Volkswagen Concept: Hebmeuller Superbe
Throw away the book. Guaranteed to turn heads is this Heb-style Super Beetle. A look at what could have been if Hebmeuller Coachcraft survived the war and continued to produce it’s 2-seat Convertible into the Super Beetle era.
Most assuredly, Hebmeuller would be at the forefront of VW advancements. As the VW Convertible evolved into the 1303 model, Hebmeuller also followed suit.
The Hebmeuller Superbé is a Volkswagen Concept based on a late model 1303S Convertible. The Superbé features the distinctive curved 03 windshield, the re-engineered VW top, and at the rear, the smoothened hood that echoes the sexy Heb shape.
Giving Superbé the visual jolt is the bright tangerine sides with the straight black body. Bilstein adjustable coilovers replace tired VW McPherson struts and the Brembo brake upgrades are decades more advanced. Polished Porsche 18-inch Cup Wheels with Fulda rubber fill-in the reworked and widened fiberglass fenders quite nicely. Porsche 944 Turbo trailing Arms with Bilstein adjustable shocks and same Brembo brake upgrades round out the rear. A blueprinted 3.0 liter Type4 engine, mated to a rare Gene Berg 5-speed gearbox pushes Superbé flat out at the ‘Bahn.
Orange leather interior is luscious, it hides the audio/video gear from prying eyes. Smooth dash features VDO white faced gauges. Twin Recaros in matching orange leather regularly gather crowds at the local Mickey D’s.
Volkswagen Concept: SPEED3
Dark Blue coats the massaged, shaved late model Type 3 Notchback. Speed3 is given the speedster treatment. Which means a lightweight, stripped-down, bare-bones track rat. First, the bumpers are removed. The body panels then are painstakingly straightened before the deep blue paint is sprayed on.
The Topchop is the single strongest visual statement. The roof, door tops and quarter windows are unceremoniously removed. Up to 3 inches are removed from the windshield posts and angled inward 7 degrees. The top part of the windshield now sports a custom aluminum header. Custom safety windshield, side plexiglass, and rubbers are fitted.
The interior is bathed in rich red leather, complemented with aluminum accents. VDO gauges complete the track inspired interior. The only concession to comfort is the iPod powered sound system.
A Gene Berg, close-ratio 5-speed gearbox tames the grunt of the blueprinted 3.4 liter, fuel-injected, Type4 engine.
Enormous 19 inch Michelin radials huge Porsche Fuchs alloy rims Custom trailing Arms with Koni adjustable shocks accept massive Porsche brake upgrades. Front trailing arms and dropped spindles on a custom designed, narrowed T3 beam with same Porsche brake upgrades firm up the front.
Volkswagen Concept: Super Sally
What about a 1979 Volkswagen 4-door 1303S? What if a couple of VW engineers decided to build the Ultimate Super Beetle. Based on the Rommetsch Taxi of the early 50s, this 80s interpretation is bigger, faster, and safer. Taking a box-stock Euro-spec 1303S, they custom engineered the four doors exclusively using original parts. They intentionally updated the engine to add more muscle for the extra weight. Unfortunately, the time was nearly over for factory air-cooled cars, so the idea was never considered.
The story might not be true but you can start on your own SuperSally with a sad and neglected Volkswagen 1303. While still plentiful, the recent interest in them have been driving up prices on solid examples. The four-door conversion itself takes careful planning but only require another set of doors and a skilled bodyman.
Pearl white SuperSally is roomy and comfortable. 17′ front and 19″ BRM rear and Michelin radials provide extreme grip and traction with a little sacrifice in ride comfort. But the rebuilt McPherson front end with Koni shocks and Porsche disc brakes handles the bumps and jumps brilliantly. Reworked rear torsion leaves, Porsche 944 control arms, Porsche disc brakes and Koni shocks lower the rear end.
The recovered Recaros replace the original VW seats. Matching cappuccino custom door panels follow the original VW style. Everything else, even the steering wheel , gauges and switches are original VW.
A 1915cc Type 1 motor, discrete dual quiet packs with CB-Performance fuel injection provide SuperSally sass. Ride Sally ride, ride Sally ride. . .
