TheSamba.com :: View topic - Can someone estimate a value range

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:21 pm

Hello from Idaho.

I’ve had this bus for 6 years always in a garage, as it has been all its life I think. I took quite a few photos I can share if you’d like, but the video I just filmed tells more of the story. It’s kind of long, sorry.

https://youtu.be/sn0cjgKCIic

Basically the bus is totally original so there’s nothing to restore. Tons of documentation. No rust.

What is the low and high end $$ I might expect? I saw one featured on an auction site that didn’t seem as nice as mine except for a paint shine. That went for $23,800. Am I crazy to ask that much?

I’ve seen too many episodes of Antique Roadshow to try to get involved in trying to do anything. I love the aged patina so to speak.

Thanks for any advice.

GB

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:38 pm

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:39 pm

EDIT:

it's a late 68...69 model year. real 68's did not have the firewall.

rear of the bus has been painted by the looks of things

nice bus...but

doesn't appear to be a campmobile. possibly started life as a kombi. too much weird shit going on...interior not right, roof looks like it was hacked for the pop top...several other oddball things.

but

it's a nice bus...I think I would take the first 20k that came along. again, too much weird stuff going on...like the holes in the body seams on the drivers side.

neat bus, but not a goldmine if that's what you were hoping. IF it was not hacked up, and "as built" from the factory...30-32k but that camper deal detracts in my mind

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:47 pm

Awesome feedback. Thank you! No I don't expect gold mine just want a good ballpark. Anything else you can share is highly appreciated.

By the way there is some paperwork from 1971 showing it was a camper so I don't think it was done by other than what a dealer would sell as. I will share some of the docs here too.

EDIT: I did walk around the entire think with a magnet which I saw someone else say indicates body damage. The magnet shows nothing other than steel throughout. I believe the rear paint fade is sun in storage. Maybe not, just thinking maybe.

Would enjoy other feedback. Thanks!

Thanks again!!

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:51 pm

it seems to be a very proper, cared for bus...for sure.

could you post some good photos of the pop top, from inside? basically just the hole and surrounding area cut in the roof.

I have a gut feeling someone added this at some point. still, the interior is for sure home made

EDIT again :lol:

is the paint on the sliding door a off white/beige-y color? and evidence of that anywhere else in the cargo area? if so...it was for sure born a kombi

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:52 pm

put an ad in classifieds and see where it goes. Selling a bus takes a willing seller and willing buyer. Rule of the buyer wanting minimum risk and maximum gain applies. There are only a few buyers a year for buses where they are looking for a nice bus at top dollar. Most bus owners are looking for something well under market & some buyers have dreams of putting $6k into a bus and flipping it for $25K. Your post is is likely to get locked as an ad.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:54 pm

OK I will do that, any other photos let me know. Thanks again! Love the fact that experts here can share along and help me know the bus better. I kind of like it more now. Sad to see her go. The only vehicle I will ever own that creates endless smiles and waves and when I'm at the helm ALL stress has disappeared from my entire being. You know the feeling. I lucked into this thing and my dad practically cried, saying how much he loves those VW bus. The day I went to pick him up on Thanksgiving and drove around with him is one of my happiest times with him.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:55 pm

SGKent wrote: Your post is is likely to get locked as an ad.

I don't think so...I think he is really looking for a jumping off point.

it's a neat bus...but not all OE from the looks of it

Fri Apr 12, 2019 12:58 pm

skills@eurocarsplus wrote: SGKent wrote: Your post is is likely to get locked as an ad.

I don't think so...I think he is really looking for a jumping off point.

it's a neat bus...but not all OE from the looks of it

IMHO He needs to change the subject line then to something like "Can someone estimate a value range? Otherwise we'd have 1000 threads here in a row that said I want to sell this bus but don't know if I priced it right. Take a look. He wrote:
Quote: Want to sell an original ‘68 camper

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:12 pm

SGKent wrote: skills@eurocarsplus wrote: SGKent wrote: Your post is is likely to get locked as an ad.

I don't think so...I think he is really looking for a jumping off point.

it's a neat bus...but not all OE from the looks of it

IMHO He needs to change the subject line then to something like "Can someone estimate a value range? Otherwise we'd have 1000 threads here in a row that said I want to sell this bus but don't know if I priced it right. Take a look. He wrote:
Quote: Want to sell an original ‘68 camper

Hi, thank you. I'm new here and didn't know -- but you make a lot of sense. I just edited my title. Understand if this post is not appropriate in any other way and gets moderated.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:29 pm

GeraldBus wrote: SGKent wrote: skills@eurocarsplus wrote: SGKent wrote: Your post is is likely to get locked as an ad.

I don't think so...I think he is really looking for a jumping off point.

it's a neat bus...but not all OE from the looks of it

IMHO He needs to change the subject line then to something like "Can someone estimate a value range? Otherwise we'd have 1000 threads here in a row that said I want to sell this bus but don't know if I priced it right. Take a look. He wrote:
Quote: Want to sell an original ‘68 camper

Hi, thank you. I'm new here and didn't know -- but you make a lot of sense. I just edited my title. Understand if this post is not appropriate in any other way and gets moderated.

Perfect. Lots of folks here know early Westphalia campers so they will give you a good opinion of value. Be sure to consider TheSamba classifieds when you go to sell it, if you sell it.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:33 pm

SGKent wrote:
Perfect. Lots of folks here know early Westphalia campers so they will give you a good opinion of value. Be sure to consider TheSamba classifieds when you go to sell it, if you sell it.

Hi I really want to sell it because I have a one car garage now, need space in there. I'll have it listed in classifieds at TheSamba in coming days. Any other feedback highly appreciated. Thanks.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:47 pm

Hello,
I'm with skills on this one.
It is not a factory built westy as is. But, check the m-code plate... The original owner did some handy work to make it his way.
The camper interior is home made, the camper window on the drivers side is strange looking(never seen one like that on a bay window) and missing on slider door....and no fold up table. Skills picked up on the slider door interior paint(white) not green. So a replaced slider?.... The head rest on the passenger seat looks like it is from a 356 or early 912/911. The ship to shore electrical box is mounted way to high for a factory westy. Looks to be from a split window?
You've got to love the anti door ding molding of the late 70s early 80s. I had installed a lot of that crap and sunroofs from pep boys in the day working at body shops.. I do love the crotch cooler fan under the dash.
Don't get me wrong, you do have a clean bus. But, it is not factory original by any means. Good guess on what someone will pay for it. If i was going to spend 20k on a bus, I would want it as close to original as possible.... Good luck when you go to sell it. Start high, you can always settle for less. And remember, most people don't know what they are really looking at, they just want a bus and want it "shinny". Buff that baby up some, see what you can get.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:11 pm

Hi — thanks a lot for the continued discussion.

I hate to buff it the wrong way and spoil the paint which is original. Any suggestions ?

I really appreciate any and all info. When Franklin (VW shop owner in Kent WA) saw the window he thought it was strange too. As far as I recall he said it looked like a ‘_______’ conversion, mentioning the name of a conversion company.

There is a table but it’s in the back area because it came off the connectors.

Question — what do you mean by slider ? The door has been replaced ?

I have a thick pile of docs so I’ll post something more to try and shed some light.

What amazes me most is the fact that there is zero rust. Anywhere. And the log book showing the TLC previous owner gave it.

Thanks again.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 4:48 pm

Not original, sure. But I think that camper interior is a win for it...

Nice bus!

Fri Apr 12, 2019 5:28 pm

It looks like a sundial conversion. Like what you’d see in a split window bus.

http://www.type2.com/library/camper/sundial.htm

Fri Apr 12, 2019 5:49 pm

Angus II wrote: Skills picked up on the slider door interior paint(white) not green.

factory kombi's were painted off white/tan(ish) beige in the cargo area, and depending on options had a "cheater" cab only vinyl headliner or could be ordered with a full headliner and fiber (cargo area) panels...lot's of goofy combos for a kombi....but the cargo area was always a tan(ish) color

Fri Apr 12, 2019 5:57 pm

I'm an optimist here. That bus looks like a $25k bus for the right buyer, forsure. No rust work at all. It's complete and all there. This is assuming the engine is strong and the transmission is good.

Folks are throwing 8-10k at betters that require tons of metal work, engine rebuilds and other horrors. Tracking down missing parts, especially camper parts will drain a wallet too. Folks spend a hell of a lot more than $25k to get a bus back to the condition of this one.

If it was mine, I'd hire a detailer to buff that paint back to factory shine. It would really present much better too. Have the engine compression tested. Check for end play. Note the transmission condition. Shoot some pictures of under it.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 6:03 pm

Looks like a very good homebrew conversion to me. Someone put a lot of time into that bus. It is, as you say, in really good condition. I have a 1969 that has been indoors almost all it's life, never in the salt, and yours is just that much(OK, a lotta that much) nicer than mine. A thought on the windows, does it look like it to you guys that know that he grafted/cobbled a split window Jalousie per side, and filled in the excess with just glass? They kinda look cut down, but did I see a Hehr sticker on the flat glass? That would definitely argue against my theory on the windows.

Fri Apr 12, 2019 6:35 pm

Hello,
Watch his video.... it was done in the states. Inside the ice box is a clue.
I took a look after my original post.... it's not all VW factory original. And, there is something about the paint and body that doesn't quite look right for all original. His magnet test seems to loose its grip in a few places(19:50) for one. Maybe he was just moving around too fast...
But, not having the bus in front of me, I can't be sure.
It is a nice bus, don't get me wrong. But, it has a few issues to advertise it as all "original". From what you show, the under side does look clean.
Again, good luck when you sell it.

Edit: before post.
So, that's why the rear cargo area is also painted off white.... and not green?, interesting. Goofy kombis....