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| Overrun with bugs! (click to enlarge) |
Don't you just hate it when there is an infestation of bugs? Before you know it, they are everywhere. lol.
For you youngsters who may not know what I'm talking about, Volkswagen models like these were called either Beetles or Bugs. They had an air-cooled engine in the back and had from 48-60 horsepower, if my memory serves me well. Volkswagen resurrected the shape in 1998 as The New Beetle. It was never as popular as the original or did it gain as much nostalgic feeling as the old model and was discontinued in 2019.
A lifelong friend of mine had a Beetle in high school. The car was so lightweight, four of us could literally pick it up and turn it 90 degrees if need be. We drove all over in that little, very slow, car. Lots of fun, however.
I believe these vehicles still hold the world's record for the longest produced car in automotive history—70 years. If that has changed, please let me know.
ADDITION: After talking with a friend who had one in the 1950s, I remembered that there was no fuel gauge in the early models. You kind of had to figure out how far the car would go on a tank of gasoline and then remember to not drive that far before refueling. It did have a small lever on the floor under the dashboard which allowed you to tap into a ‘reserve’ tank, about 1 gallon, in case you ran out of fuel. Also, there was no proper heater. You just tuned a knob and heat was able to enter the cabin from the engine compartment. It kind of permeated down near the floor…and don’t forget the fuel tank was in the front inside the ‘trunk.’ Volkswagen made you work if you wanted to drive their car!
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Thanks for looking. Enjoy!
Dennis A. Mook
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I had a '70 almost exactly like the one on the far left in front. Interesting they still have the license plates attached.
ReplyDeleteThey were unique. Thanks Dan. ~Dennis
DeleteMy first car at the age of 18 as a new driving licence holder was also a Beetle, built in 1974 and 7 years old when I got it. It was a model with a curved windscreen, 1.3 litre capacity and 44 hp, in other words the ‘luxury version’. The standard Beetle had a straight windscreen, 1.2 litres and 40 hp. In the 70s there were models from 34 to 60 hp.
ReplyDeleteThe heating worked in such a way that two air hoses from the air-cooled engine were routed from the side through the door sills to the front. In the footwell, the warm air then came through outlet openings (warm air rises upwards ;-), but it took a while, especially in winter, before anything came out. Oh yes, then you shouldn't breathe if possible, because without a fan the windows tended to freeze up from the inside. But all in all, it was a cool car, especially when you were 18 and didn't have much money.
Manfred, thank you for your story. Brings back memories! ~Dennis
ReplyDeleteIn 1965, Louise and I set off on our honeymoon in the North Georgia mountains in a 1959 VW Beetle. Fond memories!
ReplyDelete…and that’s why you are still married to Louise today! It was that ‘romantic’ bug that started your marriage off perfectly! Lol. ~Dennis
DeleteHere's a quote from the last chapter of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia:
ReplyDelete"But my most poignant memory is of the last day of my honeymoon. My wife and I had spent a week in the North Georgia mountains, the last several days in a small resort called Enotah Cottages across from Vogel State Park.
On this last day, we packed our Volkswagen and drove over the mountain to Turner's Corner. To the right, down US 19, lay home, responsibility. . . life. I can still feel, even now, the powerful urging of my heart to choose the left fork and stay in the mountains forever.
As Yogi Berra said, "When you come to a fork in the road, take it."
So I did. And life has been good."