Volkswagen bus fetches $217,800 at Barrett-Jackson auction

At the Barrett-Jackson auction in Orange County, $159,500 could buy you a 1964 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud III James Young sedan. A mere $165,000 would put you in the driver’s seat of a 2005 Ford GT. Doling out more than $200,000 nets you a . . . Volkswagen Microbus?

That’s right: According to Barrett-Jackson, a 1963 VW Samba Microbus went for $217,800 after the buyer’s fee. The soaring selling price was undoubtedly a surprise, but the gorgeous mouse-grey-and-pearl-white bus is first-generation and restored to better-than-new condition. It has a German mohair headliner, all original latches, handles and ashtrays, and this particular ’63 model just won the best bus award at the VW Classic event.

The museum-quality vehicle certainly looks good--too good, in fact, for Haight-Ashbury or any other former Deadhead haven. This bus is likely destined to be a trailer queen.

By Julie Alvin