It used to be that you saw these cars running around everywhere and they could be purchased for a song. But not so much anymore. The VW Beetle (technically the Type 1) was commissioned by none other than Adolf Hitler in the late 1930s as the “people’s car.” It was designed by Ferdinand Porsche to be mass-produced and inexpensive to buy and maintain. This 1960 edition of the “Bug” appears to have been sitting for quite some time and will need a complete restoration. Fortunately, parts are readily available as they changed little from year to year. Located in San Antonio, Texas, this Beetle is available here on Facebook Marketplace for just $2,000.
The concept of the Beetle apparently worked because more than 21 million of the little cars were built through 2003, beating the record formerly held by Ford’s Model-T. Production of the cars ended in Germany in the late 1970s but continued on in Mexico even until after the “new” Beetle was introduced in 1998. The newer Beetle looked a lot like its predecessor but was mechanically different and technologically superior. The original rear-engine, air-cooled Bug became part of the youth movement culture of the 1960s and it was hard not to see a rainbow-painted Beetle in Flower Power backdrops.
For 1960, the Beetle accounted for two-thirds of all cars imported into the U.S. That dominance would inspire Toyota, Nissan and other Japanese car makers to make greater inroads into the buying habits of American buyers. The seller’s Beetle would be one of 160,000 sold on these shores that year, and that number would grow year after year in spite of the Japanese. Changes would be few for the Bug in 1960, such as new doors handles, curved seat backs, a plastic headliner, a passenger footrest, and an improved carburetor for the 1192cc engine.
The little motor, assisted by a 4-speed manual transmission, now produced 36 horsepower as the compression ratio had been increased from 6.6:1 to 7:1. The seller’s car does not run, but given the simplicity of these automobiles, a Bug expert may be able to rectify that without too much trouble. If not, tearing the motor down and rebuilding it not an undaunting task. A good cleaning will likely reveal an abundance of surface rust and hopefully not more. The body doesn’t look bad from the photos provided, but the front bumper is missing, and the right front fender is a bit crinkled, the color appears to be Alabaster Off-White (code L473).
This seller says the car has an interior, but no photos are provided so we’ll assume that it will need refreshing and we’re hoping the floor pans are okay. Back in 1960, these cars sold for $1,565 new, which is the equivalent of just $13,800 in 2021. That’s about what one in average condition will go for today. Hagerty pegs the average resale of a ’60 Beetle at $16,400, but Fair condition might be worth $8,200 and $54,500 for the nicest one left on the planet. The seller’s asking price might be considered a bargain, even though there is no title and just a Bill of Sale.
Put it back and find a better one, they’re out there.
See? Almost nobody wants the Bug. Years ago, $50 bucks got you a Bug just like this, and when it failed, or you fell through the floor, $50 bucks got you another. I don’t think this is a 1960. I believe ’62 was the 1st year for the bigger tail lights. A friend had a ’58( that he got for $50 bucks) just out of HS. The 36 hp had a bad habit of dropping #3 exhaust valve. The oil cooler was on top of #3, causing it to overheat, breaking the valve and sending it through the piston. This happened a couple times, probably due to our unethical backyard mechanics, but we had it down to a science. Raise the back, support the motor with 2×4’s, and remove the 4 bolts on the trans, couple wires, drop it down with a bumper jack. We’d go to Larry’s Auto in Butler, Wi. he always had a pile of VW motors. We’d take the head, the piston, and anything else we could stuff in our pockets, rebuilt the motor in his mom’s kitchen, hopefully before she got home from work,( one time she came home early and was she pixxed,) reinstalled the motor, and cruisin’ that very night. Before my trucking shenanigans began, I was even a VW mechanic for 2 days, yep, 2 days, the guy was a maniac, he had WAY too much work, Bugs were lined up out the drive. It was piece work, how fast you could fix the car. I couldn’t work for a guy like that.
Today this car falls into the category of they were fine when everybody else drove Ford Falcons, but horribly out of date today. Shame, they were great cars for the time. Still a great find.
All bug engines until 1971 had a habit of breaking #3 exhaust valve (in 1971 they finally offset the oil cooler), but at least the 36 hp case would last forever, later cases would spin the main bearing and destroy the case.
Wrong tail lights, those are from a 64 – 65.
These taillights fit 62-67. The lights or the fenders could have been changed. With so few pictures and parts interchangeability
it’s hard to say what year this Bug is.
Those taillights fit 62-67 Bugs. The lights or fenders could have been changed. With so few pictures that show very little it’s hard to say what year it is.
RUN…RUN Forest RUN…..away!!
PS: $54,000.00 for the nicest one on the planet?!!! Yes…..now I know the world has gone completely MAD.
Well, unfortunately Daniel, for those that have invaded the VW and Porsche territory, $54k is chump change for them. Oh btw, if you have $179,000,000, you could have purchased the most expensive Picasso ever sold. Since, at least I, considering Vintage VW’s art, there may be some correlation there.
One too many zeroes. If it ran, and had the bumpers, maybe more but the number three exhaust valve tended to break off if you didn’t replace them every 35K and that might be this ones problem
Could be a ’62 model as Howard A pointed out, but without a photo of the dashboard or under the dash, it is difficult to confirm.
’62 was the first year for a fuel gauge…prior to that, there was a lever up and to the right of the accelerator pedal which had two positions–normal “run” and “reserve”. If one ran out of fuel, one could simply reach up with the right foot and rotate the lever 90-degrees clockwise and it would allow fuel to flow from a lower point on the fitting in the fuel tank. Hopefully one is still moving so it was simply a matter of dropping down one gear and using your momentum to start the car.
However, one better remember to place the same lever back up to its “run” position after refueling or the next time she ran out of fuel, she’d be OUT OF FUEL!
’61 & prior had the thinner tail lights, but looking at the passenger side rear of this car, it appears as though someone might have retro-fitted the later (’62-’67) style taillight assemblies while high or drunk.
Final note…you would be surprised how many positive comments I receive on my ’60 Beetle…and I wouldn’t trade her for the world. Air-cooled VW’s always bring a smile to folks and their simplicity is a welcome change from today’s computer-controlled nightmares.
As much as I love the reserve lever, it’s another VW/Porsche idea that wasn’t too well thought through. Having a gasoline junction in the passenger compartment is a recipe for disaster. When the seals go, voilá, Molotov cocktail.
Of course it pails in contrast to the gasoline heater in the nose. Self-immolation city. Especially if you rear end a Ford Pinto! lol
That reserve lever, I remember, you didn’t have much time. To eliminate the surprise, some recorded mileage, but 9 times out of 10, the speedo didn’t work anyway, so it was a surprise. When it coughed, usually at the most inopportune time, you only had a couple seconds before it quit. 6 volt being what it was, many times, you’d run out of battery before it caught, hence, pushing a Bug was a common site, fact is, last summer, someone had their VW dune buggy out and his buddies were pushing it. I yelled to them, “by gar, that takes me back”,,
Howard A, those were much simpler days! How I miss them, warts and all. Those of us who had weak batteries in our VWs would learn to park on a hill so we could “start” the car in second gear. Or, if on level ground, I would turn on the ignition key, have the shifter in neutral, parking brake off, then open the door while pushing on the A-Pillar with my left hand, holding the door open with my left elbow, and steering with the other. Once she was rolling I’d jump in, depress the clutch, engage second gear, and simultaneously let the clutch out while partially applying throttle. Thanks for the flashback!
In high school I had a 66 Bug (6 volt). I had to park on the street and there was no hill. Every morning I would have to push start it by myself. After that it would start for the rest of the day. I was 5′ 11″, 140 pounds, so not a powerful guy. It sure was nice when I finally got the money for a new battery.
I ordered my first new car, a 1969 VW with a list price of $1649. Then a dock strike occurred and delivery was delayed for months on end. I finally cancelled and bought an Opal Cadet. I sold it a few years layer. My lesson in depreciation led me to never buying a new car again. Since then I have bought strictly used cars 4 or more years old.
I remember back in the ’70s, some friends of ours had a VW convertible (not sure what year). The car had NO floors and you could see the street below you. I was always afraid the rest of the floor would finally give out and we’d be sitting on the 5 Freeway.
My first car was a ’59 Bug and I remember the license plate light being the same as the one on this car….so maybe it’s a ’60. The tail lights are larger than I remember on my ’59.
In the original sales brochure for my 1965 Beetle it says you can expect the motor to last until 60k miles before needing to be rubuilt. I rebuilt my engine at 84,000 miles even though it was still running with broken rings. So y’all must not have been doing your periodic maintenance as required.
You could very well be right. I always attributed the failure of my exhaust valves to not having the dog house type oil cooler but your bug had the cooler in the shroud, so there you go.