seraphim
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My toad is a 78 FI Super Beetle cabriolet. Flat tows behind whatever RV I have at the moment.
5 Best Selling Cars of All Times
- Thread starter savory
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Badger
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I bought my first Beetle (new) in 1973. I needed something reliable, easy to work on, and inexpensive. I really wanted a Karmen Ghia but they were just a little too expensive for me at the time. Later at various times I bought used a hardtop and a convertable KG, 2 vans and a Westy - all air cooled. I liked all the air cooled models but never could get excited about the newer ones. Also had a new Tercel because the Corolla was also a bit more money at the time. Now we (my wife) has an F-150 we hope to keep for a long time.
Cheers!
Cheers!
ls99
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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The only new car I ever bought was a 72 Super Beetle.
Ten years later I sold it to my older niece for $100-. It needed some work. She took it to a guy who worked part time on cars.
He fixed the car. Then she married him. Four kids later, and some time passing, she will be a granny in a few months. Isn't life interesting?
Ten years later I sold it to my older niece for $100-. It needed some work. She took it to a guy who worked part time on cars.
He fixed the car. Then she married him. Four kids later, and some time passing, she will be a granny in a few months. Isn't life interesting?
I bought my Beetle in the early 70's because of the oil crisis. 5 gallon gas rationing, long lines, out of gas signs, stations closed on Sunday. I remember using lunch hours to buy the 5 gallons. Traded in a Dodge Charger which got less than 12 mpg. If I remember correctly the oil crisis also started the flood of Japanese cars into our market.
Al in Ohio
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
I coulda swore the list would include the Ford Pinto. Those cars literally "exploded" when they hit the scene.
calmloki
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I owned a '66 and a '70, and while they certainly wouldn't lay you back in the seat, they were peppy enough. Perhaps my driving style was a bit more "aggressive"...
Yeah. style. Did up a '61 cloth moonroof bug for my gal when she was a service manager at several Chevy dealerships. Dumb of me, as they offered her a free demo, but in my male pride I said I would provide my woman's car. It was not bad. Ran dual Kadron or Dellorto carbs on short aluminum manifolds, dual port big valve heads, 90.5mm cylinders, various other engine tricks... Lowered the car and was running big brakes and a different master cylinder to slow it down well. She loved passing cars going uphill but could not keep a clutch disk in that car for a year - she would just explode them. Oh my gal. Not one for slipping the clutch, she bangs gears hard!
ohyes
Full time employment: Posting here.
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These Beetle stories are great. My DH was driving a Beetle when we met. His favorite car of all times was his Karmann Ghia, but that was before.
His dad would buy DH's worn out Beetles from him and DH would use that $200 to go buy another one, lol. He had one (before we met) with broken windshield wipers. DH had a string attached to it and would pull that string (while driving slowly in the rain) to make the wiper "work". He loved the Beetles in the Massachusetts snow and for the gas mileage on his trips between MA and ME.
When we met, he was living part time in MA and part time in ME. He kept clothes in his back seat. Behind the driver's seat were the clean clothes and behind the passenger seat were the dirty ones. He was known to mix plaids and stripes.
No wonder my parents were so worried we would never make it.
Great memories indeed.
His dad would buy DH's worn out Beetles from him and DH would use that $200 to go buy another one, lol. He had one (before we met) with broken windshield wipers. DH had a string attached to it and would pull that string (while driving slowly in the rain) to make the wiper "work". He loved the Beetles in the Massachusetts snow and for the gas mileage on his trips between MA and ME.
When we met, he was living part time in MA and part time in ME. He kept clothes in his back seat. Behind the driver's seat were the clean clothes and behind the passenger seat were the dirty ones. He was known to mix plaids and stripes.
No wonder my parents were so worried we would never make it.
Great memories indeed.
Bikerdude
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An old girlfriend of mine sold her 1968 Beetle to a new immigrant. 2 weeks later he called and said the drivers side floor collapsed. She asked me what to tell him, I said, "tell him welcome to America" and hangup.
My dad was an engineer and one of the guys in his group bought a Bug in the early 60's, kept meticulous records (engineers . . .) and went on and on about the great mileage it got. The guys got so tired of this that they began putting a bit of extra gas in the car during the lunch hour. After a couple of months, he was getting over 50 MPG. ("Now that the engine is fully broken in, the mileage is even better! . . .) Of course they all told him that was impossible, but he had the records. Well, they then abruptly stopped adding gas. His fuel economy dropped tremendously. He went through every inch of the car, rebuilt the carb, checked for fuel leaks, fiddled with the timing and points, and took it to several mechanics to find out what was wrong. "I was getting over 50 MPG, now I'm lucky to get 25!" They thought he was crazy. The guys eventually told him the story . . . I think.
This is the type of thing women would never do to each other, but which guys, in general, think is hilarious.
Which reminded me of this old VW TV ad from my youth. Two Pennies A Mile!
This is the type of thing women would never do to each other, but which guys, in general, think is hilarious.
Which reminded me of this old VW TV ad from my youth. Two Pennies A Mile!
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Andre1969
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Most of those are fails, by my definition. As far as I'm concerned, as soon as a car gets redesigned, it's not the same car anymore, even if it is the same nameplate. There may be a ton of cars running around with the Corolla nameplate on them, but the car gets redesigned every 5 years or so. Same with the F-series, although trucks usually don't get redesigned as often as cars. Now, something like the old Model T or the original Bug, or the '73-87 Chevy C/K, that's impressive in my book. Or, back in the 1960's for a few years the Impala nameplate alone was good for an easy one million plus.
On the subject, in 1929, a new brand was launched, which set a record, reaching 100,000 sales in a brief 14 months. Anybody want to guess on what that one was? Well, let's just say that in 1957 the ads proclaimed that "This baby can flick its tail at anything on the road", but four short years later, it was consigned to the history files, and was considered a bit of a loser car. Back in college though, when I worked at Denny's, my old manager said that he had one for his first car, in 1965, and while it was considered a loser-mobile, it had enough guts out of its Hemi engine to embarrass many much more cooler, hipper cars!
On the subject, in 1929, a new brand was launched, which set a record, reaching 100,000 sales in a brief 14 months. Anybody want to guess on what that one was? Well, let's just say that in 1957 the ads proclaimed that "This baby can flick its tail at anything on the road", but four short years later, it was consigned to the history files, and was considered a bit of a loser car. Back in college though, when I worked at Denny's, my old manager said that he had one for his first car, in 1965, and while it was considered a loser-mobile, it had enough guts out of its Hemi engine to embarrass many much more cooler, hipper cars!
Larro Darro
Recycles dryer sheets
I have owned two of the five, and drove another two.
My parents helped me buy a new Rabbit my Sr year in high school, in 1979. It was a good little car. When I joined the Navy I gave it back to them. My dad put over 200K miles on it.
I have owned 2 F100's and an F150 over the years. One of them was a 1972 F100. Really wished I had kept that one.
My girlfriend in college bought a used Corolla in 1980. That was a sporty car, much cooler than my Rabbit.
My sister has owned 2 or 3 Bugs. When her and DH#1 {who was in the USAF} lived in SC, I stayed with them some in the summers. Those red clay roads were a lot of fun after a rain in the Bugs.
My parents helped me buy a new Rabbit my Sr year in high school, in 1979. It was a good little car. When I joined the Navy I gave it back to them. My dad put over 200K miles on it.
I have owned 2 F100's and an F150 over the years. One of them was a 1972 F100. Really wished I had kept that one.
My girlfriend in college bought a used Corolla in 1980. That was a sporty car, much cooler than my Rabbit.
My sister has owned 2 or 3 Bugs. When her and DH#1 {who was in the USAF} lived in SC, I stayed with them some in the summers. Those red clay roads were a lot of fun after a rain in the Bugs.
