Lately, there’s been a lot of attention given to the word “bespoke” as it relates to restomods and car customization. At the top of the market, Singer-built Porsches are selling for over $1 million without fail, while there are numerous companies modifying Ford Broncos and Scouts into luxury-laden 4x4s that will never go off-road. However, Beck Speedsters – made by Special Edition, Inc. – actually got out of the gate first with this concept, allowing owners to customize their Porsche replicas to their heart’s desire. Find this Speedster replica here on craigslist for $36,000.
As you can see right away, the Beck is not some cheap, DIY-kit that you scrounge up old Beetle parts to complete. No, it now comes with a lovely interior with a padded dash and lovely leather sport seats. The finish quality is certainly not ever going to be mistaken for a genuine Singer, but it’s quite good all things considered. The biggest misconception I still see is that it rides atop a Beetle chassis, when in fact it sports a custom steel-tubed chassis. Beck now offers the 356 coupe, the 550 Spyder, and a 904-style coupe in its product catalog.
The design is certainly a sympathetic tribute to the original Speedster at a pittance of the going rate for a survivor and/or restored example. The seller’s asking price pales in comparison to the many hundreds of thousands that the genuine article will cost you. Still, this is likely a quicker turnaround on a sale for the Beck than the seller intended, but he notes that at 88 years old, he doesn’t need something with this much performance. And truthfully, that’s the one potential downside to a Beck: there are no modern safety features, so a collision carries additional consequences.
You have a few different options with a Beck when it comes to an engine. They’ll drop a Subaru-sourced flat-4 in, which makes a lot of sense from a reliability standpoint. The seller’s Speedster features a CB Performance 1915cc high-performance engine, which produces around 130 b.h.p. One detail not included in the listing is which transmission he specified, as a Freeway Flyer is generally the transmission of choice for this motor. What is your opinion of these Speedster replicas – at under $40,000, is it appealing or do replicas get a pass from you? Thanks to Barn Finds reader Curvette for the find.
After owning 2 Speedsters I can say this car is really well designed and built. These are fun cars, real or replicas.
You may have guessed that I’m a corvette and muscle car guy but this really appeals to me. What a perfect weekend corner carver or just drive it to the grocery store. And I’ll bet it gets a lot better gas mileage than my LT1 or 454 corvettes do. Decent price for a high quality replica.
I like these old Porsche replicas, and my understanding is that Beck makes a quality product. My preference, from his company, would be the 550 Spyder or a 904, but anything out of the factory looks like it’s smile-maker.
This is so beautiful. Blue interior really compliments the exterior. Love all the little touches like the steering wheel, the dash etc. It looks like a very well done replica. I’d be very happy to own this.
Love the Speedster replicas and Beck is a top tier product. My only concern is here in California, a replica built on a VW pan is considered a VW and model year determined by the year of the pan………..making it exempt from any CRB smog laws, etc. I don’t know how the Beck would get around those requirements.
This was a 2004, which means it probably has a collapsing steering column. The straight column (AKA “chest spear”) is why I sold my 1960 corvette. I enjoyed the car, but it wasn’t a good car for today. The Beck is.
I always put collapsible steering shafts on our Sprite race cars. The only one I wrecked took on a head on with a concrete jersey barrier and collapsted as advertised. Easy to put on and don’t look out of place.
Did not get it whether or not this car has a German or Subaru engine. If anything other than German components, it’s a nonstarter for me. For a fun driver I would point to all the New Beetle convertibles being virtually given away. I got one and I love it. Definitely not a witness protection car!
Engine is VW based and putting out 130 hp per Jeff’s write up.
VW as the photo shows it is air cooled with the cowling and high up centre generator/alternator. Also note there is a distributor on this car. Subaru is water cooled and no distributor.
Not on a VW frame. It is a custom steel tubular frame.
Not a replica enthusiast! But this looks smart.