Volkswagen Bus/Vanagon (1978)
Sale price: US $19,000.00 Make an Offer
| Condition: | Used | Year: | 1978 |
| VIN : | 2282117645 | Mileage: | 1 |
| Model: | Bus/Vanagon | Transmission: | Automatic |
| Make: | Volkswagen | Number of Cylinders: | 4 |
| Interior Color: | White | Body Type: | Standard Passenger Van |
| Vehicle Title: | Clean |
Addison, Texas, United States
Vehicle description
This is a very rare 1978 numbers matching white over blue german made, automatic transmission with air conditioning and original paint.
I purchased it out of a rural texas barn in 2014 from a gentleman who parked it in 1999 after some loss of compression. He claims it had been owned by a family who ordered the bus for overseas pickup (international delivery) and had it shipped back to Dallas. It was parked in their garage as an extra car until he purchased it in the early 90"s.
Mechanical: I have spent over $15k restoring the drivetrain and mechanical fundamentals. The goal was to make it a daily driver for me and my son. That job is done and it is a REAL head turner. It starts and runs every time and is very reliable.
We put new brakes and shocks on all around. New steering box, powder coated the wheels, and put on new Michelin tires. It has a freshly (less than 1k miles) rebuilt engine and transmission. It has more new parts than I care to count.
All of the work was done by Jay Hildreth 1- at H&H Auto 902 K Ave, Plano, TX 75074. Feel free to give Jay a call if you have any detailed questions about the engine build or how he fixed anything on the bus.
BTW - Jay and his father are legends in the air-cooled race world going back to the "60s. There are few people out there that know more about air-cooled VW and Porsche engines than Jay. If you are looking for air-cooled Porsche engine parts Jay has the mother lode in his warehouse. Hit him up if you are looking!
Paint/Patina: The paint is all original. The only thing we have done is buff and wax it. If I was planning to keep I would probably have a PDR guy take out all the little dents. After that, I would have it wet sanded and clear coated to preserve the patina. It really is an amazing paint job and the photos don"t do it justice.
The Good: It runs and drives like a top. The interior is in pretty good shape for its age. I have lots of extra parts, seals, the original ac compressor, and a few random parts in a box.
The Bad: Like most bay window busses it needs a new windshield seal and to have the rust around the windshield repaired. If you want to get the AC going again it will need a new compressor and probably new AC lines. There is a small hole (see photos) in the original headliner. That was an unfortunate mishap when my son was loading some lumber at Home Depot. It"s ok, I still love him. . mostly. ;) The bus has been covered outside for the past year but the texas heat has started to produce some surface rust on the roof. It adds to the patina, but it is breaking my heart to see it start to decline.
This leads to me to why we are selling it. I bought this with plans to keep it forever, but things change and kids grow up. When we got the bus my kids were little. They are now 16 & 17 and they need cars of their own and places to park them. That means this bus will sit in the sun this coming Texas summer and I simply cannot bear to see it get burned up and decline. So it needs a new home.
If you love VW buses and want to put some work into getting this one across the finish line let me know. I will ALWAYS love this bus. The memories my family has made in this one are irreplaceable. I hope it brings joy to the next owner.
I am asking $19k OBO or would consider a trade for Toyota SUV for my son/daughter (4Runner, Land Cruiser, Sequoia or Highlander)
Feel free to text me for more photos or with questions 972-231-2716 Ethan
I purchased it out of a rural texas barn in 2014 from a gentleman who parked it in 1999 after some loss of compression. He claims it had been owned by a family who ordered the bus for overseas pickup (international delivery) and had it shipped back to Dallas. It was parked in their garage as an extra car until he purchased it in the early 90"s.
Mechanical: I have spent over $15k restoring the drivetrain and mechanical fundamentals. The goal was to make it a daily driver for me and my son. That job is done and it is a REAL head turner. It starts and runs every time and is very reliable.
We put new brakes and shocks on all around. New steering box, powder coated the wheels, and put on new Michelin tires. It has a freshly (less than 1k miles) rebuilt engine and transmission. It has more new parts than I care to count.
All of the work was done by Jay Hildreth 1- at H&H Auto 902 K Ave, Plano, TX 75074. Feel free to give Jay a call if you have any detailed questions about the engine build or how he fixed anything on the bus.
BTW - Jay and his father are legends in the air-cooled race world going back to the "60s. There are few people out there that know more about air-cooled VW and Porsche engines than Jay. If you are looking for air-cooled Porsche engine parts Jay has the mother lode in his warehouse. Hit him up if you are looking!
Paint/Patina: The paint is all original. The only thing we have done is buff and wax it. If I was planning to keep I would probably have a PDR guy take out all the little dents. After that, I would have it wet sanded and clear coated to preserve the patina. It really is an amazing paint job and the photos don"t do it justice.
The Good: It runs and drives like a top. The interior is in pretty good shape for its age. I have lots of extra parts, seals, the original ac compressor, and a few random parts in a box.
The Bad: Like most bay window busses it needs a new windshield seal and to have the rust around the windshield repaired. If you want to get the AC going again it will need a new compressor and probably new AC lines. There is a small hole (see photos) in the original headliner. That was an unfortunate mishap when my son was loading some lumber at Home Depot. It"s ok, I still love him. . mostly. ;) The bus has been covered outside for the past year but the texas heat has started to produce some surface rust on the roof. It adds to the patina, but it is breaking my heart to see it start to decline.
This leads to me to why we are selling it. I bought this with plans to keep it forever, but things change and kids grow up. When we got the bus my kids were little. They are now 16 & 17 and they need cars of their own and places to park them. That means this bus will sit in the sun this coming Texas summer and I simply cannot bear to see it get burned up and decline. So it needs a new home.
If you love VW buses and want to put some work into getting this one across the finish line let me know. I will ALWAYS love this bus. The memories my family has made in this one are irreplaceable. I hope it brings joy to the next owner.
I am asking $19k OBO or would consider a trade for Toyota SUV for my son/daughter (4Runner, Land Cruiser, Sequoia or Highlander)
Feel free to text me for more photos or with questions 972-231-2716 Ethan