Rob Vondracek, a retired building contractor who now lives near Phoenix, has owned European sports cars. But his automotive passion is focused on the Amphicar—a vehicle designed to drive on the road or swim on water. The amphibious vehicle was produced in Germany between 1961 and 1969, with most of the units sold in the United States. Vondracek bought about 20 Amphicars over the past dozen years—finding many of them on eBay—but he now owns a single gorgeous red 1963 example.
There are two Amphicars currently on sale on eBay—a 1965 aqua blue model with an astoundingly low 146 original miles, and a rare right-hand-drive 1967 mint green version.
Vondracek maintains both a car registration and a boat registration for his 1963 Amphicar in Arizona, a state known for scorching hot deserts. There are also plenty of nearby lakes to cruise on, including Saguaro Lake. Vondracek notes that the car tightly seals and is very stable in the water. “The performance of the Amphicar is incredible,” he said. “It is ultra safe in the water, practically unsinkable with the top up.”
Vondracek not only loves Amphicars, he started a crusade to preserve them via his website, All Things Amphicar. He bought his first one in the 1980s for less than $9,000. While working as a contractor, he continued to pursue his Amphicar hobby—buying and selling them on the side. Vondracek says that parts are easily available for the cars, but the transmission is a unique item that can prove difficult to locate.
Approximately 4,500 Amphicars were produced, and according to Vondracek, there are about 2,000 still in use. Of the balance, he figures 1,500 have been used as donors for parts. And the remaining 1,000? He believes that many are stored and forgotten in a garage, with the owner not realizing what they have. President Lyndon B. Johnson famously owned an Amphicar. Madonna reportedly owns one now.
Vondracek has seen the price of the Amphicars wildly fluctuate over the years. Of the two fine examples now listed on eBay, the 1965 model has so far received 32 bids carried to just over $25,000—while the 1967 Amphicar has a Buy-It-Now price of just below $90,000. For Vondracek, it’s not about an investment or about the many practical uses of a vehicle that can traverse land or sea. As he states on his website: “The Amphicar is only good for one thing: fun.”
