My dad and I were driving around the other day when we saw a Meyer manx style dune buggy, and I thought it was pretty cool. So I started to look into how much they cost and whatnot, and it looks like I might be able to get one for somewhere around 1-2 grand that needs a little work. You can actually find them for less than $1000 but those need more work SOMEHOW I was able to convince my mom that a dune buggy would be good for me. I told her I only have a part time job this summer, as opposed to the full time jobs I had the last 2 summers (which sucked, highschool with a full time job over the summer ). And they have seatbelts, and roll cages..... they're street legal, so I could take it to college (when I'm allowed to have a car there. Freshman can't have cars on campus) and I told her I wanted to get one that needed a little work, so I'd have something fun to do. My dad has his project car (1954 Jag XK120) and I've been helping him a lot with that, but it's never going to be reliable in any sense, no matter how much work goes into it. Plus it's his project, not mine. A dune buggy, on the other hand, is cheaper and more reliable, and I wouldn't have to worry about it nearly as much at college as I would my xfire. No doors, not much paint, no way for someone to "break in" to it. I have the money for it myself, it's just convincing her that I should get it. I have no idea why, but she actually likes the idea. Normally she flat out rejects ideas I have like this... but it will be pretty cool if I manage to get one

 

Sorry, I just saw this post today. The Meyers product was pretty good in it's time. The biggest thing to look at is the floor pan, I believe the Manx was on a shortened floor pan so make sure that the structure to good.
All else, sans the body can be had at many VW places on the web.
I just finished a full resto on a 59 bug for a good friend. I didn't charge him a dime for my labor and he still dropped 20K into it. Needless to say it is a showpiece now. Two websites that will be very helpful, if you get a VW based car are...TheSamba.com :: Volkswagen Classifieds, photos, shows, forums, and information & Shoptalkforums.com :: Index
Happy hunting.

Paul

 

good to know, thanks for the links! I'm not planning to spend a small fortune restoring it to show quality. As long as its drivable and looks decent, that's good enough for me.

 

Yea, I wasn't inferring that you had to drop the dime on the Manx too, just beware of the pitfalls that accompany any VW project, as they could add up faster than one would think.
Like I said, the floor pan is what needs to be solid, take a very close look at that. Anything else can be replaced....for a price of course.
Let me know what direction you go in.

Peace
Paul

 

If you're looking at a GENUINE Meyers Manx for that price, scoop it up, regardless of the floorpan! Those are highly collectible! Now, there are dozens of other brand dune buggy bodies out there, current and vintage, so know what you're getting. The floorpans are an easy fix, even on a shortened car. Make sure the center tunnel is good, so you have something to weld them to!

 

While I do agree that the Manx is one of the best in class for it's time, I must respectively disagree that the floor pan, especially a shortened one, is NOT an easy/cheap fix. The tunnel, up front, under the gas tank, is where they could and/or usually crack. And certainly they rot below the pedal cluster and battery. This guy is looking for a cheap/cool ride, fixing a floor pan is not going to be cheap. I got the distinct impression that it needs to stay within budget.

Peace
Paul