Volkswagen: 67 Beetle trouble, strangest thing, beetle

Question
My daughter is trying to get her beetle running again after an accident in Jan '09. Damage was to the hood %26 drivers side so nothing with the engine. The strangest thing keeps happening when she starts to drive it. If she puts it in reverse the engine dies. We tried this many times and with different drivers, the car quits the moment it is put in reverse. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks.

Answer
Hi Dawn,

The power for the reverse lights is supplied by the + terminal of the ignition coil.  The only thing I can think of is that someone put the wire on the incorrect terminal, in this case the negative (-) side.

So, when you put your car in reverse, it grounds out the coil and kills the engine.

Try looking on the coil and see if this is the case.

Let me know how you make out.

Thanks,

Ron