THE YELLOW PERIL

A father-and-son restoration that started with a supposedly straightforward 1975 Beetle and quickly uncovered some of the least convincing floorpan repairs imaginable. Alex Boughen’s Yukon Yellow Bug eventually emerged with Limebug air suspension, custom split rims and a collection of show awards.

Every restoration begins with optimism.

Somewhere in Britain, there is probably a classic Volkswagen restoration that went exactly according to plan.

The car was bought.

The body came off.

Everything underneath was perfectly sound.

And the entire project was completed within the original budget.

We’ve never actually seen one.

But we remain optimistic.

Alex Boughen and his father Andrew certainly didn’t find one when they began restoring their 1975 Beetle.

What initially looked like a relatively affordable, straightforward project soon revealed a floorpan with some very questionable previous repairs.

Including nails.

And wood.

Which are not generally considered particularly desirable materials for structural Volkswagen restoration.

Fortunately, Andrew had rather more convincing fabrication skills than whoever had been there before him.

And what followed became an impressive home-built restoration, combining traditional Yukon Yellow styling with a thoroughly modern Limebug suspension and wheel specification.

A father-and-son project

Alex and Andrew

One of the best things about this Beetle is that it was built at home.

Alex and his father Andrew took on the work together, approaching it as a proper hands-on restoration rather than simply sending the car away to be completed.

That meant dealing with the unpleasant jobs as well as the enjoyable ones.

The dismantling.

The rust.

The evidence of earlier repairs.

And the rather depressing realisation that a supposedly simple project was going to require considerably more work than expected.

Andrew’s welding and fabrication experience proved particularly valuable.

The poor-quality repairs were removed and the underlying structure addressed properly, giving the car a much more solid foundation for the rest of the build.

It was the point at which the project began moving from rescuing an old Beetle to creating something individual.

Why Yukon Yellow?

Making a late Beetle stand out

By 1975, the Beetle had moved a long way from its earlier post-war form.

Larger rear lights, later body details and the ball-joint front suspension gave it a different character from the small-window cars that often dominate the custom Volkswagen scene.

But late Beetles have an appeal of their own.

And Alex’s choice of Yukon Yellow makes a particularly strong case for them.

The bright period colour gives the car a cheerful, unmistakably seventies appearance.

Chrome detailing keeps the finish traditional, while the lowered suspension and custom wheels introduce a very different attitude.

Rather than disguising the car’s age, the build embraces it.

The result is a late-model Beetle that feels like a proper seventies Volkswagen—just with considerably more attention paid to what sits beneath the arches.

The Jawbreaker front end

Ball-joint air suspension

The front suspension uses a 4-inch narrowed Limebug Ball Joint Jawbreaker beam, forming part of the car’s Deluxe air ride specification.

It’s paired with MOA430 front air shocks and 2.5-inch dropped spindles.

The narrowed beam helps position the front wheels within the original wings, while the air shocks provide the adjustable ride height.

The build also incorporates skid ends, adding a practical measure of protection to a vehicle intended to sit particularly low.

For Alex, the complete arrangement was about achieving the intended stance without overwhelming the original Beetle bodywork.

The Yukon Yellow paint remained the visual centrepiece.

The suspension made the proportions work.

Revolution at the rear

At the rear, the car uses Limebug’s Revolution swing-axle cantilever air suspension, combined with 2-inch air spring plates.

Together with the front arrangement, this provides the adjustable ride height associated with the build.

It’s also a good example of a complete front-and-rear air suspension installation, rather than concentrating solely on lowering the front axle.

The chassis work was an important part of the transformation.

But the wheels were what gave the car its particularly distinctive finished appearance.

The SM35 evolution

Seventeen-inch smoothies. With a difference.

Alex chose Limebug’s 17-inch SM35 three-piece split rims.

The SM35 takes inspiration from Volkswagen’s traditional smoothie wheel, translating the familiar design into modern multi-piece construction.

It’s an interesting fit for a late-model Beetle.

The smooth wheel centres retain a classic Volkswagen influence, while the larger diameter and polished outer lips give the car a much more contemporary presence.

But the wheel finish didn’t remain unchanged.

Initially, the centres were finished in cream.

Later, they were refinished in brown, creating a different contrast against the Yukon Yellow bodywork.

The polished lips remained, along with custom details that helped bring the specification together.

A little brass and Wolfsburg

The wheels also feature AAC Wolfsburg-crest hubcaps, adding another recognisably Volkswagen detail.

Elsewhere on the car, custom brass accents introduce small points of contrast.

Those details might seem minor compared with the air suspension or three-piece wheels.

But they’re part of what makes the finished build feel personal.

Rather than relying on a collection of large modifications alone, Alex paid attention to the smaller visual connections between the components.

A 1641cc engine with the right details

Keeping it air-cooled

At the back sits a 1641cc air-cooled Volkswagen engine.

It’s a familiar and sensible upgrade from the smaller factory capacities, retaining the character of the original flat-four while offering an altered mechanical specification.

The engine bay received its own carefully selected parts.

An MST Solid Fat V V-belt pulley system provides one of the more distinctive details.

A PerTronix coil forms part of the ignition specification.

And the black engine tinware keeps the overall appearance clean and coordinated.

Rather than introducing an enormous collection of decorative components, the finish complements the rest of the vehicle.

The engine belongs in the same carefully considered build as the suspension, wheels and bright paintwork.

The shows begin to notice

More than just a family project

One of the satisfying aspects of Alex and Andrew’s work is how far the finished car progressed from its original condition.

What began as a project with some deeply questionable floorpan repairs became a vehicle attracting attention on the UK show scene.

The Beetle collected multiple awards, including Builders’ Choice recognition in 2022.

It’s a particularly appropriate achievement for a car restored and developed through so much hands-on father-and-son work.

The awards are impressive.

But they’re also the conclusion of a much more interesting story.

A car bought with modest expectations.

Structural problems discovered along the way.

And the determination to complete the restoration properly rather than simply disguising what previous owners had left behind.

The Yellow Peril in motion

The car has also been featured in video, offering a useful chance to appreciate its proportions and details beyond still photographs.

Watch Alex Boughen’s Yukon Yellow Beetle:

[Embedded video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqe67ziVyZg]

The build specification

Vehicle and restoration

• 1975 Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle
• Owner: Alex Boughen
• Father-and-son restoration by Alex and Andrew Boughen
• Extensive floorpan repairs and fabrication
• Yukon Yellow paintwork
• Chrome exterior detailing

Front suspension

• Limebug 4-inch narrowed Ball Joint Jawbreaker beam
• MOA430 front air shocks
• 2.5-inch dropped spindles
• Beam skid ends
• Part of the Limebug Deluxe air ride specification

Rear suspension

• Limebug Revolution swing-axle cantilever air ride
• 2-inch swing-axle air spring plates

Wheels and detailing

• Limebug 17-inch SM35 three-piece split rims
• Polished outer lips
• Initially cream wheel centres
• Later brown wheel centres
• AAC Wolfsburg-crest hubcaps
• Custom brass detailing

Engine

• 1641cc air-cooled Volkswagen flat-four
• MST Solid Fat V pulley system
• PerTronix coil
• Black engine tinware

Recognition

• 2022 Builders’ Choice recognition
• Further UK show awards

The best part isn’t the trophy.

It’s tempting to judge a completed restoration entirely by the finished photographs.

The bright paint.

The polished wheels.

The impressive stance.

And the collection of awards that follows.

But Alex’s Beetle is more interesting when you know what it took to get there.

The unexpected repairs.

The hours spent working alongside his father.

The decisions about which components to use.

And the small changes that continued even after the car was finished.

The Yellow Peril isn’t just a 1975 Beetle with Limebug suspension and a set of split rims.

It’s the result of a family taking a thoroughly imperfect starting point and building something they could be proud of.

From nails and wood to Yukon Yellow.

Not a bad result for a supposedly simple restoration.