The engine and transaxle are rotated so the engine faces the front of the buggy. The setup uses a lightweight, minimal frame designed to mid-mount the VW powertrain.

By the mid-1970s, the most common buggies were VW-powered sand rails.

When the floor pans are removed and replaced with an alternative, such as expanded metal, the remaining structural part is the tunnel.

A pan buggy typically uses a shortened VW Beetle pan/chassis.

Old School Buggies uses three different terms for the dune buggy category: pan buggy, tunnel buggy, and sand rail. How to Build a Dune Buggy: Types to Consider A search for dune buggy parts on eBay will bring up just about everything mechanical you’ll need to finish one of these babies. Since the underpinnings are mostly VW Beetle, that car’s parts bin is useful.

Speciality retailers are a great resource. Here’s one on eBay in classic purple, but it comes from Hungary. These are available in two- and four-seater variants. In a sand rail, passengers sit inside a frame like this.Īssuming you have everything stripped down, your next task is buying a dune buggy body. Nonetheless, searches do turn up suitable tube chassis. It will take a little patience to find a suitable tube chassis on eBay because there’s not a dedicated category for them. If you don’t want the hassle of finding a Bug and altering the chassis, you can buy a tube chassis. The seats, too, if you go that way.įor a classic dune buggy, you’re going to have to shorten the chassis by 14.5 inches. You’re looking for an affordable chassis with engine, suspension, and brakes. So keep in mind that the body will get junked. But they’re still out there, perhaps with rust or other reasons that make them un-restorable.

Today, these cars are “classics,” and finding one is more challenging. Early Beetles used to be available everywhere. The classic dune buggy is based on the Type 1 Volkswagen Beetle. Shop now for Dune Buggies and Sand Rails Based on the Classic Beetle Here’s what you need to know to get started. That means it’s time to get busy building the vintage dune buggy of your dreams. Now that spring has sprung, it’s not too early to start planning for long hot-weather days on the dunes.

Dune buggy kits