Keefy just pointed me in the direction of this thread..
Beetle prices aren't really going in the opposite direction.
It depends on what you are after. My bug, for example is worth around £7.5K and its not restored.
However, you can pick up 70's beetles for a few hundred, but they all require work for that money. A good solid 70's bug will set you back at least £2k with mint ones going for about £3-£5K.
The earlier the beetle, the more expensive they are.
As a rough guide the beetle models are as below, but the prices are a general ballpark guide.
Kdf Wagen..from '43 to '48. These are ultra rare and you'll probably never see one in the flesh. If you do find a beetle with a cog around the VW logo, then congratulations, you've just found yourself a blank cheque
Chance of finding: Same chance as shagging Kylie.
Price:Expect to pay at least £8K for a shitter to £50K for a minter
Parts availability: Dream on. Time to realise that equity in your house..
Twin glovebox split..from '49 to '52. These are quite rare, but pop up now and again. There were quite a few of them made.
Chance of finding: Can be found if you know where to look.
Price: £3-4K for a right shitter and up to £20K for a minter
Parts availability: Hens teeth. Most parts require months of searching. Expect to pay stupid money for the smallest part. Most parts are dealt underground and unless you have the contacts, you'll be looking for a while!
Zwitters - Oct '52 to March '53.. 6 month only cars which were the transition between split window bugs to oval window bugs. They are sought after 'cos they are the best of both worlds and are split beetles which have hydraulic brakes instead of cable operated, syncro gearbox, so no double de-clutching, but have and oval window bug dash instead of the twin glovebox dash of earlier models. They also had the 25hp engines of the split beetles.
Chance of finding: Pretty slim. They do pop up now and again, but there are far more buyers than cars available so expect loads of competition!
Price: £4-£5K for a non running project to about 12K for a good restored one.
Parts availaibility: Grab your deerstalker and do some hunting. You can't buy the panels new, so you have to source NOS. Stuff like front wings are £500 each NOS, rear lights are £250, front quarter panels are about £1200 a pair, Cabrio lids, £1000+ and so on. You can easily get stuff like wheel cylinders new (£280-£300 for all 4 corners) and serviceable engine parts.
Oval era - from March '53 to August '57. These had oval rear windows and 30hp engines.
Chance of finding:Quite common at the mo. About 80% of them are imported left hookers. Ovals were the first official RHD factory built Beetles.
Price: £2,500 for a rolling non-MOT'd shitter to £7K for a very good original one
Parts availability: Not too bad, panel availability is as above - you gotta find NOS, but you can get a lot of repro stuff for Ovals.
First of the big windows..'58-'59. These still had the 30hp engine, but had redesigned bodywork with new dash and loads more. They still had the earlier semaphores.
Chance of finding: Seem to be a few around. They're pretty sought after though.
Price: £2K for a shitter to £7-8K for a good one. The one below sold for £7.5K but is 100% solid.
Parts availability: Same as Ovals.
Then there were your '60's bugs from '60-'65. There were a few subtle changes, but nothing majorly visible as before. These had 1200cc 40hp engines.
'66 model year bugs went to balljoint front suspension from king and linkpin. These had 4 stud wheels, previously 5 stud. These were also availaible with a 1300 engine
Chance of finding: A good few around and can be picked up quite easily.
Price: £800-1000 for a right shitter to £4-5K for a good one.
Parts availability: Pretty good. Can get 95% stuff repro, including panels.
'67 model - these are quite sought after and are considered by many to be the best beetles built. They went through various changes and started with sloping headlights and ended up with upright headlights. They also had disc brakes and were available with 1500 cc engines.
These were changeover models and many parts are one year only. This is the also the first year of 12v electrics - was all previously 6v.
Chance of finding: They come up quite often. I know where one is for sale for £200. Needs work though.
Price: from £2-300 for a right rotbox to £5K for a good one.
Parts availability: You can get pretty much most serviceable parts, but if you need doors, engine lid, rear valance, etc, you're gonna have to fight for it once you eventially manage to locate them!
'68 onwards 1200 and 1300cc models.
These are the 'late model' 70's bugs which are really common everywhere. Its becoming really hard to find a good stock one these days as most have been modified at some point over the last 2 decades. These are very underrated and are sometimes looked down upon by many in the VW scene. I think they deserve a lot better.
Chances of finding: Very easy, but good ones are hard to find.
Price: £free - £3-4K for a good solid one.
Parts availability: you can paractically build a new one from replacement parts available.
1302's - these were available from '70 and features Mcpherson strut front suspension and IRS rear suspension. These can be identified by the bulbuous front bonnet.
Chances of finding: Not too hard to find. They're generally not as sought after as other models.
Price: £free-£3-4K depending on condition.
Parts availability: pretty good. Same as 70's bugs really.
1303's - these were available from '73 and are identified by their huge curved front windscreen and bulbuous bonnet like the 1302 had. Came with 1600cc engines.
These also had a plastic dash and loads of extra mod cons.
Considered by many to be the ugly duckling of the VW beetle family. They're a real nightmare to fix up and rust really badly. They make a great base for circuit racing cars and ar supposed to be the best handling beetles.
Chances of finding: They're usually easy to find... in scrapyards. Most people don't see them as economical to repair.
Price: £free - £3-4K depending on condition.
Parts availability: Quite easy, though there is a shortage of gearboxes as most have been robbed for their IRS setup for bus conversions.
Mexican beetles
Mexican beetles can still be bought new, although production ceased in 2003. Buy one, park it in your drive and watch it rust before your eyes. Designed for hot climates really, like er.. Mexico.
Paper thin panels and curse word quality parts. Has loads of mod cons and catalytic converter. Running gear is essentialy the same as 70's bugs. Came with mostly 1600 engines.
Chance of finding: Used ones are usually rust boxes. New ones can be bought from
www.beetles-uk.com/beetle.htmlPrice: £free - £14K brand new.
Parts availability: Pretty good. Most parts you buy are Mexican manufactured. They don't taste of chilli either.
There were loads of other variations which are highly sought after and command different prices, like ragtops, Karmann Cabrios, etc and I'd love to be here all day explaining them, but unfortunately, I've gotta go sweep out the 2 inches of floodwater from my workshop..