Description
1968 Volkswagen Beetle — RHD | Full 2010 VolksWorx Restoration | Family Owned for Decades
This is a right-hand-drive 1968 Volkswagen Beetle located in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Beetle has been in my family for decades. She was purchased new by my grandmother, inherited by my mother in 1995, and passed to me in 2001.
In 2010, I commissioned a full restoration with VolksWorx, a specialist Volkswagen workshop. The restoration was approached comprehensively: whenever VolksWorx uncovered an issue during the work, I instructed them to rectify it rather than compromise the restoration to save costs.
The car was restored as a sympathetically upgraded and usable classic, rather than as a concours or factory-original example. The original body was not cut, and the modifications were undertaken with reversibility in mind.
Mechanical & chassis specification
• Original engine retained
• Originally a 1500cc engine; rebuilt as a 1600cc during the 2010 restoration because suitable 1500 pistons were unavailable
• Original oil-bath air cleaner retained
• Four-speed manual gearbox
• Gearbox replaced shortly after the restoration with a fully refurbished unit recommended by VolksWorx following difficulties with gear selection
• Front and rear disc brake conversion
• Electronic ignition
• Mildly lowered front suspension
• Slightly smaller front tyres to complement the suspension and improve handling
• Modern aluminium alloy wheels
The car is mechanically sound and currently being driven.
Approximately 35, 000 miles (56, 000 km) have been covered since the 2010 restoration, based on available records.
The original five-digit odometer currently reads 24, 843 miles. As the odometer has limited digit capacity and has turned over during the car's lifetime, the total lifetime mileage cannot be reliably established.
Exterior
The car is finished in Alabaster with black side panels, with the bumpers painted to match the body.
The alabaster bodywork remains in very good condition. The black side-panel paint is now showing its age and there are a couple of areas requiring attention, including approximately 2 cm of bubbling at the lower corner of the passenger door and approximately 5 × 1 cm of cracking/ lifting paint near the front of the driver's door hinge.
There is also a small dent behind the passenger door from a previous door impact and minor rust at the bottom rear corner of the passenger door.
Rather than carrying out isolated cosmetic repairs, my intention is to have the entire black side panels professionally resprayed by VolksWorx when weather conditions are suitable.
Interior
The interior is currently finished in two-tone black and cream vinyl, with new carpets and roof lining from the 2010 restoration.
The vinyl is now showing its age, particularly on the driver's seat where the surface has begun peeling/ delaminating through normal wear.
A professional retrim is planned after the paint and mechanical work. The intended finished interior is a high-quality all-black treatment using leather-textured material with original-style basket/ bucket-weave centre inserts.
Audio system
A bespoke 600W RMS sound system was designed and installed specifically for the Beetle.
It comprises:
• JBL GTO1004 Grand Touring Series 600W amplifier
• JBL GTO1202D 12-inch Grand Touring Series subwoofer
• 2 × JBL GTO937 three-way 6×9-inch rear speakers
• 2 × JBL GTS-502 two-way 5¼-inch front speakers
• Large capacitor for battery-voltage stabilisation
• Custom acoustically correct and braced "super wood" enclosures
• Recently fitted Pioneer head unit
The amplifier, subwoofer and rear speakers are integrated behind the rear seat. The rear seat backrest folds forward to reveal the installation, and clips neatly back into position beneath a wooden retaining lip when stowed.
The installation is clean, substantial and fully reversible.
Underbody
The underside has recently been thoroughly cleaned and inspected.
The floor pans and structural components are solid, with no perforation or significant structural corrosion identified.
There is a small area of cosmetic paint discolouration/ damage beneath the brake master-cylinder area. Following degreasing and pressure cleaning, the underlying panels were inspected and found to be solid, with the surrounding paint remaining intact.
The car is located in Johannesburg, South Africa and is available for inspection by arrangement.
International buyers are welcome, and I can provide additional photographs, restoration information and assistance with arranging inspection and transport.
Asking price: £14, 950
A Beetle with a story — and one that has actually been lived with
There are plenty of restored Volkswagen Beetles for sale. What makes this one different is not simply the restoration itself, but the story behind the car and the way she has been enjoyed since it was completed.
This Beetle was bought new by my grandmother. When she passed the car to my mother in 1995, it remained in the family, and in 2001 it became mine.
She was my first car.
I drove her through my final school year, through my years at Wits University and into the beginning of my career. She wasn't bought as a collector's piece and locked away in a garage — she was part of my life.
By 2010, the car needed a proper restoration, so I entrusted her to VolksWorx.
I deliberately took a simple approach to the restoration: if VolksWorx found something that needed doing, I wanted it done properly. The intention wasn't to make the cheapest possible restoration or to hide problems until later.
The result is a Beetle that has now been enjoyed for another 16 years and approximately 35, 000 miles since the restoration.
That use includes a particularly memorable 2015 road trip from Johannesburg to Cape Town and back, travelling through the Western Cape Garden Route and Clarens.
A classic designed to be enjoyed
This isn't a concours restoration and it isn't being presented as an untouched, factory-original car.
Instead, it is a sympathetically restored and tastefully upgraded Beetle.
The brakes have been upgraded to discs front and rear. The suspension has been mildly lowered and the wheels and tyres chosen to improve the car's stance and handling. Electronic ignition improves usability, while the original engine, oil-bath air cleaner and character of the car have been retained.
Importantly, none of this involved cutting up the original body. The modifications were made with reversibility in mind.
The result is a car that still feels unmistakably like a classic Beetle, but is considerably more enjoyable to drive in modern traffic.
And then there's the sound system...
The bespoke audio installation is probably the most unusual feature of the car.
I wanted a genuinely good sound system without turning the Beetle into something that looked like a teenager's modified car.
So the system was designed specifically around the car.
The 12-inch JBL subwoofer, amplifier and rear speakers are housed behind the rear seat, concealed within a custom acoustically correct and heavily braced enclosure. Fold the rear seat forward and the installation is revealed; put it back and everything disappears neatly behind the seat.
It produces an impressive 600W RMS while remaining remarkably integrated into the car.
And because the installation is reversible, a future owner who wants a more original specification can remove it without cutting the car.
Why I'm selling her
This isn't a case of needing to sell the car.
After so many years, I'm simply reaching the point where I'm considering whether someone else might enjoy her as much as I have.
There is still some work I intend to do — particularly refreshing the black side panels and eventually retrimming the interior — and I'm quite happy to continue driving the car if the right buyer doesn't come along.
I'd therefore much rather find the right enthusiast than simply accept the first offer.
For someone looking for a classic Beetle with genuine provenance, a comprehensive professional restoration, usable mechanical upgrades and a story that goes far beyond the specification sheet, I think she could be a very special car.
She isn't just a 1968 Beetle. She's been part of my family for decades, and she's been part of my life for 25 years.
