Curbside Classic Outtake: Get Shorty Edition

by Paul Niedermeyer

Published: January 26th, 2010

curbside classic outtake get shorty edition

Now here’s a well-preserved flash from the past. VW kits of every possible permutation were the rage in the seventies and into the eighties. The Beetle’s construction lent itself superbly to the task. A few bolts released the body from the platform, which could also be quite easily cut and shortened. The resulting short bed pickup variation makes the perfect little hauler, like this one. Ride and handling? Don’t ask. Although this profile shows off its best side, there’s a bonus or two or even three in the other shots:

No self-respecting kit car from this vintage would be authentic without a grafted-on grill; either a gen-u-ine Mercedes number like this one, or a fake Rolls Royce unit.

Load capacity is a bit limited, but easy to get to. As is the engine. But the best vintage piece on this ‘dub? The steering wheel.

That’s quite a nice Empi wheel, and one I haven’t seen in decades. The frost on the window is what it’s like driving a beetle in cold weather, except it forms on the inside, from your breath. And as a shorty bonus, I give you this shorty gem, filched from the internet, but irresistible. Looks like a Chrysler Le Baron or Lancer. The urge to shorten lives on!

#CutOffCars #ShortyVw #VwBeetlePickup #VwPickup

Paul Niedermeyer

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2 of 23 comments

Adongood on Jan 27, 2010

Dave7....As a 23 year Mercedes employee I can tell you the front grille is the best part of that monstrosity.

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CC_Stadt on Feb 12, 2010

For anyone interested, it is now for sale (I'm not the owner): http://eugene.craigslist.org/cto/1591791389.html

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