VW Type 3 Squareback - Simplicity brings us closer

In this age of consumption, people want to believe that authenticity & legitimacy can be found in the next new thing they buy. They’re overlooking the fact that authenticity can’t be bought. And it doesn’t need to be. Because style/contentment/authenticity… all that stuff comes from within. From the inside out. It’s reflected in what we do & how we live… not found in what we buy or how often we post it. Hell I’d say – a lot of the things we purchase & a lot of the things society tries to jam down our throat… usually rob us of a real, genuine experience. I’ve found that simplicity often brings us closest to what we love. Simplicity & purity. Mix in a little nostalgia (a hell of a free drug). And that’s the idea behind Kyle Cross’s VW Type 3 Squareback.

Kyle’s folks had a Squareback when he was a kid…

And Kyle remembers a particular roadtrip in it from New Mexico to Oregon. At the time, there was nothing especially remarkable about that – it’s just how they lived. But today it’s a nostalgic memory for Kyle. And it was experiences like that – that weaved itself into the fabric of Kyle Cross’s character.

Kyle’s 1st VW…

Cut to the mid-90s – Kyle turned 16, snagged his license, & bought his first car. A 1971 Super Beetle… for $1,000. The Super Beetle was actually already sorta setup too! It had 2-tone paint, some fun mods, etc. And because it was so simple & elemental, it taught Kyle the basics & really gateway’d him into car culture. I mean look – these old VWs were so simple, you could drop the engine with 4 bolts & roll it around on a skateboard. At the time, Kyle was living in Las Vegas. Again – this was his teenage years in the 90s. His buddies all had VWs too, and they would go cruise the strip at night. Because back then, you actually could. Cruising the strip in the analogue Volkswagen’s, looking up at the lights… those moments shaped him. And at that point, he kinda fell lifelong in love with air-cooled VWs, as well as all the youthful feelings of energy, expression, & freedom that came along with ‘em. Ah but you can’t stay young forever (can you?)…

Life pulled Kyle from the innocence of teenage car culture…

See, car culture’s a funny thing. There’s like ‘a window of time’ where it can really get its hooks in ya. If you wait too long & get too old, it’s hard to break the habits of adult sensibility once they set in. And cars become a hard hobby to justify. BUT – if the bug bites you early (like it did for Kyle & so many of us)… you’ll be at least a little insensible forever lol. And sure, you may leave car culture for a while… but it never really leaves you. So that’s what happened to Kyle Cross. As he got a little older, more important things took priority. He joined the military, then found a good woman, a good career, and started a family. You know how it goes, those are all beautiful things. But car culture always lurks in the back of your thoughts. Late at night it calls you, like the full moon to a werewolf… usually in the form of Facebook Marketplace after the fam’s asleep lol. Which leads into…

The VW Squareback comeback…

Kyle Cross found himself at a place where he had a little more time & budget for a toy again. His dad actually came across this 1971 VW Squareback locally. It’s hadn’t moved in years & the 1600 motor was seized, but the body & interior were solid. And – the timing seemed to be perfect, because the car’s owner said he’d just started getting hassled by the city to move it. Say no more!

At the time, the Squareback was white…

But not a good white. It was basically the chalky color & texture of most high school bathroom walls. Down-low by the urinals where the pee is. Kyle had the Squareback resprayed in Dodge Battleship Gray brother! He also had a buddy with a wrecked ’65 Karmann Ghia. Kyle thought the Ghia bumpers looked much better, so he bought the bumpers & worked ’em onto his Squareback.

Type 3 Squareback ride & suspension…

On the front, Kyle got a Dogback Type 1 to Type 3 conversion beam. It swaps the front suspension over to a Type 1 (Beetle). The Type 3 cars actually had a better ride quality than the Type 1. But today, if you want air ride, the Type 1 gives you more aftermarket options & a way better ride when modernized. It lets you run bags instead of air shocks. The wheels are from CIP1. And sidenote: Kyle also put some replica Datsun 510 mirrors on the fenders.

The little engine that could… stand to be faster.

The VW Type 3 Squareback had a 1600 engine. But as mentioned. It was seized upon purchase. Lucky for Kyle, he had some previous teenage experience building (and breaking) air-cooled Volkswagen motors. So he took the opportunity to build the engine out to a 1915, giving it som extra oomph. Admittedly though… not a ton of oomph by today’s high-horsepower standards. But ya know what? That’s kinda the point here…

In order to break the internet today & successfully start your Youtube channel…

You basically need your air-cooled VW project to have a tube chassis and 900 all-wheel horsepower out of a Subaru engine or something. And that’s neat & all, but it’s not the motive here. In fact, if we’re being transparent, Kyle has a manual transmission Blackwing that he drives most days. And wait for it: He’s also got a ’99 RB26 5-speed Stagea Autech Version in route from Japan (he loves wagons). And it’s because of those cars, that Kyle really appreciates the true value of an old-soul cruiser like this Squareback. Simplicity is an art form. And like I said in the first paragraph, simplicity brings you closer to what you love. SPEED has a lot of shapes & sizes these days. And sometimes mellowing it out a little, gives you time to soak it in better. My advice: If you love something, you probably fell in love with it for a reason… don’t overcomplicate it. You don’t have to be that metaphorical hamster in a pet store running on a wheel all the time… chasing what exactly? Be cool… like the chameleon.