"modernizing" an oval window

[bwaz]

how to make that pesky oval window beetle into a modern looking big window!

[pittwagen]

And you say - ya right.  Well my sister in law's first VW had that exact conversion.  A 57 beetle that had a 58 and later larger window grafted in.  Looked pretty well done as I recall.  This would have been around 1970.  Thing had a Hupp gas heater that used to belch lots of smoke and the occasional big flame from the right front wheel well.  Car was traded for a Fiat 850.  Never saw the VW again.  Fiat didn't last very long and got traded for a T3 fastback.

[Trevor P]

Advantage #3: increased car value. LOL

[pittwagen]

You might laugh when looking at it through the optics of today but in the 60's culture of Bigger, Faster, Better the argument held some legitimacy.  Problem in execution then as now was the cost of the body work - not cheap in an era of no home mig welders and .023 wire.  Lots of big window donor bugs around in the mid to late 60's that had been written off (many went to dune buggies) but why bother when you could buy a big window beetle for about the same cost of the body work done by a pro. 

Ovals were simply not that valuable or seen as a desirable ride.  Small cars were cheap A to B transportation and not much else.  Hot VW's, VW Trends and other mags certainly changed our thinking.

I never saw another beetle with the big window graft.

[josh]

Awe shit why didn't I think of doing this to my 55 before paint......
 

[BUSDADDY]

It wasn't just ovals, those stone age looking split windows had to go too, modern looks for modern times.