It was probably July last year that I received a call from a gentleman from who wanted to know if I would be willing to restore a VW beetle for him. The car belonged to his father, was a one owner from new and while he warned me that it was not in the best of condition as she had been parked in the open but he thought it had potential. I have several ongoing projects but the car sounded like an interesting one so I asked if the owner could send some pictures enabling me to decide...the owner sent the car instead! The car was put on a Mazda truck and sent to Rawalpindi where it was received by Khalid Ustaad and his mechanical team, Arshad and his team plus a fair number of 'spectators'.
It was a VW, it was a 65, it may have been a one owner car but on a scale of 1 to 10 it was a 4! There was a strong stench inside that I could not figure out. Later on the owner told me that his dogs used the car as their kennel (and a toilet I figured) The car had through rust in several places and the worst part was that the car had been T-boned at some point and repairs were attempted that probably contributed to the rust as the water must have leaked from the poorly sealing door and fixed window.
The engine had not been started in years but Khalid and the gang managed to breathe life into it. The idea was to assess the condition but with the exhaust badly rusted the noise was so loud that it drowned any vital sounds of the engine.
The electrics were a mess, the interior of the car was ...well I did tell you that the car was occupied by two canines..need i say more?
We parked the car at Khalid's workshop and I was working out a polite speech in my mind to let the owner know that I won't be able to take on this project. A couple of days later the owner arrived himself from Lahore to discuss the project in person.
Before I could deliver my speech, the owner told me that he wanted the car to be restored to concours level and that I would have complete freedom in deciding how we go about achieving the goal. The owner resides in the US and wanted the car to be sent there when ready. Last but not the least, he was not in a rush.
I am always interested in projects that throw an extreme challenge my way. My 67 Karmann convertible restoration was one such project. Even as it was a race against time I did manage to bring the car back from the brink. I have to admit the 65 was not quite as far gone as the convertible when i started that project or the split window bus that was pulled out of buffalo manure.
https://www.pakwheels.com/forums/cool-classic-cars-latest/185144-i-will-survive-tale-67-split-window-bus
We agreed on the rules of the game and we shook hands...The Viking Project was on!
The car has remained parked for all these months as I looked and found a suitable donor car (another 65) that would provide some replacement panels. Meanwhile the floor pans were ordered and received while parts required for the rolling chassis are being ordered / delivered either in Pakistan or in the US as we speak.
This is my 47th air cooled VW restoration and my personal goal is to turn out a car that wins the best of show prize at the first show it attends in the US. I would be happy if you stay with me and share your comments here on this thread.
Show time!