Can you explain the sudden surge of interest in my '63 Volkswagen?

Simple. It correlates with the number of people who tripped over their own two feet and died between 1999 and 2009. The true facts here

That made no sense, Gail.

That’s because there is no logical explanation.

Enjoy the phenomenon and sell the car to the highest bidder.

For fun, look at the link.

I did look at the link. I think you’re losing it, girl.

As the country drifts further and further to the far right, the interest in antique nazi technology naturally rises.

I know a few people who belong to groups that are full of fellow enthusiasts for certain types of vehicles. One of them is a group of VW fans. They buy cars from all over the place, trade parts, fix them up, and have weekend-long camping parties to enjoy each other’s cars. It’s kind of an obsession, sometimes mild, sometimes intense. Maybe your listing was noticed by one of these enthusiasts, and shared on a Facebook group or something.

@dappled_leaves I shared the original ad it on 16 buy/sell/trade fb groups.

The thing is, the recent explosion was not in response to my original ad. It was a reaction to my post last night (which I posted on all 16 sites,) looking for help finding the person we were supposed to meet with this morning (see the details.) It wasn’t even aimed at selling the car. I’ve got 6 people in line who are interested, as of this morning.

Plus someone who said they have original roof racks, if they’re interested.

Plus someone who wants to buy the pop up camper that happened to be in the picture that accompanied the plea.

I understood what you said. I am saying that your new post might have caught someone’s eye, and that they might have shared it somewhere you did not.

That’s a fine car you got there.
I’d have it in a heartbeat & stick 53’s straight on it’s glorious arse.

I’ll put you on the list @ucme!

I didn’t see any notifications of any shares, but it could be that’s what happened @dappled_leaves.

Ha, I’d bid them off the field, but I gotta consider hefty shipping costs, so…
Seriously though, great little car, class example.

It is. And SO much fun to drive! I didn’t get my first automatic until I was in my 40’s, not long before I met Rick.

The first time I drove the bug, Rick was patiently trying to tell the little lady how to drive a standard. I just rolled my eyes, and took off. After about 4 blocks he said, “Wow! You’re driving better than me!” It’s like falling off a bike. You never forget how to do it. ;)

I picked a couple of the grandkids up from grade school in it. They were instant celebrities. All the kids were yelling “SLUG BUG!”

If I were you i’d keep hold, but if you must sell make sure you get top dollar, coz it’s definitely worth it.
Good luck

I’d like to but it really was an impulse buy on my part, which is very rare for me. We had all these big plans, but none of them were happening so…...oh well. Such is life.

A few guesses….

Right now, people are filing their taxes and expecting (or getting) returns, so some people have more money than they did a few months ago.

Time of year affects car sales. Some cars are better or worse suited for certain times of year. This may not be as much of a factor where you are, but when I was leaving New Hampshire it was early Winter so I had zero problems selling my Subaru; 4WD/AWD cars sell great when there’s a few months of snow in the near future. But as spring/summer get closer, people are thinking more about “fun cars”.

The original ad may have been disregarded as a scam. Whenever I see a bug in that shape, I expect no engine, a typo, a stolen vehicle, or some other major “gotcha” if it’s listed for under five grand, and even at five grand I’d expect serious mechanical issues.

Just my thoughts.

I think a bog standard ad gets lost in with the other bog standard ads but a plea for help makes people look. Then they see that it’s a good car. Moral of the story: gimmicky advertising sells!

I called dibs on that car a while ago :) You are selling it way below market value, those old VW bugs have skyrocketed in price in recent years. I’m guessing you changed the advertising? On F.B. you probably just bumped it to the top of the list of feeds by commentng.

@Dutchess_III if you lived anywhere near me that car would already be mine.

One minute I hear it’s too high, the next it’s too low! Anyway, I sold it for $500 more than I paid for it, so the business woman in me is satisfied. I was so pissed at Rick. At one point they asked if I’d take less. I said, “No. I almost listed it for $6,000 but figured that was pushing it.”
Rick says, right in front of them, “Are you crazy?? It’s not worth $6,000!” I just stared at him.
Later on I said, “Rick….you shouldn’t have said that. It wouldn’t hurt for them to think it was worth $6K. And it may very well be. Why did you do that?
So then he was mad at me fer a while.

@Dutchess_III The more I hear about Rick, the more I think you should be the one doing all the talking and making all the decisions :p

Just curious; has he actually looked at the prices for a ‘63 VW, or was he just guessing and acting as though his random number were actual fact? Seriously, 9 of the 13 in that link are >$10k. This one is the cheapest at $4k.

Oh, he’s just who he is. Yes, I make most of the financial decisions.

Yes, I looked up those sites, which is why I settled on 4K. It’s pretty, but not spectacular.

It looks a lot better than that other $4,000 ‘63 Beetle I linked.

I really don’t see how the guy could actually be asking 4K for that wreck.

Easy – collectible/classic cars are worth a lot more. Supply and demand. Check out the prices on a ‘69 Charger or ‘63 Stingray.

You ought to see the premium on the old diesel Rabbits, popular in some circles due to the ease with which they can be converted to biodiesel.

Yes but those cars are restored to better-than-original. Our VW is nice, but not perfect. I’m comfortable with $4K. (PS, I showed Rick those pics and he conceded as how we might have gotten $6K for it. It wasn’t out of the ball park after all.)

Actually, being restored can sometimes drive the value down; original parts and paint are worth more… except when they aren’t. Collectors are a weird bunch.

I know. But you can’t hardly find original paint, unless they bought it new, stuck it in a garage and didn’t drive it for 50 years!

I think this guy is crazy, only asking $5,500 for his car.

I can guess why, actually.

While there is no denying that that is a clean rig with nice execution, it is arguable whether or not it could really be considered a ‘63 Beetle. The first six sentences use the word “custom” four times. The electrical system is 12V instead of 6V. The engine is a 2.2 liter…. I think you get the point.

Many people including myself enjoy working on old vehicles. If you are going to spend several years restoring something 4k for the right vehicle even if it is a wreck is not a stretch.

It’s gone. Whew.

I think it’s the shell, more than anything, that counts @jerv. I mean, at some point someone put a VW van engine in ours. Also converted the electrical and so it goes.
PS, I sent you a msg on fb!

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