Optimism

[Fire-medic]

Here's a pic I took on the way home from work, it looks like a 1970's Super Beetle, w/some front end damage. Obviously someone thinks it's salvageable, and it's a convertible, so if you already have a source of parts, then perhaps this will see one day its use on FL's roads. Knowing how those VW's collapsed in a crash, I wouldn't want to drive one down here and get involved in an accident. A neighbor of mine who worked at the public health trust hospital in the blood bank lost her life in a Karmann Ghia accident.

I learned how to drive in a '62 VW bug convertible, my parents bought it brand new, it was $2,225. You could buy a VW coupe for $1700 then.

This one was just a roller shell, I dunno if it had an engine in it or not, I didn't get alongside it to see, but since it had 4 wheels, I'd say there was at least a transaxle on it. The thing was missing doors, an entire interior & dashboard, and will probably be an expensive proposition to re-assemble.

Incidentally, this was taken about two blocks where ragdog2011 is living. Hi Dwayne!

 

[Itgoes]

I'm not on top of VW values, but they are increasingly rare and a restored one will probably sell for a decent price. I know the old vans really went out of sight several years ago.

On a similar note I did notice at last weeks Barrett Jackson auction that Mustangs have come way back in value after having dipped in recent years. I was wondering today if that has something to do with the popularity of the new Mustang which has been well received.

Good news for my brother, he's got 3 Mustangs in various stages of restoration, all of them very collectible versions.

 

[caseyjones955]

VW ragtops are getting scarce. Even a super is worth something now but a standard ragtop is appreciating every day. Not sure of actual value but it would take a lot of rust to make it worthless. These things were produced well into the 80s in Mexico IIRC. The single most popular car ever produced followed by the Mustang.

 

[CaptainKyle]

Hard to tell from just the one angle but it does not look terrible to me. Ragtops are going up in value.

 

[Fire-medic]

Condition depends on where it spent its life. I recall when our '62 cabriolet (convertible) was about 6 years old, and had been living in the snow belt since new, I tried to jack it up using the rocker panel 'sockets' that you were supposed to insert the jack piece into. As I pumped the jack, the rocker panel just collapsed where the socket was, the wheels staying on the ground. Not too-much for structural integrity. VW's were also notorious for shedding their seats from the floor in the event of an accident.

Considering the Mustang was made from Falcon and Fairlane/Comet underpinnings, it really was a gift to the bottom line at Ford. They never had any idea it was going to be so-popular. It was a 1964-1/2 at its release, and by the time the 1966 models came out, I think it sold 600,000 over that mid-year launch, and the 1965 production. The original design was supposed to be a car capable of lasting 6 years, and Iacocca enlisted Carroll Shelby to put some excitement into the line, using the 271 HP 'high-po' (high performance) 289 V8 fastback as the base. A new carb, manifold, and cam, and it made 306 HP. Good luck finding one of those under $100,000 today.

We lived about 1/2 mile from a Ford dealership, and we kids were always going through their trash and scrap pile looking for cool stuff. I salvaged lots of filmstrips they showed to the sales force pointing out how to sell their products, and how to point out the competition's faults. We used to take the mechanics' discards and disassemble them to see how they worked. When we moved, all that stuff got thrown-out. I recall the dealership's windows covered with kraft paper until the release date, and then there would be crowds of people coming to the dealership to see the new models revealed. New models were a big deal in the 1950's and 1960's. Now, they already have some "2017" models out. What's up with that? We barely got to April!

 

[SpecOps13]

I had a VW Coupe in the 1970's. Best thing I ever got rid of. POS in my opinion....:clapping:

 

[caseyjones955]

They are ingenious creations. Ive done a few baja bugs and drove a Meyers Manx daily for a few years in the Seattle area. They have their quirks for certain but they were deceptively capable offroad and could take abuse like no other as long as you didnt hit anything big. My biggest concern about having one today would be the lack of safety equipment. One of the perks was that anything that could break cost $7.95 and takes 20 minutes to R&R. Most people love em' or hate em' and there are lots of good reasons for either position but nobody can deny their place in automotive history. I would still like to have a Notchback, Half Cab bus, Thing, Baja or Ghia if the above mentioned safety concerns weren't an issue.

 

[tinman22]

Does anybody else find it ironic that a bunch of people who ride around on over powered, I'll handling, under braked motorcycles are talking about how unsafe Even a bug is? I've been in 4 bike crashes, iveco produce truck vs 81 gpz1100, Cadillac alante vs Honda cb500, Chrysler town and country vs Suzuki vx800, Honda cr500 vs Barnstable squad car. I would have preferred the bug on all occasions . :rofl_200:

 

[forestdaledave]

I love the old Bugs, quietly known as German Road Oilers. Didn't need many tools. I had a 58 convert modified. 67 engine converted to 12v, latter transaxle, welded a new floor pan in it, Porsche seats and Porsche 356 B brakes on the corners. I also had a 66 with a 67 engine, lightened 200mm bus flywheel, ported headsl, 300 CFM carb. extractor and more.
There is so much available speed parts for them. Great engine, run all day wide open.

 

[blaxmax]

Never needed cooling and design helped by mr. Hitler.http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20130830-the-nazi-car-we-came-to-love

 

[Fire-medic]

And a top speed of 72 mph, for the 1200's, less in a van. What can you expect for 19 RWHP? They were also known for burning the exhaust valves if they weren't checked regularly. A relatively cheap vehicle for the times, but the late 1960's Toyotas and Datsuns were a big wake-up call for the VW nation.

 

[caseyjones955]

Pre 69 models had the oil cooler inside the doghouse so the air over cyl 3 (IIRC) was hotter and allowed the exh valve in that cyl to burn. These things run hot anyway in spite of low compression. After 69 they mounted the cooler offset and outside the doghouse with its very own shroud which resolved this problem. If maintenance is done on time they should last until you and several future owners just get sick of driving it. I always set intakes to .004 and exhausts to .005 or .006 depending on application. I mercilessly ran the living snott out of them in offroad applications and found them beautifully reliable.

Now it's common for a rail to run high HP v8, If I were to do a rail I would run right on back to the beautiful air cooled VW, 1776 or 1835cc with Porsche dog house and linkage, I did a 1910 and heat management became an issue. You dont need to much raw power when a fully assembled engine weighs in at around 225 lbs. It would still make the hair on the back of your neck stand up if dialed in right. I have a ton of respect for this light simple mill and the whole car really.

Air cooling comes with it's own set of drawbacks for sure but cheap water cooled vehicles sure proved more user friendly and efficient for most. It's time has come and gone for daily drivers I'm afraid.

 

[Fire-medic]

Yeah, that's the one that was prone to 'cook.' It happened to our '62, after about 5 years, and my dad took care of our cars pretty-well.

I liked the 1192 engines for reliability, otherwise. They were overdriven in 4th gear, so top speed and max cruising speed were the same. I never had a sand bug, but I had friends who did, they loved them. A couple had dune buggies, and they always were having fun, too. A friend had one of the 1929 M-B SSK kits, I helped him to buy an abandoned project for cheap, and was able to get it going for him, but didn't have a garage to work on it, so he took it to a shop and got it squared-away. It needed a lot as the 'builder' was not a mechanic, and I wouldn't have driven it w/o going thru it front-back to see what was butchered. He kept it for awhile and sold it for his cost, fixed, and that was that. The only one of those things I liked was the Speedster one, which was licensed from VW and was built in Miami FL. They had a showroom in N Miami, and had one about 50' in the air on a platform next to the Palmetto (Bug) Expressway for years, until they closed-up.

Pre 69 models had the oil cooler inside the doghouse so the air over cyl 3 (IIRC) was hotter and allowed the exh valve in that cyl to burn. These things run hot anyway in spite of low compression. After 69 they mounted the cooler offset and outside the doghouse with its very own shroud which resolved this problem. If maintenance is done on time they should last until you and several future owners just get sick of driving it. I always set intakes to .004 and exhausts to .005 or .006 depending on application. I mercilessly ran the living snott out of them in offroad applications and found them beautifully reliable.

Now it's common for a rail to run high HP v8, If I were to do a rail I would run right on back to the beautiful air cooled VW, 1776 or 1835cc with Porsche dog house and linkage, I did a 1910 and heat management became an issue. You dont need to much raw power when a fully assembled engine weighs in at around 225 lbs. It would still make the hair on the back of your neck stand up if dialed in right. I have a ton of respect for this light simple mill and the whole car really.

Air cooling comes with it's own set of drawbacks for sure but cheap water cooled vehicles sure proved more user friendly and efficient for most. It's time has come and gone for daily drivers I'm afraid.