SuperBeetles.com

Turkish Delight

My name is Murat and I am a 1303 owner from Istanbul, Turkey. I can state that my enthusiasm for Bugs began right after I was born because my father took my mom to the hospital in a 73 1303S to give birth to me in 1973. That means I am lucky enough to have my first journey in a brand new Super Beetle even though I was too young to remember. But there are some cool memories that I can still remember with that lovely marine blue Bug. For example sleeping at the back of the back seat or waiting at gasoline queues with my father for long hours.

When I decided to have one just for hobby reasons, I wanted to to own the same car. I tried to find from the number plate but sadly found out that it was wrecked long before and the number plate is now identifying a tractor. Anyway, first I found a '74 in 2007 in good condition and bought it. But in the meantime there was a '73 in the parking place where I live and I tried to find the owner for months to buy it. The old lady asked for a fortune to sell that to me so I gave up and went for the '74 I found. After nearly 2 years, I learned that the owner of the '73 decided to sell it and we agreed on a price which is nearly half of what she asked 2 years ago. Sold my '74 and took my dream into my garage...

It is a really good looking 1303 with silver blue color. Unfortunately the color is not the original but very close. I asked for the originality check from VW Museum in Germany and saw that it was Marine blue, just like the one I was born in. But the condition of the car is so good and so well cared that I see no reason to change the color at least for several years. Also there was something wrong with my engine number because the first letter of the code is “T”. Once more I consulted to the museum and they have approved that it is the original VW built engine for Type3 cars. That means, in some time, there was a need of change and the only engine they could find is this one. Thank god it is not a replica! The good thing about the engine is that the figures in the documents show that the power is nearly 60hp and I can really feel it while driving.

After buying it, there was nothing to do with the exterior or the engine so I focused on make-up mostly. Ordered a lot of nice things from CIP1 and VW Heritage and installed them mostly by myself or with some good mechanics I know for years. The only big spending I did is for the upholstery. The seats and door panles are rebuilt and covered with cream beige leather. Now, it is a great pleasure to be in the car because the colors and the feeling is extraordinary. I changed all the windows with a brand new set and installed the pop-outs I bought long ago from a recycler. Renewed the set with latches and rubbers from CIP1 and now they look great. And the final touch was the Sprintstars from SSP along with brand new 165/80/15 tires.

Now, I believe I own a very special classic, one of its kind in my country and I really love it. My garage is under 4 stories down the ground and I also cover it with special cloth covering. Never take it out when raining or snowing. Start t at least once in a week and take a small ride either in the garage or around the district. If there is a special event, I take it to there or if the weather is nice, my kids love to take rides with it. I hardly wash it 4 or 5 times in a year so I believe that it will be rust free for long years.

The photos are taken at Ortakoy Square which one of the most famous landmarks of Istanbul with a marvelous Bosphorus view mixed with history. I am an advertiser and my blue-chip Beetle is a staring of a commercial for one of my clients! That’s how I could put my car in the middle of this traffic-free square. I hope you like him too!

Murat