It doesn't surprise me that it didn't catch on. Once you factor in the cost of the normal VW and the welder who must cut nearly a foot and a half out of the middle of your car and put then it back together again, I suspect the cost in time and money was more than most casual enthusiasts were willing to pay. But even if they did, the end result was still just a Beetle, albeit a convertible. Hardly a off-road adventuremobile.
Less casual enthusiasts probably didn't shop for quirky body mod kits at Sears. Meanwhile, I am a cartoon enthusiast; and I would have been a far easier sell if they offered this body in Speed Buggy orange.
I recall (vaguely) that Montgomery Ward offered a moped for sale so items like the dune buggy from Sears just seems to fit the 70's mentality of the time. Unusual or Odd type products just seem to go hand in hand with the seventies.
Didn't catch on? Dune buggies were really popular in the '60s and early '70s. There was even one in my small Iowa farm town of 1000 people. The Sears body looks like a Meyers Manx. Yup, they're still around.
Dune buggies were a big deal in my flaming youth, circa 1970 or so. Every kid my age was intrigued by the things back then. In our area, well inland, sixty miles from the nearest dune, there were a couple of street legalized examples to gawk at and admire with two or three buggies in various stages of construction. Me, I had aspirations toward a '66 GTO with a red/gold crushed mirror paint job that seemed depthless. Still remember that GTO after nearly 49 years and remember the era of dune buggies occasionally whipping through town with laughing teenagers, wind blowing through their hair like in a Wrigley's chewing gum print ad, riding along in style.
It doesn't surprise me that it didn't catch on. Once you factor in the cost of the normal VW and the welder who must cut nearly a foot and a half out of the middle of your car and put then it back together again, I suspect the cost in time and money was more than most casual enthusiasts were willing to pay. But even if they did, the end result was still just a Beetle, albeit a convertible. Hardly a off-road adventuremobile.
ReplyDeleteLess casual enthusiasts probably didn't shop for quirky body mod kits at Sears. Meanwhile, I am a cartoon enthusiast; and I would have been a far easier sell if they offered this body in Speed Buggy orange.
I recall (vaguely) that Montgomery Ward offered a moped for sale so items like the dune buggy from Sears just seems to fit the 70's mentality of the time. Unusual or Odd type products just seem to go hand in hand with the seventies.
ReplyDeleteDidn't catch on? Dune buggies were really popular in the '60s and early '70s. There was even one in my small Iowa farm town of 1000 people. The Sears body looks like a Meyers Manx. Yup, they're still around.
ReplyDeleteDune buggies are cool! Friend of mine in LA had a really cool one we'd tool around in, it was noisy and bumpy, but fun.
ReplyDeleteThat is so freaking cheap! The floral soft top and seat covers are worth twice that! (In my head, anyway)
ReplyDeleteDune buggies were a big deal in my flaming youth, circa 1970 or so. Every kid my age was intrigued by the things back then. In our area, well inland, sixty miles from the nearest dune, there were a couple of street legalized examples to gawk at and admire with two or three buggies in various stages of construction. Me, I had aspirations toward a '66 GTO with a red/gold crushed mirror paint job that seemed depthless. Still remember that GTO after nearly 49 years and remember the era of dune buggies occasionally whipping through town with laughing teenagers, wind blowing through their hair like in a Wrigley's chewing gum print ad, riding along in style.
ReplyDeleteI just bought one today.
ReplyDeleteI had the dune buggy safari dubai experience once. It was cool. We rode in the desert like on the waves =)
ReplyDeleteYes,I looked at them in Sears on Central Street in Knoxville Tennessee.
ReplyDelete