A show of hands, please, if you’ve ever heard of a Rometsch Lawrence. We have covered one before, a 1958 example like today’s subject car, but it was back in 2011. It’s a new one for me but the more I dig into various different obscure cars to feature here on this august automotive website, the more I realize what I don’t know. OK, enough of that, let’s take a gander at this sharp-looking Landrum, South Carolina domiciled 1958 Romestch Lawrence. It’s available here on eBay for a BIN price of $500,000 (Yikes!) – there is a make-an-offer option too. Car searcher extraordinaire, T.J. gets the credit for this most unusual find!
Rometsch started out in the ’20s (nineteen twenties that is) as an automotive coach builder. Many of Rometsch bodies ended up on Opel underpinnings, but by the 1950s, Volkswagen Beetles served up the primary underlay. One fabulous creation used a Porsche engine that was wrapped in a Porsche Spyder look-alike body and called a Rometsch Porsche Spyder (not sure how they got away with that name). The Lawrence, available in two-door coupe and convertible, was introduced in 1957 and lasted until 1961 with a total production was fewer than 100 copies. Besides competition from the VW Karman Ghia, the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 further added to Rometsch’s woes as the assembly plant was in West Berlin but most of the employees were to the east, behind the wall.
The seller tells us, “Very solid car with no known accidents or metal replacement. Original metal floors and original alloy body. Unmolested example of a true collector car“. The styling is eclectic, though it looks like an amalgam of ’50s designs kit-bashed together. I wouldn’t say that it’s awkward, it flows well, it’s just a bit busy. The seller believes that new paint was applied in the ’80s and the finish, trim, and chrome present perfectly. The front-end styling is an interesting take, there’s a chrome brow in place, hooding over the obvious location for a grille, but we’re going grill-less Tesla style here as there’s no reason for one with a rear mounted, air-cooled engine.
The interior gives off a hint of a Beetlesque environment with the flat dash and tall narrow dividing floor hump. But it’s nicer than that found in a Type I, especially a ’50s vintage Type I, and in this case, it is a bright and cheerful setting. We’re told that the interior, and the top, are new circa 2018 so that explains the crispness.
Under the bonnet is old faithful, a four-cylinder, horizontally opposed, air-cooled Volkswagen engine that in 1958, displaced 1200 CCs and generated 36 HP. Admittedly, this engine, with its dual carburetors, appears to be modified, and the seller tells us that it’s a non-original Okrasa modified Volkswagen engine but its displacement and power output are not disclosed in the listing. The seller claims, “The car is mechanically sound and drives very well“.
So, rare and stylish? You bet! As previously stated, I’ve never seen a Rometsch Lawrence before and probably never will again. I can appreciate it but…500 large for cool threads laid over a VW beetle? I’m not feeling it, how about you?
“But honey I did put the car up for sale. Seems no one wants to buy it.”
I found one, some years ago ;-)
https://photos.app.goo.gl/WrENEV8omHcSJAw29
I know this car and the owner. Owner is honest. The car is beautiful and I think priced fairly.
“Priced fairly” is a subjective judgement. For me, at least, $500K is a lot of coin. This car would be pretty far down the list if I was going to spend that much on something automotive-related.
Priced fairly? That depends entirely on ones definition of fair. I love the car, I love anything Rometsch ever did, but 500 big ones? Someone is smoking something awfully weird.
I agree, price is quite high! If this Rometsch VW is worth 500k, what is my Rometsch bodied 1940 Mercedes worth?
I hope the seller gets his price…but that is a tall stretch. I sold a similar car to Autostadt a number of years ago for less than 100k…fully restored, Okrasa powered, etc.
I wouldn’t poo-poo the price. Never underestimate the obsession of VW people. You will be on the top of the VW food chain driving this around.
This was Phil and Maribeth Leadley’s Rometsch. She worked at BFY. I always wondered where it was and who owns it now. Anyone know?
A very beautiful car, I am not qualified to really know if the price is correct and could be justified. But if I had to chose , I would say YES!
Rometsch Lawrence…a Rometsch Lawhat?
No way!
Just read that an MG-Arnolt convertible (one of only 36 built) recently sold for $176K, so a one in a 100 at half a million seems a little steep.
An Arnolt MG is pretty too! Unlike, oh… VW Romeschnott Lawrence Massachusetts
But just to shake things up, the Arnolt-MG at Mecum in January has an estimate of $400-$450k. So insanity all around.
I had to scratch fabricate some spoke-alike wheel covers and I cast spinners that look very similar to these for a Fiat 1200 TV several years ago. This vehicle may need one on the spare in the front trunk if there is room. I would fabricate one again for only $10 grand if the new or current owner is interested.
Amazing car. How do they call it unmolested if the motor has been swapped?
Okrasa would indicate a modified engine back when the car was new. When looking at prices for VW Sambas I think its cheap!
On a 500K car (or any other) I’d be concerned about those copper fuel lines. Over time, copper can “work harden” causing fatigue cracks and fail due to vibration.
Young lady, get your hand Off The Car! (They are both beauties!)
That beauty is Barbi Benton, an 80’s hottie.
Married, or at least snuggled up to, Hugh Hefner while doing her stint on Hee Haw and giving Farrah Fawcett a run for her money.
And that appears to be Hugh Hefner himself lurking in the background…
At first glance, I thought Kaiser Darrin. But a VW engine, no way no how. and $500K…. lol… way out of my league, and even if I had that kind of money, I could list at least 10000 cars above this one. Again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder… and this one to me is not a beauty.
Yeah, Kaiser Darrin was the first thing to come to mind here, along with a trace of Tesla at the front and a bit of ’56 Buick on the sides.
And there’s a trace of Panhard Dyna in the front as well.
Asking 500K and getting 500K are two different things.
It’s a gorgeous and unique automobile but at a respected auction house I doubt it would top $200K. Seems the owner doesn’t want to sell it but for an offer he can’t refuse.
$500.000? Just goes to show that there are a lot of jokers out there with far too much money.
That’s a buy-it-now price. I’m sure the owner would love someone to say,OK, I’ll buy it now. But sure, make me an offer. In the meantime, if anyone wants to buy it now my 1990 Miata for $500,000, it’s yours. Just let’s make sure the check clears.
Let’s see… I’ve got $500k to spend on an automobile. Nope, this ain’t the one!
Jerry Seinfeld and Wayne Carini are probably arm wrestling over this car as I write this.
And mere mortals be scratching their heads.
For decades I’ve seen quite a few people [well known vintage car dealers] advertising in various car magazines that they are “Looking to buy ANY Rometsch bodied VW cars”, and these guys seem to run the ads on a regular basis, so I suspect a Rometsch VW is both rare and valuable, but is it worth half a million Dollars?
Okrasa engines are highly sought after, to the point where a lot of parts are being reproduced. They are very popular with owners of early VWs. There were various kits that achieved more horsepower the more you bought. I’m not sure but I think VW even offered then across the parts counter. This car probably came with an Okrasa engine to maximise the sports car experience.
I’m guessing Rometsch just bought complete engines from Okrasa rather then get involved with engine building so this might very well be the engine the car was delivered with.
“…various different….”?
Very nice looking car. However I agree with Lance,$500K for a custom VW is a bit much. You can ask what you want but there is no guarantee you will get it. I think if I were interested I would not be willing to go past $30K for this one.
As pointed out in J.D.’s article, Rometsch mostly built custom bodies prior to WW2, using mostly Opel chassis. I suspect the change to the VW chassis was due to the original Opel plant’s location in what became East Germany [the DDR] made buying the bare rolling chassis impossible, especially after the Soviets gutted the old Opel plant of equipment, shipping it all back to Russia.
In the first few postwar years, every European vehicle manufacturer was concentrating on maximizing their production, and would likely not be interested in supplying a few bare chassis to small coachbuilders like Rometsch, when they could take that same chassis and produce a complete car the public was desperate to buy. Volkswagen was the exception, the company was looking for any sale they could find, just to keep the production line rolling on a month to month basis until late in 1951.