The Rometsch "Bähnle"

[Björn Schewe]

I think most of you know the famous green-white Beetletrain which is in Exibition at the Stiftung AutoMuseum in Wolfsburg. This train was built by Rometsch in Berlin – the trailer was made by a coachbuilder named “Harmening” of Bueckeburg – a nice small city in the neighbourhood of Hessisch Oldendorf.

The Wolfsburg train was used for guided city tours through Wolfsburg – not for factory tours as most of the people think. What the people don’t think too it, that the car was not the onliest train Rometsch built. An Island in the North sea had also two trains to transport Tourists through the interesting points of the island.

With the thankful help of Thomas Koenig from the famous Prototyp Collection in Hamburg, we fund another surviving example of these rare and unknown coachbuild Rometsches based on a Volkswagen beetle. After the island changed the train against a newer model based on a Suzuki-Jeep, the car was stocked in the fire department of the island – the plan was to modify the car and to use it as a fire fighting car.



Even on island, the times changes and so the car was stocked in the corner of the fire brigade. Until yesterday, when the car was picked up…

[qwerty]

Bjoern,
I have always liked the one in the museum and had no idea that Rometsch made the car. Incredible news that another was found and brought to the famous collection in H-O!!! Congratulations to all!
Mark

[oval56]

cool & awesome find, but looks personal to me really strange the first care where i'm not thinking about lowering and that stuff
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[Undis]

Cool find Bjoern!
Is it based on a convertible or did the builder make their own windscreen frame? Well, obviously the very top of the windscreen frame is different to Karmann...

Also, is it based on an early oval?

Looks like HO is quite snowed under
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[MDKG]

Extremely cool find! What year is it? What is the name of the island it was found? What happened to the trailer? Are you going to use it to take tourists through HO?

[alanandi]

Very very nice find!!!
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64 Splitwindow Westi
62 Ragtop deluxe beetle
56 ragtop standard oval
74 baywindow bus
70 dormobile camper

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[Björn Schewe]

The Tractor is based on a 1957 Oval Window. As you can see, the basement was a regular Sedan, the basic frame of the Windscreend is bades on a Convertible part.

The complete train was deilvered in 1958. Actually, the original trailers are not located, but it could be that they are still exicsting. Who knows.

[coad]

Very cool find. Congratulations.

It must have ridiculously low gearing to pull the cars, right?

[Mr. Electric Wizard]

Hence him referring to it as a tractor, I guess.
Strong clutch as well.
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[Stonefish]

wow...
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[usariemen]

I can see a nice shuttle service in the future between the camping ground
and the town in Hessisch Oldendorf.
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Master of my domain!

[pbaptist]

Wow,

Just when I thought I know a lot about Romesch, this "new" type of Rometsch shows up. Great to add this to the Rometsch collection in HO.

What will be next
Goliat GP 700 coupe?
Fiat with Rometsch body
Borgward Hansa 1500 with Rometsch body
Opel Kapitan Coupe with Rometsch body.

Is there any chance that one of these (Non VW) Rometsches will be add to the Rometsch collection in HO?

Patrick
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Dutch Karmann-Ghia and coachbuild lover.
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2* Karmann Ghia Convertible (1958, 1971)
4* Rometsch Lawrence (nr 534, 555, 558 and 561)

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[TimGud]

Any chance of buying the cars that originally went with the tractor?

[vwovale56]

Björn
That is a very great collection you are joining this baby to. It looks like you have a great location to make them happy together.

Here in Canada they are less chances that we find those types of tresors!
jf
_________________
Current 1975 str beetle

Formerly
Double Cab ( crew-cab ) 1970 Brasilian edition.
2x beetle 1956 rag top euro

[Björn Schewe]

[peter schepens]

[Björn Schewe]

After a few moments of cleaning an finishing, the Bähnle looks a little more better. Christian got in contact to one of the old drivers of the Bähnle. He told him some stories about problems with clutches and gearboxes so that they always had some new gearboxes on stock. The gearbox they used came from the split window bus with the reduction on both side. On an island without any Volkswagendealer or garages, it is always difficult to keep a car alive. The Bähnle was retired in 1968 and stocked since that time at the place where it was found. The driver is trying to find more information and has a couple of interesting old pictures of the historical car.

The Volkswagen Archive sais, that the car with was delivered in December of 1957 as a primered Standard model to the famous Volkswagendealer Eduard Winter of Berlin – the dealer where most of the beetles were delivered, which Rometsch used for their beautiful creations. December 1957? It was the time, when the beetles have their larger windows and the new styled dashboard. But the Bähnle is based on an oval window – how could that be? The answer is very simple: As most of you know, Rometsch had to buy complete beetles for their famous creations like the Beeskow Banana. Most of the non-used bodys were sold to repair shops to safe damaged cars. When the post 1957 beetle came on the marked, the price for the Oval window bodies felt down so that these bodies were used for the Bähnle. In reason of the style, it was not necessary which beetle body they used – and for the newer ones, it was easier to sell it for a good price.

The trailers were built by Harmening of Bückeburg. This company was bought by a famous coachbuilder for trucktrailers named “Kögel”. In the last years, Kögel build special bodies for the parcel service of the German Bundespost and special bodies for the technical rescue service in Bückeburg. After the German union, the german gouverment ordered that all official orders made by state organisations – like Bundespost or the Technical Rescue Service – have to be done in the new eastern parts of Germany. Without new orders, “Kögel” stopped their production at the old Harmening area and closed their location in Bückeburg. The good thing is, that Bückeburg is only a few mintutes to drive from Hessisch Oldendorf – and Christian’s Sister Esther is living there. On this way, it should not be a big problem to find more information and with a little bit of luck, it also should not be a big problem to get in contact with one of the old workers.

[Tanguy]

Hello !

Some news about this another Rometsch ?
Regards from France !


Tanguy

[Herbie3Rivers]

Very cool find. I gotta ask though, what's the story with the Herbie in the back?
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