Volkswagen's ugly duckling

When we think of Volkswagen history two vehicles come to mind: the enduring Beetle and of course the ubiquitous Kombi.

At the recent Klubfest held at Parklands on the the Gold Coast, it was fascinating to see how many incarnations VW has had over the years Beetles, Karman Ghias, Kombis as campers, utes, twin cab utes, people movers, vans, beach or dune buggies, sedans, three wheeled bikes.

VW engines have been fitted to just about everything from two wheels to four.

Tucked away on its own at the show organised by the VW Club and the Kombi Club, was one Australian-designed and built VW that was rare when it was produced, let alone more than 40 years on.

It was the Australian Country Buggy, just 887 units were built and sold in Australia.

Put politely, the buggy was not the most handsome car produced here, or anywhere else.

It was designed and built at VW's Clayton plant in suburban Melbourne with the first prototype hitting the testing phase in 1965 ahead of a release in 1967.

As its name indicates, the buggy was intended for rural use but not the extreme stuff where a 4WD would still be required.

In that sense it was probably the equivalent of the current day `soft roader' style vehicles.

But, anyone who has had anything to do with light-bodied VWs knows they are highly competent off-roaders, with all the engine weight over the rear wheels, good ground clearance and excellent entry and departure angles.

It's worth mentioning that in the 1950s VW Beetles won the Redex Trial, three Mobilgas trials and and Ampol trial, and also took out most of the top places.

That was in an era when Highway Number One was little more than a goat track with more than 100 river crossings.

There's little doubt the Australian Country Buggy had its roots in this success, and also as a flow-on from the Volkswagen Kubelwagen, a military-style Beetle used by both the Wehrmacht and the SS.

The Aussie buggy was a much smaller vehicle having just two doors while the above mentioned vehicles had four doors. It was powered by VW's proven 1285cc (1300) four-cylinder, air-cooled engine, although a 1192cc (1200) engine was also available.

The car was, by any measure, spartan when it came to instruments or comfort.

Options included the smaller engine, a soft top and side curtains and winter tread tyres. There was no standard or optional heater.

The first commercial buggy made its public appearance at the 1967 Melbourne Motor Show.

At the time the little buggy was described as a cross between a Jeep and a Moke the unkind described it as a Joke.

The little vehicle was far from a joke, but its demise just eight months after release was cruel.

VW sales were on the decline and in 1968 VW was in turmoil.

The buggy's timing could not have been worse. As the company looked for answers, one easy target was the Country Buggy.

Newspaper ads from that time provide an insight into VW's marketing: “If you think the Beetle is ugly ... take a look at this one. VW Country Buggy. The uglier Volkswagen built for rugged dirty work.”

Couldn't have said it better myself.