Innehållsförteckning för February 2024 från VolksWorld

FROM THE TOP volksworld.ed@kelsey.co.uk First up, I’d like to welcome you to 2024, and also to the annual California Look special issue. By now I think the majority of you will understand what the term California Look is all about, so I won’t ramble on about big engines, nose down stance and all that stuff. Instead, I wanted to talk about breaking and / or bending the Cal Look ‘rules’. Yes, again. Don’t worry, I’m not attempting to re-write history, I just wanted to point out that while some are only interested in 100-point correct ’Lookers, there are plenty of others out there that are happy to see a cool car with perhaps a few boxes on the Cal Look list left unchecked. Personally, I’m not fussed if a car…

Having won 15 trophies in 2023, including seven best of shows, it’s fair to say Lee Irving’s ’54 Oval Window has made quite an impact within the air-cooled VW community lately. But the history of this car goes way back, all the way to the previous century no less, so before we get into Lee’s side of the story, let’s remind ourselves of how this car’s transformation into one of the best California Look cars in the UK began. More, ahem, mature readers might recall an issue of VolksWorld from February 1999. Another California Look special, it was jam packed with some of the finest examples of the breed around at the time, gathered from the UK, the USA and Austria. Amongst them was a black ’54 Oval, at the…

Much like the Magic Circle does everything it can to keep its tricks a secret, we probably should try and do something here to help protect Darren Bond’s methods. The thing is, I don’t think we can, and there are two main reasons for this. One is that we’re here to share with you as much information as we can about how and why things are built, so it would go against everything we stand for. The second reason is, well, it’s just genius, and deserves to be celebrated as such. We won’t make a big deal out of it but, if you read carefully, we’ll give you the nod. The first major element to this tale is family. Darren’s son, Jordan, is the reason he has this car in…

The Wilhelm Karmann Coachwerks in Germany had been doing business with Volkswagenwerks since the late 1940s, but in 1949 the coachbuilder was commissioned by Volkswagen to produce a Cabriolet Beetle to introduce into the car maker’s line up. It was a success, and so, by the early 1950s, Volkswagen was ready to add a sporty-looking coupé to its product range and the Karmann Coachwerks negotiated a contract with Italian automobile design house, Carrozzeria Ghia of Turin, to come up with the shape. Karmann had specifications from Volkswagen for the chassis and running gear which, as we all know, was largely that of the contemporary Beetle, so Ghia had to produce a body suitable for mating with the VW chassis. In the end, the floorpans were widened slightly over the Beetle…

2332cc ’64 BEETLE It has a nice rake, enhanced with big ’n’ little tyres. It has sports-orientated rims and a 2.3-litre motor fed by Weber 48IDAs. It retains a subdued appearance with a de-chromed body, t-bars and no fancy accessories. Based on this description, Nick Romero’s ’64 Beetle has all the elements of a true California Look VW, the likes of which roamed the streets of Orange County during the 1970s. Yet we know some hardcore fans of the trend may get upset if we call it so. So, what gives? Well, the California Look has evolved during the last half a century. This gradual evolution applies to other segments of the automotive hobby, too, including hot rodding. A 1930 Ford Model A roadster modified in the 1940s would likely…

2276cc TURBO ’51 SPLIT If you’ve been involved with the VW scene for a while, you may well be familiar with Bob Cook’s company, Cooker’s Restoration and Fabrication (a.k.a. Cooker’s V-Dubs) in Williamsport, Maryland, USA. Cooker’s have turned out many high quality feature cars over the years, and this Medium Brown ’51 ragtop is the latest. Not only is this one a ’Looker, though, it’s also a cooker, thanks to a turbo motor (almost) hidden under the decklid. Bob Cook is 49-years old now and has been involved with air-cooled Volkswagens for over 35 years. It began as his hobby when he talked his older brother into buying a ’72 Beetle, and that led to him becoming instantly hooked, following that up shortly after by buying his own Beetle, a…

When Nicola Danza from Hofheim am Taunus in Germany was offered this ’53 Standard model Oval, he had a high-riding Kommandeurwagen-style project in mind, but the more he worked on it, the more he realised it had to be lowered instead. Not for him a regular Resto Cal, though, but something more unique that encompasses Cal Look, Vintage Speed and a little bit of Resto Cal for good measure. To those who don’t know, finding an Oval Window Standard model is much harder than discovering a Standard model Split Beetle. If you went to search for a ’53 model, in particular, you’d find yourself looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Hence why Nicola, who was in the middle of another project and not really in the market for…

1905cc ’68 SPARKÄFER Ah, the joys of youth. The feeling of invincibility and the care free excitemen of living in the moment, unencumbered by the trappings of more adult life. As with many of us reading this, back then a Beetle was my sole transport and, although I had no real idea what was lurking under my car, I didn’t give it a second thought before heading off to Newquay, or Shakespeare County Raceway for a weekend. Now, every time I start my Beetle I listen out for unfamiliar noises and worry about the safety of fuel line connections and brake components I’ve fitted and checked countless times. Hmmm, I think I preferred things the way they were before. I still look back on those years with fondness, though appreciate…

2387cc ’55 OVAL RACER Having closely followed the Muppet Racer nostalgia drag car back from when it was built by fellow Der Autobahn Scrapers (DAS) club member, Nicolas Germeau, Stéphane Speelman was delighted when, in 2009, he had the chance to become the next owner of the car. Since then, he’s continued the vision Nicolas had when he put the car together and still races it regularly. Before we get into that, though, let’s have a quick recap of how the car came about in the first place. It was in the year 2000 that Nicolas bought the one previous owner, black, ’55 Oval. It was a very nice original car, with only one small rust hole that needed to be repaired on the whole car. He was studying car…