VW TYPE 181 ,THING, FIFTY FIRST DATES CAR, CONVERTIBLE ,REMOVABLE HARD TOP

This is a FUN car with all its versitility and utilitarian styling.

the engine runs good and sounds beefy with its CHUBBY exhaust pipes.

the transmission shifts great and clutch works fine

the brakes are goo, hey are the stock hub style (lots of disc brake upgrade kits available)

the steering and suspension has had some recent work (ball joints and tie rods with ends replaced)

tires are brand new 15" street and trails on EMPI rims and center caps

the seats are in nice condition, dont know if these are original but they are padded well and material is flexible as new.

i have the original steering wheel (cracked) and original wheels they will be included if you like

i also have a easy attach tow bar that hooks over the front axle and clips on for easy install and removal (this may aid in finding reasonable delivery rates for purchaser )

if you like i may arrange a friend to bring it to you on the tow bar after purchase for a reasonable fee.from st helens oregon97051

these cars have drastically went up in value in the last few years and are in the top 5 most wanted collector car list according to haggerty.com and other sources

I LOVE THIS THING, really do and i hate to part with it, specially with the value rising so rapidl, but my Wife and I have been trying to have a child for the last 10 years with no success, e have been working with a fertility clinic here in portland oregon and are going to do the "IN VITRO" process that is costly but has a high sucess rate. so we are selling this car to pay for the procedure,

so good luck and happy bidding

thank you so much

Roy & Jinkee

below is a list of fun facts that i pulled off the web for you..

The Volkswagen Type 181 “The Thing” was an updated version of the German military’s Type 82 Kubelwagen. Rather than using the Type 82’s mechanical setup, owever, he Thing rode on a combination of a Bettle driveline and a Type II Transporter suspension. Like the rest of the VW lineup, he Type 181 placed the air-cooled, 584-cc engine in the rear and use the motor’s 46 hp to drive the rear wheels.

While the Beetle had charm, he Thing was much more utilitarian. Nary a curve on the car, t had a removable top, folding windshield, nd hose-it-out practicality. While it would never be confused for a jeep, and Rover, r Land Cruiser on the trail, t could manage to stray off the pavement, nd was particularly fun on the beach.

Much like during its two-year production run, he Volkswagen Thing today is a quirky, ye-catching ride. Its bright and wild 1970s colors, ombined with the caonvertible’s boxiness make it stand out in a sea of uniform cars. Models from 1974 are slightly more desirable due to their 55 hp, hough condition and color tend to drive value more than model year. . Cars that retain their original hard top have a much higher value and glass removable sliding windows were a valued option over the vinyl not so clear stock windows.

Keeping a Thing streetable is not difficult given their commonality with the ubiquitous Beetle, nd prices tend to be reasonable as a result. Consequently, uyers can afford to be choosy.

IT may look like the illegitimate love child of a corrugated shipping container and a dumpster, ut the Volkswagen Thing was in fact the resurrection of a German military vehicle known as the Kbelwagen. More than a specific model, he Kbelwagen was a concept; consider how Americans tend to call any military runabout a Jeep, nd you’ve got the idea. And with Kbel meaning “bucket” and Wagen meaning “car,” what could have been a better name for such a steel tub than, f course, he Thing?

But VW’s convertible breadbox was called the Thing only in North America, here it went on sale in 1973; it was known elsewhere as the Trekker, he Safari, r, imply, he Type 181 (right-hand-drive models were called the Type 182). The Thing was built on the same chassis as the pre-1968 Microbus and was propelled by VW’s air-cooled, 6-hp, 600-cc flat four. A four-speed manual was the only transmission. Acceleration was ludicrously slow: 0 to 60 mph took more than 23 seconds.

The interior was the very definition of stripped. The only instrumentation was a speedometer that housed a fuel gauge on its dial, nd the glove box was really just a glove hole, ince it lacked a door. VW also boasted that the Thing’s cabin could be hosed out.

It wasn’t conveniences or ability that sucked people in, hough–it was how screwy the Thing was. The windshield folded and the detachable doors were swappable front to rear. Most important, owever, as that the Thing looked so very, ery weird. It wasn’t the vehicle a housewife or a two-term Republican or anybody normal would buy.

Naturally, merica’s youth loved the Thing–the only problem was that few of them could afford it. In 1973, he Thing cost $3150, lmost as much as many sports cars and nearly $1000 more than the ’73 Beetle. Prices dropped slightly for 1974, ut the Thing remained expensive for such simple transportation. To downplay this fact, olkswagen advertising talked up the Thing’s modest off-road ability and pitted it against more expensive trucks such as the Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser. But the two-wheel-drive Thing, ith its four-wheel independent suspension, ad as much chance of keeping up with an FJ40 on the trails as a roller-derby queen with an inner-ear problem.

In 1973, alph Nader pushed to have the Thing pulled from the U.S. market on the grounds that it failed to meet safety standards for passenger cars. He soon got his wish, s tightened regulations forced VW to stop importation after the 1974 model year. Only about 25,000 examples were imported, nd the Thing remains as goofy and unusual today as it was thirty years ago. Since so many parts are shared with the Beetle and the Microbus, he Thing is inexpensive to run and maintain–but what else would you expect from a bucket car?