who wants a 914 replica / kit car ? Options

[Krieger]

The price is listed as 2,300 that Brazillian Rubles or whatever probably 79 dollars. Anyone know?

[RJMII]

American Dollar 0.63484 1.5752 (exchange rate jul 28, 2008)

2300 Brazillian Real = 1,460.13 USD

[Scott S]

I totally dig it. If I was some gazillionaire I would have it in a second. I would finish it up on a bug chasis, figure out some sort of interior, but leave the exterior as is - including the scirocco tail lights. That thing needs to end up on the grass (or at least in the paddock at a PCA parade. I love the fact that is just not quite right. I would love to sit in the shadows and listen to the discussions that would happen....

[IronHillRestorations]

I like the left front wheel!

Maybe it's a rare Brazillian prototype pieceacrap version that Porsche shipped down to the boys in Brazil???

Look at it this way, if someone actually wants a 914 kit for another chassis, just think what a REAL 914 must be worth!!! We're all gonna be RICH!!!

[ericread]

Obviously your translator is broken.....

The correct translation of the description is as follows:

IT BUBBLES IN FIBERGLASS

FOR PLATFORM OF Vw

YOU WERE PILFERING LIGHTHOUSES

THE BLISTER ONLY

PLATFORM WITHOUT DOC

TAKE AWAY HIS DOUBTS BEFORE EFFECTUATING THE PURCHASE, NOT TO BE NEGATIVADO.

Ken

Ok, Thanks - Now it makes sense... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/screwy.gif)

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

[jonferns]

Group buy? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

[morph]

being a composites person, i have to say that this took allot of effort to make this and the body is not to far off. there are much worse body kits out there (IMG:style_emoticons/default/barf.gif)
but why? why a 914 i ask (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)
james

[DBCooper]

It's on a VW Brasilia (look it up) chassis, so it's rear engined.

And the Brasilia used a BUG hhassis. The body is a 412 frontend and a Variant backend ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif) Andy

Actually I think the Brasilia pan was a funny variation of the T3/Karmann Ghia, wider further forward and not interchangeable with the bug. The front and rear ends weren't Variant or 412 either, they were unique to the Brasilia. The styling direction was similar but they had lots less overhang, definitely different lines when you look close, and were exclusively brasilian. I never had one myself but my father-in-law did. It's different in the way the brasilian Fox (called the "Voyage" in Brasil) was to the Jetta and the brasilian Gol was to the German Rabbit or Golf. Same general style and it may not seem like much, but the Brasilians were pretty proud that they were different.

By the way, did you know that the brasilian Gol had the VW aircooled flat four in the front, driving the same bug transaxle? Now THAT was cool! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

[SirAndy]

Actually I think the Brasilia pan was a funny variation of the T3/Karmann Ghia, wider further forward and not interchangeable with the bug. The front and rear ends weren't Variant or 412 either, they were unique to the Brasilia. The styling direction was similar but they had lots less overhang, definitely different lines when you look close, and were exclusively brasilian. I never had one myself but my father-in-law did. It's different in the way the brasilian Fox (called the "Voyage" in Brasil) was to the Jetta and the brasilian Gol was to the German Rabbit or Golf. Same general style and it may not seem like much, but the Brasilians were pretty proud that they were different.

"The Brasilia (named after Brazil's capital city) looked like a three-door version of Volkswagen 412 Station Wagon, but was in fact based on Volkswagen Beetle."

"The front of the car was the same as the German 412, and the back resembled a scaled down Brazilian Variant."


Bug pan, 412 front end, Variant parts used for the rear ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/bye1.gif) Andy

[DBCooper]

Don't mean to beat this to death, but I think the Brasila's a good looking car. I don't think that of the 411/412. The styling is similar, but the parts aren't interchangeable, and if you look closely they look subtly different. To me, anyway. What do you think?

VW 412E front:

(IMG:http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2417/1843947829_0310fbe2f5.jpg?v=0)

Brasilia front:

(IMG:http://index.hu/cikkepek/totalcar/magazin/szerelem/rajzas2005/.gdata/cikk/rajzas2005_120.jpg)

The headlight surrounds look very similar, but if you see them up close it's obviouls they're different.

Brasilia rear (sorry couldn't find a better photo):
(IMG:http://www.geocities.com/vw_brasilia/brasilia80_basic.gif)

VW 412 Variant rear:

(IMG:http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2075/2174758715_51b496e0d5.jpg?v=0)

It's a much shorter and lighter overall car too. Brasilia side view (ditto the bad photo):
(IMG:http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:K-iVHri9-Ib_zM:http://djjaragua.vilabol.uol.com.br/brasilia.jpg)

I can't find anything to support it, but I know the Brasilia had a different chassis. Do you know the Puma cars? Until the late 70's they were built on Karmann Ghia chassis, and when VW discontinued the KG in Brasil Puma switched from the KG chassis to the Brasilia. The Brasilia chassis was similar to the KG in that the pans were wider and extended farther forward wider than the T1 pans. It's the same for the U.S. chassis for those cars here, you can't weld T1 pans into a KG, you need special KG pans. Similar, but not the same.

Other thing, the Brasilia didn't use a pancake motor, it was an upright T1 with a very short shroud so the car didn't have a low station wagon style rear deck.

Here, found something: www.geocities.com/vw_brasilia/historiabras.htm, where it says in translation "With hands at work, the first difficulty, soon overcame, the choice of the plataform, that should be the one from the Beetle. But as it was too narrow, providing few inner room, they tried a Ghia Type 1 size-similar chassis, that was perfectly suitable."

Read some more of that article, lots more comprehensive than Wikipedia and comes from the source.