MOTORING NEWS - The iconic Volkswagen Beetle will have a special place at the 2018 George Old Car Show, proudly driven by Oakhurst Insurance Company, which takes place on 10 and 11 February 2018.
AutoPavillion, Volkswagen's museum and heritage centre in Uitenhage, will display five of its Beetles in their "Meet the Beetles" exhibition at the show, the 22nd presented by the Southern Cape Old Car Club (SCOCC).
The Beetle, which owns the well-earned title of Car of the 20th Century, was a powerful driver of Germany's economic recovery after World War II.
Volkswagen and the Beetle with its peculiar shape, owe their survival and phenomenal growth to Major Ivan Hirst, a British Army officer and engineer who helped revive Volkswagen from a single factory in Wolfsburg, to a major post-war automotive manufacturer.
The British Hirst is the connection of the "Meet the Beetles" exhibition to the special exhibition of some 40 vehicles of British manufacture at the 2018 George Old Car Show.
AutoPavillion's exhibition will feature a selection of special cars.
As the Beetles in the AutoPavillion's Museum are being renovated, it is not possible to know which particular Beetle models will be on display, but visitors to the show can be assured that at least one will pull at the heartstrings; for who does not have a personal connection with a Beetle?
Among the cars that may be on display, is Jan, the oldest Beetle in South Africa.
Jan was manufactured in Germany on 14 September 1949.
Two other Beetles in the AutoPavillion's collection include the first and the last ones to be manufactured in South Africa over nearly 30 years.
The first was manufactured on 31 August 1951 and the last one on 18 January 1979.
Neither of these two has been on tour for the past 20 years and it will be a particular pleasure to see them, especially the latter model, known as the Bronze Beauty.
It was nearly written off in an accident several years ago.
This Beetle was on its way back from a tour when the truck transporting vehicles belonging to the museum overturned, badly damaging this car.
It was painstakingly restored to its former glory, and may be ready to be displayed.
Another Beetle that will raise interest is a 1972 model with less than 1 000km on the clock.
VW Beetle 1972
How this is at all possible after 45 years?
It is due to the fact that this ivory-coloured Beetle in pristine condition was forgotten in a barn for many years.
Apparently the owner, a farmer from Worcester, stored the vehicle in the barn, where it was discovered after his death.
The 2018 George Old Car Show will take place at PW Botha College.
VW Beetle 1974
Entrance tickets can be bought online at https://www.quicket.co.za/events/37471-2018-george-old-car-show#/
Vehicles manufactured before 1975 to be displayed, must be registered on the website of the Southern Cape Old Car Club at www.scocc.co.za.
Contact Klaus Oellrich on 076 764 0897 for more information.
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