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KdF1
Samba Member
Joined: May 03, 2005
Posts: 244
Location: East Coast of U.S.A.
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 Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 2:29 pm Post subject: 1950 |
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| My friend Rich owns one of the Original 1950 VW's that got sold in the USA by Ben Pon. It has a crayon marking in the trunk that says "USA" so I guess the assembly line workrs would not put a KM speedo and fluted headlights into it. He restored the car and left the original crayon marks there. |
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coad 
Samba Scapegoat
Joined: September 12, 2002
Posts: 7552
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 4:01 pm Post subject: Re: 1950 |
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| KdF1 wrote: |
| My friend Rich owns one of the Original 1950 VW's that got sold in the USA by Ben Pon. It has a crayon marking in the trunk that says "USA" so I guess the assembly line workrs would not put a KM speedo and fluted headlights into it. He restored the car and left the original crayon marks there. |
And he can document this how? |
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53 0val
Samba Professor
Joined: July 03, 2003
Posts: 11396
Location: Irvine, CA
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 4:22 pm Post subject: |
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I was just at Ben Pon's winery in Carmel Valley. He (his son) also owns the Quail Lodge where a wonderful concours is held the Friday before the Pebble Beach event every year.
http://www.bernardus.com/bw/biographies/bw5a.html
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"What a fool believes he sees, no wise man has the power to reason away." Dobee, Dobee, Do |
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KdF1
Samba Member
Joined: May 03, 2005
Posts: 244
Location: East Coast of U.S.A.
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 4:25 pm Post subject: |
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| VW birth certificate says so. Completely original car that was unmolested and unchanged. It did need to be restored though which he did after buying it. |
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steven wood
Samba Member
Joined: March 14, 2004
Posts: 1647
Location: Virginia, NOT West Virginia!
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 4:55 pm Post subject: |
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| KdF1 wrote: |
| VW birth certificate says so. Completely original car that was unmolested and unchanged. It did need to be restored though which he did after buying it. |
What does the birth certificate say? |
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[email protected]
Samba Member
Joined: September 22, 2002
Posts: 1243
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 5:49 pm Post subject: |
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| Were are the USA marks located in the trunk? I have a og 50 thats still in its og state. |
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kdf38
Samba Member
Joined: March 07, 2002
Posts: 896
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 6:30 pm Post subject: Pon or Hoffman |
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Do you mean Pon or Hoffman?
Mike
| KdF1 wrote: |
| VW birth certificate says so. Completely original car that was unmolested and unchanged. It did need to be restored though which he did after buying it. |
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kdf38
Samba Member
Joined: March 07, 2002
Posts: 896
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 6:39 pm Post subject: |
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I've seen it on some cars, written on the paint between the tank and the dash; under the front trunk lid.
Mike
| [email protected] wrote: |
| Were are the USA marks located in the trunk? I have a og 50 thats still in its og state. |
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52HoffmanSplit
Samba Member
Joined: April 07, 2006
Posts: 1272
Location: Lamorinda CA
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| Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 7:03 pm Post subject: Re: Pon or Hoffman |
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| [email protected] wrote: |
Do you mean Pon or Hoffman?
Mike
| KdF1 wrote: |
| VW birth certificate says so. Completely original car that was unmolested and unchanged. It did need to be restored though which he did after buying it. |
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He must mean Max Hoffman as Ben Pon didnt sell any VW's in the USA in 1950.... Ben Pon arrived in New York with one display model, a 1948 VW Beetle aboard the M/S Westerdam on January 17th, 1949. Pon stayed in New York for 3 weeks.. couldnt get a single person interested in the car and sold it and a load of parts (for 800.00) to pay for his Hotel Bill. He imported and sucessfully sold two 1949 Sedans in '49. The famous picture of the Sedan in the cargo net is from the publicity stunt staged by Pon on the docks in Jan 1949.
Max Hoffman Took over at that point and created his "patchwork" distributorship. (appointed officially in Jan 1950) Max Hoffman managed to sell 330 in 1950.
My car also has the Yellow Grease pencil USA in the front as well as a listing in yellow grease pencil of the M codes the car came with.. all legible. Its a July 1952 Car.. so having greas-pencil marks doesnt mean much... heck.. even my 55 3-fold has a grease-pencil USA on it.
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DB
9/1950 Hoffman Standard
11/1966 Porsche 912
10/1966 Porsche 912
7/1968 Type 265 Double Cab
10/1958 Type 117 |
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Splitdog
Samba Split Personality
Joined: February 16, 2004
Posts: 4125
Location: Planet VW
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| Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2007 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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Veerrrry interestingk! 
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CH³NO²
Z = z² + C
Der Blitzkrieg Kafers
#notacallooker |
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53 0val
Samba Professor
Joined: July 03, 2003
Posts: 11396
Location: Irvine, CA
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| Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2007 9:15 pm Post subject: |
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My '53 had "Kanada" written in yellow grease pencil on the spare tire well wall under the tag.
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"What a fool believes he sees, no wise man has the power to reason away." Dobee, Dobee, Do |
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KdF1
Samba Member
Joined: May 03, 2005
Posts: 244
Location: East Coast of U.S.A.
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| Posted: Sun Sep 02, 2007 3:17 pm Post subject: |
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Yes, I meant Hoffman. The car came through N.Y.C.
The "USA" was in yellow grease pencil and below the ID tag just as the "KANADA" one was. |
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52HoffmanSplit
Samba Member
Joined: April 07, 2006
Posts: 1272
Location: Lamorinda CA
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| Posted: Sun Sep 02, 2007 10:13 pm Post subject: |
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| KdF1 wrote: |
Yes, I meant Hoffman. The car came through N.Y.C.
The "USA" was in yellow grease pencil and below the ID tag just as the "KANADA" one was. |
I thought as much.. my friend owns a Hoffman car too.. Oh wait.. No... thats Me..... Im my own best friend...
Wiggy... when do we get to see the first draft of the Hoffman Registry.. 
_________________
DB
9/1950 Hoffman Standard
11/1966 Porsche 912
10/1966 Porsche 912
7/1968 Type 265 Double Cab
10/1958 Type 117 |
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stu
Samba Member
Joined: July 07, 2004
Posts: 39
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| Posted: Wed Sep 12, 2007 12:59 pm Post subject: Re: The only 2 Beetles sold in the US in 1949 |
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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. |
Mr A Hitler |
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tasb
The Distributor Distributor
Joined: April 27, 2002
Posts: 6371
Location: Pentwater, Michigan
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| Posted: Wed Sep 12, 2007 7:50 pm Post subject: |
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Nah, adolf never bought a car in his life, couldn't even drive. He did have a factory built though  |
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erioco
Samba Member
Joined: February 05, 2004
Posts: 382
Location: St. Louis, MO
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| Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2007 1:22 pm Post subject: Pon/49 |
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52 Hoffmann Split,
So I was both right and wrong. Where did you get the info on the date etc on Pon's first shipmwnt and the info on the second?
Info in Dutch is OK, am a Dutchman.
you can put it here or email me : [email protected]
Thanks, Eric
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Radclyffe Roadster Replica proj based on an April 47 chassis |
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orrcj
Samba Member
Joined: November 28, 2019
Posts: 10
Location: Connecticut
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| Posted: Tue Jan 14, 2020 6:41 pm Post subject: Re: The only 2 Beetles sold in the US in 1949 |
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[img]Untitled by C Orr, on Flickr[/img]
Sorry for bringing up an old topic, but here's a pic of those '51 beetles, sitting out front of the New Milford Motors dealership. |
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ZENVWDRIVER
Samba Member
Joined: November 07, 2008
Posts: 3340
Location: N.E. Oklahoma
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| Posted: Tue Jan 14, 2020 8:20 pm Post subject: |
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| Rome wrote: |
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. |
we used to go to the Orangeburg show, put on by Terry Shuler and the VVWCA - I made the dash plaque in 1991...
… and in 1980-ish that first VW dealer in Connecticut, in 1955, I think, at New Milford had a sale of very old VW stock -I worked at Volvo Cars of North America then and a Conn. Volvo dealer told me about the old-VW parts sale - I bought brand new ribbed Bus bumpers for $5 each and other old goodies too - we moved to Oklahoma in 1993.
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5/50, pastel green 11G - SOLD
8/50, gray 11A Beetle
6/52, pastel green 11C - SOLD
11/4/52, black Zwitter - SOLD to my little bro.
1954 Porsche, pre A, with VW 36 horse- SOLD
1/54, black 11C Beetle - TRADED
2/55 Iceland green Beetle, on a 1965 pan
3/55 113 Beetle, stratos silver
1955 Messerschmitt KR175 - SOLD, sadly
1960 single cab
1962 SO33, with SO 42 interior
9/63 Pacific blue, Ghia
'87 Toyota MR2
'02 WestFORDia E-150, GAVE TO OUR SON
All super-heroes, wear a MASK |
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