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'63 Volkswagen Riviera Camper, Rat Rod, Rat Bus on 2040-cars

Year:1963 Mileage:99999
Location:

United States

United States
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Okay, I bought this one about a year ago with big plans for it, but I’ve since found and bought the Walk-Thru that I’ve wanted so I’m going to pass this one on. It’s had some pretty shoddy body work done to it and was generally a mechanical disaster when I got it. 
If you plan on restoring it, you’re going to want to replace the inner and outer rockers on both sides. The outers are pretty solid thanks to all the Bondo somebody packed into them, but they did a crap job shaping and sanding. There’s obvious Bondo at the left rear vent and wheel well, as well as at the “hand hold” on the rear hatch.  
The floors are surprisingly solid as you can see in the pics. Most of the undercarriage is in very good shape as well, save the rockers and one outrigger, also shown in the pics.
The brakes and wiring are all sorted now, as in it’s safe and legal. 
It’s got working Headlights, High Beams, Tail lights, Brake lights and Turn Signals.
I’ve done a good bit of work on the engine and it runs like a Bat out of Hell. I don’t know what it is, but I’d guess an 1835cc based on the power it has. It was reported to be a fresh rebuild by the guy I bought it from. I’d be inclined to believe him. It runs very strong and tight. It climbs hills like a Chevy and cruises down the highway at a pretty good clip. The speedo works to within a few mph. It says 62 and the gps says 65. It will cruise 70 easily, but with no interior and the awning windows flapping around in the wind the noise gets a bit obnoxious at that speed. I recently put a fresh distributor and a brand new Bosch Alternator and a new fan on it. It’s got a brand new higher end battery too. The front tires are in very good condition, probably 80%. The back tires are not as good at around 40%. The wipers work when they feel like it.
The ride is solid and awesome. The suspension seems in great shape. It hugs the road nicely and it turns like it’s on rails. It’s a blast to drive (I have done a few trips to the Redwoods and up and down the CA and OR coasts in it).
It’s got Stainless Steel Gimbaled Marine Drink Holders! …and a Parcel tray stereo mount that I have never seen in 30 years of owning bus’s. I don’t know if it was factory or aftermarket or custom made, but it’s a great fit and it’s really nice the dash has never been butchered. The rear window rail is there and in perfect condition. It also comes with a pre-cracked passenger side windshield. All the other glass you’re going to have to crack yourself. And yes, the roof rack stays with it.
I have over 100 pictures that cover just about every inch of the good, the bad, and the ugly. email me at cynicalsailor@yahoo.com for the link.
The way Bus prices are going I’m half tempted to keep it for later, but I could use the money to fix up the walk-thru. 
All in all, this is a great Rat-Rod just the way it is, or if you’re looking for a resto project, there's a whole lot of good Bus here and it’s the last year (early '63) of the small rear window and is a pretty rare model. It’s currently registered and has a clear Oregon title.
Thanks for looking and happy bidding!

Auto blog

German prosecutors have recorded calls between VW bigwigs talking dieselgate

Thu, Mar 21 2019

It's barely possible to believe how poorly Volkswagen continues to handle dieselgate. Depending on which day you catch the news, the German carmaker embodies the corporate venality of "Michael Clayton," the comic blundering of the Coen Brothers' "Burn After Reading," and the every-man-for-himself vengeance of "Reservoir Dogs." Today is Tarantino day, with news that German prosecutors have recordings of phone calls between former Audi and Porsche development boss Wolfgang Hatz, ex-Volkswagen Group executive Matthias Muller, and current Porsche executives Oliver Blume and Michael Steiner. Hatz made the calls to the trio in November 2015, two months after Volkswagen admitted its diesel-particulate sins to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Hatz was still employed at the time, and in his company car. Who recorded the calls? His wife. Hatz and his missus apparently saw the storm coming and started stacking defenses early. Hatz's wife, who can be heard encouraging Hatz during at least one call, sent the recordings to Hatz's attorney from her mobile phone. According to a Google translation of the German newspaper Handelsblatt's report, she included the note, "Here is a very long, but quite informative conversation on the current situation with useful formulations." The report in Handelsblatt said that in Germany it is generally "not allowed" to record a conversation and pass it on to a third party. We don't know how the authorities will handle this matter, since prosecutors found the recordings in e-mail attachments on Mrs. Hatz's mobile phone. Remember, when the diesel scandal broke, VW spent months saying that only a small number of low-level personnel were behind it, and all of the higher-ups had been blindsided. Ex-CEO Martin Winterkorn claimed to be "stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen Group." Winterkorn successor Matthias Muller said, "according to current information, a few developers interfered in the engine management." Former VW USA honcho Michael Horn told a congressional committee that "a couple of software engineers" programmed the software for reasons no one could understand. In the recorded conversations, Hatz apparently called Muller to find out how VW planned to treat him.

UK auto magazine says this is the best car commercial of all time [w/videos]

Thu, 20 Dec 2012

There have been many great car commercials over the years, but is it possible to define the best? Well, Ad Week recently took a crack at it by rating the top commercials of the year by looking at their view counts on YouTube, but Auto Express took a more democratic approach by putting the decision to a vote. Just after Thanksgiving, Auto Express came up with a list of the 20 popular commercials, and it tasked its readers with choosing the winner for the best car ad of all time. The winner? Honda's 2003 commercial for its then-new European Accord titled "The Cog."
While the ad never aired in the US, most car people have surely seen the impressive Rube Goldberg-style spot. In fact, the only commercial on this list that we saw on US television was the Volkswagen ad "The Force," but many of the others have become viral videos, including transforming and dancing Citroën C4. Of the 19 other commercials that vied for the title of best ad of all time, only the Ford Puma "Steve McQueen" commercial gave Honda a run for its advertising money.
Scroll down to watch Auto Express' top five commercial in order and to check out a press release, then let us know some of your favorite car commercials in Comments.

Recharge Wrap-up: Tesla details factory expansion; Ford and SunPower raise money for Sierra Club

Thu, Nov 20 2014

Tesla has revealed the details of the upgrade of its Fremont, CA factory. One major change is the addition of a dedicated production space for the dual-motor P85D version of the Model S. Robots will be doing the battery installation on the Model S to save some time, and new export docks allow Tesla to get the cars out the door and on the way to their new owners more quickly. The new robots that move the cars around the factory have been named after X-Men characters, which makes our inner geeks smile. Check out the factory upgrade in the time-lapse video below and read more at Teslarati or at the Tesla Motors Blog. A program in Beijing for privileged registrations for EVs hasn't had much success. Of the 1,424 lottery winners, only about 30 percent went on to register an electric car despite a two-month extension of the deadline to do so. Buyers are likely discouraged by the lack of charging infrastructure, which the city hopes to ameliorate with the addition of 1,000 new charging stations by the end of the year, and by requiring new and renovated developments to set aside parking specifically for EV charging. Read more at Green Car Reports. The UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies suggests that laws designed to protect dealers and consumers are stymieing the adoption of EVs. Laws like the ones certain states have in place that block or otherwise restrict Tesla's direct-to-consumer business model are not helpful for companies that want to introduce new products to the market. They prevent companies from passing on savings to customers for whom they would likely make the difference in a purchasing decision. One possible solution would be to allow exemptions to certain selling restrictions for a certain number of vehicles sold. "This could give automakers the degree of control needed to work out kinks with early customers, develop scalable processes for supporting PEVs, and ensure that effective dealer performance standards are in place before handing the reins over to wholly independent retailers," according to UC Davis ITS. Read more at the UC Davis website. Volkswagen says its environmental program, called "Think Blue. Factory," is meeting the automaker's own sustainability targets. The main purpose of the program is to move toward eco-friendlier carmaking at each of its plants worldwide.