1966 VW SPLITSCREEN ROADSTER
‘THE LOVEDUB’
REGISTRATION ‘I OVV’
This is the original ‘Lovedub’ so named in 2006 after I attached the cherished registration ‘1 0VV’ to this 1966 VW Splitscreen Roadster.
The number plate looks like LOVE and also LOW …quite apt as it has been radically lowered.
I found this roofless Splitscreen in South Africa in 2006. The previous owner had removed the top to prepare it for his wedding; there’s a history of open safari vehicles in South Africa.
I shipped it from South Africa and took it straight from Southampton docks to have the opening windscreen fitted.
Everything else just followed from there: lowering, straight axle, etc. My friends and I worked flat out restoring it (with some mild custom work around the quarter light windows and above the windscreen), my wife chose the colours and, before I knew it, The Lovedub had been painted, the interior was fitted and it was in the 2007 Volksworld Show being displayed to the world.
I originally intended for The Lovedub to earn her keep doing weddings and proms. But I launched my vintage bicycle restoration business around the same time, and that’s kept me so busy that there’s only minimal time for wedding hire. So I only accept bookings for a few local weddings each year. And, of course, we used it for our own wedding…
There is no roof (no point in making a roof for it – then it would just be a normal splitscreen again!). I had tonneau covers made; the rear tonneau clips around the top edge of the bodywork (You can not sit in the back with the tonneau on). The front has a separate tonneau, similar to a MG Midget one.
Every time I drive the Lovedub, the reception is ridiculous. People stop and shout, laugh or wave, and everyone takes photos. I spend more time chatting and answering questions than actual driving. It’s brilliant driving a car that brings a smile to people’s faces.
WEDDING HIRE