Cars & Auto

Top 5 VW Bus Sales of All-Time

One classic vehicle that has been idolized due to the age of the 1960s and then again in countless movies and shows is the classic Volkswagen Bus. With many of the Baby Boomers having already been in retirement for years now, these were iconic vehicles used by their parents and younger adults as the Boomers were growing up.

Collectors Dashboard does not want to harbor any “Whatever Boomer” feelings here. In fact, this would be the opposite. It turns out that many people in the generations after the Boomers have also grown fond of these famed VW Buses. Some of the less-than-mint condition vehicles might only cost $10,000 to $20,000 depending upon their condition, how much is original, mileage and where the cars are located.

VW Buses in pristine condition have commanded some serious sale prices in the last decade.

Barrett-Jackson Auctions in Scottsdale, Arizona moves buses, and Collectors Dashboard has tracked the top five publicly known high sales. Barrett-Jackson is not the only Auction house from within the top 5 auctions, but they did move the highest price paid.

One issue which always needs to be addresses in auto sales of any kind, even high-end collector vehicles such as these, is that there are likely some transactions that have not been documented. In fact, the auction houses themselves might not even be aware of some of the buses.

According to Motor1.com the pre-financial crash world of 2007-2008 was the takeoff point for value. Their prices have fluctuated since.

Volkswagen Buses are definitely not what a buyer would take out a traditional car loan to buy. Most transactions are cash on hand asset, and most are worth very little unless they run.

So what drove the price up? Six figure buses came together from a perfect storm of Boomer nostalgia, and a historically devoted following according to Christopher Smith in an article written for Motor1.com.

Perhaps what is most interesting is that these high transactions are not entirely stock. The evidence is supportive of stability comparable to muscle cars. The bus is attached to 1960s culture and the unique design is compared to high-end car designs like a Mercedes.

As noticed in a New York RM Sotheby auction the bus was sold alongside Ferraris. The most sustainable were the 23-window buses.

Here are the five known record VW bus sales, again admitting that other more recent off-site transactions may have taken place.

1) $302,500 — 1965 21-window deluxe Samba van, sold January 2017 by Barrett-Jackson is the record high price paid.

2) $291,500 — 1961 23-window deluxe Samba van, sold by Barrett-Jackson in April 2017 in Palm Beach, Florida.

3) $236,636 — 1955 23-window Samba sold by Auctionata in Berlin, Germany in November 2014.

4) $217,800 — 1963 23-window Samba sold by Barrett-Jackson at a sale in Orange County in June 2011.

5) $207,200 — 1960 23-window Samba sold by RM-Sothebys New York 2017.

If you long for other high-end VW buses, the website ClassicCars.com recently had two listed for in excess of $100,000.

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