Affordable Classic Volkswagen

After the big success of the Volkswagen Beetle in theThing may increase in the future but not that high.
1960s, the German automaker has resurrected theRegardless, in an era of $25,000 Fiat Jollys, the Thing is
idea of an on-and off-road car and christened it thestill one of the best and economical ways of cruising
Type 181 “Thing”. The “thing” was inspiredthe beach.
by the World War II Type 82 Kübelwagen and wasYears Produced: 1969-78 (officially imported to US
updated using the Beetle baseline engine and running1973-74)
gear but this time with a beefier Transporter/MicrobusOriginal List Price: $2,750
suspension.Tune-up Cost: $95
Also along the lines of the Kübelwagen was itsDistributor Caps: $7
Dumpsteresque yet practical styling. Its simple doorsChassis # Location: Stamped on the forward body lip
and standard soft top is easy to remove while itsin the trunk
windshield can be folded flat. The rear-engine,Engine # Location: Stamped on block underneath the
rear-wheel drive car was rugged and well suited foralternator
worst conditioned roads.Club Info: W Type 181 Thing Registry, SE 700
The “Thing” was first built in 1969 and wasCrescent Drive, Shelton, WA 98584
offered in the US until 1973. It is powered by aWeb Site:
standard Beetle 1584-cc air-cooled flat four-cylinderAlternatives: Ford Bronco, Toyota Land Cruiser (first
engine with 46 chirping horsepower, and coupled to aseries), Meyers Manx
four-speed manual transmission. Its first year in the US,The Company Volkswagen
the Thing was offered in Blizzard White, SunshineVolkswagen is an automobile manufacturer based in
Yellows and Pumpkin Orange.Wolfsburg, Germany. It forms the core of the
By the year 1974, the Thing got a slight boost in powerVolkswagen Group and ranked fourth as world’s
from 46bhp to 55 bhp. Other improvements arelargest car producer after GM, Toyota and Ford.
notable from its side scoops instead of flush slottedVolkswagen means “peoples’ car” in
vents in the rear quarter panels. The most desired trimGerman. Its German tagline is "Aus Liebe zum
package was called the “Acapulco”, andAutomobil" which when translated means "For the love
featured a bikini top and blue-and-white striped vinylof the car" - or, "For Love of the People's Cars".
seats. The option list includes a fiberglass hard top withFor the 20th century, Volkswagen is considered an
solid door windows, luggage racks, air conditioning andicon due mainly to its expertise in creating legendary
a padded roll cage. US sales were discontinued aftercars. The German automaker’s The beetle is
1974, while sales in Mexico continued until 1978.considered to be the best-selling car of all time. And
The Thing has a small but faithful legion of followers.that’s not all even its Volkswagen bus was
One problem encountered with the Thing is in terms ofconsidered a symbol of a generation.
its Panels. Its uni-body seems to be the most difficultVolkswagen’s Golf is deemed by many as a
part to track down since rustkübels are rare.modern masterpiece. Only very few car
Likewise, poor insulation which led to snow-countrymanufacturers can parallel such remarkable creations
interior temperatures reminiscent of the Shackletonof the largest German automaker.
expedition's igloos, kept many of them off salty winterVolkswagen was born in an era considered to be the
roads.period for the privilege few and it is for this reason that
Volkswagen’s Thing is not all that bad; its extremeFerdinand Porsche founder of Volkswagen has
commonality of functional parts like for example itsconceived the idea of creating a people’s car. His
Volkswagen brake caliper, with Beetle adds up to itsmain objective is to provide a great number of
quality as a vehicle. Aside from parts it also sharesGermans with a reliable transport at prices that are
some Bug’s qualities such as air-cooled reliabilitywithin their reach.
and ease of repair parts and parcel makes it theThe Beetle which is a favorite car of all times was
stepchild of one of the best selling cars in the world. Inproduced in the year 1948 together with other 25,000
the Southwestern states, it is very easy andvehicles. But during that time only two Beetles were
convenient to rebuild an engine all one has to do is toproduced and were shipped to the USA. A year later
walk along the side of any road for about ten miles,another remarkable coupe the Karmann convertible
gather some parts and viola!—one engine ready towas produced which became the world’s
go.best-selling convertible. To cut the story short,
The growing craze over the New Beetle hasVolkswagen from an auto company grows to
somewhat affected the Thing prices. But that didn’tbecoming a world corporation building factories and
completely diminish the interest of the public in variousworking communities in countries like Brazil, United
oddball cars of the 70’s like for example Gremlins,States and Canada. The German automaker has also
Pacers, etc. as a fact it has even helped boost themade working communities in major centres in
Thing price. Quality Things are available in pricesWestern Europe.
ranging from $2,600 to $4,800. As a gauge of theIn the alst fifteen years of the millennium Volkswagen
lower end of the market, a non-running #4 1974 Thinghas surfaced as a true global force in the auto industry
with hard top but no title was recently sold at aespecially when it acquired famous names such as
Midwest estate auction for $1,600. The pricing of theAudi, SEAT, Skoda, and Lamborghini.