So what was your intro to the aircooled world?

[cunning plan]

My intro was this, 'if you want it come and collect it' a trailer and a mates disco later and its parked on my driveway

Its the only aircooled i own and the only 1 i have ever owned.
It was sat in its previous burial ground for 7 years (it had to be oulled out from the under growth that had engulfed it) and prior to this for a further 7 years with its previous owner sat on his driveway

Are you putting that back to a panel :?: 8) 8)


For me:
I saw a couple of Beetles around, fancied one, bought a few copies of VolksWorld and was fascinated with what you could do with them.

I then looked more at busses, but couldn't afford one. Looked at a Beetle which was a total project for my budget when I just wanted something to play with.

I then looked across the VW scene (as you do) and found T3s which were in my budget and you could do plenty with them and I liked the fact you could use them as your daily.

After a lot of hard work:

Then sold it to be sensible for a bit.. But couldn't stop thinking about busses, really wanted a Bay but specifically an EarlyBay with small rear lights and a real early ('68) UK RHD came up locally for sale with a '63 Beetle which my then housemate bought at the same time!

It needed restoring really, so now looks more like these:

 

[Guest]

my dad used to fix dubs long before i was born, for a dealership who also sold jags so there were a few nice motors in our lives. my first memory was a tomato red GT.

 

[crede999]

Mine was my first car in 89 a 66 cal look bug kdm 54d ford peppermint green with pink chequer stickers ... Lowered on scorpion 5 spokes .... Then in 90 went to bugjam and that was me hooked .... Think it was the guy with one eye selling Stella for a quid out of a old ambulance that did it !!!!

Chris

 

[K@rlos]

My dad, he used to tune up bugs during the 60's and 70's, had a split for a time then a 1972 Devon when I was young. Then when I started work I decided to buy a Bus as my first car. £7000 lighter I ended up with my 1970 California import Westy :bliss:

Now mine is costing me mega money and my dad goes on about how tuning the engine spoils them even though he was into tuning them years ago :|

:lol:

Karl

 

[mister]

went on holiday with some friends to newquay, it was 92(?), and got stuck in a massive traffic jam full of vw's, the campsite was full of them also.....it was "run to the sun".
a few weeks later I sold my mini and found myself a 70 devon tin top in beige (now RIP or MIA), loved it for five years but sold it to go traveling....one of my big mistakes!

 

[froggy]

My intro was this, 'if you want it come and collect it' a trailer and a mates disco later and its parked on my driveway

Its the only aircooled i own and the only 1 i have ever owned.
It was sat in its previous burial ground for 7 years (it had to be oulled out from the under growth that had engulfed it) and prior to this for a further 7 years with its previous owner sat on his driveway

Are you putting that back to a panel :?: 8) 8)

Nah, it became this

 

[THE LAST PANZER]

My dad had a '79 panel for his upholstery business he had it from new and i loved it. I loved sitting up front with the full length fixed bulkhead, he still runs a new vw lt for his business now but does miss the old girl.

and as they say the rest is history.

 

[clyde]

One of my brothers had a green 60s beetle in the late 70s. That was my first ride in a Bug but he didnt have any car very long before he swapped it.
My first proper girlfiends dad had a red bay that we used to go water skiing in at weekends. It was his pride and joy and he never forgave me for a incident in November 85 when after a bonfire night party at a family friends (too much home brew) i was sick in it on the way home. Will have to stick my head over the fence next time im up that way to see if hes still got it.

 

[Bobster]

My first car was a 1960 Volvo Amazon ...

but my mate had a 1961 Cal Looker Dub. I really didn't like them at the time but he insisted on dragging me down to Santa Pod / Avon Park etc for Bug Jam, Night of Fire etc etc. Over time they grew on me which resulted in me flogging the tank and getting my first bug, a 66 rest cal ....

I ran this as my daily for a few years but then fancied a change so sold it on and bought a 65 Cal Looker ..

Again I kept this for a few years but had a hankering for something a bit different so again sold this on, this time moving into the realm of Ghia's so I bought this (which I still have) ...

We also had our first little one a couple of years back so thought I would add a camper to the list so bought this ..

which we kept for about a year although it has to be saif that I am missing it so am planning on buying another, hopefully an early Westy, at the back end of next year when the latest addition to out family (who is only 2 weeks old) is a little older and ready to camp.

 

[poptop2]

In 1978 my father in law sold me his mint 71 devon caravelle for £900 , Lou ( my vw camper mad wife ) told me he was selling it and has she had travelled all over europe in it , she thought it should stay with us , so we paid him so much a month until it was ours -n this is she 8 years later--

Since then we have had a 73 danbury a 83 t25 aircoolled and now my 72 westy - love em all

 

[K@rlos]

Got got into Aircooled's through my dad. He had a 72 Devon when I was a kid which I loved and before that had beetles, type 3's and a 61 split screen back in the 60's and 70's. Reading all his old Volksworld mags made me want 1, so when I started work I imported my 1970 Westy For California

Karl

 

[DadWagens]

I was pretty much born into aircooled VWs. My parents were third owners of a '73 standard, which they bought in '76 before I was born. I grew up going to football practice in that car, learned to drive in it at age 14, drove it all through high school and brought my bride home in it on our wedding day.

I restored/customized it in 1999 and still have it. One day my son will get it, if he wants it.

This is how it looks like today, eleven years after I fixed it up:

 

[Jimbly]

I'd never been remotely interested in air-cooled until I went to Le Mans with a mate in his crew cab Splittie. Big engine (170bhp), freeway flier gearbox, genuine 90mph on the autoroute (thanks TomTom) and a single, massive back-fire when he lifted-off alongside any old gits in their wooden sports cars.

The thing drew unbelievable respect all weekend, to the point where we even got Wayne's World 'We're not worthy' praise on the Mulsanne Straight on Mad Friday.

Ended up driving it most of the way back and decided that I needed something air-cooled - life's too short to be trying to go everywhere at 90mph...

Found Maisie (thanks Owen), built a workshop and maybe, one day, the cuts on my hands might heal...

Went the following year and loved it - great road trip, slept in her, carted 6 people around the circuit on Saturday night, nearly ran out of juice several times and wondered if the engine would go China Syndrome as we queued to get into the campsite.

All passed without a hitch ad that was it - hooked.

EDIT - trying to add a photo - can anyone tell me how to do this please? Cheers, J

 

[faux]

My intro was this:

I knew nothing about VW's but did a lot to it:

It was a really nice solid RHD Devon but I hankered after something earlier......