Roofrack madness!

Type 3 owners seem to have a highly-developed appreciation for roof and luggage racks. These days it's almost become more unusual to see a Type 3 without a rack at a show than with one. There's a roofrack thread in The Samba's Type 3 forum that catalogs the different racks that have been produced for Type 3s over the years, and many of them are very rare period accessories, but some of the best racks ever offered are being produced right now by 1500 Club member Pedro Sainz.



This year, in addition to the roof and decklid racks he offers for all Type 3 models, Pedro has introduced an unusual and very interesting new notchback rack to the lineup:



The idea is based on the EMPI Titelock rack (also known as the Jim Dandy) that was available for beetles in the early 1960s. Here's a Titelock on the cover of the July 1963 issue of The VW Autoist, the newsletter of the Volkswagen Club of America:


And here's Pedro recreating the same demonstration on his own car last week:


As you can see, the rack is designed for use, and Pedro is clearly confident in his engineering. I'm not sure this rack is the most practical luggage carrying solution, at least compared to more conventional roof and decklid racks, but that's not really the point. It's a beautifully conceived and fabricated work of art that's perfectly in harmony with the lines of the car. Though it's a new design it looks like something that could have been available when the cars were new.

Here's Pedro with Rick Christensen fitting one behind Rick's Spanish Airstreme rack on his '65 sunroof notchback:


If you're interested in buying one of Pedro's racks, or his other products like foglight bars and rear parcel tray "jailbars," you can contact him at pedro@vw1500.com.