Volkswagen Beetle Rat Rod Serves Up 900 ‘Rowdy’ Horses: Track Time Tuesday
All those horsies are more than enough to make this chopped-up Volkswagen Beetle ‘scary’ to drive, according to its owner.
With LS swaps arguably near the peak of popularity these days, we often wonder – what is there left to do? Are there any possible combinations left that we haven’t seen yet, or have we truly LS swapped everything there is to LS swap? Then, without fail, we come across something truly unique and utterly wild – a build that truly blows our mind for various reasons, whether that be the sheer quality of it, and oftentimes, the sheer insanity. As for this LS-swapped 1970 Volkswagen Beetle owned by John Bridges and recently featured by the folks at Holley, well, it falls squarely in the latter category.
Appropriately named “Volks-rod,” this wild machine looks like nothing else on the road. Why? Well, because it’s a humble Volkswagen Beetle that’s been chopped, channeled, and cut up just like an old-fashioned street rod. The model itself also holds a little sentimental value for Bridges, who owned a Beetle in high school and wanted to pay tribute to that while also creating a performance showcase of sorts.
The low-slung Beetle now rides on a custom chassis with an air ride suspension to get it close to the ground, and features four wheel disc brakes – a good choice given what motivates it. Bridges sourced a 6.0-liter (Vortec 6000) V8 out of a 2003 Chevrolet Express van for his newest project, along with a 4L80 gearbox, then treated it to forged pistons and rods, a beefier cam, and a pair of 70mm turbos pumping in 14 pounds of boost. That’s pretty much good for around 900 horsepower, and more than enough to make this Volkswagen Beetle rat rod one heck of a long slung slingshot.
Sending power back to an 8.8-inch rear end, Bridges admits that his creation is “scary,” which we don’t doubt one bit. The fact that the tiny, highly-powered ride is also equipped with what is essentially a sheet metal interior only adds to the experience, which involves planting your right foot and watching the upcoming landscape appear quite quickly through that tiny chopped windshield, But then again, that’s what street and hot rodding is all about – a little bit of danger, mixed with a dash of fear, which is guaranteed to put a smile on your face. And in that regard, the Volks-rod is a major success.
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