Hello to All,

I am new to this site and have to thank Chris Vallone for directing me here. I am also new to the restoration hobby. I am in the middle of a body off total restore of a 1965 sedan I purchased in Amarillo, Texas, and drove home to northwest Indiana. My goal is a show quality daily driver. I drove a 64 for a few years in the late 1960s and consider my project a chance to remember the best of that time. That said, I naturally intend to restore to near stock condition, including my choice of new paint. Hence my question. I know the color choices for 1965, but do not know whether or not new buyers were limited to those colors, or if they could choose another VW color.

I would be very grateful for your thoughts.

Hi there and welcome.


I would keep the car to the colour she left the factory. A lot better prospect for if you ever decide to move he on later on. I have noticed a few are starting to put moded cars back to standard spec as that's were all the cool owners are :omg:



Andy W

Thanks for the note Andy. My goal is a brand new 50 year old car with no cosmetic changes unavailable in 1965. I am trying to maintain mechanical integrity as well and will keep the 1200 engine. Although the PO upgraded the electrical system to 12 volt, I think that upgrade is in keeping with the Nordhoff philosophy of making changes only if they are improvements. Every thing I do during the restoration is guided by that philosophy. If the PO had not covered the original Pearl White with Rustoleum Blue I would probably have tried to salvage the factory look. Since I must repaint, I intend to select another paint available to a buyer in 1965. Also, the 64 I drove when I was young was Pearl White which must have been a very popular color choice as there were so many on the road that looked just like mine and I would like a different look. I am leaning toward L360, Sea Blue, a 65 color choice. But I would like to know the all of the choice limitations VW imposed on their customers. Were buyers of new 1965 sedans limited to 65 sedan colors, or could they choose a paint VW listed for a different or previous model.

The thing with changing the colour is the birth certificate tells you what she left the factory with. But at the end of the day its your car to do with what you want. Please put some photos up se we all can follow the progress of the re-birth.



Andy W

For what it's worth, I'd agree with AW. I'd always prefer to go with the colour as stated on the birth certificate. That said, you're the one who will be driving around in it!

Another factor depends on what the interior is like. If that's in good nick, I'd be more inclined to stick with the original colour.

I have a September 1965 Pearl White1300. (In need of a full resto) The interior is nice condition and was peculiar to that year - Pigalle Red. I wouldn't want to change it as no-one is replicating that colour or style of seats, mats and door cards etc. If the interior was trashed and I had ro replace it with something else, I might feel differently about the paint colour.