Prices of beetles in the uk!

[fish]

Dave Kindig who did the bus in question is one of the best car restorers in the U.S.  His quality is almost unmatched, that is why he gets the money he does.

IMO he is a butcher, no way that Splitty is worth the money unless it's filled with contraband 😉

[Russell]

Does anyone know if the bus is a 100% stock restoration or a custom one ??

Russell

[henk]

Custom,1965 converted to a samba.
https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1965-VOLKSWAGEN-TYPE-II-21-WINDOW-DELUXE-BUS-200656

Henk!!!

[baz]

Custom,1965 converted to a samba.
https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1965-VOLKSWAGEN-TYPE-II-21-WINDOW-DELUXE-BUS-200656

Henk!!!

Money obviously doesn't buy good taste.

[gkeeton@zbzoom.net]

Custom,1965 converted to a samba.
https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1965-VOLKSWAGEN-TYPE-II-21-WINDOW-DELUXE-BUS-200656

Henk!!!

Money obviously doesn't buy good taste.

To each their own. I have yet to find that perfect vehicle someone else did that was exactly how I would have created it. Apparently the winning bidder thought it was pretty damn nice.

I know of a high end shop near me that the owner did an early 60's Beetle Convertible for his wife. It was a mild custom similar to the Bus mentioned. The body/interior were incredible, but the engine was a simple 1776 with Kadrons. It ran great, just not my style. He had it in the Mothers display at SEMA, and someone offered him 400% of what I would have ever thought he could have gotten out of it.

It's instances like those that raise the market value of stuff. Whether, or not they are offers by uneducated wealthly buyers that are buying without abandon, they are still legitimate offers someone is willing to pay for something. When these type of purchases start becoming more frequent, that's when values start to really increase.

[baz]

Custom,1965 converted to a samba.
https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1965-VOLKSWAGEN-TYPE-II-21-WINDOW-DELUXE-BUS-200656

Henk!!!

Money obviously doesn't buy good taste.

To each their own. I have yet to find that perfect vehicle someone else did that was exactly how I would have created it. Apparently the winning bidder thought it was pretty damn nice.

I know of a high end shop near me that the owner did an early 60's Beetle Convertible for his wife. It was a mild custom similar to the Bus mentioned. The body/interior were incredible, but the engine was a simple 1776 with Kadrons. It ran great, just not my style. He had it in the Mothers display at SEMA, and someone offered him 400% of what I would have ever thought he could have gotten out of it.

It's instances like those that raise the market value of stuff. Whether, or not they are offers by uneducated wealthly buyers that are buying without abandon, they are still legitimate offers someone is willing to pay for something. When these type of purchases start becoming more frequent, that's when values start to really increase.

Yes I hear you with respect to each to their own. It's not to my tastes and I could buy much nicer buses for a fraction of that price ,  buses that might return a profit in future unlike this one.


How much would it cost to build that thing?   bus needing restoration $20k, bodywork $30k, paint $20k, motor $10k,  interior $10k,  suspension brakes and wheels $5k.  Anybody with that kinda money to spend could find much better value if they commissioned a build themselves.

[Nico86]

People who buy cars through auctions such as this one or through these tv shows are usually people who have no idea about the value of things, and who know nothing about VWs. Or they would know they could buy 4 or 5 other buses for the same price. They find the car cool, it's kind of trendy or fashionnable to have a more or less old-looking VW bus, so they buy it. Mostly to be able to brag about it then. 6 months later they see somewhere that another car/object/item is now cool and trendy and they will get it and forget about the previous one. The very same way they will one day wake up and decide they need to buy the Kanye West Nike shoes and they will spend $10.000 for a pair of chinese-made sneakers they will probably never wear.

The same thing happened here with Citroën 2cv's and Citroën Mehari's. At some point all the french TV stars decided the coolest thing was to drive an old Citroën 2cv in the streets of Paris or to go in vacation in St-Tropez in the middle of summer with a Citroën Mehari (and btw everyone who made the mistake to go to St-Tropez in summer knows it's hell on earth and the lamest place where to go driving... unless you need attention and you want people to look at you). Of course the prices of these cars suddenly sky-rocketed, and everyone who had a crappy 2cv from the late 80s was throwing a few shiny bits on it and tried to sell it for crazy amounts of money. Stupid amounts of money, when you know what's a 2cv or a Mehari is. It barely has more technology than a tent mounted on a radio-flyer.

[gkeeton@zbzoom.net]

Yes I hear you with respect to each to their own. It's not to my tastes and I could buy much nicer buses for a fraction of that price ,  buses that might return a profit in future unlike this one.


How much would it cost to build that thing?   bus needing restoration $20k, bodywork $30k, paint $20k, motor $10k,  interior $10k,  suspension brakes and wheels $5k.  Anybody with that kinda money to spend could find much better value if they commissioned a build themselves.

What fraction do you feel you could buy a nicer Bus, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3's? Sure, buying a vehicle, and doing the restoration/build yourself is only going to have the costs of materials/parts. Few realize what a paid restoration, where you drop off your junk, and you drive home a show car, costs. Judging from the restorations on the builders site, he has done vehicles well into the six figure range, and most likely some into the seven figure range.

Actual correct concours restorations with correct headmark/plated fasteners, and authentic materials could easily surpass $100K for a Split Bus. As for the Kindig Bus, not sure what all was done, but it could easily surpass $100K-$150K. High end shops like his are usually $100-$120 an hour. With parts/materials, it can easily become $1000 in an eight hour day. You can easily see how a build with hundreds, and even thousands of hours can add up quickly.

[baz]

Yes I hear you with respect to each to their own. It's not to my tastes and I could buy much nicer buses for a fraction of that price ,  buses that might return a profit in future unlike this one.


How much would it cost to build that thing?   bus needing restoration $20k, bodywork $30k, paint $20k, motor $10k,  interior $10k,  suspension brakes and wheels $5k.  Anybody with that kinda money to spend could find much better value if they commissioned a build themselves.

What fraction do you feel you could buy a nicer Bus, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3's? Sure, buying a vehicle, and doing the restoration/build yourself is only going to have the costs of materials/parts. Few realize what a paid restoration, where you drop off your junk, and you drive home a show car, costs. Judging from the restorations on the builders site, he has done vehicles well into the six figure range, and most likely some into the seven figure range.

Actual correct concours restorations with correct headmark/plated fasteners, and authentic materials could easily surpass $100K for a Split Bus. As for the Kindig Bus, not sure what all was done, but it could easily surpass $100K-$150K. High end shops like his are usually $100-$120 an hour. With parts/materials, it can easily become $1000 in an eight hour day. You can easily see how a build with hundreds, and even thousands of hours can add up quickly.

A nice original sub $50k 11 window bus would be nicer imo but that just comes down to personal taste. I prefer factory colours and factory interiors.

There are a few top end restored buses for sale in the $50-100k range that make the $300k cloned deluxe seem very expensive.

[gkeeton@zbzoom.net]

A nice original sub $50k 11 window bus would be nicer imo but that just comes down to personal taste. I prefer factory colours and factory interiors.

There are a few top end restored buses for sale in the $50-100k range that make the $300k cloned deluxe seem very expensive.

Yeah, I guess you could find a lesser model  for much less. Finding a 21/23, or even a 13/15 window in complete restorable condition for less than $50k in the U.S. is becoming more difficult as we type. The shop owners I work for looked for a good 6 months at the end of 2015 to find a 23 window in need of a restoration for a customer. The best vehicle they located, that was complete/running, not missing windows/seats/bumpers/engine was $70k.

Also with the completed vehicle's, you could find something not quite as desireable/sought after for less. I disagree that you could find a top end build, of any Bus, comparable to the Kindig Bus for less than $100k. Still less than $300k though.

[Nico86]

The builder/restorer's reputation and fame (fame in the automotive scene) also makes the price rising virtually. For example during the last couple of years Porsches built by Magnus Walker sold for a lot more than other outlaw Porsches. Same thing if you take a car built by Chip Foose, it will always sell for more money than the same car built by someone unknown, though the same amount of work and skills will have been put into the car.

[baz]

A nice original sub $50k 11 window bus would be nicer imo but that just comes down to personal taste. I prefer factory colours and factory interiors.

There are a few top end restored buses for sale in the $50-100k range that make the $300k cloned deluxe seem very expensive.

Yeah, I guess you could find a lesser model  for much less. Finding a 21/23, or even a 13/15 window in complete restorable condition for less than $50k in the U.S. is becoming more difficult as we type. The shop owners I work for looked for a good 6 months at the end of 2015 to find a 23 window in need of a restoration for a customer. The best vehicle they located, that was complete/running, not missing windows/seats/bumpers/engine was $70k.

Also with the completed vehicle's, you could find something not quite as desireable/sought after for less. I disagree that you could find a top end build, of any Bus, comparable to the Kindig Bus for less than $100k. Still less than $300k though.

Deluxe prices have gone crazy and personally I've never preferred the more window option over a pre 63 11 window bus. There are still a handful of top end deluxe for sale right now for half $300k so I still say that bus was way over priced regardless of the fact someone paid that for it.

Gone off topic here now anyways. Back to the subject matter of beetle prices, how about this beauty for only €24900

https://m.mobile.de/auto-inserat/volkswagen-k%C3%A4fer-gechopt-pink-panther-wasserboxer-andernach/229554592.html?ref=srp