I’ve bought a lot of stuff
on Ebay, but never tried selling anything before. Because of this I will exercise great care in
providing an honest, accurate description.
The earliest records I have on hand indicate this car belonged to a Texas lady who had it restored by a shop in Victoria over October 2000 to February 2001. The invoices (4) show that the mileage was then 43,971 and that she spent a total of $6,970.85 on an extensive list including new brakes, drums, shoes, seals, hoses, filters, exhaust system, fuel tank R & R, gaskets and a ‘minor tune up’ to adjust the carburetor and set the timing. The most expensive of these invoices shows $3,836.16 spent for body repair of “major dents and rust on body, undercarriage, wheel openings” with, among other items, new paint, new vinyl top, windows and refinishing the wheels, bumpers and rear storage compartment. I’m sure this was a frame-on restoration because, as I’ll describe later and attempt to show in the photos, some rust bubbles have begun to show over 13 years later. The Texas lady sold this Thing to my father in 2007 when it showed 44,658 miles on the odometer and dad took it to his home in New Mexico where he tinkered with it. Nothing major, just tinkering as he added a new header exhaust and a few small items such as a new top latch & hook set for which I also have his invoices totaling $545.36 spent. By the end of 2010 he realized he wasn’t going to do much more with it so he sold it to me and I brought it back to Texas. The mileage was 44,961 then and the math indicates he only put 303 miles on the car over three years and, before him, the lady only put 687 miles on it over nearly seven years. I cannot say whether the mileage currently shown is truly original since I have no information about the first 26 years, but I suspect it is original. Fast forward to today and I haven’t really done much with this Thing, either. I will say it’s a fun car and I’ve enjoyed it, but I’ve only put 141 miles on it in my 3+ years. I took it to a couple of club events and used it as a parade car where it got a lot of attention. I’ve always kept it garaged, but now I want to free my garage space for another project such as an art car or rat rod. As such, for the last year I’ve been tempted to alter this Thing, but it’s just too nice and too rare for me to do that in good conscience, which is why I’ve decided to sell it. If my relatively low reserve is not met then I’ll reconsider the art car concept. Now for the good and the bad: The engine runs fine at speed and the transmission shifts smoothly through all the gears. The idle should be adjusted as it occasionally quits when I depress the clutch for down-shifting. It leaks a small amount of oil, but I suspect that’s common for these cars. No known issues with the clutch or brakes. I’ve kept STA-BIL fuel stabilizer in it and run only premium gasoline. I took it to a shop for a tune up in March 2012 when new spark plugs, points and a timing belt were installed. Since then I allowed the Texas registration and inspection sticker to lapse, but both legalities can be easily cured and I am confident it will pass inspection today as the lights, turn signals and horn (not original, I added a replacement plus a PA system for the parades) all work fine. The canvas top is still very good, but the frame for the top is a bit stiff from lack of use and appears to be slightly bowed. Side windows are good. It needs a new battery. I put a charger on it for 20 minutes and it started right up then re-started several times more as I drove it around town on errands. The upholstery is mostly good, but an old cat living in my shop apparently decided that the top of the front passenger seat was really a scratching post. The cat and I came to an understanding concerning the propriety of that behavior and, since then, I’ve kept the top up and use a spare car cover to keep the whole car covered at all times. This spare cover will be included with the Thing if desired. The tires should probably be replaced even though the tread still looks good. I say this because the car has clearly been sitting for prolonged periods and the tires are likely out of round, stiff with flat spots that, in my opinion, are the cause of highway vibration beginning around 45 to 50 mph. The stickers shown on both bumpers are just that, stickers that can be easily peeled off. These stickers were created and applied for one of the events supporting our club. There are some chips in the paint and, as I already mentioned, some rust bubbles appearing behind the left front wheel well. You must kneel down and peer into each of the wheel wells to see more rust around the underside edges. Otherwise, this car looks good from 10 feet, great from about 15 feet and beautiful from 20 feet away. That’s about everything relevant. If I’ve left anything out I don’t know what it could be, but welcome any questions. The photos were all taken on March 11 and, along with this narrative, are intended to provide a clear idea of what you are bidding on. I hope you will bid with confidence on what I consider to be a very good car and, more, that you will enjoy it for more than the 1,131 documented total miles it’s been driven since October 2000. Thanks for looking! |
Volkswagen Thing for Sale
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Auto blog
VW recalls 220,000 Atlases, Atlas Cross Sports for airbag defect [Updated]
Thu, Mar 31 2022[Update: Audi of America has confirmed that no U.S. models are among the recall population for plug-in hybrid fire issue.] Volkswagen has issued yet another recall for its Atlas SUV, this time for side airbags that may not deploy correctly in an accident due to a problematic connection in one of the vehicle's wiring harnesses. The campaign covers 222,892 Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport models built for the 2019-2023 model years. The issue stems from a connection with the wiring harness that runs from the A-pillar into the door. VW says that harnesses produced by one of its suppliers were not built with additional measures to prevent movement at the connection point. Small movements can cause abrasion of the metal contacts which could lead to a whole host of electronic misadventures, including the potential for airbag deployment to be delayed in a crash. "Micro-movement of the wire harness (terminal A-Pillar to front door) can result in damage to the wire terminal surface. Damage to the surface can [result] in fretting corrosion which may cause sporadic interruption in the electrical connection to the components of the front door," VW said in its defect notice. "The airbag warning light may illuminate if a malfunction is detected. Other symptoms of a sporadic interruption of the affected electrical connection can be: inadvertent rolling down windows, inadvertent park brake engagement at low speeds (below approx. 3km/h or 1.8mph), warning regarding faulty door sensor," VW said. Not every model built within the range defined above is subject to the recall; terminals from other suppliers were manufactured with the necessary safeguards in place. If you own a 2019-2023 Atlas or Atlas Cross Sport, keep your eyes peeled for a notification from VW regarding the campaign, likely some time in early-mid May. PHEV problems Across the Atlantic, the VW Group mothership confirmed that it will recall more than 100,000 plug-in hybrid models worldwide to address a fire risk. The recall was launched in response to 16 reported incidents of fires stemming from insufficient insulation of the PHEV battery pack that allows the engine cover to make contact if it is not completely secure. If that happens, the heat from the battery can ignite the engine cover. The recall will cover PHEVs build by VW, Audi, Seat and Skoda, Reuters reports, including the VW Passat, Golf, Tiguan and Arteon — plug-in variants of which are not sold in the United States.
Volkswagen taps Porsche chief for board
Mon, Feb 23 2015Matthias Mueller was promoted to the top position at Porsche in 2010 after a successful stint of developing model lines during his 36 years with the company, mainly at Audi. Having shown the same prowess while overseeing Porsche for the past five years, German outlet Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that Mueller will be promoted to the management board of the Volkswagen Group, according to a leaked copy of an agenda for the meeting. It's said that a new spot is being created for him, one that will put him in charge of "overseeing cooperation" among Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, and Porsche. While other group executives are known to hold positions on the board and with brands, or across brands, it isn't clear yet whether Mueller will keep his spot at the CEO of Porsche after the promotion. One thing that is certain is the 61-year-old Mueller doesn't see himself in line for Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn's job in 2016, having told FAZ this month, "It's no solution to put a 63-year-old at the head of Volkswagen." News Source: Reuters, Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Geoff Robins/AFP/Getty Images Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Porsche Volkswagen Performance volkswagen group matthias mueller promotion
Porsche 911 with VW turbodiesel prepares for LeMons assault
Fri, 21 Mar 2014LeMons racing is a wonderful example that setting limits can actually breed creativity. The series mandates that all entries must cost $500, not counting safety equipment, and that cap forces teams to be ingenious in how they build a racecar. Take for example this diesel-powered Porsche 911, which its creators have dubbed Ferkel the Nein-11, that will be racing in the Sears Pointless race this weekend in Sonoma, California.
This Frankenstein combines a 911 chassis that was originally bought just for its European powertrain and a Volkswagen TDI diesel engine mounted in the rear. After deciding the shell could still be of some use, the team decided to go racing. "We began brainstorming what replacement drivetrain to use for maximum offense and there was really only one answer: a diesel," said Philipp von Weitershausen, one of the team captains, to Jalopnik. They bought a 1998 Jetta TDI on the cheap and started figuring out a way to hack the engine into the bay. To pay respect to the donor, the VW's trunk was highly modified (and drilled) and grafted onto the back of Ferkel.
This team isn't a newcomer to LeMons. Its last car was a classic VW Beetle with a Subaru engine and dual controls, named Ferdinand the Bug, which could be driven from the left or right side. It's quite a sight.