International Vintage Volkswagen Forums

Hi,

I am looking to purchase a split window beetle, a 1949 is what i want although i will consider '50-'52 if price is right. All i seem to find are running or fully restored cars for sale, im finding it difficult to find any that need a full body off resto. Im a compotent (well id like to think so) welder and also quite good at paint spraying, and it is a challenge i am after. I love taking cars ready for the scrap yard and turning them into concourse beauties. the potential cars i have seen have been on ebay, but as you know prices on ebay are either stupidly over price or so good they are sold before u even hear of them.

i am perpared to travel to germany, austria etc to find a car,as i think it may be my only hope!? but dont like the idea of a headless goose chase in a forign country. So if you know of anybody selling a rusty '49 old dog please let me know. [email protected] or 07796160244

Thanks for your time. Lee Ivatt. North essex.

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Hi Lee,
Welcome to the forum.
Owen Warlow in Kent is a good contact for the sort of split you're after.
He ships cars over from Europe and can probably find you something to fit the bill.

His phone number is in the attached thread.

https://forums.pre67vw.co.uk/viewtopic.aspx?forum=search&topic=3128 

😃

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hi

yes thanks for pointing me in owens direction. i am talking to him at the mo so fingers crossed he can help.

kind regards lee ivatt

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Thinking about it, I cant remember the last time I saw a 40's beetle in very rough shape for sale? They are pretty much always restored already these days with a minimum £10k+ price tag.
Whereas 50+ beetles still come up unrestored and unwelded for reasonable money ie. under £5k. I guess this just highlights the very turning point of the successful export deluxe car becoming available 49-50.

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Yes ive found that out very quickly! I remember when i was in my mid teens when i fell in love with that split window. if only id had the money then to buy one, bet there were a few more '49's around then!!? I bought an orange 1971 1200 for £450, that was all my money gone. Still i did a lot of work to it, and it sold for £2500 when i needed something more reliable, and anyway what a first car to have!! Better than all my mates in micras,novas and fiestas and those bloody saxos.haha

Anyway ive emailed Owen again (probably getting annoyed by now!) I guess he is very busy at mo, but im sure you can understand, im so close to the posibility of owning a split, its been 10ish years since i fell in love with them and im finially so close to realising my dream.

Also do you know if there is some sort of beetle dead/alive database id love to find out if my old bug is still going(or not!)? And if you know anyone who wants to buy my fully restored concourse 1985 Series 1 Rs Turbo £6000 ono. 200bhp and a head turner, you sould see the look on subaru impreza drivers faces when theyre left in the rear view mirror at the lights buy a 21 year old escort! Anyway like i said im selling her, time to mellow down into a slow and low split 😃

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Enter the registration and make on here and you can see if it's taxed.

vehicle enquiry... 

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Hi six-o-one

wow, didnt know it was that easy. yes my old girl is still taxed till 05/2007 nice to know all that welding paid off!

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Lee,
Instead of restoring a rare, '49 split window beetle and lowering it, why not find one that's already been lowered? Perhaps a rat-look split which you could add you own personallity to.

😃

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Give Volksaholics a call, (seriously) they had a advert in Volksworld last month and it said breaking a 1947, although i took this as a typo as thought it must have meant 1974. It may have been right.

Theres a 47 on the samba, about £13K (not bad) will save you a lot of money finding those rare floorpans and heater channels, there a different shape on early cars (i'll probably stand corrected)

Andy

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No thanks! i specifically want a car that is not on the road and needs a full resto! as i said i can weld, spray paint and dont want to take on someone elses 'project'. Id neva spend 10-15k on a car, im more used to spending £500-£2000 and turning it into a car thats worth 5-7K. that what all the funs about.

although i like the rat look thing. i prefer beautiful mile deep glossy paint although i do have a thing for matt black aswell.

thanks for you comments but in no exactly what i want and i will get it!

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You are unlikely to find a any Split project for the sort of money you're talking about. Even if you do, it will be incredibly rusty with most of the hard to find Split parts missing. Finding the correct parts to complete it will cost you an arm and a leg.
If you are looking for an early Split, good luck in your quest!! There's very few of them left in the world and restoration projects (when they do come out of the woodwork), will cost you well above your budget.

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Exactly right. There is no way (unless you luck out) you will find a split like that, in complete condition, without tremendous rust issues, for that kind of money.

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I've seen a few split projects for that kind of money (a '51 on Kieft en klock a short while ago for £2k), of course they need huge amounts of work and have many parts missing - but I read it as thats the kind of project he wants. He can weld and paint, get it on the road with oval/60's parts and start having fun. Then start collecting correct parts (avoiding eBay's and theSamba's ridiculous prices) and pretty soon he'll have a very nice ride.

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How about this for £2400...

https://www.bugnet.de/markt/marktbild.pl?22447   5095.jpg You have insufficient rights to see the content.

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Cheers Rob at least someone understands what im looking for!
I dont see why 2k is an unrealistic initial purchase price. and as you quite rightly say i can use oval parts and adapt later bits. its that back split window that im after not fancy bits of concourse trim that cost "an arm and leg".
thanks for the info and picture on the car, i might well be tempted. and Mr Oakley, yes i do love my welder, if you had have seen my 1985 rs turbo when i bought it there was more rust than metal. I know original panels are hard/expensive to find but in my book why do that when a bit of sheet metal is just as good if not even better and looks no different when painted/waxoiled!?
Any way id just like to thank everyone for their points of view, it all helps, after all if i can keep one more split from going the the scrap yard in the sky then surley that cant be bad. Please keep letting me know about splits 4 sale, i will get one.

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There's a '51 3-fold split which need a lot of work for £3K...

Volkszone ad 

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I do appreciate your plan Lee, and yes lots of later parts can be used to get it on the road, but I found & bought my cheap body which was at the time a surprise xmas gift for someone else 😶 :roll: And then eventually after a saga got the car back and after much deliberation decided to do it myself for the hell of it, rather than just sell it on after all the trouble.
But I have had so much enjoyment out of the work so far without ever having an engine in it! I have however changed my original plan of using later parts ( except the bonnet) But the parts are EXPENSIVE!!
There is no profit in restoring beetles...at all, zero, in fact -zero! :lol:
And if you cobble a car together with later parts, even oval, you will get a very low price for the finished car, because it will be a bitza.

People who sell 40's beetles are generally very concerned with whats going to happen to them. It's not all about money. Thats beetles for you !
😃

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I agree 100%

The fun is in the driving, not trying to make any money...

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I agree too but I seem to spend most of my weekends lying under a 1960 beetle!

I told myself that I should stay away from 'projects' and my next purchase should be a low mileage 1970 1500 one owner beetle, then the 1958 std beetle project turned up and everything changed! :?

It would be nice to have all 6 on the road one day. :shock:

Some words of wisdom which I have always ignored "buy a house you can't aford to live in, and drive a car you can aford to give away"

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Lee,

this one may be worth a look!

Cheers
Kev

https://www.volkszone.com/VZi/showthread.php?t=269324