Late model Type 3s are a relatively unusual sight on British roads these days. It wasn't that long ago when there were many scruffy squarebacks sitting around in people's driveways across the country. However, with the early '90s boom in Type 3-based kit cars, coupled with the fact that 99 % of them have terminal rot problems, it is no wonder the number of good examples has now dwindled. People either love or hate these cars and I must admit that although I am a big Type 3 fan, I can think of few cars uglier than a rusty, stock late model Type 3! Luckily this is not the case with David Morena's cool Fasty. The subtle paint, polished wheels and trick interior all add up to a tastefully-modified machine. If you take a peek under the rear lid, it soon becomes clear that this is a pretty fast Fastback, too.
20 year old Dave has more than a few memories of this car as he used to walk past it every day on his way to school. He was fascinated by the odd-looking VW and always dreamed of one day owning one.
Little did he suspect that he would own that exact same car! After changing hands several times, the car was bought by a friend of Dave's who had started to restore the Fastback. Most of the welding was done and the car was de-chromed before the guy became bored with the now very sorry-looking Fastback and agreed to sell it to Dave for the sum of £450. This was back in 1996 and Dave was still too young to drive, let alone afford the car, so he worked as hard as possible to pay for it in instalments, as and when he could afford it.
After several weeks, the car was finally back to the family workshop where his brother Richie began to make the car roadworthy. The family business is that of auto-electrics although between them, they are not at all bad at mechanical work or indeed any kind of vehicle restoration. Richie soon had the car MoT'd and roadworthy and the brothers managed to respray the car in cellulose, lower it slightly and fit a set of four-lug sprinsters.
This was how the car stayed for a while and Richie drove it to shows with Dave as his co-pilot, at least until he passed his driving test!
After a couple of months of using the car himself, Dave decided that he
wanted more, much more!
He stripped the car completely and began patching up the last few small areas that needed welding. Most of the panels were in a pretty bad way, so Dave started collecting replacements from Type 3 Detectives and before long, he had replaced every bolt-on part with the exception of the rear lid. Dave initially called a local painter, who had quoted £600 to repaint the car, although when he saw it after Dave stripped it, he readjusted his quote to almost £1500! Dave was able to haggle the price down a fair amount by offering to prepare the car himself – that way any marks in the bodywork would be his fault. Weeks of sanding and flatting followed until Dave was finally happy with the bodywork and allowed the painter to expertly apply several coats of the Pearl Grey colour Dave had chosen. Apparently, it is a commercial VW colour from the early '80s and Dave had chosen it as it was far more tasteful than the gaudy Texas Yellow.
Once the paint had cured and the car had been colour-sanded, it was moved back to the Morena's Brentwood workshops where the brothers proceeded to fully rewire the car. As this was his trade, Richie made a top job of the wiring. He began by sandblasting the fuse box and replacing every wire and electrical item as he worked his way through the Fastback.
When preparing the car, Dave decided to replace all the rubber seals and had therefore thrown away all the old ones. Big Mistake! Type 3 rubber parts are now obsolete and are very difficult to locate. T3D supplied a complete set of door rubbers, trims and seals, but at a cost of £250 and Dave was beginning to feel the pinch! The only consolation we can offer Dave as far as Type 3 parts goes is that they get more and more expensive as the cars get earlier, so at least he chose a late model!
A new windscreen rubber was located through Karmann Konnection and Dave was able to find parts like new bumpers, headlights, clear lenses and wipers at swapmeets and various shows helping to spread the cost of the rebuild over a period of time. While all this was going on, the brothers also managed to remove the gearbox and rear suspension which they cleaned and carefully detailed in a contrasting burgundy colour.
Dave bought some 914 spares and found that he was able to use just about the whole rear suspension and break set-up from the trailing arms out. This meant that the car was now equipped with rear discs onto which Dave mounted a set of Golf GTi callipers using custom-made brackets. A rear IRS anti-roll bar was then fitted along with a set of Spax gas adjustable shock absorbers which completed the much uprated rear suspension set-up.
At the front, a set of late Bug disc brakes were bolted up and the front torsion bars were relocated a few more splines round to really slam the car. The original Type 3 EMPI anti-roll bar was then bolted up and a set of short KYB shock absorbers were used to soak up the bumps. The car was now beginning to really take shape, but it still needed a suitably cool set of wheels. Richie was on his way to VW Euro and Dave had given him a wad of Guilders to try and locate a set of 914 2-litre rims. Richie didn't manage to find exactly was Dave wanted but he did track down a set of superb quality 914 Mahle wheels. Once back in the country, Dave sent the wheels to JP Polishing who buffed them to the high lustre you see here. These rims are made of magnesium and are therefore very lightweight but the do need regular polishing to prevent them tarnishing. A new set of 195/55 front and 205/65 rear tyres were fitted and the car was rolling ready for an engine and an interior.
Matching door panels were also made and a set of high quality grey carpets were fitted. Finishing touches inside are the Grant steering wheel, Gene Berg shifter and the five Autometer gauges fitted by Richie.
Paul started with a brand new crankcase into which he fitted a Scat 78mm counterweighted crank. Connecting the engine to the gearbox is a Porsche clutch and a 215mm lightened and eight-dowelled flywheel from a late Type 2. Scat Clearanced rods were next to go in closely followed by an Engle FK8 cam with Magnesium straight cut gears. Mahle 94mm barrels and pistons were used and chromoly pushrods with Autocraft 1.4:1 ratio rockers work the 44 x 37mm valves in the heavily re-worked Street Eliminator heads.
With the CR set at 8.5:1, the engine was zipped up ready for installation. Dave and Rich then fitted the engine and plumed in the oil thermostat and cooler which was mounted above the gearbox. A 009 and blue coil were used to provide the spark, while S&S Headers provided a Type 3 1 5/8-inch header. The boys made up their own silencer system consisting of two boxes mounted under the car out of sight. Charging duties are now undertaken by an alternator conversion that Richie created especially for the Type 3. The only minor problem they came across during fitment was caburation.
They wanted to use 481DF Webers but the carbs would never fit under the engine lid. Dave said: “It wasn't a problem. I just ditched the lid and cut the engine bay about until the carbs went in – easy.”
This means that Dave lost his rear boot space and the car is now a lot noisier inside. This is insignificant when you plant your right foot for the first time though!
Having seen Dave showboating a few impromptu burn-outs at the service station on the way to Bug Jam and witnessing the quarter-mile antics of the Fastback, I can vouch for the fact that this is one fast Fastback and that Dave is definitely not scared to give it hell! He has already started to rebuild the car for next year's season and is inspired by our G-Files cars. The Fastback is soon to get a fresh set of 17 inch wheels, a new colour, more engine mods and stripped out race style interior. Keep your eyes peeled as Dave has now started his own business: 'Kraftwork' offering vehicle refinishing and restoration. Judging by the quality of his car, you could do far worse than give him a call…
Boyton Hall Farm 
Mobile 07967 104232