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chrisbug91
12 years ago
Just spotted this on the Split Screen Van Club site thought people on here might be intrested if you haven't already spotted it. Looks to be more rumour than fact at the moment.

https://www.ssvc.org.uk/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90562&start=90 

A couple of months ago I got word of the amazing discovery of a super early bus, in a private collection somewhere deep in the heart of Germany, I did some more research and unravelled that the bus in question wasn’t your ordinary 1950 panel van with no rear window and vertical spare wheel 😉 it was in fact an even earlier model!! I am lead to believe that the bus is a pre-production 1948 window model, with a chassis number of just 0004!! If this is the case, the bus will undoubtedly be one of the prototype versions that were built, tested and developed by Volkswagen before ”barn doors” went into production in March 1950. If it turns out to be the real deal, my only concern is that even when these prototypes were new, they were lacking terribly in of strength and stability, some of them even snapped in half when laden with weight in the load bay areas!! Can you imagine what sort of state the thing could be in now, 64 years on?!?!?!?

1975 1300 (1 family owned)
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chrisbug91
12 years ago
I am not that clued up on type 2's but the little research I have done suggests that all the prototypes (type 29?) were made in 1949 not 1948, can anyone enlighten me on this?

If im honest I find it very hard to believe this exists, but im willing to eat my hat. It would be quite incredible if it has really been discovered after all these years.
1975 1300 (1 family owned)
zelensis61
12 years ago
I have no clue either, read the post also. But on the other hand. Nothing is impossible...
See what happend with 38/06...If someone whould have said 5 years ago...there is a prototype of the beetle found...Hmmm? :wink:

Let us hope it is true and there is a resto ... Let us hope it will be online

Fingers crossed for both.:smile:
ZELENSIS, coachbuilt body from the 50's on a vw platform made in Belgium. Peter the heb detective
Rich Oakley
12 years ago
I'm looking forward to more information on this!!

Chris, you are right, no buses were made in 1948, although manufacturing of the prototypes did start in late '48 with the first unit being completed in April 1949.
47 Beetle, 56 UK Karmann Cabriolet, 56 UK Beetle, 57 UK Type 2, 59 UK Beetle, 66 UK Fastback.
wolfsburgvw
12 years ago
ive been informed this is a load of bull.we shall see.
chrisbug91
12 years ago
Thanks for that Rich.

I have to agree im highly sceptical, I think its one of those instances that no one will believe it until they see photographic proof that it exists. It just seems to be like chinese whispers at the moment, but like Zelensis61 said nobody would have believed VW38 would be found on a roof in eastern europe.
1975 1300 (1 family owned)
Rich Oakley
12 years ago

...but like Zelensis61 said nobody would have believed VW38 would be found on a roof in eastern europe.

chrisbug91 wrote:



It wasn't :wink:

VW38/06 was found in a field. A different KdF-wagen was found on a roof.
47 Beetle, 56 UK Karmann Cabriolet, 56 UK Beetle, 57 UK Type 2, 59 UK Beetle, 66 UK Fastback.
chrisbug91
12 years ago

It wasn't :wink:

VW38/06 was found in a field. A different KdF-wagen was found on a roof.

Rich Oakley wrote:



Of course it was, I got muddled up sorry. They are 10-a-penny now so its easy to do :wink:
1975 1300 (1 family owned)
Bjoern
12 years ago
Never say never. The grandfather of a member of our beetleclub was a baker from Wolfsburg. After the war, he had a 1946 beetle as a delivery car and after an accident in 1950, he got a pre-prduction bus. It was the legendary car with "Wolfsburger Delikatessen" letters at the side...

I also know pictures of pre-1950-build busses with an external fuel cab in the rear. They were delivered and sold to "Fleischhauer" which was the Volkswagen dealer in Cologne.

A couple of years ago, there was one Barndoor for sale in Düsseldorf Area. This car had also the external gascab in the rear. As far as I remember, this car was not a real prototype...
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