VW Things aren’t common in the first place, given that only about 29,000 of them were sold in the US and it’s estimated that only 35 to 50 percent of them survive. Things are especially prone to rust, making a sighting all the more rare here in Indiana, where we get real winters and salt the roads. It’s always a pleasant surprise to come upon one, especially in such outstanding condition.
Somebody just bought this one, as evidenced by the temporary plate! But wait. What the? Right hand drive?
How did an RHD Thing find its way to Indianapolis? Down the Thing rabbit hole I went. Turns out VW did indeed make both LHD and RHD versions of this vehicle, the former being the Type 181 and the latter being the Type 182. The 182 was sold in only three countries. It was available in 1974 and 1975 in the UK as the Trekker. About 20 182s were sold in Morocco, but only for military use. The Type 182 found a long life in Indonesia, where they were sold for military use starting in 1972 and soon became available to civilians under the names Safari and Camat. About 6,000 182s were manufactured in Indonesia, where production ended in 1980. It seems most likely to me that this is an Indonesian 182.
Thickening this 182’s plot is its front license plate, which is from Azad, Jammu, and Kashmir, a Pakistani territory. I’m sure this 182 has quite a story!
We’ve covered the Thing a time or two before:
Curbside Classic : 1974 VW Thing (Type 181)- We Hardly Knew Ye by Jeff Nelson
Curbside Classic: VW Type 181 “Thing” – It Can Be Anything by PN
CC Global: The Things of Bali by Robert Kim
Taillights look very different than those on US-market Things, being smaller, flatter, mounted lower, and lacking backup lights. American-market Type 181s had the same taillamps found on mid-’70s Beetles.
I’ve never seen those taillights either. That’s a long trip to Indiana via Pakistan, I agree this car must have an interesting story.
I can’t say I’m a fan of the wide whitewalls, or the exhaust exiting through the bumper (???) but hey it’s not my car.
Rare in RHD? Well I live in a RHD market and have only seen ex US LHD VW Things, and only twice, detail differences are hard to pick from regular cars.
SWEET .
The Typ II taillights also tend to indicate it’s the better, non U.S.A. chassis that used the earlier Typ II transaxle with reduction bxes instead of a “Rhino” tranny with CV joints .
Quite the find, this, I wonder if it was a full restoration or has always been well kept .
The NATO surplus Safaris that flooded America in the late 1980’s were almost all direct from dead storage and so old but near new .
-Nate
The taillights come from a Bus in any body style. My brother worked for a company that owned the only 181 in Uruguay, ca. 1977. It had the same taillights, but the front blinkers were idéntical to European (or Brazilian) beetles. This one seems to have those used in the US from 1968 to have front side markers.
Yes, those taillights were the initial ones that South American ones came with. Here’s an early Safari from Mexico.
Too darn cool! Remember a lot a yellow, “Things”. Someone who worked round about the courthouse drove a green one.. ((circa “78-9”))
Could a worked at the “Butler Eagle”, newspaper office too. Was usually within a block/two of “Diamond St”.
I was unaware of the RHD versions, so good eye! I now notice that this car also seems to lack windshield wipers.