Project Rotten Banana is the first first of many projects undertaken and documented at the K2 Autosport shop under the Kuli’s Garage section. The history, the style and the process of transformation for this car will all be documented in the Kuli’s Garage. If you have any questions about this build or any others feel free to ask and we will either answer it directly or in a later article. The following is written by driver Matt Kuli.
I ran my first off road race in 2008 and half way though the next race season I had no doubt that I would be at the following race, and the race after that, and so on. I was hooked. Having a race car that shares the suspension and driveline entirely with a Volkswagen road car, it got me curious. What is a beetle like to drive on the street? I was constantly searching craigslist for the something faster, cooler, and more unique than by current car. Those three adjectives are not likely to apply to a college kid’s car. The beetle I did find and end up driving was at the very least unique.
This 1972 Volkswagen Beetle, was found on craigslist with an ad that said runs, drives, and inspected, with no photos and only email contacts. A reply led me to receiving just one photo of the car. Not much to go on but, I drove out and looked at the beetle the next Saturday morning. I found nothing wrong with it on the test drive, other than a high idle indicated by the monster 5” tach on the center of the dash. A few minutes after the test drive was over, and before much could be said to the seller, another potential buyer pulled in the drive. The seller said right away, “If you want the car, I won’t show it to them and say it’s sold.” A decision was made few seconds later to which I said yes to the asking price.
Once the car was home my dad and I worked on it over the next few weeks getting the car tuned to be a better daily driver, based on the experience we learned for working on my dad’s vw buggy. A few weeks go by and I show it to one of my friends. His first reply is hey, my dad used to own that car eight to ten years ago. I got to learn more about the car and that it has had several other owners in PA before supposedly being a California car. This made sense at least from the cal-look done up on the beetle that has since faded.
Now getting to what the beetle was like to drive; compared to other cars I’d driven it was lighter, sharper, peppier, and more engaging than anything to that point. The beetle was like a street legal go kart, especially once I put front and rear sway bars on it and some new front tires. The beetle’s engine made the less than 60hp and with the improved handling you always want to drive at a fast pace. Often while doing so you’re not even speeding. I owned the car the first time around for barely a year. That was plenty of time to fall in love with the cars characteristics, all the while thinking how more cars should be this fun to drive. I sold the beetle the following fall with more rust blooming than I could manage with my limited skills.
Jump ahead a year or so after me and the beetle parted ways I saw it on craigslist. It was for sale by someone other than the person I sold it to. I wasn’t interested at the time, especially at the asking price. I kept my eye on it anyways until the ad was gone. Jumping ahead again about 2 years with some more experience and couple more project cars wrenched on, I saw the beetle for sale again pictured in the same driveway as before. Now I was in a better position to entertain owning another beetle. The asking price was the same as when I bought it in 2009. The car’s price was lower and more reasonable but now the car was without its California cool. One thing that made up for that was a new transmission. I made the decision fast that I would pursue buying this beetle without leading onto the seller that I owned it before. The timing all worked out and I bought the beetle back for asking price. I have now owned a car twice!
I drove the car two times after getting it back and realized squarely that restoration was the next step in the journey. Some time has passed since the beetle was parked. Moving into a new place will do that. Also, the work subconsciously didn’t get off the ground because I had no vision for what I wanted the car be. Inspiration came to define that vision in learning of Singer Design vehicles. Singer Designs develops a high performance restoration with meticulous detail given to a refined simplicity for the car. This refined simplicity coupled with meticulous detail is what makes Singer Porsches so beautiful. I sought to develop my own version of this theory for my beetle. We used to call it the rotten banana because of the rust that had plagued the car. This beetle needed rust repair everywhere, a smooth running engine, and a custom look that separates it from other street beetles. The colors, the interior, the engine setup, and focus on driving experience are all planned out. As the rust gives way to clean, crisp metal, the car is in need of a new moniker: Project Penn. Project Penn is given for not only its location, but the signature it will receive as I apply my vision to it. Kuli is pen in German. The signature I will apply through this project.
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