Although the Volkswagen Beetle got its start with some of the worst villains our species has to offer, it quickly became one of the cutest and most beloved cars on the road. While cute, the VW Bug has never been the more utilitarian car until now. That’s right; someone made an incredible and unusual custom Volkswagen Beetle pickup truck, and we love it. 

The Volkswagen Beetle pickup truck is motoring made perfect

We first saw this brilliant little machine on Silodrome, and a double-take was needed. Of course, VW didn’t make this beautiful creation. Even though the Volkswagen Beetle was made for over 50 years and over 21 million were produced, VW never made a factory pickup based on the bug. After seeing this custom Volkswagen pickup truck, we now know that VW made a massive mistake. 

Was the VW Bug really made by Nazis? 

Pretty much. The idea for an affordable “people’s car” was Hitler’s idea (booooooo). In fact, that is what Volkswagen means in German. The car was made by known Nazi supporter and sports car designer Ferdinand Porsche. Yep, the same guy. Nazi-made or not, Porsche did what he did best and designed a pretty great, funny-sounding car.

Factories worldwide began producing the VW Bug after the war, and the world loved the cheap little cutie. Even if you think the Volkswagen Beetle is silly, don’t forget, it would live to become the underpinnings for the legendary Myers Manx dune buggy. 

Did Volkswagen ever make a VW Bug pickup truck back in the day? 

Although this thing could probably pass as a factory job at first glance, VW never made a Volkswagen Beetle-based pickup truck. However, the goal for this build was to explore the question, “what if VW did make a pickup?” 

The build team started with a 1971 Beetle. Once they replaced the floors and did the other necessary restoration work, the team began to chop the Volkswagen Beetle. Aside from the obvious addition of the pickup truck bed, this Beetle also had its roof chopped and custom glass made to give it a slightly more aggressive roofline. 

As noted by Silodrome, the Volkswagen Beetle pickup truck got all-new lowered McPherson Struts up front and Mega bug coilover springs and shock absorbers in the rear. Also, they fitted a custom interior, with black bucket seats and a wood-rimmed Mountney steering wheel.

Let’s not forget the engine. The team replaced the original engine with a rebuilt and re-tuned 1.6 liter Type 3 “Suitcase” engine with twin Weber ICT 34 carburetors, paired with a 4-speed manual gearbox. The beautiful fleetside tray back rear end came from an original VW Type 2 (VW Bus) Pick Up, and it was all finished off with Gemini Blue Metallic.

This is Volkswagen Beetle the world needs now

It’s fun and also a shame when we see these “fan fiction” cars. They are fun because they give us something we have never seen before but use something as familiar as a VW Bug. The shame comes from the fact that we could have been seeing these little ute beauties running around our streets, and VW missed the opportunity. Oh well, that’s what we have custom car builders for. 

This Volkswagen pickup truck is currently for sale at Collectingcars.