Ewe have to see it to believe it

About 25 years ago, Cab-4-Ewe was the brainchild of the late Geoff Warren to promote farming character in Canterbury.

Now the stretched 1974 Volkswagen Golf MK 1, which had been parked up for the last five years, has been sold for $350 in a TradeMe auction with the proceeds donated to Ellesmere Lions.

Warren died on November 30, aged 82. The family had listed the car for sale prior to his death.

The hatchback was donated to Warren about 25 years ago.

Before that, it had been used as a paddock racer.

The Leeston resident cut the car in half and added an extra two-and-a-half metres of steel, making it about 6m long.

The stretched car was then lined with plywood flooring, carpet, sheep netting, and a rustic picket gate for loading and unloading sheep.

Warren and his wife Shirley’s pet sheep eagerly lined up to board, and the vehicle became something of an institution at many pet shows, Santa parades in Leeston, Lincoln, Ashburton and Christchurch, and even a VW national convention in Dunedin.

The sheep stood on display at eye level for children and were known to nibble inquisitively on the driver’s ear. 

Cab-4-Ewe last saw service about five years ago in the Lincoln Santa Parade. 

The family is hoping the new owner restores the car for future generations.