The least-valued beetle in VW history: the 1302 Super Beetle

[Maddel]

While reading the topic "Anybody replace roof/windshield/dash on late super with Standard" I stumbled across this statement:

[Coffee Freak]

[allsidius]

I just read the same statement, and I was going to reply until I saw your post.

I find it pretty offensive, if there is a group of know-it-all people that have broken down all the beetle versions to this point. We all have our favorites, and some years have more fans than others, but to start at this end is really destructive to the hobby, in by humble opinion.

The VW hierarchy is maybe the most clearly divided into different levels when comparing car make enthusiast groups, I find it hard to believe there is a similar group amongst the Mustang people allowing people to come down on that year or that version to the point of stating their worthlessness.

Any year beetle has its charm, and the 1302 SB is among the best driving, best functioning beetle of the whole series. Dragging it through the mud helps the hobby nada.
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1966 1300 RIPClick to view image

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[vwinnovator]

Super beetles have been on the down swing for decades....
Cost more money to tow them/store them than anyone over here is willing to buy them for.

For a while, the convertibles seamed to be a decent market, but that too has been drying up.

[fatdog]

Over the past 20 years I've owned several different "undesirable" models. Some look down on late models, some autosticks, and of course the supers. I have always felt as if although everyone is entitled to their opinion, some folks seem to have their nose to far in the air. I own a nice '65 but still wish I had my '72 super back and would never trade my '70 autostick. They all have that special something to them.
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[wcfvw69]

Some folks look down on any bug after the 1967 model year. The 1968 and above are known as the "fat chicks" with their padded dash, smog equipment, etc.

I agree with the other posters in this thread. We really shouldn't look down our noses at what models others like.
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[ROCKOROD71]

[Hatracks]

It is hard to put "value" on a car most of us have some sort of sentimental attachment to the car. And lets face it some peoples dream cars are other peoples beaters and vice versa. Whenever I get the question why are you restoring that?! or someone asks why the hell would you drive that in the rain do you know what that cars worth?!?! I know I am not talking to a car guy.

[celblazer]

Yup Anything not v8 in a classic stang or those dreaded 73+ 4 bangers are shunned in the Mustang world. Just the nature of car values, some are just worth more than others.

I own a rare late 80's Chrysler Lebaron only 1500 made. Ain't worth squat more than any other 80's K car. But who knows? When I was a teenager we blew up and junked many a valuable muscle car, they were cheap in the 80's/90's and nobody wanted them. I killed a 74 Firebird Formula and an 80 Z28, both bought for less than $1500. Both decent drivers in good condition in NJ rust central. Try buying a bug for that today.
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[René R.]

[Chad1376]

The 1302 doesn't really fall in line with the classic lines of a standard beetle, and the large array of ways people like to make them look (resto, resto mod, cal-look etc, etc.), but doesn't quite have the more modern and sporty look of the 1303 with it's curved windshield.

Value is in the eye of the beholder though. I wanted a 1302/1303 for a basis of an X Prepared SCCA autocross car, and was able to get a solid rust-free '71 (sans engine) for $400. Since it's not a "classic" beetle, there's not that sense of guilt and "bad stewardship" when I gutted the car, tossed 95% of the interior pieces in the garbage, and proceeded to modify the chassis and bodywork. There's still the huge ACVW aftermarket of performance goodies, and a deep well of knowledge to draw upon when making modifications.

1302 specific performance parts are out there too, you just have to look a little harder to find them.

[Globespotter]

"Least valued" to me means that the car is actually worth more than people currently assess it.

I have a 71 SB and love it. Yes, they are kind of an orphan hybrid, but that's what makes them kind of unique.

The 71 in particular evokes the older beetles with everything from the windshield back looking all the part, yet benefiting from a nicer ride and more luggage space.

I would rather buy a "least valued" car knowing that it likely has a lot of upswing potential

I don't really see it as an insult.
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1977 Westfalia - October 2015 - Current
1971 Super Beetle - May 2012 - Current
1979 Westfalia - 1986-1991
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[cyclehobby]

I don't see the "least valued" title as an insult either. Everyone is entitled to an opinion on what they like. IF a certain model is valued less than others, that's OK. I don't know too many air cooled VW people who only look at the value of the Bug (or Bus, or Ghia, or whatever model) they drive. There are a few always, but for the most part, how you choose one can be based on desire, nostalgia, affordability/budget and maybe even proximity. Or all of the above.

Some enthusiasts I know just want to have one. Others buy one, then move up to more expensive and/or "desirable" versions. It all seems to work.

Early in my Bug search, I had a short list of my own personal desires. But I mostly just wanted to have a Bug to work on and drive. My search was broad (mostly based on my limited budget) and I narrowed down the choices available to me at the time and made my decision. I would not have let the "least valued" tag stop me from considering a Bug. In fact, in some instances, it may have attracted me because a lower value means I could get into the hobby for less... Whatever floats your boat.
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1967 Beetle
Northern NJ

[Zundfolge1432]

It's really no different than any of the other car makes. People prefer the older cars, two doors and convertibles. How many 4 door 57 chevies were shit canned to keep the more desirable 2 doors going? How many Pontiac tempests were made into fake GTOs? The less desireable models
make good entry level cars and good parts cars. The market decides which cars are the popular models. Buy it enjoy it it's yours, get younger folks into the hobby.

[glutamodo]

I certainly don't personally value them very highly, with one exception - if I was going to own a Super, the only one I think I'd have any desire to own is a 1975 (which is a 1303 anyway), and not for all the La Grande dress up goodies, but because it's got the superior rack and pinion front end on it that VW should have put on the Super in the first place. And the EFI engine is nice too if it's running right.
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[Tim Donahoe]

This subject comes up from time to time, and I find it very amusing. It reminds me of two children, debating whether or not the first child's father can beat up the other guy's father.

If you look at the search function for Beetle forums, you'll find four sections, according to a span of years when particular models were built. I have no doubt that the earliest model forums have members who think their VW is better than the next group's. And the next group follows suit. There are actually those who think their earlier, beat-up, raggedy-ass bugs, showing "lots" of "patina" (I call it "rust"), own a better car than the next, later group's cars--simply due to their car's age and minor changes to its various parts.

I, for one, am a grown man--and I do not give a rat's ass what others may think of my 1974 Super Beetle. I didn't buy it because it was an investment that might raise in value. I bought it because I wanted to own and drive a bug.

I didn't buy it to impress some silly stranger's sense of "worth". I bought it to please myself.

As has been mentioned, the vast majority of people don't know a Super Beetle from any other beetle that was built in the '60's era. I have people honk their horns at stop lights and yell things like "Beautiful bug", or give me the thumbs up sign. I have people tell me that they didn't want to park "too close to me" because they didn't want to accidentally hit my car while they were pulling into the space beside me. I have people come up to me at the gas station, or grocery-store parking lot, and relate fond memories of when they owned a bug (or their grandmothers did).

I have a plaque on my wall. I laugh when I call it my "Major Award" (like the father in the movie A Christmas Story. This plaque, I won at the 2015 Wolfgang International Show & Shine. It says "The Way It Was". In other words, Best Looking Stock VW. There were many ACVW's at the show that day--many beautiful cars--buses, Karmann Ghias, Beetles; and my lowly, fake-ass Super Beetle got the most votes for its category.

Surely, a great many of those who voted--including VW owners--didn't think my SB was unworthy.

But, wait a minute. I said I didn't give a rat's ass what people thought, right? I lied. Actually, if someone appreciates my car, I'll take the compliment. However, if someone thinks it's a fake ACVW, it would be I who looked down on them--not the other way around.

But the the only negative comment I ever got was at that same Wolfgang International Show & Shine. The guy--a Karmann Ghia owner who had won the previous year's award for The Way It Was--came up to me and nodded. He then told me this: "It cleans up good". It was a veiled comment, of course. What he meant was that it looked pretty good--for what it was. When I won that year--and he didn't--I had to smile when I saw the pissed-off look on his face as he drove past me on his way out of the parking lot. Talk about priceless!

Anyway, I like all bugs--standard, Super Beetle, it makes no difference. A curve here, a hood change there, a larger or smaller tail light. They all pretty much look like a bug to me and millions of others. Let the VW Nazis have their opinions.

I have my "Major Award"

Tim
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[vamram]

I've had 3 standards - '64, '66, '72 - and 3 supers - '72, and my current DD '72 and a '74 I'm fixing up. I love the '70s cars, can't help it, and love the Supers. Better ride, better seats, etc, IMHO. I looked for a '74 SunBug or a '75 hardtop (see Glutamodo's reasons higher up) but these are both really hard to find, especially on the east coast. I finally cracked and picked up a '74 Super hard top in September because its price and condition were right, and they're easier to find in salvageable condition than SunBugs or '75s.

The worst part about the '71+ bugs (standards or supers) is the dreaded death foam. Sadly, I'm sure that's cut their numbers down much more so than prior years' models. I turned away from many a Super i looked at due to it.
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'74 Super 9/16 - present, in refurb process.
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'75 Super Le Grande...waiting it's turn in line behind '74.
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[hotsam]

There's nothing more annoying than car snobbery. Everyone has their preferences, but a gearhead is a gearhead.

I have a Super because that's what I grew up with. It doesn't mean I hate the others.
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1968 Beetle

[ROCKOROD71]

Tim,
Your car is awesome. An old, clean car is an old, clean car. If I saw a Pinto that was that clean I'd probably swoon just as much!
If only your major award was sexier and lit up......
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1971 STD BEETLE- DD-1st car, 1st love. keepin' it stock! 1600DP, Solex 34-3 Mexi Bosch SVDA Dist NOW w/POINTS
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[Hatracks]