Volkswagen Thing Convertible, 1973
Volkswagen 181
Volkswagen 181•
•23 views
Chassis No.: 1832840043
Auction: Monterey 2024
Auction date: August 17, 2024
Lot No.: S67
$33,000 | Sold
- Odometer: 31,954 miles
- Transmission: Manual
- Exterior: Yellow
- Interior: Black
- Body: Convertible
- Unrestored
- 1600cc Boxer flat 4-cylinder engine
- 4-speed manual transmission
- Removable top
- Folding windshield
- Heater
- Pushbutton AM radio
Powered by a 1600cc Boxer flat 4-cylinder engine and a 4-speed manual transmission, this unrestored Volkswagen Thing has been finished in yellow with a black removable top. The front windscreen folds flat onto the hood for an open-top, Safari experience. The interior is a blend of yellow with black seating, a dash topper, steering wheel and column, center console and a perforated floor covering. Nicely, there’s a cup holder mounted to the dash. While Things were never much for creature comforts, this one does have a heater and a pushbutton AM radio.
The exterior is sprinkled with chrome bumpers, dual sideview mirrors, front fender-topped marker and turn lamps, and polished five-spoke alloy wheels with blackwall tires. Initially developed for the West German military during the 1960s, the Type 181, as it was formally named, was based largely on the original Type 182 Kubelwagen that was used during World War II. While NATO proved to be the biggest buyer of the Type 181, Volkswagen introduced it to the civilian market in West Germany and much of Europe in late 1969, calling it the Kurierwagen, except in Italy, where it was called the Pescaccia, or beastly fish.
It landed in the United States in 1973, where it became famously known as the Thing, a name that actually transcended all markets eventually, Thing becoming the Type 181’s unofficial international name. Interestingly, the British market didn’t receive it until late 1974, where it was known as the Trekker. Sluggish sales ultimately caused Volkswagen to remove it from the market in 1975, making it a very rare commodity there. South America and Mexico also received the Thing, and while technically known as the Safari in those markets, over time, everyone referred to them as the Thing. Produced in various nations, Thing production ceased forever in 1983.
https://www.mecum.com/lots/1124431/1973-volkswagen-thing-convertible/
Cost
121,193 AED
