The classic Dune Buggy is a shape that was formed in the 1960s to liven up the bleh shape of a stock Beetle and allow bigger tires. People have been making Dune Buggies from Beetles forever and they normally look like a Meyers Manx, but today’s Buggy looks fresh and futuristic…or at least 90s futuristic. Looks good. Find this 1968 Volkswagen Beetle offered for $15,000 in Anaheim, CA via craigslist.
The seller of this next car describes it as a “dune buggy with doors” which is not entirely accurate. This is less a dune buggy and more a classic hot rod. The Maxi Taxi is a well known kit that adds pre-war 1930s styling to the rear engine Beetle and it would be more at home on the road with a Surfboard sticking out the window than on a dune somewhere in the desert. But wherever you drive this thing, it is cool. Find this 1970 Volkswagen Beetle Kit Car offered for $6,500 in Acampo, CA via craigslist.
I remember when seeing a Volkswagen Beetle with a Rolls Royce front end was both a novelty and interesting, but that was a long time ago. Today, seeing a stock Beetle is the oddity as many have been turned into Baja Bugs or El Caminos or whatever, like this next thing…which is…I’m not sure. Find this 1973 Volkswagen Beetle offered for $5500 in Massillon, OH via craigslist. Tip from Rock On!
Tipper Rock On sent this car in almost a month ago, and I’d mostly forgotten about it until I stumbled onto it in one of my late night peanut butter whiskey fueled search fests — and (this might be the Screwball talking) but I want this thing. Does it have an engine — naw! You can source your own. But it is a Volkaro, which is the Ferrari Dino-ish looking kit car from the twisted mind of some wannabe Bruce Myers. There isn’t much info available on the web when you search for Volkaro (DT’s article shows up 4th in the listings when you put the term “VOLKARO” into duckduckgo, for what it’s worth) but there is probably some guy living in the high desert that can tell you all about the genesis of the Volkaro and who built them and…but he doesn’t have the internet because he is afraid of getting COVID or the CIA in his computer. Anyway…you don’t need to know the history of Volkaro to know that you still should buy this 1966 Volkaro kit car offered for $2500 in Desert Hot Springs, CA via craigslist.
This might sound like a strange thing to say, but I’m going to say it anyway; This isn’t a bad looking Beetle based Bugatti kit car. I know that sounds crazy, but this thing isn’t bad looking, not just for a kit car, but for any car. I wouldn’t put it in the automotive hall of fame and I certainly want a better shot of the rear end…but for 50 Benjamins, this isn’t bad at all. Find this 1963 Volkswagen Beetle Kit Car offered for $5000 in Atlanta, GA via craigslist. Tip from Matt C.
I was wavering between featuring a derelict Valiant Wagon and a sub $2k BMW 5-series when my teenage kid found this next car and suggested that I feature it because “it is awesome”. That fact is undeniable, but it is also expensive and completely unpractical as a family commuter to do things like carpool to soccer practice and all of the things normal people do with cars. But this isn’t a site for normal people, and Friday the 13th fell on a Saturday this month (today!), so enjoy this Subaru powered 1973 Volkswagen Baja Beetle offered for $18,900 buy-it-now or make offer in New Smyrna Beach, FL via ebay.
In all my years to automotive meandering, I’ve never owned a Beetle. But if I did, it would look something like this next thing. I don’t mind the drop spindle look, the roof rack is ready for a Christmas tree, and the 10-foot paint doesn’t scare me in the least. But I’d probably end up installing a 2500 cc stroker motor, hacking off the fenders, and turning it into a Baja Bug before crashing it in the desert…so it’s probably best that I’ve never owned a Beetle. Find this 1966 Volkswagen Beetle offered for $5800 in Sacramento, CA via craigslist.
I’m not sure exactly what it would cost to build a vehicle that would be competitive at a official SCORE (So Cal Off Road Enthusiasts) Class 5/1600 race event…but I have to assume it’d be a lot more than the asking price on this next vehicle. But that is the way the chip crumbles in used racing vehicles, and the builder’s loss is the buyer’s gain. This Baja Bug is only an awesome racing paint job (flames? numbers? stickers? — yes, yes, yes) away from getting you evicted from your condo association. Find this 1969 Volkswagen Beetle offered for $10,000 in Albuquerque, NM via craigslist. Tip from FuelTruck.
I’ve never had much more than a passing desire to own a Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle that wasn’t transmogrified into some kind of dune buggy or monster truck. I guess I’d prefer an earlier version because they have a more classic look, but the newer ones have more amenities and performance (today’s Beetle even has functioning factory stock A/C). This next one looks like a 1970s Super Beetle, but it is actually a Mexican import built in a factory in 1993. Amazing when you consider the type 1 design was first released in 1938. Find this 1994 Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle offered for $7,900 in Delary Beach, FL via craigslist. Tip from Rock On!
One of my only automotive acquisition regrets is the time I turned down an offer for a free Volkswagen Beetle. It was actually two Beetles, but the parts were in boxes and the body was separated from the pan and my ability to assembled one working Beetle from the assorted boxes/bags/piles was questionable given the other projects I was also nursing along…so the Beetle went to someone else to store the pieces of another automotive jigsaw puzzle. However, today’s next feature seems like a much shorter putt to get your Vee-Dub itch scratched. Find this 1967 Volkswagen Beetle offered for $3,000 in Vernonia, OR via craigslist. Tip from JB1025.