Custom 1969 Dune Buggy Pickup: Is It A Kellison?
It started life as a 1969 Volkswagen Beetle, and has a 1.7-liter Type Four VW motor. But on the chassis is a really neat dune buggy pickup named “Truggy,” offered here on Craigslist in Westerville, North Carolina for $10,000. Dune buggies have been in the news recently with the revival of the Meyers Manx (including an EV version) under new ownership, and it’s unlikely you’ll find another one just like this.
The owner for the past eight years says the “dragon-themed” buggy is a “head turner and a blast to drive.” He also says that he’s been unable to find any body manufacturing information and “have not seen another one with this exact body configuration.” But while there are some visible differences, it could be a modified Kellison Sandpiper.
Kellison was one of the many companies that rushed into the market when the Meyers Manx proved to be such a big hit. The experience left the late Meyers so disillusioned he left the business for decades. Meyers built 6,000 Manx buggies, but the copycats built 250,000.
Barn Finds has written about Kellison Sandpipers in the past, 1971 and 1974 examples here and here. You decide if this is a Kellison or not.
The nicely done vehicle offered has its original Beetle pan and a four-speed manual, and it “runs and drives as it should with no issues.” Cooper tires sit on VW-branded aluminum wheels. It’s set up for towing with a trailer wiring connection.
The current owner made the buggy much snazzier, with a front grille, various hood ornaments, a wood bed and bed rails, a locking wooden keg, carpeting, GPS, multi-color halo headlights, ground projection lights, and a Bluetooth marine music player and speakers. The dragon theme is repeated in multiple places on the vehicle, including the speedometer, the storage keg in the bed, on the rails, and in the projected light.
The owner says the keg and bed rails can be easily removed, and an included vinyl bed cover (with some snaps missing) installed. The hardtop is removable, with two people. The seats, not shown in the photos, are “OK” but could/should be recovered. There are some small paint imperfections. YouTube videos can be viewed here, here, here, and here. The owner says no trades, and that he doesn’t have to sell the dune buggy. “I don’t use it as much as I used to and hate to see it sitting around when someone else could be enjoying it,” he said.
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Comments
I have a 1970 Beetle and hit has 4 lug wheels. Those are 5 lug. And not the wide 5 lugs that VW ran before switching to 4 lug. Porsche hubs? Looks like a highly modified Meyers Towd to me.
Having built a few “back in the day” this looks to have a wider track, telling that it’s probably got the old J C Whitney wheel adapters so as to use a more standard wheel pattern.
Good job on the customization though the front is a love it or hate it point IMO.
Those 5 lugs are probably a Chevy/Ford pattern. VW/Porsche 5 lugs are a larger bolt circle. :-)
Looks great, but that front “snout” is awful.
I though, ooh, cool. That’s a buggy design I hadn’t seen, surprisingly enough. But then I saw the front. OK, deal is off. And the dragon mascot? I’ve driven a lot of different cars over the years, and there’s few I wouldn’t try.
But this? And he wants $10k for it? Well, all he needs is one.
I have a Fiber Jet Sand Hopper (Towed ) and it has a tube frame and looks nothing like this.
If i was to get this i would have to remove the halo lights and the ground projection lights since they are illegal to have on while driving. They can only be on during car shows and in lights parades in the town i live in. Then change a couple other things.