Hi all,
I'm fairly new to Sydney and thought I'd look up some VW people as I'm currently looking to buy a Beetle and we were VW camper van owners back in sunny England! We love them, however many times they go wrong...
Anna

And of course any advice on buying a Beetle would be much appreciated... After reading the 'Should I buy a Beetle' post, these are the main things I'm looking for so if anyone has advice for me I'd be very grateful!

I want to be able to drive it almost daily, but only for short trips. I do want to be able to drive it immediately so it needs to be functioning well. I'm not expecting to do any long trips in it though - camper vans are for that!

We are prepared to tinker a bit so it doesn't need to be perfect (and are aware that there are always things that need doing...) however we don't want to do anything major, certainly not straight away - gotta have a bit of time for the unconditional, irrational love to grow!

I am used to driving old campers so not too worried about the driving style, although I'm sure each one is different so it will take a bit of getting used to but I'm happy with that. So, if there are older ones that you'd recommend I'm all ears (well, eyes on here). However, if there are any years / models that I should steer clear of let me know!

Um, that's everything that I can think of for now... But I'm sure there's more!

Thank you!

Anna

Welcome to the forum! Where's about in the UK did you guys come from?

There's plenty of info on here. For Beetles, it depends what your individual taste is. From nice restored early models, rats, OG paint, onto later model Beetle, L Bugs, and Superbugs. What takes your interest? There's enough cars to go around, and in reality, any year or model in good nick will get to around Sydney without any problems.

Try http://www.carsales.com.au,  http://www.carsguide.com.aum,  and http://www.tradingpost.com.au  and EBAY for rides.

welcome aboard. good to have another newby!!

my opinion is get a type 3!! but i'm bias!! haha

enjoy dubbin!!

Ok - so a restored model is something that someone has spent a bit of money on, got some good paint, interior, and maybe the motor has had an overhaul. Obviously there's full body off restorations, but by the sounds of that, would be out of your ballpark. Expect to pay $6000+ for anything here.

OG paint is a car with original paint - unrestored, loved, and well worn like a good pair of shoes. There's plenty of these going around, and if you want something with nice chrome and interior, then something pre-1967 sounds like what you're after. Expect to pay between $4000 - $6000 depending on year for something like this.

Rat - ahhhh rat - rat is unrestored, original, with minor surface oxidisation or patinated paint (worn through). Rat's are usually something that has been lying around for a few years, that has been unearthed (sometimes literally) and put back on the road in as is condition. Usually a nice rat keeps it's original paint, lichen, and then is lowered immensely. Check out some threads in the Rats section, or do a search for Decked Dubby and his rides. Expect to pay anything from $1000+ depending on year, and of course rattiness.

Enjoy your hunt!

Thanks for the jargon definitions and info, I now know a lot more than I did!

I have practically been living on those sites, looking at all the pics of Beetles and then realising just how far away some of them are! Not quite adjusted to just HOW big this country is!

I quite like the sounds of a Beetle that's like a comfortable old pair of shoes...

welcome aboard the nut house ,look foward to pics of your beetle when u get it