An entry-level 2025 Porsche 911 Carrera will set you back $128,000 and give you 388 hp (394 PS) in return, but someone just spent very nearly as much money on a distant ancestor to that 911 with only 24 hp slung out beyond the rear axle.

Not an old Porsche, but an old VW Beetle. A now-rare split-window Bug from 1952 whose age and European specification quirks sent bidders into a frenzy on Bring a Trailer, resulting in it selling for $95,959 – the Porsche-referencing numbers that made up the winning bid surely no coincidence.

Related: Guess Where The Engine Is In This VW Super Beetle

I’ll admit that when I first saw these images I thought this Beetle was some kind of subtle restomod. It’s the total lack of chrome that does it, a feature of base-spec Standard Bugs in Europe that weren’t available in the US, where early Beetles came in Deluxe trim with lots of brightwork, according to the auction blurb.

The bumpers, headlight rims, window surrounds and even door handles are painted body color, and there are no brand or model badges anywhere, giving the car a strangely modern look.

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And being so old, it also has several features not seen on later Type 1s, the most obvious being the rear window. Beetles all came with an oval rear window until 1958, but only cars built before 1953 had a split-window design. Other details not seen on later cars include 16-inch wheels, one-piece door windows and semaphore turn signal arms that pop out of the B-pillar instead of modern-style flashing lights.

It also has the early 1,131 cc flat four generating just 24 hp (24 PS), which drives the wheels through a non-synchro four-speed manual transmission and the scary swing-axle rear suspension. And if you think that sounds old-tech, you’ll love the brakes, which are cable-operated rather than hydraulic.

Some air-cooled VW experts commenting during the auction claim this super-clean restored car has a few incorrect parts that would cost big bucks to replace, and suggest this car is wildly overpriced. But even if it was correct to the last nut and bolt, could you imagine spending six figures on a humble 24 hp Beetle?

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