I would have loved to own a Beetle when they were new. Among the sea of boxy, huge sedans, the Beetle was small, nimble looking, and a bit comical looking. The Z was sexy. Who were we supposed to root for again?
I would have loved to own a Beetle when they were new. Among the sea of boxy, huge sedans, the Beetle was small, nimble looking, and a bit comical looking. The Z was sexy. Who were we supposed to root for again?
MitchellC:
I owned a '69 Beetle in '79, and yes, they were small....outside and INSIDE. Nimble looking? Not sure what you mean, but with worm and roller steering gear, not all that much more nimble than my '80 Ford Fiesta.
Cars like the Beetle are what folks could buy to re-create the sensation of driving "as it used to be", but in the real world you'd want a Beetle that had some "beans" under the hood.
BTW, I also once owned a 280Z. A great car, let down by thin metal (the frame rails rust on these cars like nobody's business), a gas gulping engine (if ever a car needed a 5 speed, it's a pre '77 Z car), and manual steering that made 3 point turns a REAL workout for the upper body. But yes, very good/classic styling...in AND out....rare for the '70s and especially a mass-produced car.
Bob:
I frequently work with GM plants. About 4 years ago, I was working at the Jeep plant orienting 250 new hires and the plant manager showed me a copy of The Bug & The Beetle.
He went back to Mexico and I have lost touch. How did you get a copy of the video? I would very much like to get a copy of it.
Thank you,
Ron ronkoller(at)me(dot)com
My grandfather sold his Galaxie 500 after getting frustrated with it breaking down and the dealer not fixing it. He bought a bright green '74 SuperBeetle in late '73. My uncle bought an orange one after he got back from 'nam. His brother bought a very small Honda that may have been a 600Z although I really don't recall the exact model - only that for kicks my dad and my grandfather would pick up the rear wheels and park it sideways on him all the time.
We were the "Anti-americans". I remember my grandfather having to get the Beetle painted because someone sprayed swastikas all over it.
Hi Ron, I don't have a copy of the video, someone else had sent me the link to it on youtube. It looks like the original video has been removed but doing a quick search of youtube for "bug beetle pontiac" gave me a new link:
If you want your own copy, you can use Google to find various programs that will save youtube videos to your computer.
Hope this helps, Bob
You'll need to log in to post.
