RealRides of WNY - 1972(?) Volkswagen Squareback

SAN DIEGO, California

I've always known that the Volkswagen Type 3 lineup was envisioned to give the Beetle owner something to move up to at some point. Today's RealRide is the Squareback version of the car — there was also the Fastback coupe available here, as well as a notchback two-door sedan and a Type 3 Karmann-Ghia which were not exported to the U.S.  What I didn't realize until writing today's blog entry, is that the Beetle (Type 1) and the Type 3 cars all shared the same 94.5-inch wheelbase. The Type 3 cars just look so much larger (and they are longer by a bit less than a foot). 

The bumpers on this one indicate it's no older than 1970; it's also no newer than a 1973 model, its final year of production.

We saw this one in May in a Normal Heights supermarket parking lot.

— Jim Corbran