1968 Vw Doublecab on 2040-cars

We don't know who the original owner of the 1968 DoubleCab was. We do know that in 1975 or 1976, "Owner A" of the DoubleCab went into a small business in Newport Beach, Ca. The business was owned by “Owner B”. “Owner B” was interested in special, unique cars. He noticed the DoubleCab and talked with "Owner A" about the DoubleCab. By the end of the conversation, "Owner B" told "Owner A" that they would be interested in buying the DoubleCab if he ever wanted to sell.

About 3 weeks later, "Owner A" of the DoubleCab called “Owner B”. He said that if “Owner B” was still interested in buying the DoubleCab, he would make them a great deal. After some talking with the original owner, “Owner B” discovered that the DoubleCab had a blown engine and was sitting in a mall parking lot in Gardena.

“Owner B” made the deal, bought the DoubleCab, and had it towed to a local VW repair shop. They had the engine rebuilt and then drove the DoubleCab for many years. As “Owner B” says, "they enjoyed every moment".

In the early 1980's, “Owner B” had the DoubleCab painted from the original off-white to a factory blue.

In 1983, “Owner B” sold the DoubleCab to “Owner B’s” sister and brother-in-law, “Owner C” of Long Beach, CA. The paper trail picks up at that point. We have lots of receipts for work done through 1995 by “Owner C”.

We've spoken with “Owner C” about the DoubleCab. He said that they very much enjoyed the vehicle for about 12 years. They hated to part with it. They were happy to hear from us about the DoubleCab and to know that it was still well cared for and still on the road.

While owned by “Owner C”, the DoubleCab was also used by their son. “Owner C’s Son” took a great interest in the DoubleCab. He had a lot of work done on it including the shiny red paint that it apparently still on it today.

In mid-1995, the DoubleCab was sold to “Owner D”. “Owner D” lived in the Phoenix/Gilbert area of Arizona. We haven't spoken with “Owner D”, but we understand that he towed a small sailboat with the DoubleCab. We do know that there is still the faint remains of the tow hitch that was welded to the rear engine mount. “Owner D” apparently added the chrome wheels, new transmission, and the 1904 cc engine with 2 Kadron carburetors.

In mid-1997, the DoubleCab was sold to “Owner E” of Tempe, AZ. “Owner E” is very active in the VW scene in Arizona.

“Owner E” and his sons worked on VW's as a family hobby. They did a lot of work on the DoubleCab with the folks at Competition Engineering. “Owner E” and his sons continued to add finishing touches to the DoubleCab including adding chrome bumpers, chrome latches on the gates, oak strips on the bed, all new rubber everywhere, and braided steel fuel and breather lines.

In mid-1999, in our constant perusal on the Net, we came across this 1968 DoubleCab. The ad in Trader-Online said it was in "great condition", but we had heard that too many times before. Besides, not only was it not exactly what we wanted in a DoubleCab - bay window instead of a split - it was all the way out in Arizona - and we live in South Florida.

Of course, the bay window DoubleCab is even more rare than the split window. And it does have a better suspension - and better brakes - and is more comfortable............

A couple of months later, in late December 1999, a short business trip came up that required us to go to Phoenix. When we got to Phoenix, we gave “Owner E” a call. He still owned of the DoubleCab and still had the car for sale. My wife and I immediately drove over to see it and it was just beautiful! All of the body, including the rocker panels, were clean as could be.

Even after a lot of negotiating, “Owner E” wanted more money than we wanted to pay for the DoubleCab. But in the end, my wife said "just buy it" - so we did. We gave “Owner E” a check and told him we would be back in about a month to pick up the car.

When we bought the DoubleCab, it showed about 5,500 miles on the odometer. Who knows what the actual mileage is.

I had business in Texas about a month later. On Friday afternoon, in early January 2000, I jumped onto a Southwest flight in Dallas and caught a ride to Phoenix.

“Owner E” picked me up at the airport. He had changed the oil in the DoubleCab, adjusted the valves, and checked the air in the tires. All of the paperwork and manuals were in a nice carry case. He even had 4 extra quarts of oil "just in case". What a terrific guy from which to buy a VW.

About 4 pm, I shook hands with “Owner E” and headed east. I ended up driving until midnight that first night and spent the night in El Paso. The next day, I got up early and headed for Dallas. After 14 hours of driving, I stopped on the east side of Dallas. The car never missed a beat. I averaged 20+ MPG.

And every time I stopped for gas, someone would come out and talk. 

In Dallas, I turned the car over to a guy who sort of specialized in putting A/C into strange and unusual cars. The DoubleCab seemed to qualify. He did a great, thorough, and clean job - but he was not cheap.

I went home to South Florida while he did his work. He also apparently drove the DoubleCab into his garage to install the A/C without opening the garage door completely. I didn't notice until I got home and started cleaning the car from the trip that there were a couple of 18" long scratches right in the middle of the roof of the car. Not real bad scratches, but it still sort of pissed me off. Of course, the DoubleCab is so tall that you can't see the top of the roof while you are standing on the ground so I didn't notice the scratches while I was picking up the car.

2 weeks after I dropped of the DoubleCab, I flew back into Dallas and picked up the car and drove it home to South Florida.

The odometer now shows about 19,500 miles. So we’ve put about 14,000 miles on the car in almost 15 years. But like I said, who knows how many miles are actually on the car. All I know is that even after 15 years in our care, the DoubleCab runs and drives like a new car – albeit a new 1968 VW. Every time we stop, people come up to talk and ask about it.

I doubt that you will find another DoubleCab that looks and drives like this one anywhere in the US. Especially for the price.

That isn’t to say that the DoubleCab is perfect. After all, it is a 46 year old vehicle. And the DoubleCab isn’t a “trailer queen”. It gets used. But it gets used very lovingly. And when it is not being used, it lives in the garage – usually under the custom car cover that will come with the car. It is never left outside.

My wife says that the DoubleCab is a lot like me. It is getting older, has some creaks and groans, occasionally smells sort of funny, and not everything works 100% like it used to. But it will still get you where you need to go.

As for the paint, the DoubleCab was apparently last painted some time about 1995. So while the paint looks nice and shiny, as you can see in the photos, it has the small nicks and chips associated with all of those years of careful use. There is one place on the back left side of the cab where there is a dent and a chip in the paint. There is a photo.

It is the same thing with the chrome on the wheels, bumpers, and gate latches. Overall, it still looks great. But when you get up close, it has the usual pitting and scratches.

And after spending all of that money and time on the A/C, I never use it. I just roll down the windows and enjoy the cruise. So I you want the A/C to work, the A/C will need to be charged. It uses R134. The last time I charged it, it worked fine. But that was a couple of years ago. The A/C hoses used for the ducts under the dash are a little too close to the body. If you get the DoubleCab going at just the right slow speed, the hoses will vibrate against the bodywork. My solution is to just not drive at that speed. Besides, the vibration just lasts for a few seconds and isn’t really that bad. 

There are heater boxes on the DoubleCab and they are connected. But I have them blocked off. I live in South Florida so there is no need for heat.

The interior dome light doesn’t work and never has for as long as I have owned the DoubleCab.

The transmission has no issues other than the fact that the front bushing on the shift rod is a little out of whack. It shifts fine in every gear. But sometimes when you try to go into first, it is a little balky. It happens whether the car is rolling or stopped. And there is not any grinding of gears. So it isn’t the syncros. It is just the bushing on the front of the shift rod. So sometimes it takes a couple of tries to get it into first gear. But it has been that way for all of the almost 15 years that I have owned the car. And it hasn’t gotten any worse. So I don’t worry about it.

The Kadron carburetors run fine. They could probably be sync’ed a little better. But I’m overly picky and they really do run fine. You just have to remember that they do not have a choke. So the DoubleCab is a little “cold blooded”. It always starts. But it sputters a little until it gets warmed up. But once warmed up, it runs like a champ.

The gas tank probably has a rust hole in it somewhere. I’ve noticed lately that if I put over 1/2 tank of gas into the DoubleCab, I get a little bit of a gas smell in the garage. I don’t notice gas on the floor under the car. Just the smell of gas. But it should be fixed at some point. Until you get it fixed, don’t put over a 1/2 tank of gas in it.

The outside rubber window scraper on the driver’s side got brittle and a little jagged. And the felt window channels are a little worn. So there are new German outside window scrapers with the new chrome molding, new inside window scrapers, new front felt channel strips, new rear felt channel strips, and new clips for the felt channel strips for both the left and right sides that will come in the car. You get to install them.

The CV Boots are cracked. There are 4 new boots in the car. You get to install them.

We have kept up the tradition of maintaining and enhancing the DoubleCab. Besides adding the A/C, we have had some of the bits and pieces re-chromed. We also have added a 96 plate, mesa style oil cooler and an oil filter all tied together with about 25 feet of braided stainless hose. This keeps the oil temperature down below 180 in the South Florida summer.

About 6 months ago, we also added a stainless steel Superflow muffler with a hidden tail pipe from Vintage Speed. It sounds great, looks wonderful, and should basically last forever.

And a little over a year ago, we installed the front disk brake kit from AirKewld. It features the BAD Series of cross drilled rotors, Wilwood 4 piston calipers, new bearings, etc. Not a cheap kit. But definitely worth the investment. These brakes make a dramatic difference in the drivability of the DoubleCab. While the old drum brakes worked, these front disk brakes really stop the car. The rear drums were completely rebuilt with new pistons and shoes at about that same time.

The DoubleCab has been a terrific car. While we don’t use it a whole lot, we do use it. It always starts, always runs, and always runs well. And it never seems to need more than routine maintenance – regular oil/filter changes and valve adjustments. I wouldn’t hesitate to get in the DoubleCab today and head out for any place in the US. It might be a long trip, because the DoubleCab basically cruises on the freeway at about 55 – 60 mph. But I have no doubt that the DoubleCab would get me to wherever I wanted to go.

I invite you to contact me with any questions you may have about this vehicle. I prefer email. Please contact Bill – wrobeson at bellsouth.net or call 561.five.zero.six.4948. If I missed any angle, please let me know and I will take additional photos.

Terms:

Please remember, this is a 46 year old VW. It is not a new car. My interpretation of the car will vary from yours. The car shows signs of wear and tear and there will be imperfections and blemishes. It will need to be properly maintained.  You are encouraged to come and inspect the car before making an offer or placing a bid. If you are unable to come and see it, you can hire an independent inspection service to check it out. Otherwise, the car will be deemed to be sold without inspection.

The car is listed locally and will be listed For Sale at the Show N’ Shine VW show in Ft. Lauderdale this weekend. So I reserve the right to end the auction at any time.

The car comes with a clear Florida Certificate of Title.

The car is sold “As Is”. There are no warranties. Any descriptions or representations are for identification purposes only and are not to be construed as a warranty of any type.

The buyer is responsible for all taxes and fees as well as the title and registration fees in the state and country where the car will be registered.

Buyer is responsible for picking up or shipping the car. I will assist in any way that I can. I can store the car in the garage – as usual – for a short period of time after the end of the auction. But if you want me to store it, please make arrangements with me during the auction. If the winning bidder is International, I will help deliver the car to the Port of Miami. Please know, if the car is being shipped internationally, there is a slight chance it will be chosen by US Customs for inspection. If this occurs, the buyer is responsible for any fees due to Customs.

I require a $1,000.00 non-refundable deposit to be paid via PayPal within 48 hours of the close of the auction and the balance to be paid via bank wire transfer or in cash within 7 days, unless other arrangements have been agreed upon during the auction. If the balance is not paid within 7 days, I reserve the right to relist the car or send a second chance off to the next highest bidder.