Some cool KdF and Split pictures....

[rainierdeklark]

My parents from Holland came and visited me here in Stockholm last week.
My father has a thing with classic caravans and brought a german book with some pictures of Split Beetles with caravans.
I scanned some pictures:


KdF wagen from 1939 with a Sportberger caravan

Split ragtop roof clips (1950)

Split fenders at the factory (note the crotch vents bodies in the back)

Split and Oval with caravan

Split (banana bumpers) with caravan

Split Buss Camper

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Modern cars are nothing but visual pollution !
www.klarkclassiccars.se

[ZwitterND]

Great pictures! Whats the name of the book?
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Bill

[scvw]

A 25hp pulling one of those caravans. How would that do going up a hill let alone a mountain?

Who nees a rag roof clip?
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58 Coral Red ragtop(Diana's car)
63 Ruby Red SC
67 Pearl White SO42
SOUTHERN INTEGRITY AIRCOOLERS

[johnshenry]

Yeah, I can't even conceive of the idea of pulling a camper with a split and 25hp engine. I loose 10 mph from just hitting a large insect on the highway.........
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John Henry

'57 Deluxe
'56 Single Cab

[olo]

i guess people were not in a hurry in those days. were there ever any caravans made by VW?

[Splitdog]

Well, this brings up an interesting dilemma. In a previous thread we were discussing the sequence of events leading to production of split sunroof cars. You can see those are obviously sunroof stampings made by VW, so Golde didn't actually do any 'cutting'. So, to what extent did VW and Golde collaborate on these models and where? Veeeery interestink........
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CH³NO²

Z = z² + C

Der Blitzkrieg Kafers

#notacallooker

[drscope]

These pictures belong in the Cool vintage photos thread cause they are cool and vintage.
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Mother Nature is a Mean Evil Bitch!

[johnshenry]

[Lind]

[eurodub]

seeing in some vw brochures pics of the split ragtop, as a regular car and not optional accessorised, i guess it was factory made, with golde parts and the car was out of the assembly line as a ragtop not a sedan.

i think the workflow was something like this:

1. vw wanted a sunroof car so they ask for golde (maybe looking for other companies too)
2. after negotiations etc they come up with the plan
3. vw does the sedan roof stampings, but the ragtop roofs are cut at the factory by the vw workers with precise measurements, and not golde trained workers
4. the reinforcement parts welded to under the roof came from the golde factory (as i don't think vw made the dies for it, then this mod would have been very common on splits, as they would have to had the investment recovered)
5. all the mechanism parts (rails, 3 fold parts etc) are delivered assembled just for mounting on a car by the golde factory. (maybe some of the bits are common to other cars that sported a golde sunroof, thus making the production oriented for multiple car makes)
6. after assembly the car is now a split ragtop, made at the factory.

well it's something like this: Fritz, we will have 20 faltdach cars tomorrow: please deliver us the necessary parts. we'll cut those bloody roofs for ya, just to weld in the clip!

one thing i noticed: if the cars were later conversions to a ragtop, or modified at the golde factory, the auto magazines/newspapers of those years would have had at least one ad like the rear view upgrade so common in the 60's.

always correct me if i am wrong..
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1960 1200 model 117 deluxe ragtop
1976 MK1 Golf

[Lind]

[johnshenry]

I was told, and was led to believe that it was documented somewhere, that Golde co-engineered the design with VW, had (Golde) staff in the factory in 1950 and they "built" the sunroof cars. Whether on the same production line or not is not known, but probably not. And it is for this reason/process that VW did not record the serial numbers of the sunroof cars and you cannot tell from VW birth certificates if it is an original sunroof or not.

That was for 1950.

Afterward, VW eventually took over installation/labor, sunroof VINs were recorded by VW, and the sunroof were clearly done on the "sedan" lines as evident in several period pictures of the assembly line.

Anyone know where any of this this is documented?
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John Henry

'57 Deluxe
'56 Single Cab

[eurodub]

i never said the car has left the factory during it's ragtop fitting. all was done at the factory by vw employees
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1960 1200 model 117 deluxe ragtop
1976 MK1 Golf

[Lind]