This 1962 Volkswagen Beetle has supposedly been in the same family since new. They purchased it in Germany, had it shipped stateside, and then proceeded to drive it until the 80s when they parked it in a barn. There is plenty of barn dust to prove the claims and although rough, we have no doubt that someone is going to save this one. It is located in Bend, Oregon and is listed here on eBay where bidding is already at $3,550.
The Beetle was never meant to be more than cheap transportation, yet people still love them today. The curves caught the eyes of millions and they all created their own memories inside so there is always a healthy demand for these German engineered econo-cars. We know that a lot of people like these and this one does have the full length sunroof, but has bidding for this barn bug already gotten out of hand?
Who would have thought that cars that were a dime a dozen would become so sought after and rivaling Mercedes and other Luxury cars’ prices.
I wouldn’t mind having one original car like this for a few weeks, but in this condition and at that price I have seen enough already,………….
…..and all the work is not included in this deal (just a wild guess)…..
I like it.
~ 90% of high bidders 30-day activity were on this sellers items. what does that mean?
Just a hunch, but maybe the high bidder and the seller are one and the same (or perhaps it’s a friend) and he’s trying to drive up the bids… ;-)
97 beetles on ebay right now, 4 1962 models, 1 is sunroof , looks like it might be in better condition, $5500 and no reserve.
a ’62 ragtop beetle is a desirable car. where the bidding is now it would be hard to get hurt on the value once the car is running and driving. i don’t know for sure looking at the pictures of the car if it is original paint or not- if it is then no one understands original paint and patina better than the VW crowd and no one appreciates it more. the buyer will almost undoubtedly slam this car, maybe put some rims on it, maybe put a big motor in it. whatever the case his buddies will all agree that he scored.
i found a ’58 ragtop beetle in colorado. it was off the road for 20 years, still ran, needed brake work and wasn’t original paint. i’ve turned down strong, solid offers mainly because it’s a car that i found which is getting harder to do. i also know that whatever i got for it, the next one would cost more. seeing a car on the internet that’s covered with dust on flat tires is the virtual barnfind experience and certainly raises interest.
I bought a 62 sedan barn-find in ’03 … About the same condition. Paid $800.
Uncannily similar story here. Like the seller, my father-in-law bought a new ’62 beetle, same color, same roof, in Germany. He was stationed in Germany with his wife and they bought the car when they had their first child. They brought it back with them, then spent the next 35 years in Oregon raising their kids. The bug spent much of that time in their barn before being fully restored. They still have the car and use it for small-town parades, etc. Lots of fun.
I CAN’T REMEMBER HOW MANY OF THESE I HAD AND MODIFIED TO A CERTAIN DEGREE. THE LAST ONE WAS A CHOPPED UP DUNE BUGGY OF SORTS WITH THE WIDE TIRES IN BACK AND HEADER WITH THE PIPE COMING OUT HIGH ENOUGH TO KEEP THE SAND OUT.WELL I HAD TO DO AN ENGINE SWAP AND YOU GUYS KNOW HOW EASY THAT IS. WELL WHEN I WAS DONE I COULD NOT GET IT RUNNING AFTER TRYING EVERTHING I COULD THINK OF.FRUSTRATED I DECIDED TO SELL IT.A FRIEND OF MINE WHO WORKED AT THE AUTO PARTS STORE WAS THE FIRST TO COME UP WITH THE $200 ASKING PRICE. HE COMES TO MY HOUSE WITH A FRIEND LOOKS AT IT FOR A FEW MINUTES GRABS A WRENCH OUT OF MY TOOL BOX SWAPS THE WIRES ON THE COIL TOSSES ME THE WRENCH GETS IN IT STARTS RIGHT UP AND GETS READY TO DRIVE AWAY .I SAID HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT’S WHAT IT WAS AND HE SAYS YOU ALREADY CHANGED OUT EVERY OTHER POSSIBILITY AND OFF HE WENT. THE DAMN THING IS STILL USED AT THE FAMILY HUNTING CAMP AS THE BEER AND FOOD GETTER 35 YEARS LATER.NEVER BOUGHT ANOTHER ONE AFTER THAT…
Love that story!!
Is the bidding to high would depend on the condition of the bottom of the car. The nice thing about these cars is the ease of restoring, the hardest thing will be turning bolts & nuts that haven’t moved in fifty years, get a propane torch & you can do this in your garage, & parts are easy to come by.
From my view , when a car is this old & intact, restore it but keep it original, if you want to slam something find one that is missing parts.
Scot & JP, INteresting observation!!? …..Bend is a good, dry-side-of-Oregon location. Too bad if the owners are messing with the bidding?? Still, I agree with Gibbs on this one.
I had a ’67 Type 3 I brought to the US after 4 years in Germany. Great car but the salt worms got it in spite of everything I could do–too many months with salt on the roads. Sold it in ’77.
Original and 1-family ownership is nice, but that doesn’t pay the rent with a car like this that seems to need everything, or almost everything, depending on whether it runs and drives…we don’t know yet. This listing has such small photos that you can’t really tell how good or bad the body is, and there are no underside pics, so I would be assuming it has some serious rust until proven otherwise. It will certainly need significant body / paint work, but the question is how much. Those bad running boards tell you that there’s probably significant rust.
Beats me how someone can go to the trouble of of finding / buying / trailering and then listing a car for sale that they are obviously wanting to make money on, and then say they will get more information later. I think Jim’s comment shows how that approach limits this attempt to sell—there are so many Beetles coming out of the woodwork that yours has to be presented well to stand out and attract buyers. For me, this one doesn’t.
And I like Beetles. They are very significant cars: the ‘People’s car’. They were rejected by most No. Americans back in the ’50s because they were too funny looking, too small, and especially, too foreign, or too German…or both. The ads for them did the only thing they could do: they went with the negative feeling but made it funny by exaggerating it.
Then, guess what? People started buying them because they were actually reliable, cheap transportation providing you didn’t have a family of 5 plus a dog plus luggage. The car was great for singles or couples. I owned a ’62 exactly like this for 8 years while I was in school, including in Montreal where it snows bigtime every year. Paid $550, sold it 8 years later for $150. Depreciation cost = $50/year. Got me around reliably in some pretty harsh environments. Buggest problem: terrible “heater”. Couldn’t clear the windshield in winter.
If I was in the market for a Beetle I would probably pass on this one and consider some of those other 97 Beetles on eBay that Jim mentioned, or the many others that come up for sale all the time.
same color and sunroof as my 59, a little out of my budget. It would have 1st gear sychro, but the gas gauge takes some of the participation out of it.
Is it just me or does the amount of “Barn dust ” on some of these barn finds seem a bit staged?
In one of the pix on the eBay listing, the car appears to have been tilted up on one side WITH THE WHEELS OFF to photograph the underside. It is clearly resting on the brake drums. That can’t possibly be good.
if that engine was run for Any appreciable time w/o the “fresh air” heater hoses ( ~2″ diameter ducts leaving the fan shroud ), then that engine is likely fuggered ,,, air cooled motors will not run for long without those hoses intact, or at least plugged off ,,, if it was, then engine probably siezed up Tight.
I’ll take the opposite opinion on the VW. Not only do I like it but I think the price is o.k….for now.
The guy may be a pinhead….I can’t tell, but, he does post pix of the pan and under the backseat. The engine looks correct. Clean it up and you may be surprised.
As for the price…….I just bought a plastic German canister vacuum for eight hundred dollars so 3 something and change for this VW isn’t bad. When you start throwing a freeway flyer and other trick items into the mix is where it gets costly. But, after all, don’t hobbies, for the most part eat up bank accounts?
Or….I’m full o’ beans and it is to much.
Had a 62 in high school and college. It had a gas gauge, so that was impressive. It went anywhere. In the woods, desert or blizzard it kept on trucking. Eventually got other cars of course, but I grew up with the bug and never regretted a thing. They are a marvel of simple yet practical engineering. Not for everyone but if you love them, your in a special club.