1963 VW Beetle Bug Cal Look Custom

1963 Volkswagen Bug - Cal Style. This car has the color, the stance, and the look. It's in amazing condition, but it's also a lifelong So-Cal resident and has had a couple of fanatic owners. The car shows extremely well, but it's not a trailer queen. The paint was done about 6 years ago and while it shows some chips and minor imperfections, but the quality of the re-spray can be still be seen in the deep reflections still visible in the photos. It's still too nice to park to close to anybody in a parking lot. I would imagine just about everything on this car has been replaced at one time or another. The interior sports a Fast Fab custom gauge panel outfitted with VDO tachometer, oil temperature, and voltmeter. Gas gauge is still the original mechanical unit that works perfectly, as is the speedometer head. The shifter is a Flat 4 unit and the linkage had all new bushings installed when it was installed. The seats are new gray Scat recliners with black piping that show no signs of wear. They are both mounted on proper Scat adapters and finished off with new front seat belts. The steering wheel is a wood rimed EMPI model with proper adapter and working horn button. The carpets are new and free of rips, tears, or stains. The carpets are finished with EMPI polished sill plates. There is a Kenwood AM/FM/CD/Bluetooth head with removable face located behind the glove box door, and is wired to dual JBL GT speakers mounted in a custom rear parcel shelf. The white headliner, and sun visors are nice and the rear seat was redone to match the Scats up front. The rear seat is also equipped with lap belts. The exterior chrome, including bumpers and moldings are in great condition too. The pans look clean as does the entire undercarriage. The car has a 4 1/2" narrowed front beam and is equipped with front disc brakes with braided lines, and standard drums in the rear. The shocks front and rear are new KYBs. The car sits on staggered, polished Porsche Fuchs. Fronts are 15" and the rear are 16", and all are shod in brand new rubber. The Fuchs are a direct bolt-on and use no adapters. The drive train is a big bore 2052 that was built with a mild cam. It is topped off with twin genuine Redline Weber 44 IDFs (not knock-offs). The engine has about 600 miles on it and was fitted with a billet serpentine belt system, new alternator, EMPI breather, Scat Chrome valve covers, and a Jet Coated side exit exhaust system. The engine/transaxle is suspended on new Prothane mounts. I'm not sure if the transaxle was re-done, but it's a Freeway Flyer with no bad habits. Does not pop out of any gear and shifts like butter. There is also an aftermarket electric fan equipped oil cooler. The car never runs hot - not even in some pretty brutal So-Cal temperatures. From the pictures its obvious that the car has been lowered. The beam handled the front and the rear was done with ATOM lowering plates. It was done right and this Bug doesn't ride like 4 wheels mounted to a sheet of plywood. It rides surprisingly well and handles like a cat on velcro. This feels more like an early Porsche than a VW. I'm not a VW expert in any sense of the word, but I don't remember ever driving a Bug that went, turned, or stopped like this! If you look up ATOM lowering plates on the web, you'll see they have a "stepped" design to lower the car, but maintain the suspension travel which is why the ride is so good. For those in cold climates, please know that the car has no provision for heat due to the high performance exhaust system. I don't know if it can be returned to stock, or that anyone would want to, but assume it's not as simple as it sounds.

What's it like to drive? First, you'll never wipe the smile off your face, but what is amazing is that it feels nothing like a 53 year old car. It easily eats up the canyon roads, and it's perfectly civilized just tooling around town or buzzing down the freeway. Two prior owners (both VW nuts) have spent tens of thousands of dollars on the Bug over the years. If you carefully read description and look closely at the pictures you'll know that you can't duplicate this car for double the reserve. Is the car perfect? In a nutshell, no. No older classic is (unless it's a concours restoration that's never driven), but this is pretty darn close! But, it's not so nice that you can't enjoy it. Are there nicer ones out there? Sure, but it all depends on your budget. There is also a lot a absolute junk out there that might look good, but have so many incorrect modifications that they turn into your worse nightmare. Everyone wants to put their own touches on their car, but this one needs nothing other than a new driver, so any further mods are strictly up to the new owner.

Please review this entire listing prior to placing a bid. Any questions you may have I will be glad to try and answer the best I can. Again, I'm not an expert on VWs so I'm not going to be able to tell you any of the subtleties of items that may or may not be period correct. It's not a stock restoration, so I'm not sure what difference it makes anyway. The only thing that I don't disclose is the reserve. It's not fair to all the other bidders, so just bid what you are comfortable paying. I also don't sell outside of ebay, so any offers, or buy it now questions are just ignored. If the reserve is met, the car will be sold on ebay. It is not offered for sale anywhere locally.

The winning bidder is required to post a $1,000 non-refundable deposit via Paypal at the conclusion of the auction (which translates into right after the auction closes). The balance of payment is to be made via wire transfer within 3 days of auction end.. If the deposit is not posted in a timely manner I will send a second chance offer to those next in line. The winning bidder is responsible for all arrangements and payment for any transportation of the vehicle. The car is sold with a clean California title, and both the VIN on the body pate and on the transmission tunnel match. Should the winner be a California resident, the YOM black plates and transfer paperwork will also be included. The car needs to be picked up within 2 weeks of auction close, and will not leave until the payment has cleared my bank.

The car sold AS IS, WHERE IS, and is WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. There are no returns so please look at the pictures carefully, read the description closely, and ask any questions you might have.

Thanks for looking and good luck!