How many Volkswagen Type 181s are left in New Zealand?
Super rare 1 in 584,359 on the road Built 1970-1978 European
Updated from the NZTA Motor Vehicle Register, counted as at 31 August 2026. Recounted every month.
A boxy four-door open utility car built from the late 1960s, first for the West German army and then for the public. It used Beetle mechanical parts under flat, ribbed panels, with a folding windscreen and removable doors. Americans knew it as the Thing, the British as the Trekker.
Still on the road, by model year
The most are from 1974: 3 still registered. Every year is listed under the chart.
Every model year
| Model year | Still registered |
|---|---|
| 1970 | 1 |
| 1971 | 1 |
| 1973 | 2 |
| 1974 | 3 |
| 1978 | 1 |
What Super rare means
Spotto grades every car by how many are still registered in New Zealand. With 8 still registered, the Volkswagen Type 181 is Super rare: the grade for cars with 5 to 24 left.
By how many are left it ranks equal 42nd of the 48 Volkswagen models and equal 2,076th of all 2,903 cars in Spotto's catalogue.
The six grades: Common, 8,000 or more · Uncommon, 1,200 to 7,999 · Scarce, 175 to 1,199 · Rare, 25 to 174 · Super rare, 5 to 24 · Unicorn, fewer than 5.
Seen one?
Spotto grades every car on New Zealand roads by how many are still registered, down to the generation and the badge. Log the ones you spot, build a collection, and see who else has found one.