VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE 1302 LS CABRIOLET TYP 15 ‘1972
CHASSISNR. 1522491948
FIRST REGISTRATION IN 7.4.1972
KAZAN RED, WHITE VINYL INTERIOR
HISTORY KNOWN, 4 LONG TERM OWNERSHIPS. CURRENT OWNER SINCE 2014.
COMPREHENSIVELY RESTORED 2014-2015
REGISTERED AS A HISTORIC VEHICLE. MOT/TÜV INSPECTION VALID UNTIL 04/2025

The Volkswagen Typ 1, or “Beetle”, originated at the opening of the 1934 Berlin Motor Show. Adolf Hitler wanted to offer the Germans an affordable car model that ordinary citizens could afford. The goal was to increase number of cars on German roads. The criteria was that the car had to fit a family of five, and that the car could handle 30-degree hills and highways at a speed of one hundred kilometers per hour. The car had to also withstand winter conditions and the consumption had to be no more than eight liters per hundred kilometers. A family car that enables all this should cost no more than a thousand reichsmarkts.

The task was taken on by the Austrian Ferdinand Porsche, who had experience in the design of NSU and Zündapp, among others. For the first ever Volkswagen, Porsche stole influences and technical innovations especially from the Czechoslovak Tatra, whose production stopped after the German occupation of the Czechoslovakian Sudetenland in 1938. The same year, the production of the Volkswagen Typ 1 began.

The Beetle became a success. In addition to its design, its characteristic features include a base plate with a separate body, a four-cylinder and four-stroke, air-cooled boxer engine. The suspension was implemented with torsion bars.

The rear-mounted engine and large 15-inch wheels for the era made the Beetle as a good car to drive also in the snow. Introduced under the name Kansanauto, the family car also became popular in Finland, where Beetles were imported from 1950. Also in Finland, 48 Beetles were assembled in Heinola at the Wihuri factory.

An open version of the Beetle was also designed in Wolfsburg. Volkswagen’s first official open models were seen in 1949. The body of the two-seater open model was made by the Josef Hebmüller and Son body shop. The four-seater model immediately became more popular and its body was manufactured by Karmann until 1980.

This 1302 LS Karmann cabriolet was sold in the spring of 1972 to M. Bondesson in Sweden. The first owner kept the car for 36 years and carefully marked the maintenance procedures in a checkbook in addition to the service book. In 2008, the car was bought in Finland by L. Selenius. The current owner, A. Hienonen, has had the car for ten years since 2014.

The car was kept in good original condition, but in beginning of the current ownership, it was disassembled and thoroughly restored in 2014-2015.

The body of the car has been restored and painted in the original Kazan Red shade. The only item that required welding was the spare wheel housing and the door frames.

The interior has the original light vinyl upholstery that has been preserved in excellent condition. The door trims have been renewed. The soft top of the car and its cover have been renewed.

The Beetle works great and is easy and effortless to drive. During the restoration of the car, the factory replacement engine has been disassembled, the piston rings have been renewed and the engine has been assembled with new seals. The clutch was renewed and the car was fitted with electric ignition. After the overhaul, the engine has been driven now for about 25,000 kilometers.

The car is registered as a historic vehicle, Mot/Tüv inspection is valid until April 2025.

The Beeetle is located in Vantaa, 20 minutes from Helsinki-Vantaa Airport. Views by appointment.

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