my dad bought a 69 vw dunebuggy when i was 5 so we have had it for 24 yrs and he recently passed it down to me there was 19 of this style made mine is number 17 we havent come acrossed one just like it in the 24 yrs we've owned it. i love this car it's always been mine and my dads baby. its currently in rough shape due to not being ran in about 7 yrs so it needs a new paint job and wiring harness which my husband and i are begining to work on. over the yrs many people have offered my dad good money for our dunebuggy but never would sell it and now that i have it i have had several offers but it will never leave this family. since we first got it we call it 'sput57' after my dad and his yr of birth. hope to meet some other buggy lovers on here and especially anyone with this same model!!!

In 1969 I was 10 when my dad got into buggys, I guess like Hank Williams Jr. we can say its just a family tradition, Good Luck finding another like it and welcome to the DBA !!!!!   Ken...................

Hi April,

I have, but not in person... That looks to be a Dunbar's Model D roadster there. Have a look and see if you think it's the same. http://www.dunebuggyarchives.com/gallery/base/Dunbar%20Model%20D%20Roadster/?base=14c1bea73f59fa988f66d00d169ceb04

They were made in Mass and the one that we have pictures of was for sale a year or so ago up in Maine or New Hampshire somewhere.

Let me know if you think they are the exact same thing.  It's interesting to hear any kind of numbers from production. How do you know how many were produced?

Jay

i talked to my dad this morning, he says his was made in mass and i was wrong there were 27 made they guy who made them (has now passed away) always took one of his busuness cards and inbeds it to the body under the front. his daughter lives here in maine and has visited my dad several times trying to buy it back. it does look exactly like the one in the pics it amazing it nice to see another one my dad know alot more about it than i do so i had to call and find out lol thanks for sending me the link jay! greatly appreciated!

April,
I'm glad to see there is another one out there! I was so excited to id the one we have in the gallery now. At first I didn't make the connection with your buggy, but the slope for the "door" cut out is pretty distinctive and clued me in.

I'm glad you and your husband have plans to get her back on the road.

I've had decent luck shooting glassed-in business cards by reaching my arm under the dash and shooting blind. If you or your husband ever get the chance to shoot that business card, it would be great to add that to the archives.... its rumored that Dunbar had several manufacturers making bodies for them. I'm curious to see which manufacturer actually made that body. My buddy has a dunbar hawk, and there is no card under the hood.

Best,
Jay

jay,
i'll see what i can do about getting a pic of the business card, its a little yellow and he went over it with a clear plaster or something to keep it there but i'll see if can atleast try to read it and get the name off it.
i cant wait to get 'sput57' back on the rd the process is going to be so fun for my husband and i but i think more so for my dad he got it 24 yrs ago when it was just a shell with no paint, no frame or motor so he has put alot of time into it i know he will love to take his two grandsons for a ride in it.

ok so i went out and took a pic not the best but my husband crawled under there and read what he could make out and he got where it said 'fran's auto body' and the names on it were francis mahoney and james fittspatrick, north st, mass i'll include the pic anyway from what my dad said the business burnt down in 1969 not long after his was made and the mold was lost in the fire. so before the guy who made them passed away he was trying to find out out of the 27 he made how many were still around and thats when his daughter found my dad and told him about the story of it all.

April,
Thanks for the picture. I'm glad your husband was able to crawl under to read it. Before I read all you wrote, I was trying to change the contrast of the picture to see what I could read. I got Frank's Auto Body out of it, but that was a complete guess. I really couldn't read it well.

I did what I could on the Internet to see what I could find. Nothing positive. I did find an actor named Will Mahoney born; William "James Fittspatrick" Mahoney. He died in 1969. I doubt it was the one and the same, since this guy was an actor, but strange to find something like that out there on the Internet.

I also found this:
http://www.dune-buggy.com/buggytalk/buggytalk.archive.cgi?noframes;read=7758

Jay

Someone has a typo or something. Scott typed Fran Maroney

Jay

Figured.... I tried to email Scott and it was bounced. not surprising since the email address is 10 years old.

Oh well.
Jay

lol thanks jay! i'll double check the names just in case my husband might of got them wrong he only has one eye blind in the other (paintball accident). i'll do that tomorrow. my dad is also trying to find out if the daughter of the man who made it still lives in the area.

ok so i just checked out the link you sent me!!! how wild is that!! lol it sounds like the same place to me he has the info on the shop burning as i do. he may have the name correct im gonna have to look tomorrow mahoney may look like maroney to my husband. thanks for helping me figure this out jay!!

No problems April. I enjoy trying to research as much as I can. I have no problems dropping someone an email to see if they are the same person I'm looking for.

Sometimes It's a dead end and other times it pays off.

Jay

so yesterday out of the blue my husband gets a phone call on our cell whiles he's at work......its the daughter of the man who made my buggy asking if she can once again buy it back!  she explained how she had asked my dad 20 yrs ago to buy it back and how he refused, she offered us 5k for it my husband said no so she offer 7,500 no again, she says she has a pic of her standing beside it after her dad made it when she was 5 yrs old, i can understand why she would want it the same reason i am going to keep it....because its a part of my dad....the same as it's a part of her dad. no amount of money in the world will buy this car!!

oh and what i can't figure out is HOW she got our cell number! amazing!! lol

That's bizarre.The guy I bought my buggy from had it in the family since it was created. He hated to see it go and was seriously second thinking the sale of it when I came to pick it up.

I had promised him to restore it to vintage just the way his uncle owned it and I was going to bring it to car shows the first year like that. I told him I would stop by when I got it together, which I did.

I've owned it for 4 years now and just a few weeks ago he asked me for a recent picture.... Turns out his grandpa took a turn for the worst and wanted to see what it looks like now. I obliged him.

Just as a suggestion.... The next time she calls (probably in a few years) you could make her a promise that if you ever DO decide to sell it, she will be given first dibs. I'm not suggesting you ever sell it, but she should rest easier knowing that you would give her first refusal.

Besides... you really can't blame her at all for trying her hardest to get in touch with the buggy owners who have it now. You understand the drive behind it I'm sure.

That's a great story!

Jay

April

My name is Dustin Paige. You may not remember me but we went to school together and it was my mother that called you the other day. My grandfather was Francis Moroney who owned Fran's Auto Body and fabricated these Dune Buggies. I think one of the big reasons my mother again track down your buggy was that I got married Labor day weekend. I have spent many hours trying to find another but I dont think there are many left. My uncle bought the only other one I know of, which he was kind enough to trailer up from Mass. so that I could arrive and leave in for my wedding. I have some really good pictures from the wedding that I will try to post one here along with a copy of the newspaper article my mother had referred to with the picture of her, one of my uncles and my grandfather after he had finished on. The articl is framed and hangs on the wall in my livingroom. I can still remember the day I was ride with my grandfather driving by the action barn and he spoted yours. I had never seen he hit the brakes so hard. He turned around pulled in to jump out and look under the dash to see the card. That was the day he met your dad. I would do just about anything for one of these but all and all I am just glad to know there are a few still around to carry on his spirit.

I absolutely love this post.... its great that the history is unfolding!

Jay

April,
I am the Daughter of Francis Moroney that called you last month. I Have always wanted to own one of my dads Buggys. I told your dad many years ago if he was ever going to sell it to please let me know. I was trying to find out if he still had it and your sister told my friend you and her had the two that used to belong to your dad. She gave her # to my friend. I called her to see if she had the one my dad made and was told you had that one. So she gave me your #. I am still very  interested in some day owning one of them. I explained this to you husband and I can understand your not wanting to let it go. There was never a $$ offer made by me. Once he said you would never let it go I saw no point. I did ask that you keep my # and if ever there comes a day that you do decide to sell it if you would please give me a call and let me know what you want for it. I still live in Corinna on Chamberlain Meetinghouse Rd. So I just ask that you please keep my in mind.
And the picture I referred to is a newspaper article done about my dad when he made them. It was put out by the Milford Daily News. And my dad standing beside it in the picture and I am inside it with my little brother Timmy. I see my son Dustin has also posted here and will be posting a copy of the article soon. I will also post again as I get some of Dads pictures and info together.
I am soooo happy to find this site! If there is anyone on here who might have knowledge of more of my dads buggys. Maybe even any that might be available for me to buy. Please get in touch with me.
It was great reading Jays posts he has a lot of good things to say. So glad to see people still have interest in my dads creation outside the family. Thanks Jay.

Sue

WOW, I love it, it is amazing what dune buggys can do to bring back history and memories, # 1 IS OUR FATHERS AND MOTHERS CAN NEVER BE REPLACED !!!!!!! All they do and did for us are in our hearts and memories forever !!!!!  I too would love to have my dads old buggys back !!!!!!  BUT if we cant lets make NEW memories,  It takes a special person to bring a old buggy back to life and save it from rot or a crusher, Maby find a buggy that needs a friend and go from there !!! Good luck to all of you !!!!!!                Ken..............................

Hello April, as you already know, that's a Dunbars Model D.  The black and maroon two tone is unique might be familiar to me.  There was one close by in Milford.

The only current runner I've seen is a white one, Mike's, (aka Fran also) probably the one used in the wedding.

Dunbars was in my home town growing up, I'm a huge buggy nut and have been for many years now.  I'd love to see a copy of that old Milford Daily News article.

I tried to start a discussion on Dunbars cars under the Dune Buggy Model Discussions folder on this DBA site, no chatter up till now.

Boston Bob E.

Hey Bob, I had done a TON of research on Dunbars because my buggy so closely resembled a Minivolks, that it took a long while to realize it wasn't a Dunbars. I even drove to Framingham and drove by the business that now occupies the space where Dunbars used to be. This was a few years back. As I recall it was a metal fab place... can't remember the name off the tip of my tongue.

I had a lot of emails back and forth with an old member here, Matt from NH. The emails are archived, and I have to do quite a bit of re-configuring of my mail client to extract the old emails, but they are still on my hard drive. I was planning to post up all I knew, but life gets in the way.

Hopefully I will be able to do that at some point. its all interesting info!

Jay

Darn Jay now I am going to have to drive to Daytona to see what is where the old Allison plant was. How you been Man,      Ken........................

Been SUPER busy, but its been in a good way... with my first house.

You should plan to fly out to fl and see the old place... I say fly cause I know if you drive, something will be in tow on the way back if you drive, LOL.

Jay

OK,
I have not had a chance to scan the newspaper but I am going to try and attach some pics of my Dad's Dune Buggy that my brother Mike (Also Francis Moroney) bought back and restored. He does fiberglass work at his shop in Upton, on boats mostly. And yes it is the buggy that my son drove at his wedding! Our family is quite proud of Mike and this buggy.

I scanned the article from the paper. I tried to blow up the write up so you could read it better. As you will see Dad orig. wanted to name it the Challenger 500. But that name was already being used. So they called it the Model D.

Jay CONGRATS on the first home!!!!!!!!

Sue, great story, thanks for sharing it with us here. As well as all the history you have shared with us about your fathers car.

brad

Hi April, I just started reading you chit chat back and forth about the Model D that you have. I just thought I might show you a few pics of the one that I restored. If I can answer any questions I will be glad to. Have fun with that.   Mike

Wow simply amanzing story. I to have tracked my Manx to the orignal owner and builder but that is as far as i got because he had passed. Dune Buggies and the people who own them are the best. I have made life long friends all over this great country. I think Jay will agree. Carlile is in May lets see if us east coast guys can get more then 34 buggies. Get busy April May will come around fast..

Agree I will! I've met some great guys and gals through buggies. I'll have to haul! I've got to redo brakes, still need to get the new chrome steel wheels balanced and need to tear the hood off yet again to repair a puncture in the gas tank. I'll be gone for 3 months too. That leaves no time. Will see if I can make a miracle happen.

Jay

Sue, thanks for scanning it, but as you can see it's a little small.

Any chance you could email it to bimelliott@comcast.net 

Thank you very much for sharing.

Jay i dought i will have the new one ready. still plan on the green one going.

hi sue! sorry i am just now reading your post i havent been on for awhile! i was shocked to come on and read these storys! i will def. keep you in mind your dad did a wonderful job making it i absolutely love this car we are in the process of redoing it (new paint job & all) and i want it on the rd this summer and i would love to come visit you in it and maybe we could take it for a ride together i live right in stetson so not to far from you at all. i would love to see the articles im sure they are posted but i havent read anything beyond this post. and thank you too as well jay this is an amazing site and im def glad i found it!

wow francis those are great pics! and i love finding out the history of this buggy this car means everything to me and my dad 25 yrs of wonderful memories in it i dont get on here much but if you or sue ever want to email me go ahead at sawd4ever@yahoo.com

hi dustin, congrat on you wedding and getting to have your dream of riding in one of your grandfathers buggys thats aweasome! and that your uncle was able to find another one. i dont remember you from school but thats ok its nice to meet you now. yeah we were living up by the auction bar when my dad first bought it, we have been in so many parades and stuff over the past 25 yrs with 'sput57' i love this buggy i have been waiting many yrs to own it and finally after i bought my house this past yr my dad finally gave it to me and honestly i dont think he would have if he thought for any reason i would sell it he made me promise that as long as he is still breathing i would never sell it LOL but he has nothing to worry about its not going anywhere so i def. want you and you family to know that this car is being taken car of, im not letting it rot, or go to waste just sitting out in a back field somewhere like alot of these beautiful classic cars sit now,and so you know the pic of it in the snow i did have it tarped because i didnt own a garage but now it sits in the garage at my new house while my new cars sit in the snow my husband and i love classics and have own quite a few but my dunebuggy is the only one that ever stays i would feel completely empty without it its a part of our family and will be passed down to my boys in the WAY WAY future, they are only 6 & 4 so i have plenty of time left LOL!! thank you and you family for reaching out and contacting me and clarrifying anything i may have gotten wrong in these post its great to find out the true facts this is an amzing story and very greatful for you all for sharing it and for your grandfather for making such amazing rides!

A copy of this article was given to me with the purchase of my first buggy. Acquired in 2019 I have now owned this model d for a year and presently into fixing the motor.  My intentions from the start is to keep it as original as possible, that is, as original as I received it. 1970 dual port 1600. It was great to finally find this post. Not familiar with buggies at all, it has been a challenge to find any information on this style.  I guess, because so few were made.