Listen to you hens cluck-clucking away.
TheSamba classifieds is not to blame for the state of the market. Nor is any other online site. That's just what people would like to get for their cars. We know cars are worth what the market will bear. The woman who bought the Type 2 at Barrett-Jackson might have been off her rocker, but the sale went through. So in the truest sense of the word, that vehicle was worth that price, because someone actually paid it. We're living in a world where '57 Bel Airs can fetch $75,000 or more, and where crappy 50's east-Van bungalows go for half a mill. $45K for this Bus is outrageous only if the seller can't ever get that price, and who among us is sure that won't happen? It's a seller's market for earlier VW's and will be for the forseeable future.
True story: I had a guy e-mail me the other day asking if I knew where he could buy (and I'm quoting here) "a museum quality, totally correct 1958 Karmann Ghia Cabriolet. The most important element is that the car is in as completely original condition as is possible."
Now that's a tall order, but if he's actually able to find and buy one, and pays a premium for the quality car he's suggesting, he may single-handedly change the market value.
I believe all it would take for this Bus to sell at that asking price is for some rich broker's wife to decide that she really wants this funky old "Hippy Bus", and demands that hubby buys it for her. Let's face it, VWs are still a bargain compared to almost any other classic car. They're just now starting to catch up with the market, whether we like it (or can afford it) or not.