Dunbar Registry
Dunbar was a very popular Nor Eastern maker. I have seen what appears to be the same model they built as the MiniVolks advertised as the Hawk, after "Hawk" Harrelson, the big baseball star, ordered and endorsed them.
I am not sure about the Hawk II?
The Minivolks was one of the first buggies to use what I call the East Coast hood. Many of the small makers who were trying to manufacture the cheapest kit they could, made a hood that had the dash molded into it as one part. It had no convex curves since that would be impossible to pull from a mold. The hood flared at the edges to grab on to the body sides in front of the windshield frame. The dash was usually very flat or had a ridge line molded in.
Dunbar liked to have scoops on the hood. Check out the Beverly Hills to see them up close. The big signature to these bodies though is what I call an exaggerated tail design. The rear fenders have a low, almost mud flap, built in to them. The whole tail has a long low extended look. More engine coverage. East Coast DMV laws were much stricter than the west coast. NJ, CT, DE and others required tire and engine coverage. Many of the 1972 motor vehicle laws nationwide adopted these rules and it was the beginning of the end of buggy production.
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To add an entry or update your entry, click here to loginD Roadster Registry
The nose of the hood is vertical and it has a big D on it.
Hawk Registry
The Dunbar Hawk has a pair of hood scoops running along the top of the hood. It is on a full length pan.
Dunbar Hawk
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| Body | Matt's Hawk, in NH. Was originally a blue metal flake, now flamed orange. Still working on the restoration. |
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Hawk II and Hawk 40 II Registry
The Hawk II has wide fenders with louver hood scoops.
From Burn-z - I guys I'm trying to be a little bit of an expert on the Dunbar but it's hard finding information. I actually tracked down Howard Dunbar through his daughter. Asked him about the MiniVolks and sent him pictures of mine to see if he could tell me anything about it. Here is an except of his email "OK Patrick: Good photos. Checked your original pictures and Hawk article. It appears you have a Hawk II, same body we used to build the Hawk 40 II. Engine cover was redesigned with bump out to cover Porsche motor. Original motor was a VW as in description. Ken wanted a hotter motor so we installed the Porsche. VW motor in a Buggy is more dependable. Howard"
After that, I asked for information about old literature, bodies floating about or the molds and he went silent. I'll post the articles that I have in the yahoo site.
Hawk II
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| Location | Massachusetts |
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| Story | This was a surprise birthday present from my father-in-law 2 years ago and since then I just can drive it enough. With a little help from burn-z (who come to find out is in the next town over with the same body type) informed me that is was a Hawk II. |
Burn-z's Hawk II
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| Body | THis is actually a HAWKII |
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| Frame | 64 VW beetle |
| Engine | 1600DP |
| Status | Frame completely rebuilt Engine rebuilt Starting on the glasswork soon |
| Owner | Patrick Byrne |
| Front Tires/Wheels | 15" 7" |
| Rear Tires/Wheels | 17" 10" |
| Transaxle | Swing |
| Location | Northbridge, MA |
| Previous Owner | Jeff Holestien Rick Holstien(orignal owner) |
MiniVolks Registry
Compared to the other Dunbar buggies (Hawk, Hawk II and Hawk 40 II), the MiniVolks had no hood scoops.
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