Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2021 i VolksWorld

It’s been a few months since we had James Russell’s street car on the cover of our March issue, so we thought it time to raise your heart rate again by looking at some of the other VWs in his mind-blowing toy box. I know, right? How can one guy have all the cool cars? It’s probably something to do with karma, because James really is a bloody nice bloke. This month’s venture into his garage uncovers not one, but two vintage Gas-class racers from America, including the 1954 Oval known as Stutt Bee, built by Audley Campbell. For now, though, we’ll focus on the one James considers finished of the two, the so-called SNG Bug. It may not be the better known of the two cars, but its appearance…

Toy Nomura Co., Tokyo, Japan, was founded in 1923 and used a trademark of T.N inside a diamond. In the 1950s and ’60s, it was of the largest toy manufacturers in Japan, and was still going strong in 1993, when it was bought by Hasbro, Inc. Like many other Japanese toy manufacturers, Toy Nomura produced toys for the American market, and used toy importers such as Cragstan, based in New York, to distribute them. This Toy Nomura VW convertible is perhaps the premier Japanese Volkswagen convertible collectable tin car. Produced only in limited numbers, and solely for the US market, it is a very rare find today, in any condition. When good examples do come up for sale, they typically sell for several thousand dollars. Even parts cars are pricey.…

EVENTS JULY BUG JAM 34 Date: 23-25 July 2021 Location: Santa Pod Raceway, Wellingborough, Northants NN29 7XA Contact: www.bugjam.co.uk MIGHTY DUB FEST Date: 26 July-1 Aug 2021 Location: Alnwick Castle, Alnwick, Northumberland NE66 1NB Contact: www.mightydubfest.com AUGUST TATTON PARK VW SHOW Date: 1 Aug 2021 Location: Tatton Park, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6QN Contact: www.vwnw.co.uk BEACH DUBBIN’ Date: 1 Aug 2021 Location: Southsea Common, Southsea, Portsmouth, Hampshire PO5 3SB Contact: www.beachdubbin.co.uk BRISTOL VOLKSFEST Date: 5-8 Aug 2021 Location: Birches Farm, Long Ashton, Bristol BS48 3RN Contact: www.bristolvolksfest.co.uk DUBS SOUTH CAMPOUT Date: 6-8 Aug 2021 Location: Lime Kiln Lane, Dean, Hampshire, SO32 1FY Contact: www.dubssouthcampout.co.uk VW T CHILL Date: 13*-15 Aug 2021 Location: Beaulieu Motor Museum, New Forest, Hants S042 7ZN Contact: www.beaulieu.co.uk *camping for pre-booked participants only – event only open…

Mention the words Baldwin Motion to a muscle car enthusiast and their eyes will widen and a smile will creep across their face. Brooklyn, New York’s Joel Rosen was the man behind Motion Performance, which quickly became well known across America as a purveyor of super performance cars that were terrors on the street and strip. These were the days when you could already buy high performance models from American car dealers across the States, but Rosen recognised there was a desire for more. Much more. Between 1967 and 1974, in partnership with Baldwin Chevrolet, Rosen and his team of mechanics took regular production cars and pumped them full of steroids, dyno tuned them and sent them back out the door to a willing line of customers, most of whom…

Cal Look and Old Speed. Now, if it had been a blend of Cal Look and German Look, or Cal Look and custom, it might not have worked, but there’s something about Cal Look and Old Speed that seem to complement each other. That’s not all though. Neither Cal Look cars nor Old Speed cars tend to run narrowed beams, at least no more narrowed than may be necessary to fit the front tyres neatly under the wings. Or, for the same reason, if dropped spindles are used, as they kick the front track out by just over half an inch each side. Perhaps I should re-phrase that then. You won’t see many traditional Cal Lookers with extreme front end narrowing, just as you’re not likely to see an Old…

Despite having spent 20 years pestering the previous owner to sell me this car, when it came time for me to start a new chapter in the story of this scruffy old 181, there was no sense of excitement or celebration, as it was a far sadder occasion than I’d ever imagined it would be. Reason being the car’s former owner was an old friend and local VW legend, Howard Dalton, who sadly passed away on July 28 2020. Howard was perhaps best known as the face behind Duck Racing, and the proprietor of Flat Four Engineering. He also drove the German Car Company Speedster in the ’90s and was renowned for building and maintaining numerous successful race cars – including Jolly Jim Warner’s Notchback. In fact, it was Jolly…

“What you’re looking at is 20 years of commitment, learning, hardgraft and broken gearboxes” Drag racing a Beetle isn’t for everyone. Show cars aren’t for everyone. So where do you stand with a drag racing show car then? Well, given this one is mind blowing, we’re gonna say it’s for everyone. Yes, my friend, even you. We know this because you’re passionate about Volkswagens, and passion is the only way something like this ever gets built. That, and a king’s ransom. The man with the passion, and a bank account begging for mercy, is Phil West, otherwise known as Phil ‘of the’ West. Don’t think for a second that this is a chequebook build though. What you’re looking at is 20 years of commitment, learning, hard graft and broken gearboxes.…

“I get so excited when an envelope of shiny new bolts arrives in the post,” laughs Adam Boodle as we stand on a beautiful south coast beach at sunset. It’s a statement that lends an insight into the psyche of the civil servant from Havant. Particularly throughout lockdown, tales of driveway and garage renovations have kept a huge number of people functioning, and given them something to focus upon and strive for during some pretty isolated times. Not that Adam’s ’73 Squareback is a total Covid car, you understand, but it has certainly come on leaps and bounds since Boris asked us all to stay at home. “Honestly, it was never meant to be this nice. I bought it simply as a tidy-up project in May 2017 after I had…

We have seen a lot of old racers, dragsters and even ex-rally VWs resurface in recent years, some as unrestored survivors, others revamped or sympathetically restored. Whichever route their owners take with them, there’s just something special about an old racer, evoking an air of retro cool that is hard to beat. However, not every one of them is a revamped original. Some are clones of well-known cars long since lost in the mists of time, others are modern recreations, based upon a classic theme, and that’s exactly what Dirk Pronk has achieved with his ’55 Oval. Dirk, his wife, Wendy, and two boys, Luke and Jens, are all big VW fans, and this isn’t Dirk’s first foray into the VW scene. His other car is a very nice Cal…

“the nice thing is visitors can enter the mall for free” For over 20 years, Southern California has been a hot bed of air-cooled Volkswagen activity during the month of June, with a series of different events stretched over two weekends and the week in between, making a trip to the Golden State all the more worthwhile for VW lovers. While the pandemic obviously threw a spanner into this well-oiled machine in 2020, as California has done rather well with its vaccination programme in recent months, several dates were able to return to the So-Cal calendar this June, though they were spread over three weekends this time, rather than the usual two. Understandably, this meant attendance was down a little, especially due to the presence of only a few out-of-state…