Lest you get excited, Gentle Reader, by the fact the last three (and now four) posts had Volkswagen-related content, I wanted to clear up any confusion and let you know this is *not* “VW Week” here at CC.
Not yet, anyway…
Curbside Outtake: VW Week? Not Yet…
– Posted on September 3, 2013
I am starting to wonder if those No. 53 decals are the desperation move of choice for every owner of a ratty white VW Bug.
Not yours, of course, Ed. The decals on a New Beetle (that is not ratty) comes with a hefty dose of clever irony. The pictured car, however, uses the decal as a sort of porcine lip makeup.
Honk if you’re Herbie.
If yer gonna recreate Herbie…at least use the right car!
That’s a SUPER Beetle…unheard of and unthought-of when Herbie was assembled…hell, when the MOVIE was made!
Actually, Disney used quite a wide range of Beetle models for the movie cars (no Supers, tho). Most were back- or forward-dated to look like a ’63. Spotting the different cars (many of which were reused in the sequels) is a favorite pastime of Love Bug Fans.
This is one of my pet peeves, I think I might even do an article on it, people that do “movie recreation” cars using the wrong car, like “Hubert the Like Bug” above or a Ghostbusters ambulance using a 70’s Cadillac hearse or something like that
Send me a membership card for your club.
Can’t forget Fargo switching “The Tan Ciera” between ’87 and ’89 models.
That’s annoying too, but I am thinking more like this….
Though I’ve seen worse.
And Dodge St. Regis Bluesmobiles are just wrong. Even worse are four-door hardtop Monaco (or Fury) Bluesmobiles. Either do it right or don’t do it at all…
If we’re going to sneak into VW week, I want 411’s and K70’s.
If it is to be VW week I want pics of the Corrado or maybe a VW Apollo(rebadged Ford Verona)
Passat B5 4.0 W8 (yes, a W8) please.
All Go, No Show.
You must have come too late for this one a few months back: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-capsule-2002-volkswagen-passat-w8-half-a-bugatti-veyron-engine-for-only-40k/
Yep, May 1 2013, before I joined the party. Thanks for the link.
Oh, Oh, pick me, pick me.
Ed, when is VW week? I have a related QOTD and we should do a duelling VW restoration update…
Well I guess now we need to schedule it, huh? (Pandora’s box has been opened!).
Yup. It may not be vw week yet but you do need to schedule it. Shouldn’t have any trouble getting it past Paul. It would seem there are more fans than anyone knew.
These Beetle posts are reminding me how popular the car was and how quickly it fell off of the radar. I believe it was the top selling import until 1972 (peak sales year 1970?) and there were the Baja bugs and dune buggies and movies. It was more deeply imbedded in our culture than the Prius is now.
1974 was the last high volume sales year for the Beetle. The car was all but forgotten by VW and the public after the Rabbit came out in ’75, three scant years after being the #1 import.
The same thing will happen to the Prius if a better alternative comes around, history is very clear on this point.
Volkswagen as a whole held the #1 import title in the USA from 1954-1974. VW lost the title in 1975 to Toyota.
It’s kinda funny how the Beetle paved the way for the other cars in it’s class that ended up killing it. Every small foreign car in this country owes a bit of its success to the lowly little Beetle.
Count me in as eagerly awaiting a VW week. Especially air cooled special edition models from the ’70s. Sun Bug, Sports Bug, etc. I can hear that air cooled flat four now ( hold the cheap whistling tailpipes, please).
I really just need to breakdown and do a COAL on my ’59 Beetle. I’m sure the readers would get a kick out of the story.
Bring it!
Yes you do! VW week is going to start on 9/23, so please write it up and send it me: curbsideclassic(at)gmail.com I have pictures if you don’t. Look forward to it!
I have plenty of pictures, believe me.
I get a little carried away when I talk about my VWs, especially this one. It’s intertwined with how I came to be so obsessed with these goofy little cars. It might end up being a novel. haha
Hmm, sounds like I’ll have to get off my arse and send in some pics of mine, as its somewhat different to the usual COALs…