1302 VW Beetle

Readers of VolksWorld and indeed any Beach Buggy buffs may remember Mel Baker's red Mark 1 GP Buggy as it has been displayed at many VW shows over the years, including the VolksWorld Show, winning numerous prestigious awards. Mel, together with his wife Sandra, founded and ran the Southern Dune Buggy for five years and this is still going strong. Mel's enthusiasm for VWs and Buggies in particular had a profound effect on Sandra, though she's always harboured a penchant for Beetles ever since she first saw the Herbie feature films as a child. Back in the late 1980s, Mel and Sandra were members of the Surrey Air-Cooled Owners' Club and attended many Volkswagen shows. As a support vehicle for Mel's Buggy, Sandra would tag along at the back of a club run convoy in her Vauxhall Nova daily driver, but this didn't quite cut it for her. The hunt was then on for another car to join the Mel's Motor collection, and she was desperate to own a VW of her own.
Sandra was soon the proud owner of 'Marigold', an appropriately-named orange-coloured Beetle which Mel restored and Sandra enjoyed driving for a year before it was sold and the proceeds spent on a really good holiday in the USA! However, after returning to the UK, the holiday soon became a distant memory and Sandra regretted the decision to sell her beloved 'Marigold'. Fellow members of the Surrey Air-Cooled Owners' Club were informed that Sandra needed another cheapish Beetle and this resulted in chairman Paul Hamilton coming up trumps, selling them his 1971 1302S, which needed some restorative work.

For the full story check out the November 2008 issue of VolksWorld magazine. On sale on 03 October and then available through back issues.

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