Like buses, you wait ages for an original WW2 Kübelwagen to come along, then two come up for sale at the same time…

With so many lookalikes trundling around, it’s rare to find a truly authentic Kübelwagen, or ‘bucket car’ to give it its slightly less glamorous name. That said, we’ve stumbled upon two this month – but hold on to your jerry cans, they are not cheap!

The first is advertised at DP Classics who is selling it for £53,995 on behalf of a private owner. Sourced from the Bundesmuseum in Dresden in 2004, the car received a full ‘nut & bolt’ restoration by Detlef Kubens of Solingen in Germany between 2009 and 2010, after which it was snapped up by a UK collector and imported into the UK in October 2010. The present owner subsequently purchased the car to add to his collection in August 2015. The Volkswagen AutoMuseum dating certificate confirms the build date as 17th August 1943, with the car having left the factory on 22nd August to be delivered to a central depot at Heereszeugamt Kassel.

Now fitted with a replacement 1943 engine which has been fully rebuilt using new old stock parts, the ultra rare and meticulously detailed Kübelwagen comes complete with all the accessories you would expect including: medical case and jerry can under dashboard, external jerry can, jack, oil can, primer can, cranking handle, tool case, battery box, battery warmer and a shovel. Many parts of the car clearly show the KdF cog logo (like the carb, brake drums etc) and the distributor is also a wartime Bosch original. The generator has been converted to 12 volts to give a more efficient electric and charging system, and everything electrical (with the exception of the wiper motors) is working.

The canvas roof and side windows are new replacements (good originals being almost impossible to source) and the tyres are all new replicas of wartime originals and have only covered a few miles. The original engine compartment VIN plate is supplied with the car’s documentation and the engine bay features a reproduction Volkswagenwerk AG version. There is also a reproduction Bosch ‘Enstort nach Gruppe III’ plate and an ABA ‘Ambi-Budd Presswork Berlin-Johnanisthal’ builder’s plate.

The second example advertised here also dates from 1943 and was imported to the UK from Norway (which is where lots were left after WW2). The body and axles of this one were restored by a specialist in Germany.

The engine has also been replaced with a totally rebuilt genuine 1943 25hp unit and was started for the first time just three months ago, apparently. It’s had a new exhaust, new canvas hood, new side curtains and a windscreen cover. The price is £44,500.

Great head-turners for the coming show season…

Ian

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