"Project Barbie Beetle" 

One of the things we like to do is customize New Beetles (full size ones)
With a little too much time on our hands, we had to attack one of the Barbie Beetles.
This is admittedly the strangest project car we have undertaken
But it's all in good fun...so here it is.


Step 1

Start with one basic box stock Barbie Beetle...
(available in red, pink, yellow and possibly blue)
Available at many toy stores or big chains like Wal Mart if you are willing to hunt
or here at TVA for a few extra bucks if you dont want to drive all around town searching.
(or if you feel funny buying a Barbie toy when you dont have kids)

Step 2

Rip it all apart...
Tips for dissassembly...take your time and dont force anything.
There are several screws that are hidden...carefully peel the headlight and taillight stickers off to reveal four of them.
Make sure to put all the little screws and springs in a bag for safe keeping.
We stuck the stickers onto a used mailing label sheet to keep them safe and sticky.
The door panels are glued to the doors...carefull prying will pop them apart.

Step 3

Lowering...
This was a real task...not for the faint of heart.
The wheels are post mounted, so the best way to lower it is to drop the body down over the chassis.
This is done by trimming down all the mounting points.
The rear trunk lining will also have to be trimmed as well as the door hinges and the support post for the dashboard.
The plastic is pretty soft, we had good luck with a sharp box knife and a firm hand.

We succeeded in lowering our car about 1/2" in front and 3/8" in rear and the wheels still roll.


Step 4


Paint prep work.
I scuffed up the finish with a little very fine steel wool and sprayed a coat of good ol grey primer
on the car to give the new paint job a firm base, and to keep the factory red from coming through.
(I kinda like the battleship grey look...)


Step 5

Here are the base colors for the flame paint job. This was achieved by using a variety of shades of red and orange spray paint (regular ol rattle can stuff) and carefully blending the colors into one.

Front view...
NEXT comes the masking and application of the body color...

Step 6
The Flames...

Careful masking of the front end flames and several coats of black and clearcoat
and it's starting to take shape.

TVA graphics on the back (gotta advertise!)

Next up...the re-assembly process.

Stay Tuned for more updates!

Let us know your thoughts!
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