Check it out.
http://iainwalters.tripod.com/c2ckombis/ 
I hope they look after them

It is all about supply and demand

is this the guy that has been selling overpriced kombis for yonks with a big stash of them

Well, there is one guy that is about to receive a 'JIMGOW Nasty Email' special..

Who is Iain Walters?? Isn't he a member on this site?

Dear Sir/ Madam,

Good morning, and I am hoping I can take a few moments of your time.
I would just like to vent my disgust in your website, and therefore business. As a Volkswagen owner and restorer, member of a VW club, and spend most of my time involved in VW events and discussions, and find your business not only insulting, but blatently shameful. The fact that you are shipping out our VW's to overseas, where they haven't the conditions to care for their own cars, let alone the new ones, makes the VW enthusiasts wonder where we are heading for the next 10-20 years? Our supplies run low, like their's are, but now we haven't any vehicles left, as they have been exported by yourself, so we import them back into the country, at about three times the cost, and half the condition, if not worse, than they went out of here in.

What is so wrong with leaving them here for our kids? Is your employment situation so bad that you have to take advantage of our weak currency and try to make some short term money? I can understand them coming all the way out here and trying to ship them back, as most enthusiasts would, but even that is both irresponsible and virtually vandalistic.

My personal collection is fairly small, with a Beetle, a Notchback, and three split window Kombi's. Never once have I considered palming them off OS for a quick buck. The Notchback would probably fetch 8000 pounds plus shipping, yet there is one thing stopping me.. two actuallly. One; my love for my passion and hobby, and car for that matter, and Two; MORALES.

I urge you to reconsider this business venture, and look into the passionate hobby that a hell of a lot of us Aussies are so enthusiastic about. There is numerous sites, forums, and so on across the web, and in Australia alone for that matter.

Kindly respond, and I wait eagerly for you to do so,

Jim Gow.

I wonder if this makes up for all the Mustangs and Chevs we bring over from the USA? :o

Thats a bit different Pete.. They weren't made here, what choice did we have?

dont worry about the mustangs and chevs. they might be coming over here from the states but at the same time all those two door fords like the ones used in mad max are going to the states. they love 'em and cant get enuf. there is a whole club on them.

So if everyone is so concerned Buy the things yourself, then they will not have to go OS.

Ummmm, Jim.... that should have been "MORALS". 'MORALES' means something else entirely!! :P

Seriously though, while I agree with you from an emotive angle, when practicality kicks in I'm with daz. You just can't beat the whole supply & demand thing.

Holy sh!#t!!!!!!!!!!:o:jesus

Don't know if backpackers/travellers can afford to ship them home though, but buying a ride here to get around in is common

What a wanker

Um, Rust free?????
How many of the vehicles he advertises have you all seen rust free??
Not many I assure you. Won't be a good business when he can deliver the promise. Imagine expecting one of these prestine vehicles and finding it full of rust anyway?

As far as the Mustangs and Chevs go I bought an auto trader when I was in Holywood and after reading through it, realising the swelling population in the states is creating a large vacum in the supply of old american muscle, I reckon you could run around buying them here and then ship them back to the states and sell them and you would still make a fortune and then fill your container up with Karman ghias and factory convertible bugs like the ones I saw in the wreckers next to the Porshe 914s and 911s and Mercedes after all I was offered a karman ghia for $150 U.S. bring them here and sell them then do it over again. I know If I had the Capital behind me thats what I'd be doing.

I say let em go where the money takes them. If we cared so much we wouldnever sell anything. I have cut up more than my share of VW's now they may still be alive if they had of gone overseas.

this sort of thing has always happened with lots of objects in lots of countries
When I was with the Austin Healey Club, late '70's to '80's , we were getting rare prototypes & homologation specials, & works race & rally cars & anything else we could get our hands on for a song, it took years for the Pom's to realise, then we started raiding America, values & exchange rates change & a lot of them went back overseas, countless rare cars of all types get raided from countries, back & forth, it happens with many collectable items. What has changed now, is THE AVAILABILITY of the internet, anything around the world becomes almost immediate knowlege. If somebody decides not to make big bucks out of wheeling & dealing cars & parts internationally, then someone else WILL, it is sad, but if WE don't buy everything in Australia at the price asked, then someone overseas will AND visa versa

What he said

relax!! the guy will kill his own business with the prices he's asking.!! he's dreamin. what pom is going to keep paying 9000 pounds for a splitty?? not too bloody many i bet.

look i'm real sorry that you think we don't look after the splits in our country but i have to tell you we do. I could send anyone a load of pics of top grade splits and other veedubs that have spent there lives over here in england. I think the main reason that us poms buy splits from countrys is because at this point in time splitscreen vans are very popular and your country just happens to drive on the same side of the road as us.
oh and just to say the vans iain brings over are rust free most of the time, i've seen one of them and it was very rust free. as for the price...... we do keep spending lots of money on vans and £8000 for a split is cheap we have 23 windows here that sell for more than twice that. I think its a total rip off that over the past few years the prices have risen so much and it makes it very hard for us to buy a decent van in pomland.
to be honest with you all all we want are vans to do up and drive, we don't want to anoy anyone we just want to be happy and drive splits.
personaly i want to buy one of your splits bring it here, do it up then move to oz and bring it with me. so thats not so bad eh?

Well do not know whether to stir up this hornets nest again but here goes anyway...Firstly a big thank you for the kind words for me and for the indifferent ones..as for the 'god' of VW's Mr Gow who seems to think he can abuse people anytime he likes..i have written to him personally. To Jen who called me a w****r cheers for that and oh by the way i was one of the first who felt for your situation when you were selling you r bug and wanted to keep it and i put out a rally for local people to help out..and despite your words i would do the same again..i was only sorry that being in QLD it was pretty impractical to get down..but well done everyone who helped out on that one. I have been ill the last year on and of but i was hoping to get a workshop going maybe one eveing down my shop to see if i could help out any local new dubbers who are having trouble working out where the engine is etc etc Fingers crossed i can get this going soon.
As for me shipping vans to the UK ...yes i have done a few..guilty! but only a very few. The website looks big but well.....you have to in this competitive market. The big boys in the UK come over with a huge scoop and take many many more than me in one swoop. Still live and let live thats life. My wish is for things to go swimmingly here in Oz and keep them here ..of course i need them here to work on them!!My original idea 14 years ago when i used to see new dubbers come into my shop in the Uk -with their newly purchased pride and joy only to start to cry when they where on my ramp and i was pointing out the lack of sills and floor. I actually saw customers in tears!-was to provide novices with good solid reliable vans at the same price as the shonky sharks (and by god they are still out there )were charging. that is still my hope over here and hopefully in time i will have no need for the odd van back to the Uk. I could go on and on but anyway there you go i have been into dubs for nearly 20years when noone else even liked the ugly old vans?can you believe that now! and i am still here hopefully going about my business quietly and with as few insults between fellow dubbers as possible. In the coming months i hope to be selling more locally and would like to train a couple of lads or take on some at tech etc here on the Gold Coast so if you are interested drop me a line. ANy other queries drop me a line ..just be nice i am a sensitive old soul!!

Cheers Iain

[Edited on 27-6-2003 by Kombination]

If someone can supply a product that is to a customers requirements and both are happy and feel they have had a fair deal that is the basis of business. If you make a profit doing this then that is smart business.

Bring the Split back pickle, but don't come and live here, it's a terrible place here in OZ. To many Poms

Well, Iain, I have nothing to hide here, and I am more than happy to show the letter you wrote to me, but I would rather not air my dirty laundry on here, but will if requested.

Iain, you mentioned in the email you sent me, closing with don't bother replying, that I should be channelling my efforts into saving starving kids in 3rd world countries... I cannot for the life of me work out the relevent connection, but seeing you are the one with all the money for $20,000 buses selling willy nilly, then maybe it is YOU that should be donating.

As for the helping out new dubbers and so on... :puke Jesus.. my ass.

Iain, I personally find what you are doing disgraceful, but that is my personal opinion. I do feel very strongly about this, and if this was MY forum, instead of everyones, believe me, you wouldn't be here. Is our classifieds section safe Iain? Or will you be buying those and shipping them out as well?

Oh some people do get very upset about us nasty poms coming and buying all your splits up. to be fair i sort of don't blame you but in the same breath its not our fault, if we are willing to spend hudge amount of money on a hobbie then fair play to us.
Its all down to supply and demand we demand and you supply.
there's no need to get nasty about it tho people we are all into the same thing..... veedubs
lets all chill out eh
as for Iain, well he is just providing us poms with a service so don't hate him for it. He doesn't force you to sell your veedubs does he??
and what does pom really mean????

Pommie - Australian slang for the English. Some suggest name refers to prisoners sent to Australia, and is an acronymn for Prisoners Of His Majesty, or Prisoners of Mother England. Others believe it is a shortened form of pomegranate, allegedly rhyming slang for immigrant.



[Edited on 27-6-2003 by pickle]

Hi Pickle
I dont think anybody is specifically targeting anyones Nationality, its about the VW's that the comments are directed at and Britain just happens to be the destination of these vehicals.
We have had it pretty good over here for a long time, this has made us complacent in regards to our good fortune, and now we are seeing it being sold off to other countrys, you would have to agree, that if the role's were reversed that you would have the same sentiments and thoughts as us.
when you strike at someones heart, hurt and desperation make people say and do things that are quite out of character!
Rob....

How does Iian buying them, saving them and selling them on make him discraceful ??

I must be a much bigger wanker than he casue I buy em, cut them up sell of bits, sell anything for a $$$, weld things solid instead of bolting and send stuff O/S, yet no one seems to think I am discracefull ..

Every buggy in my shed was given life by at least 3 VW giving theirs .. Did I mantion I have KG arrinving Sunday that I think will make a very cool BAJA ???


I am all confussed.

I think its fine....
Whats wrong with a business venture like that?
The ones that are the idiots are the ones paying for them!!!
People should be congratulated for developing business's that make money not abused

Its a sad fact that it takes AU$2.70 odd to Buy 1GBP and while THAT lasts then we are bent over and open to what we get.
We cant afford to buy parts made for our cars like safari windows etc and theres not enough vw people here to make it financialy viable to make our own stuff therefore we are at the mercy of the Poms and Seppos, heck if it werent for the Mexican economy we'd all be up the proverbial creek as there wouldn't even be the parts that there are for brakes, panels etc.
Now it all comes back to money talks.
My 67 Kombie was bought from Iain, and was not the cheapest Kombie but is a very rust free example, I paid the extra money because I also treasure my free time and dont want to spend an eternity cutting and welding, and with a car with a fair bit of rust, I have found the rust just never gives up, because the whole car has been subjected to the same conditions that cause the rust to show in the odd spots that you see but is often not far behind all over and therefore the rest of the car usually follows suit and you have a beautiful car after you restore it but it quickly erupts back into a rusty relic within a few years. There are other measures that help with rust proofing but I wont go into them here and now.
Anyway my kombie sits and waits for me to save 4 times the money that should be neccasary to buy the safari windows etc and have them shipped.
It shouldnt cost so much money but its an international financial trading problem that makes it so and its probably a bit much for Iain to really influence that one way or another, especially when you consider what sort of percentage of real world financial dealings Old Kombies represent, after all you wont find Old Kombies listed on the New York stock exchange. Its a shame we have to dig deep into our pockets to overpower the demand from other counties and the woeful state of our economy but after all its not like Iain is cutting these kombies up to make fancy couches, telephone boxes,Metal sculptures and other terminal destinys.
When you take into account the time and hassle and expense of shipping these Kombies to england its probably preferable to Iain that Aussies Buy these Kombies from him {after all he did place the ad in the local paper that I read and then contacted him thru}and are just happy that he finds them instead of them rotting away somewhere because most people couldn't care less about these cars and let their bored teenagers jump on them, shoot at them, burn them and learn how to drive a tractor through them.
Besides to call yourself an enthusiast its all about the cars.
When two parents fight over custody then it stops being about the welfare of the Kids.
Thats not to say that it doesnt shit me to tears too because I want it all for me me ME ME!!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA :P
Cheers Tony

well I better a my 2 cent's worth

as for cars going over sea's nowone like's to see that but on the bright side for every one ian sell's it make's the one's you own rarer here in oz.
to be truthfull i think if ian didn't do what he was doing now it would be someone else anyway so good luck with your Business:thumb

as for australian's being called prisner's and convict's don't get me started or i will start talking cricket

P.O.M - people oversea's moaning :P

only kiding pickle enjoy your vw's :kiss

did I say cricket or SOCCER haha:thumb

sorry dude :P I don't do cricket or football (soccer) just veedubs and its us english that you call poms ya dope
oh and i always thought us engish were the whinging ones not you lot
:P
just pulling ya leg
keep them splits rust free people cos i might just be buying one soon :o
and iain, keep up the good work :thumb