Post by Volktales on Oct 18, 2014 12:17:15 GMT -8
Well here it is, another VW acquisition... Some of you know the story behind this, others may not, so here is a brief description... It is common knowledge to many that my dream VW has always been an early big window Beetle from 1958 or 1959. Why? These cars feature things I like such as the flat two spoke steering wheels, snowflake taillights, '50's style interior, early Wolfsburg crest, etc. They also have 36 horsepower engines which many believe were the most reliable of all the flat fours. 1958 and 1959 cars are virtually identical, the only obvious difference being colour choices. I already own two 1959s in terrible condition, but really needed a different car for a viable project. Ideally I would prefer a 1958 because of the cool metallic colours available that year. My all time favourite colour is Strato Silver, in reality a metallic blue-ish shade. This colour was not available in 1958, but the similar Glacier blue was....
And so it happened. Jerry "The Facilitator" heard of a potential candidate in the Kelowna area. It just happened to be a 1958 project Beetle originally painted Glacier blue! Of course I was interested, but being RRSP season this was not going to work for me at this time due to a lack of "car fun cash". So I had to pass, but Jerry said he would accept a trade for a decent 1600. This got my attention as I have a good parts stash. To make a long story short, the car is in my possession and will be introduced here....
The car was owned for a long time by someone named Wayne who had the "field of dreams", which was basically a field full of old VW's. Anyway he had a clear-out and this was the last one to go. It was surprisingly original, and had relatively minor rust. Unfortunately the guy Wayne sold it to, did not restore it but decided to turn it into a Volksrod/ratrod project. He chopped off both front and rear apron assemblies (the rear was perfect), stripped everything down and then lost interest. Apparently this did not go over too well with the VW scene who gave him a very hard time about destroying an original car. He only owned it for about a year then put it up for sale on Airspeed. This is where Jerry spotted it and how I eventually acquired it. So what have I got myself into???
First of all the car turned out to be a rare Canadian Standard. This model was VW's cheapest car available and has very limited trim. The steering wheel is a black three spoke design, the seats and door panels are VERY plain, there is no chrome trim on the dash, the control knobs are black, the vent windows are painted, there is no chrome around any of the windows, no chrome on the runningboards either. Most interesting is the headliner. Only the very centre of the roof has any covering; otherwise all surfaces are painted metal. Mechanically they were the same as Deluxe 1958s. This car was built in March/April of 1958 and the engine number is from this same time too. Maybe original??? Anyway here are some pictures...
As seen on the trailer. Looks kinda bad at first...
Looking closer reveals a lack of serious rot...
Most of the floorpans are original. The battery area has a patch, and the back part of the drivers side has been replaced. The heater channels are mint except at the back under the quarterpanels.
That is original paint and rust free metal. Shame the previous owner hacked up pristine panels!!!
This joint is from some ancient accident damage on the passenger side. The outer part of the quarter panel was replaced and the joint filled with lead. This repair would have been very early in the cars life.
Tacked some parts on for this picture to make me feel it is a "real" car. Both those fenders on the driver's side are original to this car. Early fenders like this have more in common with the oval windows and have several differences to the common repro fenders available. Car still came with lots of it's original parts. 
This shot shows the exposed metal of the interior. Only the centre of the roof had any covering.
The mighty 36 horsepower engine. Supposedly it runs, but looks like hasn't been really touched in decades. These engines are known for their toughness and will start after sitting forever.
And here is a shot of a very plain dashboard... Note the three spoke wheel that many go crazy over. This car did once have a radio (a Blaupunkt!), but unfortunately this disappeared along with the original back seat. I have most of the other parts that are missing. So what are the plans for this??? It will be restored to its original bone stock condition. My dream VW would have been a Deluxe with fat whitewalls, but I am sure I will warm to the Standard's rarity. Don't expect any restoration updates for some time. I won't get into this project until after my Ghia is mechanically right and the next project in line (the Savannah Beige '70) is done. At least I can say I finally have a viable early Beetle project which is what I have wanted for years....
As many of you know, this project did not have a happy ending. How I "acquired" it and why it left my ownership were the key reasons for me to leave the Nanaimo Volkswagen Club site. There really was no other option and it made me sad that things ended that way. For me the car was "tainted" and it is best I do not have it anymore.... I will find a better replacement someday...
Rumor has it this car was later "parted out" 
Hopefully that was not its fate, but who knows...