Tabla de contenidos para Autumn 2019 en VolksWorld

I got my '65 Beetle in 2010 (when I was 24) and I was planning on doing massive modifications to it. However, when I got the car home my father, who is a mechanic and served his time on Beetles, advised me to leave it as it was because it was so original. It’s an Irish car, with stamped Irish glass, so I did enough to it to make it safe on the road and that's all. For my 30th birthday, Nadine, (my now wife), got me a two-year subscription to VolksWorld and was inspired by reading the restoration series on Lloyd Jackson's maroon Split. In fact, I was so in awe of what the boys had done, having got engaged in 2016, I though I'd rebuild my car. Predicting…

Andy Wilkins, 1955 Oval Window Beetle My Oval was shipped to California in September 1955 and was imported into the UK around 25 years ago. I purchased it a couple of years later and having carried out a mild restoration have been keeping it alive ever since. Luckily, it’s still got its original wings, you can tell by the shape which kicks back at the bottom, and I’ve also got the ‘bullet’ style front indicators. The suspension has been lowered a little, it has Porsche Speedster 356A drums, 356 steel wheels and is powered by a 1972 1600cc campervan engine, complete with a Type 2 gearbox. I have also fitted twin carburettors, just to make it run a little better. When I bought it 22 years ago, the original seats…

When Michael Spiessens called to ask if he might be able to exhibit a car at The VolksWorld Show, we were keen to see exactly what he had in mind this time. You see, Michael is a long term VW fan and is no stranger to the world of show (or indeed, ‘go’!) vehicles, which he builds at his workplace, Auto Service Spiessens, with the help of his wife, Dorothee. As you’ve probably worked out by now, Dorothee is also a serious VW fan; but that’s not all – she’s also a dab hand with a spanner or even a paint gun, for that matter. What we have here is the ultimate VW duo – a married couple with the passion, vision and skills to assemble some pretty awesome projects.…

Many of us fantasize about high power VWs. Yet, chasing more horsepower is often at the expense of reliability, which is why the best engine builders need to find the right balance between power and dependability – a delicate exercise! Sure, many gearheads have managed to adapt drag-only motors in alleged ‘street cars’; however, merely getting around the block before losing parts or going ‘bang’ might be all these rides will accomplish. The Hot Rod Drag Week – hosted by Hot Rod magazine – was conceived to demonstrate that some vehicles can cross the quarter-mile finish line at mind-boggling speeds, whilst remaining reliable over long distances. Enthusiasts love the concept… It puts an end to the eternal internet conversations, starting with: “My car is fasters than yours”; followed by: “Your…

Although this cool Mexi-Bug now belongs to Leigh Stanway from Stoke on Trent, it first came to our attention when it was assembled by Max Edwards of EVA Resto. Max has been forging a name for himself in recent years based upon his alternative take on stanced air-cooled VWs and his expertly-assembled air ride kits. And, with a collection of trophies behind him plus a number of EVA-built cars on the show circuit, Max has continued to keep things fresh by assembling a string of Beetles, which has included a number of Mexican-built examples. Down Mexico way So, why the Mexi-Bug thing? Well, Max has always tried to work outside the box, so to speak and, given the success of his first late-model project, it’s almost become a bit of…

October Dubs in t’ Dales Date: 4-6 Oct 2019 Location: Camp Katur, Bedale, N Yorks Contact: www.dubsintdales.co.uk Oktoberfest Date: 4-6 Oct 2019 Location: River Dart Country Park, Devon Contact: www.oktoberfestuk.com November Herman’s Halloween Campout Date: 1-3 Nov 2019 Location: Newark Showground, Newark NG24 2NY Contact: www. hermannshalloween.co.uk Slough Swapmeet Date: 10 Nov 2019 Location: Newbury Racecourse, RG14 7PN Contact: sloughswapmeet.co.uk Brighton Breeze Date: 4-5 Oct 2019 Location: Brighton Contact: www.brightonbreeze.co.uk Get some nice weather and you’re guaranteed a lovely day by the sea at the Split Screen Van Club’s annual Brighton Breeze. To make the most of the weekend, hook up with fellow enthusiasts at Hook Road in Epsom on Friday 4th, camp overnight, then join a mega convoy to Brighton to arrive at around 10.30 on Saturday morning. Park…

I must admit, I’ve always had a bit of a thing for sticking with a paint colour that Volkswagen bestowed upon a car; I’ve also owned a few cars that I wish had left the factory in a different hue, but I love my vehicles to wear original paint. That’s not to say I’m not blown away by a really well restored car and I have to admit, I’d happily give Marcel’s Cab a home. Unlike many of us, who tend to dream about owning cars built to this standard, Marcel is a guy who gets things done – he also owns a super-cool original paint T34 Karmann (to be featured in a future issue of VolksWorld) and a cool ’71 Bay Window. “The car had been wrecked in the…

So you’ve replaced the track rod-ends, drag link and centre pin on your Bay, but the steering wheel still feels about as positive as a ship’s wheel. Things are not looking too hopeful for the steering box, but before you dive in and incur great expense, let’s try the steering column bushes first. Our project ’73 Westy was similarly afflicted; when we purchased the Bus it had around 5in of play at the steering wheel, which would represent an MOT failure. Despite changing all the suspension and steering components, we were still left with a lot of play, so it was time to order more parts and get the tools out. 01 Order bits / undo battery clamp In order to change the steering column top bush, you will need…

“as time went by, the car’s evolution showed the degree of autonomy that has always been apparent at the Sao Paolo plant” I’ve always been a fan of the VWs produced in South America. If I had to choose between Mexico and Brazil, it would be the latter for me, simply because of the sometimes quirky, but always practical, designs, and the way the Sao Paolo factory adapted the standard German formats. It was exactly 60 years ago, in 1959 – two years after Sao Paolo began production of the Kombi – that the Beetle was introduced to the production lines. Known right from the start by the vernacular name Fusca, it must have been the ideal vehicle of mass transport in that developing, and still largely intractable country. With…

RM Sotheby's (rmsothebys.com) have been at the heart of most of the auction action, it seems. At their Monterey, California sale on 15-17 August a rather special 1977 Beetle (above) was sold for a mildly extortionate $61,600 (£50,300). Saying that, it had just 128 original miles on the clock and came with a fully documented history. The accompanying paperwork confirms it was delivered to the wonderfully-named Pete Lovely Volkswagen on July 26, 1977 where it duly got its 'Another Lovely Volkswagen' dealer sticker. It had been specified with an optional sunroof, leatherette upholstery, chrome wheels, radial tyres and carried a $3,949 pricetag. The car never had a chance to sell, though, as it went directly into Lovely’s private collection. And there it remained until 2013, accruing just 87 miles in…

Back in the day I loved nothing more than opening the sunroof on my first Beetle and cruising around town at pretty much any given opportunity. And, as that car was my daily driver, there was always an opportunity to make the most of a ride out. Later I got into the show scene and found that I loved getting up at the crack of dawn to polish my car in the hope of picking up a trophy at a VW event somewhere. By this point my VW was a second car, but I still loved driving it to shows and to local club meets and the like. Some time later I became more interested in drag racing, but only at a run what ya brung level. In short, it…

The VW scene is in a funny place at the minute. Values of what was originally intended to be the peoples’ car have skyrocketed beyond belief, especially those of pristine early examples. First time drivers who want an affordable daily to cut their teeth on now increasingly find themselves being forced into modern Citroën, Fiat and Ford city cars as most can no longer afford to buy, fix and insure something even as humble as a base model 1200 Beetle. It’s even worse if you want a decent example of VW’s box on wheels… Old lags blame the rising values on fresh blood coming into the scene and pushing the prices up. And to some extent they’re right, because there are two distinct groups of VW owners these days –…

It’s been a tradition since the 1980s: Southern California has been a hotbed of Volkswagen activities in the month of June, courtesy of a vast range of events. With the legendary VW Classic being cancelled for the first time this year since its inception in ’84, the El Prado Show & Shine has de facto become the new ‘place to be’, due in part of its great venue and the support of the local VW community. Other events spread over 10 days entice enthusiasts to travel from everywhere around the world to participate in this friendly mayhem. The programme includes a Split Bus and a vintage VW meet (respectively hosted by OCTO and the Rare Vintage Air clubs), a Cars & Coffee get-together, along with the Bug-In and the DKP…

“Yearly output fell from thousands to just hundreds until, in 1984, the company managed to churn out a meagre 33 cars” The ease with which you can pull a Volkswagen body off its chassis and replace it with something, well, a little less Bug- or box-shaped has meant that people and companies have been creating sportier VW variants almost since VWs were born. Within a year of the Type 1’s official launch in May 1938, Ferdinand Porsche had knocked together the Type 64 Rekordwagen, an unadulterated Beetle-based sports car intended for the 1939 Berlin to Rome race (had not WW2 inconveniently got in the way). Postwar, the first Porsche 356s drew heavily on VW underpinnings. Then there was Karmann, Hebmüller, Dannenhauer & Strauss, Rometsch, Beutler, Chesil… all firms that had…