Roll call! Introduce yourself....

[tuna]

67 T1 sent me an email, suggesting that we do a "roll call", like we have on the Type 4rum. It sounded like a great idea to me, so here I am. So, share whatever you want here. Suggested information can be age, how long you've been a 411/412 fan, when you started to admire the "unique" lines of the Type 4, how many 411/412s you own (have owned), etc.

I think this will be a great way of getting to know each other. I'll go first in the next post.

Tuna

[tuna]

Hi, my name is Tuna, aka Tom Slider, and I live in SoCal. I've been a fan of the 411/412 line since '91. That's when I started working for Unique Supply, a VW parts shop here in town. There were a few junkyard 411/412s in the back and I used to spend any spare minute back there checking out the cars, trying to learn something new about them.

What initially attracted me to the 411/412 line was that it wasn't the mainstream darling, like the Type 3s, the Type 1s and Type 2s. Ever heard the term "it's so ugly that it's beautiful"? This motto and rooting for the underdog meant that the Type 4 was just right. I've also always been a tech geek, so after I learned about the technical innovations of the Type 4 series, I was drawn to the series even more.

After first hopping on the WWW back in the mid 90s, I noticed that there was a deficit of information about the Type 4. That's when I created Tom's Type 4 Corner, a place for me to share the information and data I had collected over the years.

On the homepage of my web site is a picture of a customized 411 from France. It's a lowered 411 2-door sedan with Porsche 5-spoke Fuchs alloy wheels. At that time, the owner contacted me and told me it was his car. He included a few more pictures. This cemented the idea that the 411/412 had a lot of potential, stock or customized.

Anyways, at this moment I don't own a 411 or a 412. I currently own 5 VWs and just don't have the resources (money or area) to make it an even half dozen. I do have my eyes on a '70 411 variant (wagon) locally, but for now I'm going to have to work on getting some more room.

I'm looking forward to hearing from the rest of you.

Tuna

--
t4corner@tunacan.net
Tom's Type 4 Corner
http://www.tunacan.net/t4corner/

[67 T1]

T1 67 present for duty. Hey, Dennis Mills of Wetumpka (we-tump-ka) AL, just north of Montgomery.
Currently own five VWs, two of which are 74' 412 wagons. How cool are these cars!?! I started out my VW obsession with a 74' Thing. This car is also know as "the demon spawn from hell", as it left me stranded so many times I started hating it. I went so far as to put one of my sons toy monsters in it to obsorb the negative karma. About 2002 I purchased a nice 67' Beetle. This car spurred my current devotion to all things ACVW. Soon there after came a 64' Beetle (aka, rust bucket from hell).
I can't remember what attracted me to the ugly duckling of the VW clan, but I know I started hitting Type4.org and Tom's Type 4 corner. As a matter of fact, I puchased my two 412s from an ad on Type4.org from a gentleman in Huntsville in November 2003.
Without this site and the two mentioned above, I would be lost when it comes to restoring my 412s. Thanks for all the good (and even the not so good) posts.
I received some good advice back when I was a young, and I'll pass that on, "Never pet a burning dog". Not sure what it's suppose to mean, but take it for what it's worth.

[ecdez]

My name is Corey and I'm in Newport News, VA.

About 10 years ago, a friend of a friend said that they had a VW for sale for $100. I went and looked at (a four door 412) it and declined because it was soo ugly, and I didn't know anything about the engine. I'm glad I did because back then I was looking for a donor engine for my Type 1. The rest of the car would have been wasted.

Well, several years later, and old friend of the family calls me and say that she has a VW she would like to give away. Her husband bought it as a project and died before he ever started working on it. It had been sitting beside her house for 6 years. I went to look at it, and it was the same Type 4. I picked it up the next day, put a fuel pump in, changed the brake pads and tires and drove it. It is now temporarily off the road for some much needed maintenance.

I have never before or since seen another Type 4 on the road. You should see the reactions of some of the locals when they see the car.

Thank goodness for the internet and sites dedicated to VW's (especially Type 4's ) or I would be completely lost. Like Tuna said, the car is so ugly, it's cute.

Here's a few shots of mine.

[ubercrap]

Hey there everybody, my name is Anthony and I live in Lamar, MO- rural SW Missouri, on the edge of the Ozarks. I have degree in industrial design and work as a furniture designer. I've been interested in German cars-BMW's and VW's- since I was a small child. A family friend had a VW repair shop up the road for many years. Anyway, after I sold my BMW, I went and looked at a '98 GTI VR6 and decided to buy it on the spot. After that, I've been hooked on all VW's. Thanks to the internet, I was able to finally find out about those "weird" VW wagons I had seen sitting behind the shop down the road as a child (some are still there). I had no idea there was a 2 dr. sedan until more recently, and knew that I must have one when I saw Neal Anderson's car on tuna's website. So, a I decided to start buying every 2dr. car I could get my hands on! I'm up to 5 now...Progress on restorations is slow, due to moving and house renovation, etc... I'm trying to arrange things to have more resources soon...

Edit=updated.

[DeathBus]

My name is Doug Zannis, I am from Birmingham Alabama, i'm 35 and have 2 twin daughters and a wife that has to put up with my VW obsession..

I currently own 4 VW's I have beeen into VW's Since the middle 80's when A friend drove the camper I own to high school. I rode, partied, went out on dates, etc in that van for many, many years. When my friend decided to sell it 3 years ago I bought it, this began my VW obsession. Since then I have owned up to 7 at one point but now I am down to 4. 2 VAns, 1 412 4 door fastback and a 98 Golf. I belong to the Central Alabama VW Club. I rebuild Type 4 engines for spare $. I work for a well known Theater chain as a projection and sound technician (I repair motion picture projectors) I have held this job for 8 years now...

[Kirk Knighton]

I have both a 411 and a 412, and I consider it a great honor to have one of each of the infamously ugly and unloved type 4 VWs. ( I happen to think they are quite beautiful!) Pictures of my cars are at type4.org (thanks to Tom!). I originally had a 1971 411 wagon that I bought in 1984 in Portland Oregon. This car lasted me some 11 years, and I replaced it with a 1974 412 wagon. I kept this one ten years before selling it to a neighbor down the street. Both of my current type fours were located on the internet. My 412 is a 1974 two-door 4-speed from Pittsburgh that I won on ebay. Took the train across America to get it and drove home to Seattle. My 411 is a 1971 wagon from California that I bought via type4.org. I also took the train to get it and drove it home. Both cars came with new engines - the 411 has a 2000cc "bus" engine with hydraulic lifters. It is still fuel injected. The 412 has twin carbs, normal valves.
Do folks here know of Julie Aleva and her 412 wagon Sparkie? We actually met up here in Seattle last summer, and though we had never met before we greeted each other like twins separated at birth. Our two 412s together made quite a picture!
I've been buying up NOS parts from the internet/ebay, especially stuff like master cylinders. After 20 years of having type fours I show no signs of losing interest. These cars may be weird and rare, but then that pretty much describes me too. So what!

[bonzosa]

Name: Michael Welch
Age: 25
Current city of Choice: Portland,OR

Hey there,
I am so glad I found this forum. I just purchased my first VW, a 1971 4-door fastback 411 w/ AT in a canary yellow, 3 days ago for $1000. The car has a superb body and a solid engine. I am beginning to asess the work that needs to be done, and am awaiting engine compression and oil pressure test to be done this week....

Here is some info about me:
Born and raised in Naperville IL. Came to Portland via Minneapolis. I love this city and state. I am not changing states again, ever. Currently, my occupation is a pre-school teacher at a non-profit. I am returning to school in the Fall full-time to get a degree. I haven't been ready for college until this point. I want to be a teacher in an alternative school like a charter school, waldorf, reggioemilia or something like that. Looking to possibly become a volunteer firefighter as well.

I love riding my Surly Crosscheck bicycle, hiking through the columbia gorge, playing on the beaches I haven't owned a car in five years as I have biked everywhere I have needed to go. Now I have Joey (Bubba) a 32lb border collie mix, and need to meet his physical needs by taking him on hikes and the like.

I have known since I was 15 that I wanted a VW, when I read the John Muir VW repair manual cover to cover. Always thought it would be a bug or bus. But this pretty little thing came my way, and I fell in love with the uniqueness of the car. It's sweet! And fits my personality.
Anyways....
I really look forward to reading past and future posts in this forum. I plan to do most the repairs myself and face an initially steep learning curve. Reading posts helps encourage to seek answers to questions, become more aware of the vehicle and hopefully prolongs the life of the VW!
Cheers,
Michael

[MGVWfan]

Howdy! I'm MGVWfan, name's Lane, and I've got a 1973 412 Variant (and a 1967 MGB, a 1976 Plymouth Feather Duster /6 4-speed, 1994 Plymouth Grand Veeger @ 190K and on its last legs, 2002 Dodge Intrepid). The 412 is Marathonblau with blue leatherette interior, with a bad MAACO respray on top, and has something like 110K miles on it. Interior is 95% perfect. It was off the road for about 8 years, so I pulled the drivetrain and re-sealed the engine, new heads, overhauled the AT over about 6 months in 2004/05. Been on the road since then. I arrived in the 412 owner's club by way of Shreveport, LA, a 1967 Ford Anglia , and a fellow HS band member who borrowed dad's '74 412 for transport on occasion. That 412 impressed me greatly. Shreveport in the '70's was pretty foreign car friendly, with all the folks at Barksdale AFB bringing neat foreign cars back from their PCS's to the UK, Germany, Belgium, etc. It wasn't uncommon to see Type 3's and 4's in the HS parking lot (as well as MG's, Type 1's, the odd Opel, etc.). So, between rebuilding my little British car and admiring the engineering of the Type 4, here I am. I especially like the variants, with all that load carrying space in such a tight package And I really didn't want something too "chic", and I guess the 412 is sort of anti-chic?

I was Shuttle flight controller here in Houston, now working on Orion (LM's soon-to-be spacecraft), 4 kids, one cat. I was in the USAF from 1982-1989, lots of time in Upstate NY and Europe.

EDIT May 2014...corrected job info, and current rolling stock has changed...see my signature. 412 has been off the road since Dec 2010 with a dropped #3 intake seat but it WILL rise again!

[Rauno Koskinen]

Hello you all!
My name is Rauno Koskinen and I am writing this introduction from Helsinki, Finland.
I´ve been interested in vw´s allmost all my life, father bought used Kombiwagen in -72 (9-seater -70 model) and I grew up with the car.
When I got my drivers licence, father gave the car to me. Early 90´s
I put the Kombi a rest and drove it only in summertime, as I still do, because I still got it.
Before my first 411 I had a 1302S, nice beetle, but it rusted so bad that I had to give it away. Then I got my my hands on -70 411 variant, it´s not a show winner, but what a beautiful engine, 100+ something horsepower.
Acceleration is very good after some 3000 rpm´s, every gear.
Then I bought this -72 411 E variant, nice Texas yellow paint and allmost original condition. Only fuel injection (d-jetronic) gives me trouble. Maybe I must approach you later with some questions.
My latest shopping is this rare -69 411 4d (atleast in Finland). It has been shipped here december -68, so it is one the first ever brought here.
Condition is very good, original, never restored but maintained carefully all thetime. It has an original engine and cassette player (60´s option).
There has been only one owner (family to be exact)before me, so it has been in good hands through the years. It is nice to know that there are other loonies in the world too, I am not the only one, because type 4´s are not very liked in Finland, they are scrapped rather than repaired.
Hope to hear from you soon! Good night/Hyvää yötä in finnish!
ps. visit our club pages www.suomenvolkkariyhdistys.fi, allthough you don´t understand anything, look at the pictures

[type4org]

Hi guys,

After years of resisting because I'm usually too busy to click through forums (email comes to me, forums don't ;) I'm finally joining up.

My name is Jens Vagelpohl, I just moved from Fredericksburg/VA back to Oldenburg/Germany and I have owned a 1974 412 wagon since 1993 when I bought it during my undergrad years in Michigan.

I created the type4.org website at http://www.type4.org and act as its web master.

jens

[can86]

Hey guys!

My name is Craig, and i've only owned a 411 for a couple weeks now, but think they are awesome! Definately a unique head turner. I've always loved VWs!! I'm only 18, but own three dubs, and a total of eight in the family right now I'm also in college heading to an entrepreneur degree planning on doing something related to Volkswagens...

I'm so glad i found this site...it's full of nice knowledgable people who love these cars!!

[412le]

Hello guys

My name is Frank and i am from Denmark.

I have been into aircooled VW´s since 88 beginning with a 69 typ 3 squareback.
After that i had a 72 411 squareback, and now i am working on a 73 412LE squareback whch i will tell a little about here:

My car is a 99% (now100%) rustfree european (from Sweden) 412LE Variant, that i bought
6 or 7 years ago.
I have been collecting parts ever since.......and i think i have almost
everything i stock, as for examble complete new brakes, new wheel bearings,
new ball joints for the front, new shocks, NOS front and rear fenders, new window rubbers etc etc. I tell you i really had to search and search.
The cars from sweden is some of the most well equipped
you can get. Servo assisted brakes, selfadjusting brakes in the rear, brake faulty
warning system, interval wiping system and a special heating system using the larger heaterboxes from the 2 liter transporter.
On top of this my car will be mounted with headlight cleaning system
(74 type 412 standard in Sweden), factory tinted windows (74
412 option only in the US), factory mounted sliding roof (from a 412 Coupe i
parted out som years ago) and Italian clear front turnlight lenses.

I think the car, painted in the orginal color ?Sumatragrün?, will be almost stock on the outside , of course except for the options.
Only wheels and riding height will be modyfied.
I will lower the car in the front using front springs from a early (about75) Rabbit which lower the front about 60-70 mm.
I have tried this ealier on a 411 Variant and it seem to be a good solution.
The shocks in the front will be insert cardtriges.
Another solution could be the Ray Greenwood construction with the Audi 4000 shocks etc..


And in the rear hopefully a set of Sportshocks from whatever i can find that will fit.
I have been told that an aircooled VW shoud be soft in the front and harder
in the reart to get the best road handling.
Wheels will be classic German ATS mags 5,5ET25 with 185/65/15 in the front
and 6x15ET34 with 195/65/15 mounted on top of 10mm.spacers i the rear.
The car will be mounted with a rear stabilizer from a 412 Coupe.
Don´t do you think of this combination, would it make a sporty and decent car
to look at, and to drive.

The engine for the car is a euro 1800 born with 2 40mm.
single Solex
carburators.
Crank and cylinders/pistons comes from a 2.0 Vanagon.
1800 heads, Engle 270 degree cam and for the time being a
009 distributor
with Ignitior breakerless "points".
For the exhaust i use a 4 in one header and a 2" system
with a silencer
under each heaterbox.

The engine will be connected an automatic transmission with the
final drive from a Type 3 (this one is longer than the type 4).

I still have a long way to go on this project.........but hopefully it will be back on the roads in a couple of years.


Best regards

Frank.......from Denmark.
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[albert]

allo 412 fans my name is albert and i live at montréal canada and my first 411 date of 1971 , and afther i change for super be. 1973 and in 1974 i change my s.b. for e 412 -1974 and many vw product afther , and now i do the restoration on my new,old car , vw 412 -1973 , it was on the road from 1973 he have 80,000miles original i am the third horner not to much rust only front fenders but the paint was very bad and the rest is very good and he recive in 1973 a good rust stop , and évery ears afther i do e good paint job and he return on the road for 10 years ????salutation fans,,,,albert

[Bowman74]

Hey,
My name is Kevin and I just purchased a 1974 412 wagon. It has a very nice body and is a good runner. There are a few problems that I still need to work out but that's half the fun.

Why did I buy a 412? My VW thing wasn't ugly enough? No the real reason is that my parents had one when I was a child and I always had a nostalgia for the 412. I remember taking many trips down to Florida sleeping in a sleeping bag in the back of the wagon. The warmth of the engine and the nice drone put me right to sleep. What a car!

Thanks,

Kevin