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Tue Nov 22, 2005 3:22 pm

I just got my VW “Birth Certificate” but it is different then any other I have seen. It has some kind of security strip on the side I guess to stop counterfeit copies. My question is does Washington, USA mean the state of Washington or D.C.? Also what are hinged quarter windows.

Tue Nov 22, 2005 3:31 pm

Hinged 1/4 windows are "pop outs".

Here's what they used to look like.

Tue Nov 22, 2005 4:00 pm

Where do you get the cirtificate? Do you go online and order it? How much? Thanks.

Tue Nov 22, 2005 7:51 pm

Washington State.

-jeffrey

Tue Nov 22, 2005 8:57 pm

I guess my beetle has been through alot. Gone across country and it doesn't have the pop out windows.

Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:29 pm

My birth certificate also stated "Washington, USA". I emailed Susanne Wiersch, with VW museum with the same question. She stated that my VW was shipped to Washington DC. This makes sense, since my car was sold by a NC dealer.

Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:35 pm

VW_MAN_73 wrote: Where do you get the cirtificate? Do you go online and order it? How much? Thanks.

X2

Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:39 pm

You can get them HERE:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=398

Tue Mar 06, 2007 9:46 pm

KillerTux, your Birth Certificate looks just like mine.

There's a sticky in the 'General' forum.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:20 am

don3751 wrote: There's a sticky in the 'General' forum.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=398

Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:00 am

I just received mine the other day and its the same format with the silver stripe.

I ordered it online. Do a search as someone posted the translation since the on-line site is only in German.

One think interesting on mine is that they did not have the engine number. It said "is not available". It didn't really matter since I know my engine is not original.

The shipping location would definitely be Washington State. Washington, DC does not have a deep water port for that type of freight. If anything, a car destined for DC would likely come into Baltimore.

The price has gone up on this do to the strengthening of the Euro against the dollar.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:26 am

Hiya Killer,

Concerning the port of destination...................

VW DID have import facilities in Seattle for their air-cooled cars. However, VW identified that port as "Seattle". The M-Code for that port was US (S as in Seattle).

I agree with Nova in that DC does not have a deep water port and, that being the case, it is unlikely that Washington, DC was the port of destination. Would it have been possible for VW to actually land the cars some other place nearby and call it Washington?

However, I do wonder why the AutoMuseum MIGHT be referring to US as Washington. Given the location of your car, it would be more likely if the original port had been in DC.

I think that you might want to follow up with the AutoMuseum just to get a clear and authoritative final answer.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:30 am

The Mid Atlantic distributor was just outside of Washington DC in Lanham,MD. Cars that were shipped there came in from Baltimore,MD, about 44 miles from there.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:33 am

Bookwus:

Good point. I had not thought of this. Did VW actually ship cars around to the west coast from Germany?

It would seem more likely that they would land in the US on the east coast and then be transported by rail to the west coast. Its seems like this would be cheaper and faster but I'm only guessing.

I have seen birth certificates with destinations of NY and Boston.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:10 pm

Most definitely to CA by ship, thru the Panama Canal. Biggest CA port was Los Angeles/San Pedro; another was in San Francisco. VWoA's Western office was in Culver City in the 60's, a suburb of Los Angeles. Once the cars were loaded into the ships (by crane), it saved alot of effort to not unload them to a train yard. They would've been subject to dust storms in the desert, vandalism from kids throwing things at the passing rail cars, bird droppings or hail for the cars on the top if they were not covered, etc. The additional week it took the ship to go from an eastern port to the LA port is more than offset by the arguments above. Plus, those ships held hundreds of cars; current ones even thousands. You'd need alot of trains, manpower and fuel costs to get such quantities cross-country. Ships since the late '70's have been the type where the car is driven into the ship, then driven out at its destination.

Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:45 pm

I don't know about you guys but it sucks having to put "state" everytime I have to tell someone the state I live in. Washington is right next to Idaho "state" and Oregon "state".

Anyways, in this case it would be Washington DC (not state). Geographically, it would be crazy to send a car from Europe to Seattle. You might as well send it around the world for that matter. California was the West Coast's delivery point.

Mon Feb 06, 2012 4:49 am

I got mine,

But i cannot find anywhere what the M401 is. Ayone know at all??