Wide Fenders On a Thing

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sat May 01, 2004 8:59 am

After viewing Erics Thing I have to admit that I admire the look presented by the set of widened fenders.
I am going to guess that the rears are from the Thing Shop and the fronts are from So Cal Imports. Anyone out there in Thingland that can confirm or dispute that analysis? Keep on Thingin. Bob Ingman

Kubelmann · Post by **Kubelmann** » Sat May 01, 2004 6:51 pm

I am on the wide fender search also. I have no interest in fiberglass. I have been collecting stock Thing fenders to make a clone fender by cutting one short and one long and meldingn the two. My rear 10x15 stick out way far. Where is Eric's car posted? Tell me more about the Thing shop and SoCal Fenders. K-mann

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sat May 01, 2004 7:56 pm

KUbelmann Erics car is posted right here on the 181 Gallery thread.
So Cal Imports fenders are different from the usual wide fenders because they are high and wide both. Notice there is a three inch raise on them in addition to the width. Somewhere in a HVWs I have the story of their development. i can probably scan it to you if interested. Best of luck. Bob Ingman

ericj8 · Post by **ericj8** » Sun May 02, 2004 9:54 am

Hi Bob,
My fronts are So Cal's "pre-runner" fiberglass fenders. They are actually 2.5" taller and 2.5" wider. The owner of So Cal has a Thing himself and has tested these fenders and he told me the tire never hits. I forgot what size his tire was. He is also using 3" raised spindles. I bought a set of those from him too but I have yet to install them because I might go with a different suspension front end.

As for the rear, my fenders came with the car. So Cal sells fiberglass fenders 3" wider.
http://www.socalautoparts.com/HotVWs_Ad ... d_p05.html

And The Thing shop sells 4 inch wider.
http://www.thethingshop.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=181WR

Then these are another kind of I have seen. For the rear, they are bolted to the car and not the original location.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/ ... p?id=49441

Hope this info helps Bob.

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sun May 02, 2004 9:56 am

Eric the owner is Andy Souse and his front tires are 700.15. Thanks for the link. Bob Ingman

ericj8 · Post by **ericj8** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:00 am

So do you know what fenders you are going to go with Bob?

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:03 am

Well without a doubt the idea of fabricated metal fenders appeals to me more than anything BUT those glass fenders in the link you posted third are very appealing. I have to ask myself if i really need metal fenders. Best of luck. Bob Ingman

ericj8 · Post by **ericj8** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:12 am

Plus the fiberglass fenders will help you lose some weight off the car.
Good luck Bob.

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:14 am

Eric are your rear fenders four inch? Bob Ingman

ericj8 · Post by **ericj8** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:22 am

Yes they are and they bolt onto the stock locations so I am guessing the previous owner got them from the Thing shop.

~Eric

Bob Ingman · Post by **Bob Ingman** » Sun May 02, 2004 10:37 am

I think so too. Now I need to decide if a full set of fenders are worth $600+ shipping (hate that word from where I live) Bob

Kubelmann · Post by **Kubelmann** » Sun May 02, 2004 5:36 pm

So I checked out the pictures of Eric's Thing and I must say it looks way cool. I like Bob am now thinking I could sell my Thing fender collection and do the 4" fiberglass rear fenders that body mount and perhaps could run my favorite rear tires (BFG A/T 31 11.5 x 15) without a body lift. As a result of my set up I was looking at the Mickey Thompson Baja Belted 29x 11.5 x15. But I actually designed my gear ratio around a 31" tire. I have rear centerlines 5x130 10x15 and front centerlines 5x130 7x15 From this thread I am imagining that I could run 7x15 front and The BFGs rear by selecting the correct fenders. I really liked the picture of the fenderless Thing that Eric posted. It makes me want to remove my fenders and build from there. I still prefer metal to fiberglass. I only wish that I had current access to the fab tools to knock out some fenders. Like most of us I have a long history with metal fabrication and have dabbled in fiberglass molding and by far prefer metal. How do the body mounted fender attach? After my current venture of installing thhe John Massengale beast into Herr K, I ma quickly becoming a fan of cutting the back bdy bar out of the way to make a turn key install possible. This big mama T-1 more than fills the slot. I am a long term sawzall fan...K-mann

ericj8 · Post by **ericj8** » Sun May 02, 2004 6:39 pm

How do the body mounted fender attach?

I was wondering the same thing.

Yes that fenderless thing looked awesome. The owner told me he takes his Thing out to Glamis and several other off-roading places. He says his car does fine with stock engine and suspension but he can't always do the big dunes or it slows down with another person in the car.

I was thinking of maybe making the fenders easily removeable like with Dzus fasteners. When I installed my turn signal lights and headlights on my fiberglass fenders I added plugs if I ever do consider taking the fenders off for off the street use.

Mattt · Post by **Mattt** » Mon May 03, 2004 12:30 am

ericj8 wrote:Hi Bob,
My fronts are So Cal's "pre-runner" fiberglass fenders. They are actually 2.5" taller and 2.5" wider. The owner of So Cal has a Thing himself and has tested these fenders and he told me the tire never hits. I forgot what size his tire was. He is also using 3" raised spindles. I bought a set of those from him too but I have yet to install them because I might go with a different suspension front end.

As for the rear, my fenders came with the car. So Cal sells fiberglass fenders 3" wider.
http://www.socalautoparts.com/HotVWs_Ad ... d_p05.html

And The Thing shop sells 4 inch wider.
http://www.thethingshop.com/detail.asp?PRODUCT_ID=181WR

Then these are another kind of I have seen. For the rear, they are bolted to the car and not the original location.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/ ... p?id=49441

Hope this info helps Bob.

I dont know what sort of 3" raised spindle can be used on a Thing. Please post a pic of the spindle you got from them. There is a 3" raised spindle for a Bug BJ front end, but not the Thing. Raising a Bug front end 3" with spindle makes it roughly equivalent to a Thing front end, other than the crappy ball joint arrangement. Bug bottom ball joints can pop out easier since they are upside down. Street,,,,no. Off road.....Yes.

Mattt · Post by **Mattt** » Mon May 03, 2004 12:31 am

Kubelmann wrote:I am on the wide fender search also. I have no interest in fiberglass. I have been collecting stock Thing fenders to make a clone fender by cutting one short and one long and meldingn the two. My rear 10x15 stick out way far. Where is Eric's car posted? Tell me more about the Thing shop and SoCal Fenders. K-mann

What do you have against the glass fenders? Puts your car on a diet, and they are fixable then. Im sure you know, you'll have to fabricate wider/taller steel fenders.