Who’s next for this ex-Roger Daltrey classic Beetle?

By Marc McLaren

| 25 Nov 2019

Classic & Sports Car – Who’s next for this ex-Roger Daltrey classic Beetle?

Looking for a Substitute for your current car? Want to ensure you Won’t Get Fooled Again?

Then check out this Volkswagen Beetle formerly owned by rock legend Roger Daltrey of The Who. And yes, we’ll stop with all the silly puns now.

This 1977 Beetle 1303LS Cabriolet spent nearly 30 years in Daltrey’s collection and was only sold by the singer in 2005. Now it’s going to auction with Collecting Cars – so it’s a question of Who’s Next for this classic.

OK, that’s the last one, promise…

The 1303 model was the range-topping Beetle in its day and was one of the so-called Super Beetles produced in the 1970s.

These big bugs had a curved windscreen and a shorter bonnet, plus large rear lights – nicknamed ‘elephants’ feet’ – and other bodywork changes. They had bigger engines, too, the range topping out with a 1.6-litre 50hp twin-port air-cooled flat-four unit, coupled with a manual four-speed ’box.

Daltrey bought his 1303 in 1977 and unsurprisingly plumped for the most desirable version, the 1303LS – with the ‘LS’ signifying that his also had a luxury trim package on top of all of these other treats.

What’s more, he went for the Cabriolet version – top-down motoring being almost compulsory for all good rockers – and in this fetching metallic Viper Green colour.

Daltrey clearly loved his Beetle, keeping it in use over 28 years and completing around 76,000 miles in it over that time.

He also treated it to a few upgrades during his ownership, including the fitting of smart Cibie Oscar driving lamps. It still sits on the factory-specification 15-inch ‘Sport’-style wheels and inside it now also has a contemporary Alpine stereo head unit, with an MP3-compatible CD player, additional speakers and Bluetooth connectivity.

Accompanying the car is an original book pouch, containing a period owner’s manual, authenticity certificate, several old MoT certificates and previous V5 documents. A newspaper article from 2005 when Daltrey sold the car is also included, along with his signed letter to the buyer at the time.

The current vendor has owned the car for five years, adding another 2000 miles on to the clock for a total of 80,812. It’s currently located with him in the tropical climate of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and received a full bare-metal respray in 2014 in its original factory hue.

It goes to auction with Collecting Cars in “outstanding condition”, ready for its next owner. If you think that could be you, you’ll find more details on the listing here.

Don’t leave it too long, though – the auction ends on 4 December.

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