Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Beetle

Something's been bugging me...

fearnothing — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 04:25:30 -0800

WeirdBugFilter: What is this bug? Entymologists please help! These things have periodically wandered through my ground-floor bathroom and main room. The first time I saw one I thought it was one of those little plastic toy insects, and then it started moving which was slightly disturbing. The closest candidate I can come up with is the stink beetle but this species is native to the deserts of northern Mexico, whereas I am in chilly, damp northern England. Furthermore, it has never displayed any behaviour like that of the stink beetle despite my ignorant prods and pokes.

More images of this curious creepy crawly might help you identify it from its feelers or thorax or abdomen shape.

What are these desert insects?

metadave — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:25:38 -0800

What are these two (possibly male and female) insects? Here are two pictures of each. These insects are about 4-cm long and are on a Century Plant bloom stem. Anyone have any idea what they are? Thanks for any and all responses.

- Dave

VW Beetle wiring riddle

ackptui — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 15:35:09 -0800

Apropos of nothing, why would the wiring going to the fog lights on a US 2002 VW New Beetle have an extra unattached plug on it? This is not the lowest model, but came with the fog lights standard. I wonder if one of the upscale versions had fog lamps with two bulbs in each light or something that would have required another plug. On second look, it occurs only on the drivers side wiring, the passenger side looks normal. Please stop me from agonizing over this superfluous detail!

Is a Super Turbo Bug possible?

bolognius maximus — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 15:07:28 -0800

Are there any reasons why a Porsche engine could not be put into a '74 Volkwagen Beetle? A friend of mine has 1974 Volkswagen Beetle that he is having restored. He wants to put a Porsche engine in it, because he thinks it would be fun. Are there any reasons (mechanical, electrical, physics, etc.) why this could not be done? Money isn't really an issue, and the man loves his Bug. Thanks in advance!

Bug identification help

zek — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 12:07:35 -0800

Bug identification help; location: Texas. We found this half-inch bug walking on the wall in my son's bedroom. It's the second one I've seen in there in a year. I know what a conenose looks like, and this doesn't look at all like one. Then again I have no idea what an immature one looks like. My Audobon insect book is of no help, and the insect websites I've found are pretty disorganized. Should we be concerned?

Advice for buying an old VW?

cholly — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 01:16:35 -0800

I'm looking for tips and/or advice on buying a ~~used~~ pre-loved 1960's Volkswagen Beetle. I am in love with VW Beetles and am in a postion to buy one.
The one I am currently looking at is a 1966 model, 2 door, 4 speed manual. It has a four-year-old 1600cc engine with 30,000kms and is newly serviced with a brand new fuel pump. It also has new tyres and registration until August next year. It also has a fairly new interior and has a rather anal owner (who has had it for 12 years), so the car is more or less immaculate, with very little rust.

My questions are:
- How 'reliable' are these cars?
- Will it send me broke in repairs?
- The owner is asking $6,000 for this car. There is an element of emotional attachment to the vehicle. What would be a fair price, given the specs above? I was thinking somewhere in the range of $3,000-$4,000.

Any other advice would be dearly appreciated.

If you need any other info, let me know, email is in profile.

wing on the back of a car increasing MPG? Color me dubious.

Wild_Eep — Fri, 05 May 2006 08:12:20 -0800

Last night on ABC news there was a guy with a VW beetle (silver) who put a wicked-huge wing on the back and claimed some ridiculously-high MPG figure. Alas, my google fu fails me. Why would this wing possibly work? They guy wasn't a tuner, AFAICT.

VW Beetle

randomstriker — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 20:16:04 -0800

I'd like to buy an new, original-style VW Beetle in Mexico and drive it back to Canada and register it for use in Vancouver, BC. What are all the steps involved? 1) Where in Mexico can I buy one? I understand they're no longer produced but I imagine you must be able to buy new or near-new cars still, right? How much do they cost?

2) What's involved in getting the car registered in British Columbia? How do you import a car? How do you make sure it will pass Aircare, etc?

Where can I find older New Beetle TV commercials?

herrdoktor — Mon, 26 Dec 2005 10:22:02 -0800

Is there a place where I can download/watch Volkswagen New Beetle TV commercials of yore? These would include the commercials featuring music by Hooverphonic, Spiritualized, Nick Drake, The Orb and the like. The official site seems to have pulled them in favor of more recent commercials, and nowhere I've looked seems to have them.

I'd much rather not sign up for AdCritic, and none of the alternative sites suggested here in the past has them. I've tried emailing the operators of both VW.com as well a couple other VW sites, to no avail.

I recently dug up a copy of Spiritualized's "Ladies and Gentlemen..." and got wistful for a stupid girl and her stupid car, and now I want to watch the stupid commercials. Help me get over this mania. I mean c'mon-- emailing freaking VW.com?! I'm stupid.

Ooh! Mystery part!

symphonik — Thu, 28 Jul 2005 22:00:09 -0800

TinfoilHatFilter. What is this strange unmarked part in my car? I have a 2000 VW New Beetle TDI with the 5-speed manual transmission. Today I replaced a bad mass air flow sensor and the brake light switch (which, FYI, is under recall but I don't have the time to take my car to the stealership). As I was poking around near the brake pedal, my eyes came across a little box attached to the underside of the dash. I have seen it plenty of times before, but never really questioned it. It just seemed like perhaps part of the alarm system, and maybe it is.

This time, though, as I took apart the underside of the dash, that box got more and more suspicious. Firstly, I had to unscrew it from the dash plastic to take the underside of the dash off—why would VW put a box down there with an attached wire that blocks that panel? Second, it definitely didn't seem like a factory-standard installation: something about the screw holes and the screws used to mount it seemed professional but not factory-standard. Thirdly, it's completely unmarked—most VW parts have something written on them, like part numbers. It has an unmarked LED on the front, and I don't recall if I've ever seen it lit. It also appears to have some kind of chip inside of it, but I don't dare risk pulling that out without knowing what it is. The wires from the box seem to be tied to a number of things behind the dash underpanel, near the brakes, clutch, and fusebox.

What is this thing? Am I being tracked by the Illuminati or something?

Pictures here and here. Help me figure out what this is!

mini cooper vs. beetle / cabrio

luriete — Fri, 22 Apr 2005 16:24:03 -0800

What do you all think of the 2004 Mini Cooper convertible? Specifically, in comparison to a 2004 mini beetle convertible, or a well-cared-for 2001/2002 Cabrio convertible (I don't think they made a convertible Cabrio after 2002)?