WAILUA — Rodney Kapuy said he thinks it’s the only one on Kaua‘i.
He was speaking about the 1965 Volkswagen Notchback he picked up shortly after Hurricane Iniki passed through Kaua‘i in 1992.
“They have a couple on O‘ahu and I thought I heard they had a couple on Maui, but they’re all original,” Kapuy said. “Original parts are hard to find. I’ve been looking all over on the Internet.”
When Kapuy acquired the Notchback, it had sustained some damage from the hurricane, and coupled with the difficulty in finding parts, he turned to his love of sand rails to rebuild the car.
“I upgraded the brakes to all four disc brakes and put on Porsche polished aluminum rims,” Kapuy said. “Those were real expensive.”
The upgrading continued into the engine compartment where, with the help of his son Rylen and Tim Contrades, the engine compartment was modified to accommodate a new Type 1 2110 cc four-cylinder engine equipped with dual 48 Dellerto carburetors.
“The original engine was a Type 3, and those were flat so the compartment was kind of like a table,” Kapuy said.
To go along with the new power mill, Contrades worked on creating a custom Magna Flow exhaust system as part of the upgrade to the Notchback which Kapuy thinks belonged to a guy who got tired of racing it.
“We upgraded a lot of stuff,” he said. “The headlights are BMW lamps that have a halo effect. I’ve hooked that up to the flasher system so when the turn signals are activated, there’s the halo effect.”
Kapuy said when he first saw the lights, he liked the halo effect, and after calling around, found out they could fit the Notchback.
The entire car has been rewired with new electrical wire and the original seats were replaced with Honda seats. The original rubber gaskets and seals have all been replaced, and the car is on the verge of a new paint job.
Kapuy said the project is kind of like a hobby for him. The current version of the ‘65 Notchback was recently seen at the Kaua‘i Community College Auto Show.
“I was going to put it in the Father’s Day Show at Kukui Grove, but we were working on the engine and it would have been embarrassing to just have the car there, not working,” Kapuy said. “When KCC had their show, we drove it down and that was the first time people got to see it.”
“I even got 5-point seat harnesses so it gives you the feel of racing when you sit in them.”
One of the features of the Notchback is the Air Ride system similar to those seen on the Mainland.
“I think this is the only car on the island that has an Air Ride system,” Kapuy said. “It gives you a better, smoother ride.”
The system works so well, Rylen is working on one for his project Nissan truck, Kapuy said.
One of the things that hasn’t changed is the license plate that reads “R.Kapuy.” He said that plate goes way back to the days sand rails were a popular thing to work on.
Another original piece of equipment is the rear seat arm rest that set the car apart.
“When I was working at the Princeville Resort, I met this couple from Germany who described the Notchback as the Cadillac of Volkswagens,” he said. “One of the things they pointed out was the armrest for the rear seat passengers.”
Rylen is a graduate of Wyo Tech, a school in Wyoming for automotive technology. Following his graduation, Rylen came back to Kaua‘i where he works as a front end specialist for Sears.
“He’s really into air brushing and pin striping,” Kapuy said. “The car was hung up for about four years while he was in school, and after he graduated he helped me paint the car to its House of Colors Orion Silver with Blue Ice. Do you know Blue Ice is really expensive — $90 for two ounces. I know I should have used more.”
The effect is dazzling as the afternoon sun at the Wailua Homesteads Park picked up the blue chips in the silver field and sparkled them blue. Kapuy said the original color was a Lime Time Pearl green and people who see the car comment on the change of color.
“If I had more money, I would love to do more stuff with this car,” Kapuy said. “A good body job because there’s some rust coming out. And, maybe even paint it some wild color.”
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
