okay, I'll check it out

[[email protected]]

Tim, Brian, Chris - Spoke to the guy today. I'm headed back east on the early flight tomorrow and he's headed to the big island for Christmas. the "thing" has been stored in a garage for ... years! It's a white '74. He said his brother always had problems with reverse. Said he always had a rebuilt transmission ready to put in. and the heater caught fire once and always posed a problem for him. he said it had both the hard top and the rag top. anything i should look for? ask about? this guy thought his brother bought two things and "made" one from them, but he wasn't totally certain. what is a fair price for a '74?

Adam

[bljones]

welcome to the dark side, adam. when checking out a thing, I take a "front/back. outside/inside" approach. Check front bumper for straightness and rust, look underneath to see how the front apron is (rust trouble spot.) look at front beam for signs of rust or damage, and alos to make sure it is a Thing beam (they have two triangular braces running from the shock towers back to the pan.) check the frame head and inner fenderwells for rust (more trouble spots.) give the fenders a light pull at the wheel lips- they shouldn't be loose, or crunchy. if so, you got more rust. look for signs of repairs in the outer rockers, down the side. look under the rockers to see how the pans are. rust under the battery, (right side rear pan) is pretty common, and also easily fixable....

[bljones]

... do the pull test with the rear fenders. check out rear bumper. look closely at the windshield frame- the bottom corners especially are prone to rust. look for broken hinge pins on the doors, and also rusted out door bottoms. rust is also common hiding in the front edge of the rear wheel wells. pop the engine lid, and see whether all the bits and pieces that are supposed to be there are there, like engine tin, engine to body seal, air cleaner, etc. If you are aiming for originality, Thing air cleaners and skid plates, exhaust systems, etc., are harder to come by than bug parts, therefore ususally more expensive. jack up the front end, and give the wheels a wiggle, and visuallyinspect the ball joints- again, these are thing only parts, and can be expensive to replace....

[bljones]

... jack up the rear and check out the CV joints- if they click when you turn the wheels prepare to replace them (again, thing only, and $$$) check out the interior. make sure the back seat is all there, including all the little springs under the rear seat pad. look at the inside top of the windshiled frame to see if the top latches are present and unbusted- these are a weak part, and replacements are available, but again, repeat after me... not cheap. open the trunk, and check out condition of gas heater (if any), and fuel tank filler neck connections. Some things to look for in the trunk- spare tire hold down, and original jack, and jack hold down. (you might not need this stuff or want it, if originality isn't important, but if it is there, so much the better.) check out the condition of the sun visors. if the car runs, go through the electrics, including the wipers. Thing wiper motors are another weak point, and thing only, therefore... well, you know. Good side curtains are a plus- bad ones can be fixed, and missing ones replaced, but it is one more expense. if the soft top is on it, fold it down to make sure the frame works....

[bljones]

... and feel the front of the top to see if the header is in good shape. crunchy-feeling header means rust- no big deal if the top is in good shape, but if you have to replace the top, it makes installation difficult. Look for cracks and missing glass in the hardtop, and dried, cracked or missing weather stripping on doors and top.
What is it worth? if it runs, drives, and the floors aren't falling out, anything less than $1500 is good... the more work it needs, the lower the price should be. check classifieds here, and also the Thing registry. If youu have any specific questions after you look at this beast, put em up here, and i will do my best to enlighten ya... hopefully in fewer words than this took.
Brian

[[email protected]]

Thanks, Brian! I'll let you know how "things" develop in January. your mantra makes me chuckle. my wife has her own mantra, "repeat after me ... WE ARE NOT BUYING ANOTHER VOLKSWAGEN!" But it's in Nome and even though a Thing is not in our budget, I'm sure I could swing several payments and it would be mine. just have to go back to making beer and not buying it. I never even thought I would buy a Thing, but you guys are good salesmen and I've become enamored with aircooled VWs. Now if I can just convince her I need to look at the double cab I heard about in Fairbanks ....

[ChrisM181]

Adam, yes I am in MI. I live near Ann Arbor but my girlfriend lives in downtown Lansing. I wish my Thing was running right now, I would give you a ride that you would never forget! But I am building a 2165cc for it and my case and heads are still at the machine shop. What do you have going on in Mich? Hell stop by, I have Wed. off.

[[email protected]]

Chris - my brother lives in Dewitt and works in East Lansing. My sister, nephew and father are all driving in for an early Christmas celebration. We leave today to go pick up the 68 Westfalia in Buffalo, then drive over to Dewitt on Wednesday. We return to Rochester on the 23rd. I'd like to get together but I can't say it'll really happen. I'd like to see "the Thing."

[ChrisM181]

Wow, you are all over the map! Are you just now buying the 68 or is it already yours and you just keep it in Buffalo? Are you driving the bus to MI? Have a safe trip!
By the way, Westys and Things are a great combo! When I go camping with one of my Westys, I like to leave the Westy at the campground all set up with the curtains up etc. and use the Thing for going to the dunes, beach, park, or whatever! Things and buses are like peas and carrots.

[[email protected]]

Bought the Westy in Portland and had it shipped to Buffalo. Need to install a fifth seat belt and then drive it through Ontario to MI and back to Rochester again for Christmas. We'll leave the Westy in Rochester for the next few years, taking east coast vacations until we make the long trek northward to Anchorage for Alaskan vacations.

Where do you find dunes in MI?

[ChrisM181]

Silver Lake Sand Dunes, it is north of Muskegon, you take I-96 to US-31. It is a 500 acre offroad park on lake Michigan. A VW paradise! I sleep in my bus at night and drive my sandrails and Thing on the dunes all day! If you look at the sand drag racing records in Hot VWs mag, you can see that many of the records were made at Silver Lake Sand Dragway. MI is a great VW state!
Goodluck on your journey!

[bljones]

adam, if you are driving through ontario to michigan, i am located along the way. give me a shout when you are coming this way, and I'd be happy to set you up with a beer or two, and show you what a real thing looks like.
Brian

[[email protected]]

Went over to Buffalo this afternoon and picked up the Westy and drove him back to Rochester. Listened to the two Hot Tuna eight tracks until they broke, one tune apiece. The bus did fine, heater worked like a champ; got my first "VEE" ten minutes out of Buffalo!! from a young lady in a minivan. These beasts are magnets for the trim!

Chris - I'll check it out on a map, see if my brother's ever been there.

Brian - where are you in Ontario? give me a number. the wife is with, making a VW stop kinda sketchy at best, but maybe I can swing it.

[bljones]

Hay adam, give me a call at 519- 426- 2203, or e-mail me at the address in my screen name.
Brian