The debate about whether it’s best to buy or build continues to rumble through the VW scene, but what’s at the core of the arguments for and against?
There’s stickers about it, baseball caps embroidered with the initials, and even a dedicated website. But what’s at the root of the Built not Bought (BNB) mantra, why do people get so emotional about the subject – and what are the pros and cons of each school of thought? We thought we’d find out what all the fuss is about…
In a nutshell, the built not bought advocates say creating something unique yourself is the only way to go and frown on builds carried out by professionals where the owner simply rocks up at the end with a blank cheque to pay for it all.
It’s easy to see their point. There’s a definite extra sense of contentment to be had from coming up with a custom solution to a problem, doing something no one else has done before and being able to take all the credit. It’s these totally bespoke builds that feature lots of clever, totally inspired details that make the VW world a much richer place. Especially if you can chat to the owner who actually came up with the idea and carried out the work…
The thing is, to do this you not only need the necessary engineering prowess but also the tools and time to execute the fabrication. Indeed, it seems ‘time’ is the big factor in the built not bought argument. Most of us have so little of it these days, that even if we did have a novel idea, we wouldn’t have the necessary gap in our daily routines to mock something up, get it wrong a few times and still be able to start all over again until it’s perfect.
Yet there’s a culture of shame which makes people who love VWs but who don’t have the time, desire or necessary skills to build something themselves feel totally rubbish.
There’s an argument also that says that if we all ‘built’ there wouldn’t be any specialist builders, guys working out of cramped workshops scratching a living out of being the innovators. These are the real craftsmen, the ideas people with the skills to make something special, that are happy to create a one-off for someone else. When they get paid at the end (the customer’s invoice rarely including all the hours they’ve truly put into it) they can crack on with their next new project.
Bare in mind that if you don’t have the required DIY skills, the results can end up looking like a right dog’s dinner – and there’s also the chance of something going hellishly wrong. We suspect there’s lot of people out there who ‘have a go’, spend a bucketload of cash and end up with something they are less than happy with and darn right dangerous to boot.
Of course the middle road is when an owner has lots of totally fresh ideas and goes to a custom builder to make them happen. They collaborate, feed off each other – and come up with something they can both take a bit of credit for.
At the end of the day, it could be said that the ‘built not bought’ movement is unnecessarily divisive. Why worry, as long as everyone is happy doing their own thing enjoying the cars they drive? And actually, how do you define ‘built’. Does everything have to be fabricated, or does it still qualify if you’ve bought aftermarket parts from a specialist and fitted them yourself. It’s all a bit of a grey area…
What do you think?
Ian
The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of VW Heritage.