With help from his VW expert dad, and a steady supply of parts from our Shoreham warehouse, Kenyan Abdul Rahim Abubakar was able to transform this ratty looking ’56 Oval Beetle into a gleaming ‘as new’ classic gem. Here’s his story…

The project started in 2010, when Abdul and his dad, Ahmed, took possession of the Oval, which was obviously a bit of a mongrel when they first got hold of it. “It was really messed up, everything to do with the body and mechanicals was a tip,” remembers Abdul. “To start with, the headlights were off a Volvo, the tail lights belonged to a Land Rover, the pedals came from a later model Beetle and the original 30bhp engine had been replaced by a more recent 34bhp 1200cc unit.”

But that wasn’t all. The previous owner had given it a good thrash with the modification stick, which had rendered the poor Bug virtually undrivable. “Most of the brake linings and drums were modified, the gear shift was badly customised, so you couldn’t drive it without fighting with the gearstick, and the suspension clattered whenever you drove it. Even the original pews had been replaced by seats from a modern Japanese car and had been welded to the floorpan.”

Having stepped back and no doubt taken a deep intake of breath, it was decided to strip the car and start afresh, with Abdul ordering new floorpans, lights, bumpers, chrome, running boards, doors, seat covers and a whole host of other new parts from the UK. “Mostly every part you see on the car is from VW Heritage,” he confirmed.

After four years and probably lots of blood, sweat and tears, the car was complete and ready to go back on the road with the first trip justifying the amount of effort that had gone into the rebuild. “We even took it on unsurfaced roads and the ride was amazing,” smiled Abdul. “It was like a totally new car.”

As you might imagine, our intrepid Kenyan and his gleaming Beetle have gained celebrity status near their Mombasa home. Indeed, they caused quite a stir during a recent outing to a cinema showing The Need for Speed. “Being a car movie, lots of other classic owners had driven to the cinema to see the film, and when we arrived, all eyes were on us. We got loads of comments for a job well done,” said Abdul. “Even a guy in a Bentley lowered his window to get a better look.”

Great result, Abdul!

Ian

The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of VW Heritage