1973 Volkswagen Thing

Manual

1832841124

1973 VOLKSWAGON THING Thank you for taking a look at my nicely-restored 1973 VW Thing. This car has been owned by adults all its life. No kids have tinkered with it or tried to hot rod it or otherwise abuse it. There is not a spot of rust anywhere that I can find other than very slight surface rust. This is one of the Good Ones. The car shows 74783 miles, but a previous owner used the car as a motorhome tow-behind car. Therefore, the actual miles on the engine are likely much less. The two previous owners, as well as myself, did not put any significant miles on the car (less than 5K). I purchased this car in 2008 from a mechanic shop owner and his wife in Washington State who kept it in immaculate shape. She drove it around town in the summer. They obtained it from his uncle who did the restoration approximately 6 years ago. The uncle obtained it from an older couple who used the car as a motorhome tow-behind vehicle. This car has been stored inside for the previous three owners. Restoration included: NEW SEAT COVERS WITH REBUILT SEATS - Seats are fantastic without a rip or even a smudge. NEW ROBBINS TOP - Top is in excellent shape with clear rear plexi and no rips stains or damage. Bows are straight and work perfectly. Also comes with a top boot cover and fiberglass covers for the ends of the folded-down bows (an option I've never seen on another Thing). NEW BOOT COVER - To cover the folded-down top. Also comes with fiberglass corners to cover the hinges of the folded top. NEW 15" CHROME VW WHEELS WITH PORSCHE-STYLE HUBCAPS - Check the pictures. They look great. Because they are 15" instead of the stock 14", the speedometer reads about 5 mph low at 60 mph. NEW WHITEWALL TIRES - There's lots of life in these radials since they only have about 5,000 miles on them. NEW FRONT UPPER AND LOWER BALL JOINTS - The previous mechanic owner replaced all four ball joints even though he stated the only one really needing to be replaced was the lower right side (typical wear spot). NEW KYB SHOCKS - The shocks still have a shine to them and are good-quality replacements NEW OIL SUMP WITH DRAIN PLUG - This addition gets you out of having to deal with VW's painful oil drain system. A single plug is much easier for the 3,000 mile engine changes recommended in the Service Manual. NEW EMPI SHIFTER - Chrome short-throw shifter with black knob. FRESH RED PAINT - Not an expensive paint job and there are a few dings and scratches, but for an off-road vehicle it looks great in red (not an original Thing color option). NEW DASH PADS - They look great and really set off the interior of the car. NEW FLOOR MATS - Rubber with holes in the original style. SIDE WINDOW STORAGE BAG - New vinyl black storage bag to keep side windows from scratches. FRONT PLEXIGLAS SLIDER-TYPE SIDE WINDOWS - Actual ventilation when the windows are installed. The driver's side did have one of the handles broken. That has been repaired. FOUR NEW BUMPER GUARDS - These go for about $75 apiece from The Thing Shop. FRESH UNDERCOATING - This car was originally without undercoating on the floorpan (the only VW of any model I've ever seen that way). Because of surface rust, I wired-brushed the floorpan and put a coat of undercoating on just this week. The dark spots seen in the photos without the undercoating are from water - THEY ARE NOT RUST! Other features: SOLID FLOOR PAN - The floor pan is rock solid and was not showing any rust other than surface rust (see pictures). RARE GAS-FIRED HEATER OPTION - This was an option that none of the southern cars usually had. The heater works perfectly and keeps the car warm in freezing weather. I know this because I took one from Eastern Washington to Denver and back in October. LOCKABLE GLOVE BOX AND GAS CAP - This car has the lockable glove box door option instead of open jockey box. It also has a lockable original Thing gas cap. All locks work and are keyed to the ignition key.ORIGINAL M-CODE ENGINE. The engine is believed to be the original M-code 1600 cc dual-port engine.original. These engines are specific to Things because they are made of a stronger alloy for more challenging off-road use. Hot rodders like to start with these engine cases because they can take the additional horsepower and stress.This car has not had the an engine rebuilt. Frankly, it doesn't need one. It is original in every way except the EGR valve piping has been pinched off. This is a good thing because it doesn't infuse exhaust junk into the air intake and damage the engine.ORIGINAL-TYPE EXHAUST - These cars were built for ground clearance with the mufflers up along side the engine (instead of low and in the back). ORIGINAL OWNER'S MANUAL - This manual is in great shape and looks hardly used. SERVICE MANUAL - The most thorough manual for VW's is by Bentley. This one is in great shape and hardly used. I'm selling the car because I don't drive it and would like someone else to be able to enjoy it. I also need more shop space. Finally, since I turned fifty, I decided that I will only own cars in which I actually fit and are comfortable (I'm 6'5" and not skinny). For the cost of fuel, I can deliver the car anywhere in Washington, Oregon, Idaho or Western Montana. I am also willing to assist the new owner in making other shipping arrangements.The successful bidder will need to leave a $1000 deposit via Pay Pal within 48 hours of auction close with the balance to be paid via bank check within 5 days of the auction ending. I have 100% feedback and wish to keep it that way. If you have a question, please ask before bidding. I want the buyer to be happy with his purchase. ATTENTION BIDDERS - YOU MUST HAVE A FEEDBACK SCORE GREATER THAN 5 TO SUBMIT OFFERS. IF NOT, PLEASE CONTACT ME.- DO NOT BID IF YOU DONT HAVE FUNDS AVAILABLE OR IF YOU WILL NOT FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THE DEAL.- I RESERVE THE RIGHT TO WITHDRAW THE AUCTION AT ANY TIME On May-03-12 at 07:52:43 PDT, seller added the following information: Yesterday, I removed the carburetor. It looked like it had not been removed since new and the fuel lines had factory-like pinched clamps on them. I disassembled, dipped, thoroughly cleaned, and reassembled it. It started right up and after a few minutes of adjustment I had it idling perfectly. Yes, the idle jet was clogged with varnishy gunk. Also, I had forgotten to mention above that, since when I bought the car, it has been missing the moving portion of the passenger-side roof latch. Both of the attached pieces are still mounted and are OEM likie the driver's side latch. Just the passenger-side moving part(s) are missing and I have not tried to track down another. If this omission affects your bid or you wish to cance it, please contact me beforehand. Thanks.On May-04-12 at 17:54:23 PDT, seller added the following information:Today I verified operation of the gas-fired heater and found that it works perfectly. However, there is a piece of ductwork that is missing behind the dash that feeds hot air to the defroster vents. There is also a cable clamp missing for the "defrost/heat" control lever. I may be able to find a clamp that will fit in the next day or so. Again, if these issues affect your bid or you wish to cancel it, please contact me beforehand. Thanks. I also connected the windshield washer and aired up the spare that feeds it and found that it also works perfectly.