may sound dumb but i havent see one around, are there VW Things in Aust?
was this car sold here or imported? how much are they worth?
what about kubels?

thanx
sam

Sam

I think there is about 6 or so THINGS here in Aussie all private imports

At the VWClassicclub.org.au site there is a list of 18 currently identified 181 or 182 currently here in Australia.
The list is located at the end of the Country Buggy Register.
I lookafter the Register so email any additions please.
I know the last 182 on the register was purchased for $10K
Bill.

so the type 181, thats the thing? are these all street legal?
what about a kubel, can that be driven on the street?
how difficult would it be to buy a kubel or a thing in australia? do they come up for sale much?
thanks again

sam:P

Kubelwagen - World War 2 military derivation of the Volkswagen, as used by the German army. Rear-wheel drive only. Production ceased at the end of the war. Kubelwagen means 'bucket car' - a loose description of the shape of the body. Several exist in Australia.

Schwimmwagen - amphibious World War 2 military derivation of the Volkswagen. Semi-boat shaped body, rear propeller and four-wheel drive. Much rarer than Kubelwagen. Two, maybe three in Australia.

Country Buggy - an Australian designed and built off-road car based on a Beetle chassis with Transporter reduction boxes and front suspension components. Simple open body made of folded steel. Debuted in 1968, only sold for a couple of years. About 1,500 of them were made.

Type 181 - German-designed off-road car that appeared in 1973. Similar philosophy to earlier Country Buggy but much improved design. RHD version was Type 182. Called the 'Thing' only for US market. Called the 'Trekker' in the UK, and confusingly, 'Kubelwagen' in some other markets. Mostly known as the 181 or 182 now. Never officially sold in Australia, but a few dozen probably running around.

Hope this makes things clearer...

Several were also imported by a guy on the sunshine coast in QLD for rental. There is an article in issue No. 14 of the old Australian VW Power magazine.

Was in Bali last year and saw dozens of Things on the roads over there. There is a hire company in Kuta that rents em out. Pretty cheap too.
Most I saw had clear panels in the engine cover so you could see the motor. :thumb

simon, how was that to car to drive? tell me about it

Quite right Simon. I didn't want to confuse the new blokes by mentioning the 4WD Kubels, let alone the Kommandeurwagens!

BTW, it's been mentioned several times by several authors that VW Australia's Country Buggy tooling ended up in Malaysia. I've never been there, but has anyone seen any Country Buggies in Malaysia? Or did 181s wipe them out?

I used a RHD converted ex Dutch army 181 on the roads in melb for a couple of years in the early 80's. I reckon it was far & away the best all round VW I've owned! You could remove doors & seats to load all sorts of wierd stuff. It was a lot of fun to drive being a convert. & the screen would go flat for real "wind in the face" stuff. I also liked the way the rear seats went flat giving a nifty cargo platform. The LSD was a real boon also. The only problems I had were continuous near misses from other cars due to possibly to rubbernecking but probably due to the fact it was bloody hard to see being in drab olive. I got around it by driving with headlights on always!
It was no comparison to the country buggy- sorry buggy lovers but they were hopeless. The only good thing about the "Aussie Kubel" is that it showed VW in the Fatherland how NOT to do it. So they in effect copied the WW2 model.
I don't think I miss any car I've sold over the last 30 years quite as much as that 181!
You too Simon???