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$875 Will Make This 1979 Bradley GT Yours!

This 1979 Bradley GT looks like a potential bargain at just $875, but that assumes you’re interested in this particular type of kit car. If there’s one thing I’ve learned since bringing the highly-original Kelmark GT from Georgia to market, it’s that there is a wide range of flavors and tastes when it comes to choosing a kit car to build, and this Bradley here on craigslist may appeal to one side of the room but not the other. Which brand of VW-based kit car do you love? 

Thanks to Barn Finds reader Pat for the find. To me, it’s all about proportions. One of the things that always turns me off about the Bradleys is that the body just looks too big or too busy for the narrow chassis it rides on. It always feels like it has all this “weight” up top that never gets evenly distributed. I like the Kelmark simply because it seems like the wheels and fender flares work well together, helping to mask the humble chassis it’s mounted to.

The Bradley seen here looks fair enough, especially for the asking price. The doors seem to work (although it appears they have dowels holding them up and they don’t close very tightly against the body) and the body shows no obvious defects. However, the pan is where any ugliness would reside, as the VW Beetle chassis had a tendency to develop rust in the floors, but that’s at least a straight-forward replacement.

For less than $1K, I’d wager on this Bradley not running at the moment, but the seller does seem to imply an engine is included. The bucket seats appear usable and I can’t recall seeing too many of these with white leather/vinyl interiors. The Bradley is located near Sarasota, Florida, so this may make the most sense for a local buyer who can eliminate transport costs and potentially drive the price down even further given the listing’s “must sell” pricing.

Comments

  1. Avatar Ian C

    I had a Bradley GT1 and feel it was the better looking of the 2 by far. They are crazy light and even with a mildly warmed up engine, lots of fun.

    My favorite VW kit though was the Laser 917. I think they have a mixed look of cartoonish and angry at the same time. I have been keeping my eye out for the “right one” of them for a while.

    Like 2
  2. Avatar Jack M.
    • Avatar Ian C

      I have seen that one. The wheels and paint job kill it for me. Especially considering the 14.5k price tag.

      Like 0
  3. Avatar flmikey

    Tempting…it’s only an hour away…only thing stopping me is why no one has scooped this bargain up…it’s been on CL for 6 days…

    Like 2
  4. Avatar Dean

    For months, CL- Tulsa had a Lazer 917 up for sale . Now it’s gone :(

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Classic Steel

    Perfect electric car conversion candidate.

    These were cool cars in the past …

    Like 2
  6. Avatar Kevin

    RE: the doors.

    I guess Bradley GTII’s suffer from what is known as “Butt Droop”.
    The rear structure of the body isn’t reenforced and over time the back of the car sags a bit. This makes the doors not fit properly.
    The fix is to jack the car up by the rear body work and let it sit out in the sun for a couple weeks. Gravity and heat bend it back.

    Like 1
    • Avatar MFerrell

      I suffer from the same problem. Getting jacked up & sunshine helps me, too.

      Like 17
  7. Avatar TheStig

    I had one of these about 15 years ago in about the same condition as this one although mine was the GT2E model. Pretty cool they made an electric version of these back in the day. Never had it on the road, sold it on eBay after sitting in my parents driveway for a few years at about the same price as this car is now.

    Like 1
  8. Avatar Karguy James

    I had talked to the owner about this when it first popped up. Engine is half there and rusted and the pan is a mess, plus no title.

    Here is a kit car I am working on now. Just a Gazelle replica that is supposed to be a 1929 Mercedes. But they don’t look anything like one so I made some changes. I put a REAL 1959 Mercedes grille, reconfigured the headlights, located a flip top gas filler on the cowl, added some vintage spot lights, and ditched the ugly rear step bumpers for Mercedes W116 over riders. I also painted it solid red to get rid of the beige and brown tutone they all seem to be. It looks a lot better now. It should make someone a fun little beach cruiser.

    Like 8
    • Avatar Karguy James

      Here is what it used to look like.

      Like 4
  9. Avatar chrlsful

    1,600 # is pretty light. What would U mount it to rather than a VeeBub?
    Hafta come across a sporty wreck in the yard, needing a body…
    Rather have it than a Puris (that’s it, a good lookin ele car – get them 2 together)
    Now ur talkin Fuller & Courneya were ahead of their time (the advance of ele cars).
    If Fuller (same name as me) was able to have THAT to go to as his ele car after leavin Bradley, we’d have something!

    Like 1
  10. Avatar wuzjeepnowsaab

    Missing title. Sale killer

    Like 0

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