My 1965 VW Beetle 1200 A is equipped with a Saxomat automatic clutch. The Saxomat takes the function of the clutch pedal.

The first owner ordered the Standard Beetle with Saxomat clutch and he paid 310 Deutsche Mark more. The Saxomat was made in Germany by Fichtel & Sachs and it has the Volkswagen M5 M-Code.

My Beetle was in very good condition when I bought it. I made about 80000 kilometer in 10 years with the Saxomat. In that time, only the clutch disc was changed once.

Within the last 2 years, the function of the automatic clutch was getting worse. The rear gear could only be put in and out, when the motor was switched off. Parking took a while but I got used to it. A year later, the first gear had the same problem so I used only the second gear :-)

I drove my beetle to a VW garage but they could not repair the Saxomat. The round head of the clutch rod was gone and the part was not available. I still drove the beetle with all the problems but the rust stopped me.

I put my VW Beetle in a garage for 10 years and collected Saxomat parts. Then I did a full restoration of my VW Beetle.

Below are pictures and information of the Saxomat automatic clutch before and after the restoration. The first picture shows the motor with Saxomat control valve.

Saxomat clutch servomotor mounted at the left side of the VW Beetle transmission case.
Saxomat clutch servomotor mounted at the left side of the VW Beetle transmission case.
Saxomat vacuum tank mounted at VW Beetle boot floor
Saxomat vacuum tank mounted at VW Beetle boot floor
vacuum tank distance bolt mounting screw
vacuum tank distance bolt mounting screw
automatic clutch vacuum tank for VW Beetle (two tanks, one sparepart)
automatic clutch vacuum tank for VW Beetle (two tanks, one sparepart)
Automatic Clutch servomotor with mounting bracket
Automatic Clutch servomotor with mounting bracket
Saxomat Automatic Clutch Servomotor
Saxomat Automatic Clutch Servomotor
mounting parts before zinc plating
mounting parts before zinc plating
VW Saxomat clutch rod for the servomotor
VW Saxomat clutch rod for the servomotor
Saxomat control valve gummi metall bearing and vacuumtank distance bolts
Saxomat control valve gummi metall bearing and vacuumtank distance bolts
connection tube clamps
connection tube clamps
Solex 28 PICT1 carburetor VW # 113129023J with connection tube for VW Beetle with M5 Saxomat, side view
Solex 28 PICT1 carburetor VW # 113129023J with connection tube for VW Beetle with M5 Saxomat, side view
VW Beetle shift lever parts for Saxomat
VW Beetle shift lever parts for Saxomat
Saxomat automatic clutch mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle motor, never been disassembled
Saxomat automatic clutch mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle motor, never been disassembled
Automatic clutch on my 1965 VW Beetle motor, disassembled clutch cover, pressure disc and clutch disc.
Automatic clutch on my 1965 VW Beetle motor, disassembled clutch cover, pressure disc and clutch disc.
Vielzahn Tool to remove the Saxomat Clutch from the VW Beetle motor.
Vielzahn Tool to remove the Saxomat Clutch from the VW Beetle motor.
Saxomat Vielzahn tool self-made from a VW Beetle transmission part. A nut was welded on the transmission part. This self-made Vielzahn tool is necessary to remove the Saxomat clutch from the motor.
Saxomat Vielzahn tool self-made from a VW Beetle transmission part. A nut was welded on the transmission part. This self-made Vielzahn tool is necessary to remove the Saxomat clutch from the motor.
self-made VW Vielzahn tool
self-made VW Vielzahn tool
Automatic clutch disassembled and view on the flywheel. Free wheel, dive house, centrifugal disc and roller house removed. I kept the flywheel and mounted my spare parts.
Automatic clutch disassembled and view on the flywheel. Free wheel, dive house, centrifugal disc and roller house removed. I kept the flywheel and mounted my spare parts.
VW Saxomat Automatic Clutch parts. The heavily used Saxomat clutch from my 1965 VW Bug and a good used spare part.
VW Saxomat Automatic Clutch parts. The heavily used Saxomat clutch from my 1965 VW Bug and a good used spare part.
Automatic Clutch spare parts from a VW Beetle with low kilometer which was changed to manual transmission. I put this as is on my VW Beetle.
Automatic Clutch spare parts from a VW Beetle with low kilometer which was changed to manual transmission. I put this as is on my VW Beetle.
VW Saxomat Clutch spare part details, flywheel, centrifugal-disc, roller-house, free wheel with drive-house and clutch disc.
VW Saxomat Clutch spare part details, flywheel, centrifugal-disc, roller-house, free wheel with drive-house and clutch disc.
roller-house
roller-house
free wheel with drive-house
free wheel with drive-house
flywheel with centrifugal disc
flywheel with centrifugal disc
clutch disc
clutch disc
clutch cover, pressure disc and clutch disc
clutch cover, pressure disc and clutch disc
VW Beetle parts after resto. The big part is a Saxomat vacuum tank.
VW Saxomat servomotor, bracket, mounting screw and shifter after restoration
VW Saxomat servomotor, bracket, mounting screw and shifter after restoration
Saxomat servomotor mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle after restoration.
Saxomat servomotor mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle after restoration.
Restored clutch rod with arm mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle. After the first start of my Beetle, I only had to adjust the nut for the clutchrod to get the Saxomat running.
Restored clutch rod with arm mounted on my 1965 VW Beetle. After the first start of my Beetle, I only had to adjust the nut for the clutchrod to get the Saxomat running.
My 1965 VW Beetle motor after restoration. The carburetor at the picture is a Solex 28 PICT1 carburetor with a later made Saxomat connection tube. My Beetle was not running very well with this carburetor. Fortunate, I had the original carburetor and after restoration, the motor was running fine. A VW Beetle with Saxomat clutch has a higher idle. Possible there are different nozzles in the carburetor.
My 1965 VW Beetle motor after restoration. The carburetor at the picture is a Solex 28 PICT1 carburetor with a later made Saxomat connection tube. My Beetle was not running very well with this carburetor. Fortunate, I had the original carburetor and after restoration, the motor was running fine. A VW Beetle with Saxomat clutch has a higher idle. Possible there are different nozzles in the carburetor.
VW Standard Beetle has a fuel tap reserve switch. The floor mat before the gear lever is simply. There is no floor mat between gear lever and hand brake. This Beetle has Saxomat and so the shift lever is different and the clutch pedal is missing. The brake pedal with two pedal pads was installed for the first owner.