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eBay Find of the Day: Unrestored Herbie Love Bug movie car

Well before Cars ever hit the screens, The Love Bug series of Disney films – starring Herbie the VW Beetle with a mind of its own – was an early introduction to cars and racing for many budding auto fans. Not the modern remake starring Lindsay Lohan mind you, but the originals from the '60s and '70s. Now, a seller in Texas claims to be offering a chance to own one of the Bugs from the films on eBay Motors. According to the auction, this Beetle didn't appear in the original film but was built for the sequel Herbie Rides Again in 1972 and also appeared in the third installment Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo. This VW was prepared as the blind-drive car for the movies that attached a low-mounted chair in the back and extended controls to let Herbie look like he was driving himself. Although, some of the photos here show the Bug with regular seats fitted, too. This Herbie was reportedly found in a Florida warehouse a few years ago. It was then made operable, while trying to keep it as original as possible. The exterior underwent a slight restoration with input from former Disney special effects staff, according to the seller. The changes added new graphics and rebuilt the blind drive setup. Judging by these pictures, the rest of the interior was left mostly untouched, though. Of course, anyone interested in buying a movie car is going to want proof of its authenticity. The seller claims to have the original California title showing the buyer as Disney in 1972. The Bug also reportedly has a unique rear decklid that mixes early and later parts to help identify it in the film. As of this writing, bidding for Herbie sits at $55,100 with 82 bids and a reserve not yet met. The sale closes on Saturday, December 13.

Porsche-Piech buy 10% stake in VW's holding company

In August, 2009, as the scuttled merger of Porsche and Volkswagen had gone bad and Porsche was backed up against the ropes, Porsche Automobil Holding SE (PAHSE) relinquished a ten-percent stake in itself to Qatar Holdings as well as options it held on 17 percent of VW shares. The sale meant that, for the first time since the founding of the company 61 years before, an entity outside the Porsche and Piech families had a say in the running of PAHSE.
Buying that ten-percent stake back returns full ownership to the two families, the holding company's sole possession being ownership of 50.7 percent of VW's common shares. The price paid wasn't disclosed, but at market rates the purchase would be worth close to $1.25 billion. Qatar intends to hold onto the 17-percent stake it has in Volkswagen.

Volkswagen Routan dead, pour out a sippy cup for your little homies

America's minivan wolfpack has just gotten smaller by one. According to Automotive News, Volkswagen officials have confirmed what we've suspected for some time - the Routan is dead. Essentially a lightly reworked version of the Dodge Grand Caravan, the Routan actually hasn't been rolling off of Chrysler's Windsor, Ontario production line at all this year, but VW had yet to confirm its discontinuation. However, Jonathan Browning, CEO of VW America, has reportedly admitted that the Routan is being axed, with remaining units expected to be funneled into corporate functions for "internal purposes."
The move isn't unexpected - the Routan has never been a big seller, with just 57,650 examples moved since sales began in 2008 - peak yearly sales totaled under 16,000 units, and that was back in 2010. And while many have talked of the minivan segment shrinking, Automotive News points out that the segment actually grew 14 percent last year to 597,118 units, though it should be noted that most segments have been on sales upticks as the US economy chugs out of its recession.
So, is volume-crazy Volkswagen prepared to pass on large family vehicle sales? Probably not - the German automaker has signaled that it plans to build a three-row crossover in North America soon, and we wouldn't be surprised if it looks an awful lot like the Crossblue Concept from January's Detroit Auto Show - minus the fancy plug-in diesel powertrain.