available through the years you can't use that as a guide.

The first Super Beetle sedan rolled off the assembly line on August 11, 1970. Take a look at the website http://www.superbeetles.com there's an amazing amount of info on the Supers.

 

hey i did some asking around when i first got my 71 superbeetle b/c im only 17 i didnt know anything about it but i was told that a super will have the louvers under the front bumper.

 

As I have researched... In history in 1970 rather than totally redo the Beetle, VW introduced the Super Beetle, the first car to officially carry the "Beetle" moniker. Sold alongside the standard Beetle, the new Super Beetle coupe was a slightly larger package all around, including a three-inch longer wheelbase. To compensate for the Super's additional 155 pounds, engine output was increased to a blistering 60 horsepower, from the 1970 Beetle's 57. But manufacturing economies dictated that this engine also be used as one of the promising changes of Volkswagen Beetle parts in the standard model in 1971, meaning the Super carried no power advantage. The big technical news was a McPherson strut front suspension in lieu of horizontally stacked transverse torsion bars. Not only did this provide a smoother ride (albeit with an increased turning radius), but now the forward compartment could actually swallow more than a purse, as its volume almost doubled. Still, the only way you could put a set of golf clubs in the "trunk" was with a Sawzall. Hope this info would clear out something about the super beetle...

 

I'm told that superbeetles windshields are are convex vs a regular beetle's which is flat.

 

Guys, I was working with VolksWagen of America when
the Super Beetle came out, I don't know where all the info
your getting is comming from, but a lot of it isn't true. The
Super Beetle was the same as the regular beetle from the
front door handles back, the so called Super part was the
dash, windshield, longer nose, more luggage area, and that
ever so lousy front steering system. The only thing about
the Super Bug was it stayed in the shop with steering
problems, shaking like crazy, the one and only ball joint on
each side was found to be incorrect, It only took VW a few
years and a lot of hot customers untill they found the problem. If I were going to get into the VW thing again I would not be interested in the Super Bug at all.