The GT was one of the kit cars offered in the 1970s by Bradley Automotive. Using the guts of a VW Beetle, they were more like sports cars than dune buggies, like the Meyers Manx. They scraped by between 1970 and 1981, with a bankruptcy in 1978 that resulted in a brief change of direction (electric cars). The seller admits this 1978 Bradley GT is in junk condition and may only be good for its frame (but you could get that from another Bug). Buried in a field in Newbury, New Hampshire, it’s available here on Facebook Marketplace for $500 (in other words, come get it out of my way). Thanks for the tip, Jamie G!
Seeing the success that Bruce Meyers was having in the kit car business, Gary Courneya (salesman) and David Fuller (fiberglass designer) formed Bradley Automotive in the late 1960s. This led to the debut of the Bradley GT in 1971. Though it was considered a kit car, the GT was offered at seven levels of completion, from a set of blueprints to fully assembled cars, and was marketed as an affordable sports car. It was a bare-bones effort, relying on VW innards for propulsion and handling. It had no doors or roof, but a pair of optional frameless plexiglass panels could be attached to the windshield frame.
In company records, Gary Bradley was listed as president of Bradley Automotive. But there was no such person! He was an imaginary figure using Courneya’s first name and Fuller’s middle. When “Gary Bradley” made public appearances, it was Gary Courneya giving the speeches. Gary Bradley’s signature even found its way onto several corporate filings. Imaginary corporate officers are not often viewed as a sign of good times ahead for investors or customers, and they were not. Bradley went bankrupt in 1978 after building an estimated 5,000 GTs in one form or another.
The seller’s “car” looks to have been sitting out in the woods for ages. Apparently, some clearing of underbrush is underway and perhaps this was a discovery as part of that process. Supposedly it’s a 1978 GT whose condition is poor at best. The seller indicates that the VW guts may be the only thing worthwhile, which means the kit part of the car is trash. So what you can do with a kit car when the kit part is toast is hard to figure out. But it’s only $500.
You must be kidding . I think it’s fair to say that the seller must pay the hauler $500 to take the junk away.
That is one of the nicest ones I have ever seen.
Yes, the nicest looking….because you can see less of it, lol.
The seller is performing a test on the intelligence of FakeBook Marketplace users.
Rates being the first October recipient of the “you’ve got to be kidding” award.
After thinking about it I think this car was already dead when it got buried.
looks like a homeless camp in Portland
Maybe some YouTube person will snap it up and try to get it back on the road. If it was in my yard I would do the same post it for sale and see if someone buys it. If not I would turn it into a football for a demolition derby
The ad even says junk, how much for the excavator?
would someone please find something like this a lot closer to Colorado…please?!?
Just needs to be buffed out.
Another well cared for classic.LOL!!!
I subscribe to an FB group named “Forgotten New Hampshire” and there are always cars that people find just sitting in the woods, and pictures of them are posted and admired for what they are.. This one reminds me of one of those, except someone decided to try and sell it.
They are better off just being photographed and left alone.
That thing needs to stay right where it’s at ! Another 5 years and no one will even know it’s there !
similar have been ‘brought back’, not sure abt worse, tho
8^ )
To far Gone
Is it still available? Considering it but I live in Arizona.
David, if you click the Facebook link in the article, it indicates that it is “Pending”. You might still be able to get it, but why?
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/899424134370152/