The ‘Kids of the Flower Power era’ were introduced to an attractive little car, the VW Beetle. The Micro bus became their signature vehicle. People who came of age in the early 70′s, not prepared for conventional, but wanting to separateto distinguish themselves from their parents, chose a new offering from Volkswagen- the Thing.
Looking like a Beetle’s slightly larger cousin, with no rounded edges and corrugated sides (it would fit into our vision of the future a la Mad Max), the Thing was advertised as a quirky, practical car. One of the television ads even boasted the interior could be hosed out for cleaning. The doors could be swapped front to back, and as it was associated with the Beetle and Micro bus, many parts were interchangeable and easily accessible. It was a gentle-top convertible, had a fold-able windshield and only one dual purpose gauge, a speedometer/fuel gauge. The heater was a gas powered ‘option’ that hooked straight to the tank. The glove compartment was just a hole in the dashboard. The door interiors weren’t upholstered in any fashion, leaving the ‘mechanic’s hole’ visible. It was powered by the Volkswagen air cooled engine, (1600cc flat four cylinder) producing a sedate 46Hp, and using a 4 speed manual transmission.
Regrettably, this more basic appearing car didn’t come with a more basic price, costing nearly $1000 dollars (over 45%) more than the Bug and almost as much as many sports cars.
Where hippies personalized their VW’s with vibrant artwork, most Things were left just as they were manufactured in 1973, letting the car speak for itself in Sunshine Yellow, Pumpkin Orange, Army Green or Blizzard White. Other countries used their own color schemes, but in the US the Thing colors were considered loud.
In Germany, birthplace of all Volkswagen’s ("People’s Car"), it was referred to as Kubelwagen ("Bucket Car"); in Mexico and countries south it was the Safari (a somewhat more upscale version being the Acapulco), in Europe- the Trekker. They were divided into 2 categories, left-hand drive (Americas) were type 181, right-hand drive (Europe and elsewhere) were type 182.
In spite of what name or designation was used, they were all descended from the vehicle created for the German military in WWII, the type 82. Coming full circle, Volkswagen started adapting the type 181 (which was being developed as a civilian vehicle) for military use in 1969. This variation of the Thing had a 900 pound payload capacity, and came with 4 rifle mounts, military lighting system, map light, headlamp blackout covers, starting handle, tow hook and tow eye, axe, spade and wheel chock.
Although they were produced from 1969-1980 ( finally, they were assembled as kit cars in Indonesia) they were sold in the US only in 1973 and 1974, when production was transferred to Mexico. In 1975 they were banned for not meeting crash test standards for a passenger car. Their previous designation as a multi-use vehicle used an alternative criteria, which was met. In all, almost 29,000 Things were shipped to the US for sale by Volkswagen of the USA.
Today, the Thing still generates as much interest and conversation as it did when it was introduced; still quirky, but 35 years later, significantly fewer to be discovered.
Get the details at Vw181, Beach Buggy For Sale or 1974 Thing plus at the web site http://vw-thing.com
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