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1973 Volkswagen Thing Base 1.6l on 2040-cars

US $12,900.00
Year:1973 Mileage:99999
Location:

Henderson, Nevada, United States

Henderson, Nevada, United States
Advertising:

Restored red 1973 VW Thing that spent all its life in southern California. 

Runs great. No oil leaks period! Zero rust or body damage. Rebuilt original motor that purrs. Clutch and brakes are excellent. Tires are almost brand new. The top was replaced just 2 weeks ago and looks and fits perfect. Comes with the glass side curtains instead of the cheaper plastic curtains. All seats are in perfect condition also. New hubcaps, seat belts, tail light and front turn signal lenses. New "Thing" rocker panel graphics. The car was repainted a couple of years ago and is a 10 footer. Not perfect, but nice. Windshield wipers stopped working. The car is equipped with the optional heater, but I have not tested it.

This is not your average fixer upper VW Thing. This car is complete and beautiful. Please email me if you have any questions.

It may look like the illegitimate love child of a corrugated shipping container and a dumpster, but the Volkswagen Thing was in fact the resurrection of a German military vehicle known as the Kubelwagen. More than a specific model, the Kubelwagen was a concept; consider how Americans tend to call any military runabout a Jeep, and you've got the idea. And with Kubel meaning "bucket" and Wagen meaning "car," what could have been a better name for such a steel tub than, of course, the Thing?But VW's convertible breadbox was called the Thing only in North America, where it went on sale in 1973; it was known elsewhere as the Trekker, the Safari, or, simply, the Type 181 (right-hand-drive models were called the Type 182). The Thing was built on the same chassis as the pre-1968 Microbus and was propelled by VW's air-cooled, 46-hp, 1600-cc flat four. A four-speed manual was the only transmission. Acceleration was ludicrously slow: 0 to 60 mph took more than 23 seconds. They only came in 3 original colors Pumpkin OrangeSunshine Yellow and Blizard WhiteThe interior was the very definition of stripped. The only instrumentation was a speedometer that housed a fuel gauge on its dial, and the glove box was really just a glove hole, since it lacked a door. VW also boasted that the Thing's cabin could be hosed out.It wasn't conveniences or ability that sucked people in, though--it was how screwy the Thing was. The windshield folded and the detachable doors were swappable front to rear. Warmth was provided by an optional gasoline-fueled heater hooked directly to the fuel tank. Most important, however, was that the Thing looked so very, very weird. It wasn't the vehicle a housewife or a two-term Republican or anybody normal would buy. Naturally, America's youth loved the Thing--the only problem was that few of them could afford it. In 1973, the Thing cost $3150, almost as much as many sports cars and nearly $1000 more than the '73 Beetle. Prices dropped slightly for 1974, but the Thing remained expensive for such simple transportation. To downplay this fact, Volkswagen advertising talked up the Thing's modest off-road ability and pitted it against more expensive trucks such as the Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser. But the two-wheel-drive Thing, with its four-wheel independent suspension, had as much chance of keeping up with an FJ40 on the trails as a roller-derby queen with an inner-ear problem. In 1973, Ralph Nader pushed to have the Thing pulled from the U.S. market on the grounds that it failed to meet safety standards for passenger cars. He soon got his wish, as tightened regulations forced VW to stop importation after the 1974 model year. Only about 25,000 examples were imported, and the Thing remains as goofy and unusual today as it was thirty years ago. Since so many parts are shared with the Beetle and the Microbus, the Thing is inexpensive to run and maintain--but what else would you expect from a bucket car? 


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Volkswagen Golf GTD Variant burns the oil long and fast

Wed, Mar 4 2015

Volkswagen offers no shortage of variations on the Golf theme in America, from the base hatchback and the electric e-Golf to the sporty GTI and performance-oriented Golf R. But as many as are available Stateside, there are even more that never make it here. Like the one you see above. It's called the Volkswagen Golf GTD Variant. It's based on what we'd know as the new Golf SportWagen, which is just arriving in the US now, but this one packs the performance upgrades from the Golf GTD. Isn't that a typo? Don't we mean GTI? No, we don't: we mean GTD. Because in Europe, you can get what is essentially a GTI with a diesel, complete with all (or at least most) of the gear you'd find in the petrol hot hatch, only with a 2.0-liter turbodiesel inline-four packing 181 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. That may not sound like all that much as far as performance models go, but it's more than we'll be able to get from either the gasoline or diesel versions of the Golf SportWagen back in the States. And that makes us a little jealous, especially with room for the kids, the dog and all their gear in the back. World premiere of the new Golf GTD Variant - The perfect all-round package: sporty, economical, comfortable and spacious - Launch set for Geneva Motor Show Since 1982 Volkswagen's GTD logo has stood for Gran Turismo Diesel, with its promise of sporty yet economical motoring. Now for the first time, the GTD initials grace the Golf Variant, which like the Golf GTD, boasts the 184 PS (135 kW) TDI engine. The new Golf GTD Variant is set for its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show, and is available to order as of now at a price of 31,975 euros. The Golf GTD Variant* is excellently placed to establish itself as an iconic long-distance cruiser. The 184 PS TDI engine takes the Golf GTD Variant to 100 km/h in just 7.9 seconds with the 2-litre unit delivering a maximum torque of 380 Nm – and yet this sporty Variant car boasts impressive fuel consumption figures of only 4.4 litres per 100 km. The car's sporty character is reflected in its exterior design: along with special GTD bumpers and the honeycomb radiator grille, the Golf GTD Variant also features smoked rear lights and flared sills. The look is completed by 17-inch Curitiba alloys, black roof rails and dual chrome tailpipes.

Volkswagen Cross Up! aimed at rugged lifestyle folks, complete with plastic cladding

Wed, 06 Mar 2013

If you thought there was nothing wrong with the Volkswagen Up! that a little body cladding wouldn't fix, you're in luck. VW has officially pulled the wraps off the production version of the Cross Up!, and its wheel arches and rocker panels are full of the black plastic cladding you've been yearning for.
In addition to the "particularly rugged design and tough, lifestyle qualities" that the cladding exudes, VeeDub has also seen fit to put its Cross Up! on a new set of 16-inch alloy wheels clad in 185/50-series tires. Inside, there are new kick plates to go along with a dash pad that can be had in red, black or silver.
All that cladding must equal additional off-road readiness, right? Well, sure... just so long as you're fine with the same 75-horsepower three-cylinder engine that all other Up! models also feature, along with a five-speed manual transmission sending power to the front wheels, again, just like all other Up! models. The Cross Up! appears to have a taller ride height than other models, but we haven't been able to find out what - if any - changes have been made.

YouTube's Super Bowl commercial buzz list dominated by automakers [w/videos]

Thu, 31 Jan 2013

After Sunday's big game, YouTube will be the place to watch every commercial that you missed when you left your seat for an emergency guac refill or, as we say in Cleveland, took the Browns to the Super Bowl. That makes YouTube the nation's water cooler on Monday, and it's got some preliminary stats to share in the lead up to kickoff.
As you know, Super Bowl advertisers, particularly automakers, like to endlessly tease their big budget commercials in the weeks before the game, many times revealing them outright days in advance. Because of this, YouTube can tell us which commercials have been viewed the most so far, and their top five list is all automakers.
Kaley Cuoco appears to have been a good investment for Toyota, as her ad for the RAV4 has garnered the most YouTube views - six million and counting - among Super Bowl commercials so far. Second place goes to Mercedes-Benz, though not its actual Super Bowl commercial, but rather the teaser for it. You know, the one with Kate Upton and the car washing, which is up to 5.6 million views. Third place is Audi's Prom commercial (3.3M views), fourth goes to Volkswagen's slightly controversial Get In, Get Happy ad (3.3M views), and the fifth and final spot is bookended by the teaser video for Kaley Cuoco's commercial (3.2M views). You can watch all five in order below.