Mar 18, 2019  •  For Sale  •  14 Comments

DIY Pickup: 2001 Volkswagen Jetta Ute

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“He took a perfectly good Jetta…and cut it to pieces.”  That’s the opening to the three-part YouTube series titled DIY UTE that documents a 2001 VW being hacked apart with a Sawzall and transformed into a pickup.  Yes, you read that right.  The guy who decided to turn his Jetta into a truck documented the entire process on YouTube!  He’s not only a talented fabricator but also a budding internet star!  The finished project is potentially available for sale here on Craigslist in Bath, Maine for $3,500.

The seller boasts the project only cost $600 and states “there’s no way I was dropping $3,500 on the Smyth kit.”  Claiming to be a NIMS certified machinist and automotive technician with over fifteen years of experience, he also mentions he might be willing to help someone complete their own ute project or perhaps, hire him to complete one for them.  As for his Jetta, the seller simply “purchased a Ford Ranger window and a bunch of steel and aluminum diamond plating” to transition the car to a truck.  He says he is often stopped by people who admire the ute and that he doesn’t particularly want to sell it but is “open to the idea.”

No photos are provided of the ute’s interior or motor but the seller lists mileage at 200K and its title status as “salvage.”  I’m uncertain as to what conditions constitute a salvage title in the state of Maine but am guessing it has to do with the vehicle being altered so significantly.  More photos would certainly help evaluate the work that’s been done on the vehicle.  From what can be seen the paint job isn’t perfect and the only close-up picture provided reveals things looking a bit rough and uneven along the top of the bed rail above the right rear tail lamp.  Potential issues with body rigidity you ask?  According to the seller’s YouTube comments, he answers that question by saying he’s heard “some creaking in sub freezing temps” but there’s been “minimal Bondo cracking in front of the bed rails on the B pillar.”  Doesn’t that make you feel better?

If you’re like me you’ve probably been wondering “Can a snowmobile fit in a Jetta truck?”  Yes it can!  But by the looks of things that old Ski-Doo Safari might have taken a tumble out of the back on a previous trip.  This picture of the Jetta is more recent since, in addition to the snowy conditions, the ute is sporting a different set of wheels.  We’ve featured many old VW Rabbit Pickups here on Barnfinds and this DIY’er is definitely a nod to that classic creation.  Wouldn’t it be great if Volkswagen brought those back?  In the meantime, I guess we’ll have to settle for DIY Jetta utes!

 

Comments

  1. CapNemo
    Mar 18, 2019 at 5:28pm

    I’d rather have the snowmobile, and I live in Texas!

    Like 3
  2. Nick G.
    Mar 18, 2019 at 5:44pm

    I don’t think he’ll have much luck in the show with front-wheel drive and hundreds of pounds of weight hanging off the back
    This car may seem weird to most people but i respect someone for having a vision and making it happen. It’s not bad looking. I wish more of these conversions could have a more rounded off cab but that would be extremely difficult to do.
    The savage title shouldn’t be for the modifications. The DMV has no way of knowing what’s been done to it unlike a total that would be reported by the insurance company. Maybe it has been wrecked in the back, thus making it a candidate for this conversion?

    Like 4
    • ChrisB
      May 3, 2019 at 10:19am

      Yes you nailed it on the salvage title thing, found the car in a junkyard 500 bucks. Also I never drive it loaded in the snow. I’ve been driving these in Maine winters for 18 years. Consider following me on YouTube channel ecophage for more

      Like 0
  3. Coventrycat
    Mar 18, 2019 at 5:47pm

    I wouldn’t have wasted a perfectly good webpage on that.

    Like 2
  4. Kenneth Carney
    Mar 18, 2019 at 6:30pm

    The last one of these conversions I saw
    was in the mid ’80’s was when the company I worked for hired a fellow named Rich to home deliver the goods
    we were selling back then. Well, Rich had
    a Vega wagon that he had converted into
    a pickup truck. Didn’t think much of it
    until I got the chance to see this thing in
    person. I was quite literally blown away
    by this young man’s handiwork! He had
    taken great pains to do the job right.
    If you didn’t know Rich, you’d swear that
    he’d bought a custom conversion from
    a body and fender shop. Every line and
    every panel met each other where intended with no sharp edges or exposed
    seams. Dunno how he did it, but even the
    tailgate worked as well. And the crafts-
    manship didn’t stop there either. The
    metal fabrication in the “bed” area of the
    truck was outstanding! And again, every
    line and every piece of metal met each
    other where intended with no seams or
    other flaws to be found anywhere. After
    looking it over, I found out then that Rich
    was mentally disabled and couldn’t get
    a job anywhere else. Rich was a slow
    learner and no company in town would
    hire him. To this day, I’m still baffled as
    to why no body shop would put him to
    work even though his metalwork was
    phenominal! The kid took a Vega wagon
    with a smashed roof that anyone else
    would’ve junked and turned it into
    something unbelievable. I still tell this
    story to any disabled person who doesn’t
    think they have it in ’em to land a job
    among normal people. Thanks for that
    wonderful memory.

    Like 9
  5. David Duivesteyn
    Mar 19, 2019 at 4:34am

    By the looks of his Blue Heeler dog he may be an Aussie that just missed the ute’s ( pickup truck) of the old country.

    Like 2
  6. JohnU
    Mar 19, 2019 at 7:54am

    Junk

    Like 1
  7. Matt
    Mar 19, 2019 at 9:20am

    First off, there’s no such thing as a perfectly good Jetta.

    Like 3
  8. Jonny the Boy
    Mar 19, 2019 at 10:34am

    Take a close look at the photos on CL. It’s a good 100 footer.

    Like 0
  9. Wayne
    Mar 19, 2019 at 10:50am

    OK! Enough! Just because it is not YOUR cup of tea. There is no reason to degrade someone else’s opinion or vision. He may have started with something that you don’t care for. But he had the ambition to get off his butt and try it. That means it takes more than just sitting on the couch with his laptop. And commenting on how the job and the car are crap. I would have added some additional bracing (floor and roof, maybe rollbar) to try and keep the “shell” from twisting when driving. But at least he did it and has not priced it to try and make a bundle. He seems honest enough. And the experience he gained in the endeavour is priceless. Give him a break and appreciate his efforts.

    Like 9
    • ChrisB
      May 3, 2019 at 10:23am

      Thank you, if you watch the videos there’s actually 4 new steel supports running from the roof to the body two of which go roof to floor.

      Like 0
  10. Chad F
    Mar 19, 2019 at 5:19pm

    “…Wouldn’t it be great if Volkswagen brought those back?…”
    Yes it would & the Smyth guy/co. is near here. They do bout a 1/2 doz different vehicles w/their different kits. Only 20/25 prts. The best is the innerfender wheel well panel. I’d try’n out fit a WRX kit to a 4WD subie for a Brat revival.

    But, yes, the vebub diesel p/u is more what I’d like…

    Like 0
  11. Paul Eid
    Mar 22, 2019 at 1:34pm

    they sell vehicles like this in Brazil made by VW, Renault, Citron and Toyota

    Like 0
  12. ChrisB
    May 3, 2019 at 10:32am

    Hey guys thanks for the interest in my project, it was a $500 junkyard car to start hence the salvage title and the sled was 300$ and looked like that when purchased lol. If you guys like it make sure to follow me on my YouTube channel ecophage or Facebook ChrisBCritters for updates and other projects.

    Like 1

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