How Much A 1968 Volkswagen Beetle Really Cost The Pawn Stars
Part of the fun of watching "Pawn Stars" is seeing the unique items brought in for consideration.
Sometimes, the "Pawn Stars" team takes a chance on something that pays off big in the end ... and sometimes it doesn't. Episode 8 of Season 5, for instance, featured a 1968 Volkswagen Beetle that had been renovated, so at first glance, buying it seemed like a no-brainer. The vehicle featured little-to-no rust, its floor pans had been replaced, and to top it off, the car featured all new metal. However, it needed one major repair — namely, the car would not run because the motor needed to be replaced due to a cracked block, according to the seller.
That didn't stop Rick Harrison from taking a risk on the purchase. As Harrison said on the episode, "Bugs are easy to work on. I've swapped a hundred motors out of Volkswagens, and I'm no Mr. Goodwrench." Instead of paying the seller's asking price of $7,000, he agreed to $4,000. Then, he and Corey Harrison began the repair themselves instead of hiring a mechanic. How much did the vehicle end up costing them?
The repair was more involved than they expected
Unfortunately for Rick and Corey, once they began repairing the 1968 Volkswagen Beetle featured on this particular episode of "Pawn Stars," they found out that the job was not quite as easy as they had expected.
Corey Harrison predicted his father would probably end up having to "call a mechanic anyway" prior to starting the task, and he was right about that much — Rick had trouble removing the motor and quickly decided to drop the vehicle off with a mechanic, that being Danny Koker of Counts Kustoms. He revealed the classic car was missing quite a few parts in addition to needing a new motor. "It needed a starter. It needed a fuel pump. It needed a battery. We got all that handled," Koker told them.
When all was said and done, the total repairs cost the "Pawn Stars" team $3,300, bringing their total investment to $7,300. According to Nada Guides, a 1968 Volkswagen Beetle can sell for anywhere between $3,400 to $19,500. Even though they didn't go on to reveal on the episode itself whether the car brought them a profit or not, Rick still felt confident he could make a little money from the purchase, so hopefully it all worked out for the best.