1974 Volkswagen Bus - Westfalia VW Camper

Price: - Item location: Rutland, Massachusetts, United States
Description:

1974 Volkswagen Bus/Vanagon Westfalia Camper

Alright, so long story short, I haven't owned the bus long. I purchased last fall. I owned a bus a while back and decided I wanted another, and spent a long time searching. My best buddy has a 1970 so we had some big plans to do a lot of camping, travelling, etc. Unfortunately for me the time just isn't right which is why I am forced to sell... I am finding myself short on money and time due to some new personal ventures, so I have determined it best to sell the bus. Please read the ad, look at all the pictures, ask questions, get excited, and bid like crazy! Overseas buyers are welcome, I have title in hand so shipping overseas will not be an issue. If you have any questions message me and I will answer ASAP, and I can also provide a phone number if you wanted to chat on the phone, or an address if you wanted to see in person.

Tons of pictures, driving videos, and walk around videos: See here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0BxnvqjFH8FwKLTFfWHRvNWdCMlE?usp=sharing

As you can see in the pictures it's a great bus overall, especially for the price. Mid to late 70's Westfalia's are getting very hard to find. Particularly with an original interior and solid structure. I bought this bus because of those 2 things. The interior is all original and for the most part in excellent shape. The 1974 was the first year to have the full bunk bed up top, which is a big improvement over the single cot in the older busses. Fabric is the bright orange plaid, so coupled with the orange paint you will definitely turn heads. The back hatch has the original screen included. The table also has the original extension piece included, which I'm told is very rare. The wood paneling is in very good shape throughout the bus. The dash is also in darn good shape, and still has the original radio! Radio lights up but no sound just some static, guessing the antenna wires just need to be connected, which I haven't ever checked... I was just excited that the original push button radio was still there and semi fired up! Has the original rubber floor mat up front in great shape, and the original orange door panels. The camper part of the bus has the crank out louvered windows and also still has the original screens in them in good shape as well. The fiberglass pop top is in great shape as you can see, and opens and closes with ease. The top canvas is in fair shape, has a few tears in the corners but should be an easy patch, other than that its pretty good- not dry rotted or covered with mildew. Screens and zippers for the top canvas are in great shape. Sliding door is in good shape as well as the bottom track, which is very important as its very difficult to repair. All of the original German logos, emblems, tags, etc are still in place throughout the bus, which is pretty neat.

Structurally the bus is very solid. All of the floors are original and in great shape, no holes, rot, or patches. The dog legs around the doors are solid. The rear corners are solid. Around the windshield is solid. The lower nose is solid. The battery tray is original and solid. The frame rails are all very solid. The wheelwells are solid. Only rust is a couple small spots on the bottom of the bus towards the rear. The bus came from Oklahoma so it was very dry, which is why its so solid. In the link you can see pictures of all of the wheelwells and the bottom of the bus, showing that its rust free. Doors all close tight and line up well. The latch on the rear hatch is a little sticky, so may need some adjusting or greasing to work a little more smooth, or worst case $10-$15 to replace the push button latch. I also took some pictures showing the front floors while I had the rubber mat lifted up, so you can see just how good of condition they are. It has had a paint respray a while back as you can see from the pictures, giving it a nice patina look which I personally love.

Bus runs, drives, stops. All the electrical and lights are in good shape, and so far everything seems to work as it should with the exception on the horn. Headlights, taillights, parking lights, brake lights, interior door lights, dash lights, directionals, hazards, and wipers all work. Even the original buzzer still works when the door is open! The bus starts up quick without any difficulty and stays idling. Doesn't have a ton of power and smokes a bit as you can see in the videos in the link above. I can see a little oil dripping from the valve cover, so I'm sure valve adjustment and or valve gasket is a piece of the issue. Transmission is in good shape and does not have any grinding or popping out of gear. The brakes work, as does the e brake. Tires are also in good shape. I'm a big fan of VW's but I am certainly no mechanical expert, so I cannot say for certain anything about the engine. I will forewarn that it may or may not just need a simple tune up, or it may or may not need a rebuild. I have no idea. Absolute worst case scenario you could simply replace it with a new crate motor for a couple thousand dollars and you'd have the best running bus on the road, and it would probably be worth $20-25K given the originality. Again I don't have time, money, or expertise to do any of this myself which is why I am selling. Either way there is a ton of upside with this bus and for the price you cannot go wrong. And given that we just hit August you still have plenty of time left to get it running top notch and ready for fall camping!

Please look at all the pictures and videos. As you'd expect it does have a couple dings, scratches, etc, its 40 years old and not being sold as a restored bus. If you want any additional or specific pictures please let me know, but I'm confident that you'll see everything you can want if you follow the link as it has tons of pics of everything, including every flaw that I could think of. Just to be clear, the camping accessories and whatnot that are shown in the pictures with the bus are not included. Payment must be made via wire transfer, cash in person, check (upon clearing)... wire is easiest and therefore preferred. Shipping cost is buyer's responsibility. Willing to work with shipping company to help coordinate pickup. Bus is being sold as is condition. Again please ask questions if you have any before bidding. Really need the money so I realllly do not want to have to list twice because someone changed their mind or failed to ask questions. Local inspection welcome and encouraged. Also, bus is for sale locally as well and therefore I reserve the right to end the auction early for local sale. Bus comes with clean open title which means registration for the buyer will be a breeze, and international shipping is an option as well. Buy it now sometimes disappears so if it does disappear and you're interested in buying please just shoot me a message. Buy it now price is $13,000 which I believe is extremely extremely fair and will be hard if not impossible to beat.