One of the lighthearted magazine ads for the Volkswagen Beetle showed a picture of professional NBA basketball player Wilt Chamberlain standing next to the car. “They said it couldn’t be done. It couldn’t,” the ad said. The reference was to the fact that Wilt, at 7 foot 1, was unable to fit inside the car.
The Beetle was, after all, an economy car of very compact proportions. Maybe Volkswagen’s marketing team should have tried squeezing him into a convertible instead? It was probably a lost cause anyway.
The Pick of the Day is a 1964 Volkswagen Beetle convertible listed for sale on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in Wilsonville, Oregon. (Click the link to view the listing)
“Full bottom-up restoration 1995 through 2002 including superior paint, a beautiful interior, a 12-volt upgrade, and a new top,” the listing begins. “This car has been garaged full-time since restoration.”
The car was reportedly passed down in the same family prior to ending up in the hands of the current seller. During the seven-year restoration, the exterior was refinished in “Sea Blue” (color code L360). A set of color-coordinated hubcaps provide a tasteful touch, and the car is dressed in plenty of bright trim for the bumpers, body side moldings, and twin exhaust outlets out back.
The interior is equally tidy, furnished with neutral beige vinyl seating and color-matched seat belts. In typical Beetle fashion, amenities are relatively spartan, but I do see a push-button radio, so you can hear more than just the wind rushing about the cabin.
At the rear, propulsion for this mini-machine comes from an air-cooled flat-four mated to a four-speed manual transaxle. “Car runs great and looks even better,” the seller says.
The Beetle, more formally known as the “Type 1,” had a remarkable 65-year production run and is easily one of the most recognizable of all classic cars on the road today. Incidentally, Herbie the Love Bug (as shown in several Walt Disney motion pictures), was a 1963 Beetle – just one year older than our featured car. The iconic Beetle shape is ingrained in our minds and our hearts thanks to Herbie.
Volkswagen closed out its Wilt Chamberlain “size” ad by saying, “Actually, there’s only one part of a VW that you can’t put much into: the gas tank. But you can get about 29 miles per gallon out of it.”
The asking price is $35,000 or best offer. Just don’t go picking up anyone taller than seven feet.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, scoot over to Pick of the Day.
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