Ken,

Unfortunately your theory has many flaws in it. For example:

By the time you could buy bud vases for your bug, which incedentally were 
NOT VW parts, you could have hydraulic brakes in your beetle (1952)...

As far as your fuel gauge piece....."bee catchers" started showing up in the 
late 50s early 60s...the fuel gauge showed up in the Karman Ghia in 
1958...and in the Beetle in 1961...approximately the same time...the metal 
stick you speak of was again, a non-VW piece...

Ric