Considering buying a Beck or Vintage Speedster for my BW for Xmas and would appreciate any feedback as to quality, pricing, engine size (with A/C)and reliability.........Thanks, Mike
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Considering buying a Beck or Vintage Speedster for my BW for Xmas and would appreciate any feedback as to quality, pricing, engine size (with A/C)and reliability.........Thanks, Mike
For the wife huh! Fess up , its really for you right? If you didn't order it months ago - it will be for either next year or the one after. They just don't have a lot full waiting to be picked out --- they are custom built with long lead time required. I guess you can put a picture with an IOU in an envelope but that doesn't fly with my wife.
Nice present! Wanna adopt me?
Obviously from my description on the left hand side, I'm partial to Becks, but I think highly of Vintage cars as well. They are both built to slightly different price points, with the Beck being the higher of the two.
I suggest that you read the sticky thread at the top of most of the subforums here. It's titled something along the lines of "What you really should know about buying a Speedster." You ask about reliability, so I feel the need to warn you (using one of our catch phrases) that "these are not Miatas." We love these cars, but most of us enjoy working on them. Because they are custom made, there will be teething issues in the beginning. Because the drive trains are of older designs, they are not intended to be as maintenance free as modern cars. If you hate turning a wrench, I might suggest something else. Beck, Specialty Autosport (SAS), and Intermeccanica (IM) all have experimented with modern, water-cooled drive trains. That's all SAS makes now, but the wait is on the order of 18-24 months. IM is probably quicker, but they are pricey and custom built. Beck has some nice ideas in the pipeline, but they aren't in production just yet. So that means if you want something soon, it'll be air-cooled. That's not a bad thing, but good air-cooled mechanics are not on every street corner.
Check out that thread and then ask any questions that you want. None of them will be considered stupid.
Obviously from my description on the left hand side, I'm partial to Becks, but I think highly of Vintage cars as well. They are both built to slightly different price points, with the Beck being the higher of the two.
I suggest that you read the sticky thread at the top of most of the subforums here. It's titled something along the lines of "What you really should know about buying a Speedster." You ask about reliability, so I feel the need to warn you (using one of our catch phrases) that "these are not Miatas." We love these cars, but most of us enjoy working on them. Because they are custom made, there will be teething issues in the beginning. Because the drive trains are of older designs, they are not intended to be as maintenance free as modern cars. If you hate turning a wrench, I might suggest something else. Beck, Specialty Autosport (SAS), and Intermeccanica (IM) all have experimented with modern, water-cooled drive trains. That's all SAS makes now, but the wait is on the order of 18-24 months. IM is probably quicker, but they are pricey and custom built. Beck has some nice ideas in the pipeline, but they aren't in production just yet. So that means if you want something soon, it'll be air-cooled. That's not a bad thing, but good air-cooled mechanics are not on every street corner.
Check out that thread and then ask any questions that you want. None of them will be considered stupid.
We usually suggest to a first time buyer to get their feet wet with a used one, this helps in deciding a wish list for a new one. However, you might be able to order a Beck or Vintage in time for Christmas........the Christmas clock's ticking ~
"...None of them will be considered stupid."
Unless they come from Vince or gerd . . .
Meanwhile, what about the advice to buy a good used one first, and try it out for a few months or a year? Investment $$ is relatively small ($15K to fetch a good working car??) which, unless you really do let your wife drive it ;-) and it goes in the weeds, you can get most of back on a resale. [I did not go this way for reasons of my own, having jumped in to the deep end of the pool right away with a new turn-key from JPS, but I've owned air-cooled cars previously, and the equipment here is not new to me. I am a bit of a wrench/gear-head so the sorting, while a bother, is not a catastrophe for me.] Buying used is sort of like trying-before-you-buy. What Lane has said is all true.
PS: I note Alan beat me by two minutes . . .
Unless they come from Vince or gerd . . .
Meanwhile, what about the advice to buy a good used one first, and try it out for a few months or a year? Investment $$ is relatively small ($15K to fetch a good working car??) which, unless you really do let your wife drive it ;-) and it goes in the weeds, you can get most of back on a resale. [I did not go this way for reasons of my own, having jumped in to the deep end of the pool right away with a new turn-key from JPS, but I've owned air-cooled cars previously, and the equipment here is not new to me. I am a bit of a wrench/gear-head so the sorting, while a bother, is not a catastrophe for me.] Buying used is sort of like trying-before-you-buy. What Lane has said is all true.
PS: I note Alan beat me by two minutes . . .
Hey Kelli...I resemble that remark....
There are always a few dickheads with no sense of humor, that's all..
But you are probably right about Gerd....
Mike, if you want a new Speedy for your wife (right), Kirk at Vintage could have one for you in plenty of time for Xmas, I'm sure....As long as you don't live on the wrong coast and expect it to be delivered with a big bow on it Xmas eve.....and have the money, of course
There are always a few dickheads with no sense of humor, that's all..
But you are probably right about Gerd....
Mike, if you want a new Speedy for your wife (right), Kirk at Vintage could have one for you in plenty of time for Xmas, I'm sure....As long as you don't live on the wrong coast and expect it to be delivered with a big bow on it Xmas eve.....and have the money, of course
Vince,
What about delivery time? Not sure where this guy lives.
Marty
What about delivery time? Not sure where this guy lives.
Marty
Mike--you will have a very tough time having a Speedster in your garage and not being the main driver!! Congrats on your decision to get a Speedster--nothing like 'em!
Do read as many posts on this great site as you can. You will gain valuable insights and some direction on what to do abyt fulfilling your wish to get a Speedster for the Mrs.
Look at the web sites of the various makers. Personally I would choose a maker that has made a fairly big number of cars rather than just a few. But some makers with small numbers are high quality with very happy owners---SAS comes to mind. Also beware of threads here that pan some makes as so many times these complaints are abberations and not representative of the brand's usual satisfaction level among all the owners of those cars.
If money was no object and this will never be the case with me, I'd get an Intermechannica. I believe if all the replicas were priced the same, Intermechannica would own 95% of the market! It's a fabulous car---but the $60k+ price made me not a buyer. They are sensational though. Finer than an original.
Becks are great--Lane's car is just unbelievable and has certain improvements over all others except the Canadian one above. Great sissor top mechanism, authentic dash, room for your feet, nice seats for big butts, and much more. Plus superior support from Carey Hines who even helps folks with any make of Speedster.
My car is a Vintage Speedster. In my opinion the far away best bang for the buck out there. Mine did two long trips this year; 2,400 miles to Carlisle and 1,200 miles to "Tail of the Dragon". I don't tow my car because I bought it to drive. Another Vintage made the trip to "Tail" from Chicago. It's good to know this car can do the long trips safely and reliably. I take enough tools and parts to rebuild the thing but have been fortunate so far. Support is great and I was not the original buyer having bought mine with 700 miles on it. A good attribute is that it is titled and registered as a VW Bug according to the year of the pan. Makes life sooooo simple when getting tags. A super big plus as far as I was concerned.
Maybe you have loads of good VW mechanics where you are--I don't and I do all my own work here. This site has many wonderful folks that will walk you through any procedure. Without them I might be one of those low mileage sellers myself but I am starting to have a little pride in doing my own maintenance. Here in Dogpatch, USA there's not much other option.
Read a lot, email owners here who are knowledgable and they will be honest with you. Hopefully I can say to you after the new year; "Welcome to the Madness"!---Jack
Do read as many posts on this great site as you can. You will gain valuable insights and some direction on what to do abyt fulfilling your wish to get a Speedster for the Mrs.
Look at the web sites of the various makers. Personally I would choose a maker that has made a fairly big number of cars rather than just a few. But some makers with small numbers are high quality with very happy owners---SAS comes to mind. Also beware of threads here that pan some makes as so many times these complaints are abberations and not representative of the brand's usual satisfaction level among all the owners of those cars.
If money was no object and this will never be the case with me, I'd get an Intermechannica. I believe if all the replicas were priced the same, Intermechannica would own 95% of the market! It's a fabulous car---but the $60k+ price made me not a buyer. They are sensational though. Finer than an original.
Becks are great--Lane's car is just unbelievable and has certain improvements over all others except the Canadian one above. Great sissor top mechanism, authentic dash, room for your feet, nice seats for big butts, and much more. Plus superior support from Carey Hines who even helps folks with any make of Speedster.
My car is a Vintage Speedster. In my opinion the far away best bang for the buck out there. Mine did two long trips this year; 2,400 miles to Carlisle and 1,200 miles to "Tail of the Dragon". I don't tow my car because I bought it to drive. Another Vintage made the trip to "Tail" from Chicago. It's good to know this car can do the long trips safely and reliably. I take enough tools and parts to rebuild the thing but have been fortunate so far. Support is great and I was not the original buyer having bought mine with 700 miles on it. A good attribute is that it is titled and registered as a VW Bug according to the year of the pan. Makes life sooooo simple when getting tags. A super big plus as far as I was concerned.
Maybe you have loads of good VW mechanics where you are--I don't and I do all my own work here. This site has many wonderful folks that will walk you through any procedure. Without them I might be one of those low mileage sellers myself but I am starting to have a little pride in doing my own maintenance. Here in Dogpatch, USA there's not much other option.
Read a lot, email owners here who are knowledgable and they will be honest with you. Hopefully I can say to you after the new year; "Welcome to the Madness"!---Jack
Mike - Where do you live? Being close to your builder may be a big consideration for the first few months. I agree with the rest. Read as much as you can before you decide. And, I very much agree to look at the used market. I am sure there are plenty of bargains out there right now. Many people get into this madness only to find out that 40 to 50 year old auto technology is not what they had in mind. DO YOUR HOMEWORK AND SAVE SOME BUCKS.
One more bit of wisdom - In general, it is not cost effective to purchase from a dealer. They have to add additional markup to stay in business, and some of them are notorious for overcharging for small things. If you buy new, your best bet is to go directly to the manufacturer. If they have dealers that they recommend (perhaps due to your location), they usually have given them a price break so you won't pay much more. Just remember - some so-called manufacturers are really resellers of cars from the other builders (usually Vintage) to which they've added a few bits of bling and a lot of markup. I think the only real manufacturers in the US are Vintage, JPS, Beck, Thunder Ranch, and Intermeccanica. I believe Street Beasts will still sell you a bunch of parts that they call a kit, but do some research there.
Did I leave anything out, guys?
Did I leave anything out, guys?
Don't buy your wife a speedster.
Buy her a spyder.
BWAHAHAAA!!!!
angela
Buy her a spyder.
BWAHAHAAA!!!!
angela
mike
u can have mine in your garage by xmas
vince is right about kirk cranking one out by xmas
vince and kelli
ya two are real knuckleheads
vince u coming up next week?
u can have mine in your garage by xmas
vince is right about kirk cranking one out by xmas
vince and kelli
ya two are real knuckleheads
vince u coming up next week?
Knucklehead?
Wait a minute...I resemble that remark!
If you're really buying it for your wife then you should get her a Miata.
Have her/you drive one for a couple of hours before you commit.
They're not everybody's cup of tea.
Wait a minute...I resemble that remark!
If you're really buying it for your wife then you should get her a Miata.
Have her/you drive one for a couple of hours before you commit.
They're not everybody's cup of tea.
Mike - I'll second Gerd's recommendation. If you bought his, you'd be able to enjoy the following benefits:
1. You'd avoid the inevitable sorting issues with a new car.
2. You'd also get one with a history kknown to the folks on this board.
3. You'd have a really gorgeous car - assuming your wife likes the wide-body style.
4. You'd be able to verbally abuse Gerd just like Vince does. Wait a minute, you don't need to buy his car to do that;-)
Seriously, it's a nice car. Gerd's selling it to pay for a new coupe he's having built, not due to any problems with it.
1. You'd avoid the inevitable sorting issues with a new car.
2. You'd also get one with a history kknown to the folks on this board.
3. You'd have a really gorgeous car - assuming your wife likes the wide-body style.
4. You'd be able to verbally abuse Gerd just like Vince does. Wait a minute, you don't need to buy his car to do that;-)
Seriously, it's a nice car. Gerd's selling it to pay for a new coupe he's having built, not due to any problems with it.