VW auction: 130,200 euros for a Beetle

E For several years Bengt Holmgren tried to find a buyer for its VW collection, writes the Swedish magazine Klassiker. That didn't work out, he closed his museum in the summer. Now the cars were auctioned off individually. The collection of mostly air-cooled VW ranges from the Beetle built in 1948 to a brand-new Ultima Edicion with 25 kilometers on the clock. Holmgren had a Beetle in his museum from every single year of construction between 1948 and 1975. Including special models, weird conversions or rare colors. Some vehicles have only driven a few kilometers or are part of a special story.

Sweden's oldest Beetle for 130,200 euros

The export Beetle from 1948 is Sweden's oldest Beetle, the auction house informs . And the youngest Beetle, a light blue Ultima Edicion from 2003, was first offered to Sweden's royal family. The car-loving monarch didn't want to, Bengt Holmgren did. Now the late Beetle has been auctioned for a lot of money: The hammer fell at the equivalent of 106,000 euros. The bids for the 48 export Beetle, which was auctioned for the equivalent of 130,200 euros, climbed even higher.

There were some Beetle umabuts at a reasonable price. For example, a beach buggy brought in 89,500 Swedish kronor, which corresponds to 8,633 euros. A T1 bus that sold for 31,060 euros was astonishingly cheap. For example, a VW 411 that did not reach the minimum price at 151,000 SEK (14,565 euros) was not sold. The auction took place on Saturday, September 22nd at Bilweb Auctions.

Holmgren himself calls his collection “one of the world's most elaborate collections of air-cooled cars”. He has always given preference to original, unadjusted cars over restored ones. It takes years to buy cars with a special history and it also requires humility, explains the collector. 'In my opinion, a beautiful, untouched car should be worth at least twice as much as its equivalent,' says Bengt to the Stockholm magazine Klassiker.

Type 3 Variant with 300 miles mileage

Many Cars are preserved in their original condition. Like the Beetle that was bought by a family in 1956 and wasn't driven much further than to the local MOT. When the Ovali came to the museum in 2002, it had covered 8,930 kilometers and to date not seen a meter of road. In one almostA Type 3 Variant, which has only been driven 300 miles since delivery in 1965, is said to be in its original, untouched condition. The track came together almost exclusively on the way to the annual inspection, the car was shut down in 1977 and entered the collection in 1994, explains the auction house on its website.

Other cars from the collection have been restored. Like the export Beetle from 1948, which was restored with New Old Stock (NOS) parts and only has 1,965 miles on the clock. Let it be one of about 30 existing copies of this model - some Beetles are anything but mass-produced. This one should bring at least 116,000 euros at the auction.

Replicas, buggies and a Bulli

Over 30 cars from the collection are Beetles, plus modifications - such as the buggy - or Replicas. One resembles an MG, another a Ford Cabriolet from 1939. There are also other air-cooled models such as a T1 bus and an SP2 from Brazil.