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UZI Platinum FUBU
Joined: February 08, 2002 Posts: 13335 Location: phila-DELFT-ia
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Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 7:44 pm Post subject: The only 2 Beetles sold in the US in 1949 |
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can anyone tell me the names of the purchasers of the only two beetles sold in the US in 1949?
thanks. _________________ Extravagant Lifestyle
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mannys66: South Philly Van Club, only the most influential and freshest van club in the vw scene |
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Cuñado: Chrome will get you home!!!!!!!!!! |
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DMNCLNR Sir Camp'alot
Joined: November 12, 2003 Posts: 2897 Location: Newport Beach Ca
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Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 8:26 pm Post subject: |
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I remember reading in an early 90's Hot VW's that General Motors had a 46 beeetle that they had supposedly bought new. The article stated that they did not actually know if they originally purchased the car or why, but it was beleived to be owned by GM! _________________ To his their own PBJ
Pl@y@ #1 |
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UZI Platinum FUBU
Joined: February 08, 2002 Posts: 13335 Location: phila-DELFT-ia
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 2:58 am Post subject: |
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johnshenry wrote: |
Ed and Steve.
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last names?
i'll tell you why. i had a garage sale on saturday. this guy sees my beetle in the garage and proceeds to tell me "....you know in 1949, they only sold 2 volkswagens in the US....and my grandfather was one of the buyers"
i asked what his grandfather's last name was. he told me it was "Hitchman". i wanna ask him for pictures when i see him again and of course will post them up. it's cool either way if he has pictures. i'm pretty sure he was frontin'. but who knows. _________________ Extravagant Lifestyle
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mannys66: South Philly Van Club, only the most influential and freshest van club in the vw scene |
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Cuñado: Chrome will get you home!!!!!!!!!! |
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tubdub Samba Member
Joined: March 29, 2004 Posts: 2274
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 8:23 am Post subject: Re: the only 2 |
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UZI wrote: |
can anyone tell me the names of the purchasers of the only two beetles sold in the US in 1949?
thanks. |
try contacting stock steve on here. he is from conn. and i am pretty sure he has this info.
Last edited by tubdub on Mon May 07, 2007 8:24 am; edited 1 time in total |
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erioco Samba Member
Joined: February 05, 2004 Posts: 382 Location: St. Louis, MO
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 8:24 am Post subject: 49 buyers |
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Ask the Pon VW dealership in the Netherlands, It was Ben Pon who sold them. As far as I remember the info they were sold in New York, quite cheaply, to cover his hotel bill, though Simon Parkinson's book he says 1948 and one car,
. Pon was trying to set up a US dealership. That finally happened in 1950 with Hoffman in NY
I'll check my other books and see what they say. _________________ Radclyffe Roadster Replica proj based on an April 47 chassis |
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UZI Platinum FUBU
Joined: February 08, 2002 Posts: 13335 Location: phila-DELFT-ia
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 8:54 am Post subject: |
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it certainly is possible that this guys grampa is one of the OG 2 being so close to NYC and all. i think he was talking smack. if his story is true, it would be awesome to get a hold of some photos. i'm sure they must have taken pictures of the car. either way, i wanna see some photos of their old beetle.
thanks and let us know what you find out. _________________ Extravagant Lifestyle
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mannys66: South Philly Van Club, only the most influential and freshest van club in the vw scene |
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Cuñado: Chrome will get you home!!!!!!!!!! |
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Stock Steve Samba Member
Joined: April 10, 2005 Posts: 1963 Location: My Left Nutmeg State
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Blue Baron VW Aficionado
Joined: June 16, 2006 Posts: 24059 Location: Southeast USA
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2007 8:13 pm Post subject: |
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From my understanding of the history, Ben Pon brought over the first Beetle early in '49. There's a famous picture of the car being unloaded at the dock with Dutch license plates and one of the first sets of grooved bumpers. This was the car Pon had to sell to pay for his hotel bill.
The second car was brought over later in '49 by Nordhoff himself and was featured in a Made in Germany trade show. |
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vw57drvr Samba Member
Joined: October 23, 2005 Posts: 1705 Location: Rome, Ga
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Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 6:53 am Post subject: |
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You would think that if the cars survived, they would surface given the shrinking of the global VW community due to the internet. It would be cool though. _________________ 60 Rock Grey Vert |
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UZI Platinum FUBU
Joined: February 08, 2002 Posts: 13335 Location: phila-DELFT-ia
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Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 3:01 pm Post subject: |
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vw57drvr wrote: |
You would think that if the cars survived, they would surface given the shrinking of the global VW community due to the internet. It would be cool though. |
a person who claims to be the grandson of one of the supposed original purchasers/owners came to my garage sale....you just never know. _________________ Extravagant Lifestyle
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mannys66: South Philly Van Club, only the most influential and freshest van club in the vw scene |
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Cuñado: Chrome will get you home!!!!!!!!!! |
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AlanInMass54 Samba Member
Joined: August 29, 2003 Posts: 1067 Location: Massachusetts
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Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2007 9:47 am Post subject: |
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Sorry for bringing up an older topic, but does anyone know which month in 49 these beetles were brought here? |
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Blue Baron VW Aficionado
Joined: June 16, 2006 Posts: 24059 Location: Southeast USA
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Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2007 10:59 am Post subject: |
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I believe the Pon car was brought over early in the year, and the trade show was in the summer or autumn.
Honestly, these were two cars sold in the largest metropolitan city in the world at that time, the same year nearly a million new cars were registered in the U.S. The odds of finding specific information on either of them is slim. |
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Bruce Samba Member
Joined: May 16, 2003 Posts: 17285 Location: Left coast, Canada
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Posted: Thu Jun 28, 2007 12:46 pm Post subject: |
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I believe the car was unloaded in Jan 49. That would make the car likely a 48 Beetle. _________________
overheard at the portland Swap Meet... wrote: |
..... a steering wheel made from a mastadon tusk..... |
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UZI Platinum FUBU
Joined: February 08, 2002 Posts: 13335 Location: phila-DELFT-ia
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Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 7:39 pm Post subject: |
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so i ran into this guy that told me the story at my garage sale. i said "hey, aren't you the guy i was talking to about VWs at my garage sale? your grandfather owned one?" he told me that he wasn't sure if it was the first year but was definately the second year because the car was a 51. i told him i love vintage photos, gimme a call if you can find some of the car. he's changed his story so we'll see. i'd still love to see the photos. _________________ Extravagant Lifestyle
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mannys66: South Philly Van Club, only the most influential and freshest van club in the vw scene |
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Cuñado: Chrome will get you home!!!!!!!!!! |
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Blue Baron VW Aficionado
Joined: June 16, 2006 Posts: 24059 Location: Southeast USA
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Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 11:12 pm Post subject: |
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We've all heard stories like this. I talked to a guy who said he travelled to New York to buy one of Max Hoffman's first vans, and had one of the first Type 2s in the Northeast. He said they couldn't use it to make deliveries to any of the auto plants because the union boys would destroy it. |
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janerick3 Samba Member
Joined: June 04, 2006 Posts: 1879 Location: Colorado
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 1:04 am Post subject: |
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During the final VVWCA Spring Meet held at the old World-Wide VW distributorship in Orangeburg, NY (1994?), a young man (early 20s) asked me if his blue '48 project with red wheels could've been painted that way at the factory.
In hindsight, since both the US and Dutch flags are red, white and blue, it wouldn't surprise me if Ben Pon had the '48 painted those colors as a marketing gimmick to promote the VW in the States and that kid's car is the real thing--it's just that everyone's been looking for two '49s over the years and not a '48 until Etzold (?) published the chassis number for this car. _________________ Thanks,
Jan K. |
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Blue Baron VW Aficionado
Joined: June 16, 2006 Posts: 24059 Location: Southeast USA
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Posted: Sat Jun 30, 2007 8:52 pm Post subject: |
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Keep in mind the Pon car had chromed grooved bumpers, which is interesting, considering the car landed in the U.S. in January but the bumpers didn't become standard until June. This could be explained by the factory using up four months of existing bumper stocks which is not so unusual in the early days. |
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Rome Samba Member
Joined: June 02, 2004 Posts: 9641 Location: Pearl River, NY
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Posted: Mon Jul 02, 2007 12:57 pm Post subject: |
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Janerick, I was also at the last WW meet; it was '95. You spelled Mr. Etzold's name correctly (Hans-Ruediger...).
Stories? Yeah. Good family friend has a '49 Beetle at his VW dealership; I asked if it happened to be "one of the first two official '49's" and he thought "yes".
2 years ago at a party in NW CT, a neighbor of the host told me he bought a split window Beetle, "the first year they were brought in". Turns out it was a '51, the first one sold thru the new local VW dealership New Milford Motors. He was vague on the details though. But that dealer is still around, and has always remained a single-brand dealer. It really did open around then. |
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Stock Steve Samba Member
Joined: April 10, 2005 Posts: 1963 Location: My Left Nutmeg State
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VolksWoute® Samba Member
Joined: November 30, 2003 Posts: 377 Location: The Netherlands
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