Dream on - 1950 Hebmüller

Cutting the roof off any car that was originally designed as a saloon is a dangerous game, and you only have to look back through the annals of automotive history to see that it has rarely been a success. Cars that were built as tin tops invariably look better as tin tops than they do as convertibles - at least with the roof up - and have better structural rigidity, don't leak in the rain, are more secure, safer and generally have better visibility.

But, like everything in life, there are exceptions to the rule, and the glorious Hebmüller is one of them. While there's no denying the Karmann-built Beetle Cabriolet is a good looking and extremely well engineered cabriolet, the oft-quoted description of them ‘looking like an old fashioned perambulator' is perfectly apt. Not so the Heb, though - it's a visual treat, a triumph of both function and form and a joy to look at from every angle. These days it's also rare, expensive, and not the kind of car you can just go out and buy on a whim - at least, not unless you have very deep pockets indeed.

Though a cabriolet version of the Beetle was always in the plan from day one, it was the so-called Radclyffe roadster that provided the inspiration to the men from Karosserie Hebmüller when they visited the renamed Wolfsburg Motorworks in 1946 to discuss details of maintenance and repair contracts on British army vehicles. A coachbuilder of some renown already, Hebmüller proved itself as a company first by building a number of special bodied Humber cabriolets for the British army, as well as a series of convertible Beetles for use as police cars. These were a far cry from what they would go on to build later mind, being crude affairs with canvas doors and a thin, single-skinned roof, but they laid the foundations for what was to come.

For the full story on this car make sure you pick up a copy of the September 2010 issue of VolksWorld

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