Volkswagen Squareback

            

    

There's no particularly good reason to love Volkswagen Squarebacks. Their styling was dated even when they were new several decades ago, and they have more than a passing resemblance to the punch-line East German Trabant of the Iron Curtain era. Squarebacks were fundamentally Volkswagen Beetles under the skin, which means even when new, they were incredibly slow, horribly noisy, and absurdly dated.

So why do I want one so much?

My uncle, a slightly daft individual who used to ice-race perfectly good Volkswagen Rabbits--is probably to blame here. Whenever I visited him as a child to gape in awe at his model car collection, or peruse his car magazines, I would encounter in front of his house twin Volkswagen Squarebacks, both in some moderate state of disrepair. Somehow that led to this deep-seated passion.

Who can explain the nuances of the child's mind? Or, to be more descriptive of my current mindset, a childish mind?

I know with great certainty that Squarebacks have all of the limitations I've outlined above, yet even today I can't think of a more romantic idea than buying an old Squareback, lovingly restoring it, and puttering along scenic highways in it. I find the dated styling timeless and jaunty, the rear-mounted air-cooled engine endearingly quirky, and the idea of a two-door wagon Beetle so fundamentally right it can't be resisted.

Yes, I'd buy a Squareback in a heartbeat--either in bright yellow or distinctive powder blue. Although that red Squareback above that johnherb posted on Flickr is pretty tempting as well.

The blue Squareback photo is courtesy of www.vw-freaks.com, which is a fan site infused with even more Volkswagen freakiness than I can dredge up.

--Chris H.

Comments

[Nathan of Brainfertilizer Fame on March 01, 2008 at 01:47 PM]

Back in 1997, a friend of mine had gotten into buying old damaged cars, fixing them, and then selling them for a (sometimes) profit. I went to the junkyard with him once, and saw a powder-blue volkswagen squareback, and it was like $300. Everything was in great condition, no rust.
The only problem was the engine was disassembled. For about 30 minutes, I thought about trying to put the engine back together with my friend's help. I eventually rejected the idea as likely ending up to be more trouble than it was worth.

I regret that decision, slightly, now.

[David Drucker on March 25, 2008 at 12:31 PM]

My early-seventies experience with a Squareback evokes mostly good memories (as, somehow, do many of my memories of that awful decade). I recall a 500-mile round trip from Brooklyn to Boston, to pick up some speakers; and a memorable trip to Joisey for youngish romance. But I also remember an engine that was a) impossible to work on, and 2) always needed work. The Squareback is a much better vehicle when viewed through the mists of time, and if you doubt that I have one hyphenated word for you: D-Jetronic.

[scott on April 03, 2008 at 11:05 AM]

I had a burnt orange 1970 just like the red one pictured after high school in the late 70's. bought it for 1000.00 from my brother in law. Drove it from San Diego to LA every week for two years before the manual transmission blew. I looked everywhere for a picture I had right after a highschool friend repainted it the original color-no luck... I remember it had chrome wheels with Porche caps. Haven't seen one that looked better since!!!

[mochi mochi on July 06, 2008 at 02:35 PM]

comments from the original amazon.com posting of CarLustBlog:

Aug 29, 2007 6:29 PM PDT
Mochi Mochi says:
Chris you are completely spooky - you read my mind. When I read the post yesterday about muscle cars I was thinking - "oh I hope we get a few lines devoted to cars that are all about handling... or better cars we just love because they are odd and quirky and completely lovable". I thought: "I wish there would be a post about my two favorite cars - my 1972 Orange Type III Squareback and my current 1991 Honda Civic Si Hatchback". You read my mind and fulfilled half my wish. (Now I'm waiting for the other half.)

God was smiling when the Squareback was created - an amazing and quirky car - I loved mine so dearly. Now when I see one on the roads I go nuts. Mine succumbed to rust and Boston winters. I dream of having another. I tuned the engine to a point where I could balance a penny on edge on the engine block at idle. I adjusted the camber on the front end to dial out the understeer. And I replaced the headlights with 7in Hellas with 85/100 watt bulbs (which also cost me a number of generator replacements). It had a top speed of 85 mph (no matter what). Wing windows. Comfy upright seats. If you tapped your fingers on the roof near the corners it rang with the most amazing sound - like something between a ricocheting bullet and a crazy high pitched tympani. There was almost no heat in the car in the winter ! I had to carry an ice scraper to clear the inside of the windshield when it would ice up from breathing with the windows closed. I actually have dreams about that car still all these years later. It is a happy looking car that makes everyone smile.

The 1972 model had an early electronic fuel injection system that pumped at about 40psi. This would cause the fuel lines to occasionally fail. I remember lying in a pool of gasoline under the car trying to stop a leak. When the electronic control module finally failed I replaced the FI system with a dellorto carb... this required altering the engine hatch to make room for the carb... I used an inverted crisper drawer from an old refrigerator... the mechanics at the VW dealer were later mystified by what was under the "crisper drawer" and why it was upside down. They had a big surprise when they tried to lift it up :)

What a great car - it was worth all the little discomforts and challenges. I'd buy another in a second if I could grab one. I loved that car !!!! The orange color made it even more jaunty.

You really made my day !!! Thanks so much - keep up the great work. And please consider a piece on the '91 Civic Si - it's a sweet ride... if you want a test drive drop me a note. :)
Edit your post:
Chris you are completely spooky - you read my mind. When I read the post yesterday about muscle cars I was thinking - "oh I hope we get a few lines devoted to cars that are all about handling... or better cars we just love because they are odd and quirky and completely lovable". I thought: "I wish there would be a post about my two favorite cars - my 1972 Orange Type III Squareback and my current 1991 Honda Civic Si Hatchback". You read my mind and fulfilled half my wish. (Now I'm waiting for the other half.) God was smiling when the Squareback was created - an amazing and quirky car - I loved mine so dearly. Now when I see one on the roads I go nuts. Mine succumbed to rust and Boston winters. I dream of having another. I tuned the engine to a point where I could balance a penny on edge on the engine block at idle. I adjusted the camber on the front end to dial out the understeer. And I replaced the headlights with 7in Hellas with 85/100 watt bulbs (which also cost me a number of generator replacements). It had a top speed of 85 mph (no matter what). Wing windows. Comfy upright seats. If you tapped your fingers on the roof near the corners it rang with the most amazing sound - like something between a ricocheting bullet and a crazy high pitched tympani. There was almost no heat in the car in the winter ! I had to carry an ice scraper to clear the inside of the windshield when it would ice up from breathing with the windows closed. I actually have dreams about that car still all these years later. It is a happy looking car that makes everyone smile. The 1972 model had an early electronic fuel injection system that pumped at about 40psi. This would cause the fuel lines to occasionally fail. I remember lying in a pool of gasoline under the car trying to stop a leak. When the electronic control module finally failed I replaced the FI system with a dellorto carb... this required altering the engine hatch to make room for the carb... I used an inverted crisper drawer from an old refrigerator... the mechanics at the VW dealer were later mystified by what was under the "crisper drawer" and why it was upside down. They had a big surprise when they tried to lift it up :) What a great car - it was worth all the little discomforts and challenges. I'd buy another in a second if I could grab one. I loved that car !!!! The orange color made it even more jaunty. You really made my day !!! Thanks so much - keep up the great work. And please consider a piece on the '91 Civic Si - it's a sweet ride... if you want a test drive drop me a note. :)

-----------------------------

Posted on Aug 29, 2007 11:23 PM PDT
R. Foster says:
Glad to read this posting. Brings back fond memories of my favorite time in my life. DH and I bought one the day before our wedding and meant to return it to the used car dealer after we drove the 200 mi. back to Austin from the church in Dallas! Had a flat on the wedding night during our trip back to Austin...had no spare. We were rescued by a sympathetic trucker and woke up some poor station owner in the middle of nowhere to have him sell us the only tire in our size with the last penny we had! Fortunately, his parents gave DH a check as a wedding present so that we could indeed buy it to keep. It gave us years of faithful use. That was in 1972, and it was the only car we had for a long time. It was also the car in which I learned to drive a manual transmission. I don't remember what year it was...but they all looked the same for the most part.

While dating DH, he had an orange Kharman Ghia which helped us make lots of great memories as well. Consider doing a piece on those.
Your reply to R. Foster's post:

-----------------------------

In reply to your post on Aug 30, 2007 9:14 AM PDT
Christopher Hafner says:
> or better cars we just love because they are odd and quirky and completely lovable

Oh, Mochi Mochi, you just nailed the whole point of this endeavor. There will be some muscle cars and exotics, to be sure, but as we go on you'll see all kinds of quirky cars that are out of the mainstream but are just too endearing not to love.

I'm of the opinion that car magazines (as much as I love them) focus entirely too much on exotics nowadays - and as a result they're not as special as they used to be. There are hidden jewels that we actually see on the roads, and to me in that sea of anonymity there is some real greatness to celebrate.

> God was smiling when the Squareback was created

That's a great, great line.

I loved hearing about your Squareback, you've just described my Squareback fantasy in its entirety--including the crisper drawer!

> And please consider a piece on the '91 Civic Si

Don't be shocked if I do--there's something inherently right about small Hondas that makes them much more than just economy cars. I enjoyed an Integra of about that vintage for a long time.

Thanks for the note.

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In reply to an earlier post on Aug 30, 2007 9:19 AM PDT
Christopher Hafner says:
R. Foster said:
> I don't remember what year it was...but they all looked the same for the most part.

Boy, that's the truth. It takes a real fanatic to tell the difference between an early Squareback and a late.

> he had an orange Kharman Ghia which helped us make lots of great memories as well. Consider doing a piece on those.

I'll definitely keep it in mind. I remember Car & Driver did a road test of a Karman Ghia decades ago in which they prominently compared it do an original Porsche Speedster. It was really very similar, which predictably inspired a Linda Blair-like reaction from the Porschephiles.

-----------------------------

Posted on Aug 30, 2007 9:40 AM PDT
M. Owen says:
It seems like squarebacks all died around the same time. They were everywhere in the 80's and into the 90s, now I rarely see one. I was just thinking about that recently- I don't know if it's a sign of rising affluence or rust.

My favorite Type 2 VW is the notchback, I've only seen a couple of those on the road ever.

[Steve on July 14, 2008 at 11:39 PM]

It's funny, it was seeing an old square rusting away in a vacant lot daily on my bus on the way to school that spurred my passion for these odd cars a ways back. I now am the proud owner of a '69 in the need of some TLC. Hope you find whatever you're looking for.

[Reese on August 20, 2008 at 04:10 PM]

My 1970 Squareback is bright yellow, custom bumpers, custom panels, still runs pretty good even though I never drive it anymore. I think of selling it every once in a while. If I could afford to restore it I would in a heartbeat. Take off the panels and put the original windows back in, paint it seafoam green, get new white or tan interior, a wood roof rack, it would be sweet.

[Jason Carpp on December 01, 2008 at 08:31 AM]

I've always liked Volkswagens of the 60s. Why? I don't know. Perhaps because it's the weirdest vehicles on the road. I've always liked the idea of having the engine over the drive wheels, in this case, the rear wheels. It's too bad the Squareback didn't live through the 70s.

[Wheelywheel on February 09, 2009 at 10:56 PM]

I never like the squareback VW. I like the beetle more. What I like about VW cars are their engines. Most of them are good engines will not break easily.

[smitty on March 18, 2009 at 05:39 PM]

Chris, I don't understand your on-going apologies for your admirably contrarian taste in vehicles, or your denigration of the Squareback, surely the most practical automobile of all time (and not a bad looking little wagon at all). If I were Commissar of Cars, and had to chose just one car to be manufactured as the ideal utilitarian People's Car, it would be the Squareback.

With an avid enthusiast community, experts who have seen it all, and a thriving aftermarket dedicated to old VWs . . . there are MAGAZINES, even . . . there is no reason that a car guy with some mechanical talent can't build a great-running Squareback that's better than the original. Even the final riff on the theme, the 412, which was more complex, heavier, and more of a load for its engine, can be made better and longer-lived.

[Manny De Castro on May 12, 2009 at 04:31 PM]

Just looking at that red squareback brought back alot of memories of the car that I almost bought back in the early 70's.
I was going to buy my first Brand New Car. I had narrowed my choices down to a Pontiac Le Mans 2 dr, a Dodge Charger (in its inauguration model year) and of course the VW Squareback. I test drove them all, leaving the squareback for last and did the test on a terrible cold, rainy night (I lived in New York City at the time). It really was an unfair test for the VW, but I wanted to make my decision by the end of that weekend and order the winning car. The weather conditions and the road that I picked to give it the test was terrible and I remember full of deep crevices and loads of deep potholes. After the test was over, I remember that I eliminated the VW and it did not matter how much the salesman was gonna reduce the price of that car in order to get a sale. To this day I do regret my decision of NOT buying the squareback that night. My decision was to buy the Pontiac based on some other factors. So when I see that car on the road today, it brings back my memories of that fateful Fri night in the rain.

[Mark Sundstrom on May 12, 2009 at 06:06 PM]

I have lots of memories of the Squareback since it's what I learned to drive on in 1970. More specifically, it was my dad's 1965 VW Variant S, which he acquired new somehow a year or two before Squarebacks were being imported. I think the dealer had it as a demo or some kind of special. (My dad always wanted to be sure you called his car a Variant S and NOT a Squareback; he could be funny that way.) Did a couple of family vacations in that car. I remember the clutch being a bit touchier than the '67 VW Beetle that I also learned to drive on.
A long time ago...thanks for the articles and the memories.
--Mark

[Reese on May 13, 2009 at 06:19 AM]

"Beetle under the skin"? Squares have a pancake engine. This also makes them easier to work on, someone said they were hard. It's also very easy to tell early Type 3s from late, the hood, for one, is completely different. If anyone is having even a slightly hard time telling T3s from T4s, please get your eyes checked :)

[Vibratone on May 13, 2009 at 11:28 AM]

I was a little irked by this the first time around, and find myself still irked on re-reading.

The Squareback/Fastback is NOT a Beetle with a bigger body. The Beetle is called the Type I in VW parlance, while the Squareback is a Type III. The Type III engines were bigger, were fuel injected, and were laid out flat, as opposed to having the "doghouse" fan housing like the Type I. It was, in short, a more advanced engine that would not even fit into a Beetle's engine compartment.

While the early styling does seem dated by mid-'60s standards, the later models looked right at home with other cars from the early '70s, to my eye.

My biggest gripe was the brakes. If VW had put discs on all around, the one I wrecked might still be on the road.