Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2019 i VolksWorld

This is the time to look for a new project. Something to really get stuck into while the weather’s pants and before the show season kicks in and swallows up all your free weekends. And while on your search for a possible candidate, you’ll have a hell of a lot of fun trawling the classifieds. In fact, it’s something I do all the time when looking for a feeble excuse to exit magazine editing mode for a moment. You might recall I’ve been after a Squareback. Well, I was sorely tempted by a 1970 Regatta Blue project I spotted on eBay for £2,995. Described as being a North American import it looked pretty good, was all there and the chrome on the bumpers looked like it could easily be revived.…

As I type this I’m also collating a folder of show car entries for the 2019 VolksWorldShow in readiness for the ‘final selection’ meeting with Ian in a couple of weeks. I’m really impressed by both the quality and also the quantity of entry vehicles, however this also leaves me feeling a little uncomfortable. The reason for this is that there will inevitably be a number of vehicle owners who will be disappointed in a few weeks time – and that’s certainly not because there’s anything about the car(s) that isn’t bang on or worthy of being shown off… it’s quite literally a space issue. Don’t get me wrong, Sandown Park is a huge site and, looking at the floor plan I have in front of me, I know we…

“There are less ’67 Double Cab Pick-Ups still rolling around than there are Barndoor Sambas” To long-term readers of VolksWorld and regular visitors to our Sandown Park Show, the name Marco de Waal will immediately ring a bell. He’s twirled spanners on more top 20 trophy winners and feature cars than we have space to mention. Which is probably more than okay with him, because Marco’s the modest, down to earth type who doesn’t go in for trumpet blowing. So we’ll blow it for him by saying that the first car he brought to the VolksWorld Show back in 2012, literally blew everyone’s socks clean off. It was a super clean and super low Jeans Beetle that went on to be a heavy hitter on the European show scene, before…

“billed as the 45-day wonder, John put the hours in and completed the first one in just 26 days” Whether you’re a USA resident or not, one name that comes up a lot when it comes to high-quality VW restorations carried out in a timely manner is Kustom Coach Werks (KCW ) in Grand Junction, Colorado. With a worldwide customer base and the average full restoration project only taking between one to six months, it’s worth bearing KCW in mind if you’re in a hurry for your next project. I first learned about KCW back in 2003; John Jones had set up KCW in Grand Junction after having a couple of his previous VW builds featured in magazines. The way that John decided to promote his new business was unique…

“That Luigi Segre sent Virgil Exner one of the first Karmann Ghias imported into the United States suggested he realised there was a debt to pay” Back in 1960, Volkswagen released print and TV adverts trumpeting the newly enlarged rear window that had replaced the previous oval shape on the Beetle. Under the headline, ‘The famous Italian designer suggested one change,’ part of the copy pointed out that ‘Some time ago, we called in a world-famous Italian body designer and we asked him what changes he would recommend in the design of the Volkswagen. He studied it and studied it. Then he said “Make the rear window larger.” “That’s all?” “That’s all.”’ So Volkswagen did precisely that on the 1958 Beetle, its rectangular back screen increasing the glass area by…

2019 February Dubfreeze Date:16-17 Feb 2019 Location:Bingley Hall, Staffs County Showground ST18 0BD Contact:www.dubfreeze.co.uk March UK Cruise to Ninove Date: 16 March 2019 Location: Meet at Eurotunnel Contact: @ukcruisetoninove Freddy Files Date: 17 March 2019 Location: Ninove, Belgium Contact: @thesexysemaphoresunday The VolksWorldShow Date:23-24 March 2019 Location:Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey Contact:www.volksworldshows.com April CamperFest Date:18-22 April 2019 Location:Chester Racecourse Contact:www.camperfest.co.uk Dubs Collective Dubs in Wonderland Date:19-22 April 2019 Location:Himley Hall, Dudley DY3 4DF Contact:www.dubscollective.com Run a show? Why not tell us about it? email VolksWorld.ed@kelsey.co.uk…

23-24 March 2019 – Sandown Park, Esher Sponsored by Carole Nash, Meguiar’s, CamperVanTastic and Heritage Parts Centre MID-ENGINED MASTERPIECE Join us in commemorating the 50th anniversary of the VW/ Porsche 914 – the car that formally re-established the link between Volkswagen and the genius who designed the Beetle. We’ll have several of the very best UK examples on display, telling the story of the 914’s gradual transformation into the much hairier Porsche-powered 914/6. KIDS’ ZONE TheVolksWorldShow isn’t just for adults, it’s an occasion for all the family and this year as usual we’ve got a fantastic Kids’ Zone for children to enjoy. If you’re looking for somewhere for your kids to let off some steam, play games or even have their faces painted then our Kids’ Zone is the perfect…

“few Dauphines have survived in North America” Once the dust of WW2 settled, Volkswagen got serious about taking over the world, exporting its Beetles and Buses to countless countries. The United States was obviously a market of interest due to its sheer size, though convincing customers proved challenging at first due to the stigma of the war – establishing VW of America in 1955 certainly helped the company’s mission. Other European car manufacturers took notice of Volkswagen’s success; hence several of them gave the US market a shot as well during the second half of the ’50s. Small packs of Austin A40s, Morris Minors and Hillman Minxes in particular crossed the Atlantic, although their commercial success remained marginal at best. The Brits weren’t the only ones interested in a share…

“Laurent realised that it was the Cal Look that appealed most, and he began to research the history, the clubs and the cars” In Cal Look circles there are some that prefer the earlier, first generation DKP style of cars, which generally included side trim etc, while others feel the DKP 2 generation (i.e. nose down and de-chromed) is perhaps the purest or more iconic style of California Look cars. Laurent Challes may not have grown up in California – he’s from Savigné de Courcelles – but he is one of the most hardcore Cal Look enthusiasts you’re likely to meet and, having already put-together a nice old-school style car, he decided it was time to start over and build himself a more serious second-generation DKP style car based upon…

There was a time when Southend was considered to be something of a VW Mecca and you could regularly find cool VWs cruising the so-called Golden Mile at the weekend. Then, as the boy racer movement began to take over, the vibe slowly changed and ‘cruises’ became ‘gatherings’ and that sadly led to unruly behaviour by a small group of idiots who were intent on street racing and burnouts. This led to bad press and public outrage, which in turn led to the local council banning vehicle cruises and gatherings entirely just a couple of years ago. Yes, that’s right, if you turned up with a couple of friends, you could technically be moved along by the Police. However, to be fair, it was really just a preventative measure put…

With the UK’s departure date from the European Union looming, the classic car scene faces an uncertain future in the light of a potential no deal, ‘off the cliff’ exit strategy. And we expect that uncertainty to hit values of high end air-cooled Volkswagens. At a recent Bonhams auction, only 64 per cent of the cars on pre-sale listing actually sold, with pundits suggesting that the biggest market fallers are cars at the more affluent end of the market. Whether that’s good news or bad depends whether you’re buying or selling. Perhaps it indicates that the speculators are leaving the marketplace, shifting the demographic to one that’s enthusiast-led once again rather than investment driven. One thing’s for sure, though. With the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, more purchases are being made at…

How old were you when you built your first air-cooled project? And now think about that project for a minute… how did it turn out? Now, many people of ‘my generation’ (i.e. considerably older than Josh) probably did own or build an air-cooled car at the age of 18, but I’m pretty sure that most of those vehicles didn’t turn out quite as nice as this Squareback. The younger readership are more likely to have started out with a cheap water-cooled car of some description though, partly due to financial restraints (air-cooled cars are considerably more expensive to buy and to repair these days), hence it takes an immense commitment and a lot of personal and financial sacrifice to even consider owning the most basic of classic VWs today. Therefore,…

I recently reported on some buying and selling madness, where my ’67 1500 Beetle went to a new home and I bought and sold a couple of other cars, in order to purchase a new to me ’71 Bus and a daily driver. As the last feature went to print, I acquired a lovely Mk5 Golf GTI with the DSG gearbox, as I’d wanted one for a while. Only a couple of weeks later though, as I was heading to the airport to fly to Thailand on holiday, a good friend in Norway alerted me to an advert for the 1972 Single Cab pickup you see here. Those that know me well will know I have a bit of a thing for Single Cabs, having owned a ’74 widebed and…