Aircooled VW South Africa

...when buying a buggy?

Please gimme some pointers, I'm new to the aircooled scene!

Rust, oil leaks, what else?

Papers, outstanding license fees, condition of king and link pins, gearbox, motor.

Depends if you want a project or not.

If you want a buggy, tell the owner to sell it with a RWC. It'll cost you, but it'll save you lots of hassle.

If you want a project, yes, check the paperwork, and put it in your name, without a RWC. It's fine, you just don't get a disk so you can't drive the car until you RW it. Then you look at the condition of the buggy.

1) Pan
2) Wiring
3) Suspension and brakes incl hand brake
4) Check if it runs... if it does, take it for a spin.

Oil leaks? You can count them if you want... If you get a buggy without an oil leak, check the oil...

I think the most important thing to keep in mind is that no buggies were built on a production line in a factory (like for example a Beetle), and as such there were no quality checks, so the buggy you're buying is 100% the product of the builder/previous owner's skills/patience/experience etc.

Stonechip paint can hide a LOT

Unfortunately I don't have time at the moment to give you a more complete answer, but have a look here at the replies to similar question on TS
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=436051