Classic Wheels Spotlight: 1974 VW Thing

In 1975, Bob Chirko’s father bought the Volkswagen Thing from its original owner in Naperville, Illinois. Bob immediately fell in love with it, though he admits it took a couple of years for it to sneak into his heart. Bob inherited it from his father and over the years it has been meticulously maintained.

The VW Thing was designed after the WWII German military vehicle “Kubelwagen,’ which means, bucket car. While VW was commissioned to build them in the late 1960s for German Federal Army, they were not offered to the general public as a multi-purpose vehicle until 1971.

The Thing was built as the Type 181 (left-hand drive) and Type 182 (right-hand drive). There were a few different names for it: in the U.K. it is called the Trekker; in Mexico, the Safari; and in the U.S., the Thing.

There were more than 25,000 Things produced for America in 1973-74. When they came to the U.S. market, they had the moniker of being a multi-purpose vehicle and weren’t subject to crash tests like everyday cars. In 1975 they were redesignated as a car and immediately failed the crash tests and were banned from production in the U.S. Mexico and Europe continued to produce the vehicle until 1979.

According to Bob, normal wear and tear items have been replaced on the Thing. When the engine needed to be rebuilt, Bob had the original 1600cc unit redone to factory specs. The 4-speed transmission was the only option that was offered. The interior is what originally came with the car. Bob said the only thing he has done to the seats is to have one of them refurbished, new padding, the springs were repaired, and he kept the factory cover.

The body has been repainted twice to the original color, Sunshine Yellow. The canvas top was replaced because there wasn’t much that could be done to repair the original one. The top was hand-made by Riggs Brothers Tops and Interiors, in Downers Grove, Illinois.

Bob says a few upgrades have been done, including a radio with Bluetooth for hands-free calling, a CB radio, and an 8-track player that doesn’t work anymore – but it’s very 1970s. He added an electric fan to help defog the windshield when he is driving in the colder weather and he has installed an electric seat warmer that helps out a lot. He also added sheepskin seat covers because he said that the vinyl gets too hot to sit on when the top is down.

Bob says that his Thing is a “Plain Jane,” but there weren’t any options available for them. Not even a glove box, just an opening in the dashboard. The only gauge is the speedometer with a gas gauge in it. Everything is as it came from the factory, down to the “baby moon” hubcaps with the VW emblem on them.

Some of the things that Bob likes about his “Thing” are that the doors come off and the windshield folds down. Although he has never done it, Bob told me that there are grommets in the floor, to be able to hose out the interior after going off road or to the beach.

Bob enjoys the uniqueness of his VW Thing and that it’s an “eye catcher.” Whenever people see it they always get a smile on their faces, he admits. Bob recently took a road trip to southern Indiana, about four hours each way without a hitch.

Whenever people see him driving, they will ask, “What is that Thing?” He simply replies: “Exactly!”

If you have a car you would like to see featured in Classic Wheels, contact Rudy Host, Jr. at Classic.Wheels.Rudy@gmail.com.