BajaNomad

Long, strange trip ending for VW's hippie van. (sob, sniff, sniff)

Cisco - 9-23-2013 at 01:46 AM

SAO PAULO (AP) — It carried hippies through the 1960s, hauled surfers in search of killer waves during endless summers and serves as a workhorse across the developing world, but the long, strange trip of the Volkswagen van is ending.

Brazil is the last place in the world still producing the iconic vehicle, or "bus" as it's known by aficionados, but VW says production will end Dec. 31. Safety regulations mandate that every vehicle in Brazil must have air bags and anti-lock braking systems starting in 2014, and the company says it cannot change production to meet the law.

http://news.yahoo.com/long-strange-trip-ending-vws-hippie-va...

chuckie - 9-23-2013 at 02:32 AM

Wow! that brings back memories! My very first real trip to Mexico with my family was in a VW bus. Down through Sonora....LONG story....It swallowed a valve and ate itself Somewhere around Kino Bay. Wonderful Mexican man towed us into Hermosillo to a VW shop...Tile workbenches, so clean....Owner drove us to a Motel, rebuilt my motor, delivered the bus back to us in a couple of days.....Mexico won our hearts....Same trip met 4 nuns in a VW bus..Some one had mounted an air conditioner, powered by a Briggs and Stratton engine on the top of the bus. Real hoot to watch the youngest nun climb up and yank the rope until it started....VIVA VW Bus's...!!

BajaLuna - 9-23-2013 at 07:12 AM

Bummer! So sad!

I guess my old bus just increased even more in value!

good story, Chuckie!

YES! VIVA VW BUS's!

DianaT - 9-23-2013 at 07:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BajaLuna
Bummer! So sad!

I guess my old bus just increased even more in value!

good story, Chuckie!

YES! VIVA VW BUS's!


Wish I still had mine --- the old one I had, not the newer one. :no:

But have hope. Remember when they quit building the bugs? OK, the new ones are not the same as the old ones, but they came back. I wonder if they all have electrical problem like the old days.



[Edited on 9-23-2013 by DianaT]

shari - 9-23-2013 at 07:25 AM

sad indeed to see the end of an era! I thought this thread was going to be about a couple surfer dudes who were here last week and spend hours duct taping their old VW van together in hopes of limping back to the states...wonder if they made it?

watizname - 9-23-2013 at 08:12 AM

I wonder just how many of us "more mature" Nomads had a "bus",back in the day. I did, with a b-tchin nakid chick suicide nob. Didja hide your "Stash" up under the dash. That little lip there was perfect. :coolup:

chuckie - 9-23-2013 at 08:23 AM

Horrors! Stash? For shame....

Ateo - 9-23-2013 at 08:44 AM

My first adult trip to Baja was in a VW bus camper.

Wonder why they can't add ABS and airbags? We can send a man to the moon but can't add ABS and airbags to a bus?

durrelllrobert - 9-23-2013 at 09:24 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Ateo
My first adult trip to Baja was in a VW bus camper.

Wonder why they can't add ABS and airbags? We can send a man to the moon but can't add ABS and airbags to a bus?


ABS was introduced by GM (rear wheels only) in 1971. Before that we all drove cars with conventional braking systems and I never had any problems. So when the ABS pump on my Yukon, used to provide increased hydraulic pressure to the wheel cylinders, decided to run continually, even after the engine was shut off and the key removed, and I found it that it would cost around $500 to replace it I decided that I could live without it. So I simply removed to fuse to disable it. That was more than 3 years ago and many trips to Canada in the snow without a single problem because I know how to regulate the brakes better than the onboard computer as shown on this video:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnjszE3NS9E‎

BajaRat - 9-23-2013 at 09:48 AM

Many many memorable trips in several Baja equipped buses. My favorite one was a 1959 wesfalia with fold over metal roof hatch. When I brought it to my dads house to check it out to my surprise he said it was the exact year, model and interior colors that we traveled across the country in through the early 60's.
Have you seen the prices on these things lately ? The one I mentioned above I bought around 1979 for 1500 bucks. That model, year and condition bus can't be touched for 15 grand now! Crazy !
The best purchase I ever made on one was a 1954 yes a 1954 21 window rag top micro bus for.... get this.. 250 bucks out of a back yard in Pasadena Ca. around 1984. The rag top was rotted out, a little rust on the cargo floor, original faded paint, tires and engine. With a little work I got it started and all the lady kept saying was the phone won't stop ringing about that van... go figure.
Turns out vans like that today will fetch over 75,000 usd at auction.

We should have kept those buses :cool:

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by BajaRat]

motoged - 9-23-2013 at 09:56 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BajaRat

Turns out vans like that today will fetch over 75,000 usd at auction.

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by BajaRat]


BR,
Well, if one can live on $2000/month in Baja (rent included), selling that van would pay for a care-free life in Baja for 3.125 years.

Or.... :biggrin:

Barry A. - 9-23-2013 at 10:02 AM

I soooo agree with you, DurrelRobert.

The first thing I do with a new car is disconnect or disable all the bells and whisels that make strange noises and try to think for me-----at least those that are possible to deactivate. The one that most annoys me since I cannot disconnect it, is that the fog lights won't work when I have on high-beams-------the electricians say that if you rewire the fog-lights to work with high-beams that the computer will go crazy?!?!?!?!? Don't know if that is true, but I cannot find anybody to do the work. I would love to use both Fog-Lights and high beams when on back country dirt roads at night.

My first trip to San Luis Gonzaga over "that" road was in 1961 in an old VW bus, and we made it, but got stuck several times on the beaches of remote Gonzaga. What a great 9 days that was.

Barry

BajaRat - 9-23-2013 at 10:11 AM

We called them the poor mans four wheel drive Barry. Man you could get a lot of crap in em to the point of overloading. That road must have been intense in 1961.

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by BajaRat]

jimgrms - 9-23-2013 at 10:13 AM

Had a 66bus while in colorado, almost froze to death driving in a snow storm, My thoughts are Hitler did get even, they are marginally better than walking

Barry A. - 9-23-2013 at 11:05 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BajaRat
We called them the poor mans four wheel drive Barry. Man you could get a lot of crap in em to the point of overloading. That road must have been intense in 1961.

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by BajaRat]


Yes, very "intense". We had 2 guys in a military jeep who were tagging along for a while---------they gave up on the second grade because frankly they became scared (the vehicle would have done fine, I think). We continued in the VW bus, but had to take several tries at it in some places------the guy driving (not me) was a lunatic, but fun to explore with. We always joked back then that you could drive your 4-wheel drive veh. up places that were horrible, and when you got to the end of any possible vehicle going further, there you would find a VW bus parked. It used to drive us nuts!!! They had great ground-clearance, great balance, and were almost unstopable. But yes, you did not want to have them in cold climates----heater was almost useless in the one's that I was familiar with. We made many Baja trips in that bus, and I never remember us ever breaking it. But, when it got stuck, you were usually REALLY stuck!!!

Barry

Cisco - 9-23-2013 at 11:06 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by BajaRat
Many many memorable trips in several Baja equipped buses. My favorite one was a 1959 wesfalia with fold over metal roof hatch. When I brought it to my dads house to check it out to my surprise he said it was the exact year, model and interior colors that we traveled across the country in through the early 60's.
Have you seen the prices on these things lately ? The one I mentioned above I bought around 1979 for 1500 bucks. That model, year and condition bus can't be touched for 15 grand now! Crazy !
The best purchase I ever made on one was a 1954 yes a 1954 21 window rag top micro bus for.... get this.. 250 bucks out of a back yard in Pasadena Ca. around 1984. The rag top was rotted out, a little rust on the cargo floor, original faded paint, tires and engine. With a little work I got it started and all the lady kept saying was the phone won't stop ringing about that van... go figure.
Turns out vans like that today will fetch over 75,000 usd at auction.

We should have kept those buses :cool:

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by BajaRat]


Those were the days of two-hundred dollar buses, four-hundred dollar buses, and NEW buses. There was nothing in between it seemed.

Sold my last split window with the side doors crushed-in and roped together (something about Tres Equis and a Toro) in 1983 for $300 to an older fellow in Santa Barbara who wanted to restore it.

Didn't make any sense to me, but, trading my 1938 Packard touring car for a Matchless motorcycle in the 1950's didn't either I guess.

over $200,000 for a VW bus?

tripledigitken - 9-23-2013 at 11:14 AM

It seems $100k is not uncommon at the larger auctions these days for buses with high end restorations.

The highest price I have seen was this one at Barratt-Jackson.

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20110628/carnews/110629870

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by tripledigitken]

BajaRat - 9-23-2013 at 12:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by tripledigitken
It seems $100k is not uncommon at the larger auctions these days for buses with high end restorations.

The highest price I have seen was this one at Barratt-Jackson.

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20110628/carnews/110629870

[Edited on 9-23-2013 by tripledigitken]


WOW Ken ! That's a 1964 21 window micro with safari front windows. Mine was a 1954 21 window micro, second year of the bus production, it wasn't restored but I'm sure today it would fetch a small fortune. Crazy.
Barry, we got a few of mine into some scarey places too. People with some 4x4s would often times be shocked to find us in a bus at the end of some roads, seven sisters, San Quintin point, ect ;D

vgabndo - 9-23-2013 at 12:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by durrelllrobert
Quote:
Originally posted by Ateo
My first adult trip to Baja was in a VW bus camper.

Wonder why they can't add ABS and airbags? We can send a man to the moon but can't add ABS and airbags to a bus?


ABS was introduced by GM (rear wheels only) in 1971. Before that we all drove cars with conventional braking systems and I never had any problems. So when the ABS pump on my Yukon, used to provide increased hydraulic pressure to the wheel cylinders, decided to run continually, even after the engine was shut off and the key removed, and I found it that it would cost around $500 to replace it I decided that I could live without it. So I simply removed to fuse to disable it. That was more than 3 years ago and many trips to Canada in the snow without a single problem because I know how to regulate the brakes better than the onboard computer as shown on this video:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnjszE3NS9E‎


Robert, this outfit in Georgia had my compressor back to me in days, and it cost me about $70. for the repair. Mine was the self-destructing compressor built into the Dodge trucks. Still working fine. I'm guessing you don't drive much on ice and snow. I LOVE ABS, but I live in the mountains.

http://www.myairbags.com/abs.php?gclid=COKi9oac4rkCFcg1Qgodw...

DanO - 9-23-2013 at 12:15 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by jimgrms
Had a 66bus while in colorado, almost froze to death driving in a snow storm, My thoughts are Hitler did get even, they are marginally better than walking


Maybe that's why some of my friends used to call the VW buses "N-zi Roadblocks." Seems like there was one broken down around every corner driving up in the mountains. Heaters were a problem for all VWs -- I had a Squareback that was like a deep freeze when it snowed. THAT was the slowest vehicle of all time. The 67 Beetle I had before it was a hot rod by comparison.

Mulegena - 9-23-2013 at 02:38 PM

I still miss my '65 van.

Her name was La Tortuga. She took me on my first trip down Baja, forded the Sea of Cortez (ferry from Cabo to Puerto Vallarta in those days) and down and back up the Pacific coast of the mainland safely and with good vibes all the way. Through mud and rain and jungles she'd climb with the best of the tricked-out 4-bys, places a 2-wd couldn't go La Tortuga would plow on!... 5,000 miles and all on bald tires with the threads showing!

No windshield wipers? No worries. Just stop & rub tobacco on the glass. Going uphill on a freeway at 35 mph? No worries. Just flap your elbows and help her along. Cold as all heck with ice on the interior from your breath its so cold? No worries. Just grab another jacket and wear it upside-down with your legs in the arms.

Gosh, those were the days, and those were the days I fell in love with Baja.

Cisco - 9-23-2013 at 02:50 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Mulegena
I still miss my '65 van.

Her name was La Tortuga. She took me on my first trip down Baja, forded the Sea of Cortez (ferry from Cabo to Puerto Vallarta in those days) and down and back up the Pacific coast of the mainland safely and with good vibes all the way. Through mud and rain and jungles she'd climb with the best of the tricked-out 4-bys, places a 2-wd couldn't go La Tortuga would plow on!... 5,000 miles and all on bald tires with the threads showing!

No windshield wipers? No worries. Just stop & rub tobacco on the glass. Going uphill on a freeway at 35 mph? No worries. Just flap your elbows and help her along. Cold as all heck with ice on the interior from your breath its so cold? No worries. Just grab another jacket and wear it upside-down with your legs in the arms.

Gosh, those were the days, and those were the days I fell in love with Baja.


I wondered about posting this article when I first saw it LM, but, it seems to have touched you and many others in such a good way I am so glad I did.

Yes, those were the days my friend...

durrelllrobert - 9-23-2013 at 03:21 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Barry A.
I soooo agree with you, DurrelRobert.

The first thing I do with a new car is disconnect or disable all the bells and whisels that make strange noises and try to think for me-----at least those that are possible to deactivate. The one that most annoys me since I cannot disconnect it, is that the fog lights won't work when I have on high-beams-------the electricians say that if you rewire the fog-lights to work with high-beams that the computer will go crazy?!?!?!?!? Don't know if that is true, but I cannot find anybody to do the work. I would love to use both Fog-Lights and high beams when on back country dirt roads at night.

My first trip to San Luis Gonzaga over "that" road was in 1961 in an old VW bus, and we made it, but got stuck several times on the beaches of remote Gonzaga. What a great 9 days that was.

Barry
Here's another thing I disabled. My Yukon has "ride control" which means that the shocks have electronic sensors to tell the computer that they need more air which is delivered to each one individually, via air lines, as the computer thinks is necessary.

When it came time to replace the shocks they were over $293 each at an on-line discount store so I replaced them with standard Yukon shocks at $30 each .
In this case there was no fuse to remove and the 'Service Ride Control" light kept coming on so I soldered a 3 ohm resistor between the wires that were just hanging there with nowhere to connect them. The stupid computer now thinks I have a $1,172 set of shocks instead of $120 like Yukons have. They work fine in Baja.

Here goes another hijack

durrelllrobert - 9-23-2013 at 03:31 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Cisco

Didn't make any sense to me, but, trading my 1938 Packard touring car for a Matchless motorcycle in the 1950's didn't either I guess.

..but you started it!

I bought a 38 Packard as my first car in 1952. I was the shortest kid in school at 5'0" and drove the biggest care. Mine had silver bud vases on the side posts.

Fred - 9-23-2013 at 04:07 PM

Still camping in Baja in my 79 Westfalia.

Kgryfon - 9-23-2013 at 04:53 PM

Wow. Bummer. Spent many a trip going to "the lake" and camping, playing loud music and just having a great time in VW buses back in the day. Never owned one but there was always one or more around.

mojo_norte - 9-23-2013 at 06:00 PM

Here's a project that can be had for a mere 75K ...

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1488805

albeit the 'Barndoors' (pre 55) are the rarest of the rare.

dean miller - 9-24-2013 at 04:41 AM

In August 1960 I purchased a Kombi bus for as I recall $1900.00. About a week later I was married. Had a short local honey moon

Spent several weeks installing a piece of ply wood and a mattress in the Kombi

Took off for parts unknown in Mexico. Down the west coast and up the east coast. We were stopped at Vera Cruz do the a hurricane which had washed out all bridges to the south.

Did a lot of spear fishing in VC with the "Club Hombre Ranas de Vera Cruz" who made me the first honorary member.

Made many many trips all over Baja in it long before the "Road" was only a dream. It never failed me in Baja.

After 18 years gave it to my daughter who dove it to OCC for two years.

She sold it for $300.00 more than I originally paid for it off the show room floor. The new owner changed oil and took off for Colorado to ski...

Never saw the Kombi again...

SDM

Skipjack Joe - 9-24-2013 at 07:38 AM

Heh. Yes, there was a line of 15 vehicles behind me whenever I took her to the sierras. And I was given the highway salute by some after I pulled over. But - she could go up Old Priest Grade Road with the best of them. That granny gear got me into some great spots in baja.

Had a 67 beetle as well. She was so beautiful after that blue paint job.

watizname - 9-24-2013 at 07:59 AM

They would go anywhere. Used to drive ours into the Sespe Hotsprings. Seven river crossings I think. At the crossings we would let the bota bag get soaked, and hang it on the mirror as we drove, cooling the Red Mountain wine. Oh boy, there's some memories.

VW van spoted in WalMart parking lot

durrelllrobert - 9-24-2013 at 12:44 PM

Ok, after careful evaluation I realize that it is a Toyota


vgabndo - 9-24-2013 at 01:14 PM

This wasn't mine, but same year and gray color. It would make it no problem up the big hill between Rancho los Topos, and the National Park at Laguna Hansen, with two dirt bikes in the back!
Easy to sleep inside.

dtbushpilot - 9-24-2013 at 02:02 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by watizname
They would go anywhere. Used to drive ours into the Sespe Hotsprings. Seven river crossings I think. At the crossings we would let the bota bag get soaked, and hang it on the mirror as we drove, cooling the Red Mountain wine. Oh boy, there's some memories.


Red Mountain wine....used to drink it with the "brothers" in high school. $1.39 a gallon, no mention of grapes on the ingredient list...

chuckie - 9-24-2013 at 02:20 PM

OMIGOD...Red Mountain wine....!!!! In the same thread as VW Busses! Thank you Lord!....