Some 80's VWs that I'd never heard of!

Post by **Josh_PoloGTi** » Sat Jul 12, 2003 9:43 pm

KarlM · Post by **KarlM** » Sat Jul 12, 2003 9:45 pm

look at the state of them! thats why we've never heard of them!

polo2k · Post by **polo2k** » Sun Jul 13, 2003 12:17 am

heres one to see how old/much of an enthusist you are, has any one ever heard of the "VW Thing" and yes thing is the model name

ciden · Post by **ciden** » Sun Jul 13, 2003 12:19 pm

The ones pictured in the black & white photos, looks like something Ford should've produced...

ciden · Post by **ciden** » Sun Jul 13, 2003 2:33 pm

There we go - a VW Thing. Used to me very popular in the good ol' US of A.

polo2k · Post by **polo2k** » Sun Jul 13, 2003 2:42 pm

well done and as you can see from the rear lights (late model aircoled beatle) the "thing" was a hotch potch of other parts

Babe RuthLess · Post by **Babe RuthLess** » Sun Jul 13, 2003 5:10 pm

Ok, the things in Josh's photographs are the Volkswagen 1500, a little piece of (sad) history from Argentina.

This car is, in fact, a VW version of the Hillman Avenger that you brits probably know all too well.

Here's the story:

Until the late 1960s, Chrysler do Brasil manufactured large American saloons in Brazil. The problem was that most Brazilians preferred european-style cars. So in the early seventies Chrysler decided to build, under license, its own version of a smaller, european-designed car: the Hillman Avenger, which started in Argentina as the Dodge 1500.

The car, however, was launched in Brazil with a 1.8 engine under the name Chrysler 1800 in 1972.

It was made here until VW bought Chrysler's South American operation in 1980, when the American company was already in a deep crisis at home. Production of the 1800 ceased in Brazil (1980), but continued in Argentina (now ith the name Volkswagen 1500) until 1991 (!) when it was replaced by a 1982 Brazilian design, the Voyage (known as Fox in the USA, this car was basically a four-door, notchback version of the Gol).

That's it. So the 'thing' is a Hillman/Chrysler/Talbot Avenger, or a Chrysler 1500, or a VW 1500.

Post by **Josh_PoloGTi** » Mon Jul 14, 2003 10:20 am

Thanks for the info Carlos... I actually got the pictures off a Hillman Avenger web site (don't ask what I was doing there - it was one of those "search for something on google then follow the links" type evening!)

The "Thing" looks like one of the types of cars the German Army drove in the 2nd WW...

hayesey · Post by **hayesey** » Mon Jul 14, 2003 9:26 pm

that "thing" looks pretty similar to sumthing called a VW Trekker. there were sum of them in the stand next to the club-polo stand at BVF last weekend.

wierd tank sorta things.

Babe RuthLess · Post by **Babe RuthLess** » Mon Jul 14, 2003 9:58 pm

The VW 'Thing' sold in North Amrica is a mexican-built, civilian version of the KÃ¼belwagen used by German forces in WW2.

It`s the same platform as the early beetle but with several 'improvements' for combate use. One of these improvements is the adoption of a steering damper, which was later introduced in the production beetle (in the '60s if I'm not mistaken).

KarlM · Post by **KarlM** » Mon Jul 14, 2003 10:43 pm

Babe RuthLess wrote:The VW 'Thing' sold in North Amrica is a mexican-built, civilian version of the KÃ¼belwagen used by German forces in WW2.

i knew i'd seen it somewhere before

toXXin · Post by **toXXin** » Tue Jul 15, 2003 2:13 pm

And if any of you watching Nickelodeon, Moesha drove a VW "Thing".