Everybody wanted Germany’s ‘The Thing’

It was ‘The Thing’ to the Americans, but to the Germans it was a creative motoring master-piece which would closely rival the Jeep.

Although not the original World War 2 model which saw use by Germany’s Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS, the Type 181 Kübelwagen produced in 1971 became the thing everybody wanted, even fetching a price $1 000 higher than the Beetle at the time. 

Today many might say it is not anything special to look at, but this ‘tub’ as has been referred to, was the stuff of dreams for many, with only 90 883 ever built.

Palm Lakes resident Norman Ludick first set eyes on a Kübelwagen while in the South African National Defense Force when he was deployed across the border, even over-seeing peace talks during ceasefires at Addis Ababa while reporting to the African Union.

Although unable to recall the exact year, Ludick will never forget the ‘car of his dreams’.

Returning to South Africa Ludick began investigating how he could get his hands on a car just like ‘The Thing’, and eventually tracked down a Cape Town car for sale.

“When I heard the selling price of R13 000, I jumped at the chance and told the guy to ‘consider it sold’, and just like that, the car was on its way to me,” said Ludick, who said it’s value was then closer to R50 000 and it had previously spent a number of years aiding Germany’s armed forces.

A man fond of German engineering, Ludick said it needed some urgent TLC as the previous owner had “treated the Kübelwagen like a submarine”.

An old friend of Ludick, Wolfram Schültz, oversaw the restoration – Schültz had just so happened to have completed his apprenticeship in Germany with Volkswagen.

No man is alive today who has better knowledge of VWs, claims Ludick.

“I remember Schültz flying over to Germany to gather parts needed to restore the Kübelwagen, the part being the front-end,” said Ludick.

Upon his return, Schültz revealed he had used an angle grinder to cut the front end into 8 pieces to fit into his luggage, but told Ludick not to fret and rest assured that nobody would be able to tell the difference!

Needless to say, the difference cannot be seen by the naked eye.

The restoration of the Kübelwagen took 4 years, and some R100 000. The car is now valued at about R300 000. 

The Kübelwagen sports a top speed of roughly 122kph, and comes with 4 doors to match the same number of gears.

“It was a worthwhile investment,” he said, adding that he now owns two Kübelwagens, the most recent being bought in Tongaat.

And no matter the offer, Ludick has no plans on selling either.