As
The Years Pass
As
a young boy, my Father would take me
to small car shows around San Diego
which shaped me into the Car Guy I've
become today. I did the same with my
Son and plan to do the same with my
soon to be 5 year old Grandson!
My
first VW was a '65 Bug with extensive
front end collision damage located in
Brawley, CA. My trucker buddy at the
time saw it when passing thru town one
day, so we ventured out one Saturday
morning to see if I would be able to
purchase the car from this nice old
lady. It was well worth the trip, I
was able to buy the car for $250 as
is! Now it was time for Project Baja
Bug. I cut the front end off, replaced
it with a nice one piece tilt front
end and put a 15 gallon gas tank behind
the back seat with the filler neck located
by the driver's side back window. I
put a chrome 1835 motor and an interior
in it and now had another desert toy
to go with my dirt bike and 3 wheeler.
As
years passed, my 2 wonderful children
came into my life and the toys slowly
faded away. I've had several classic
cars over the years but, the good 'ol
VW Bug always had a special place on
my row of cars.
I
used to drive by the little red '64
Bug I have now each time I went to the
store. The rear white mud flaps with
the VW logos caught my eye and I fell
in love with the car. One evening when
passing by, I saw a young couple standing
in the front yard and decided to stop
by and see if they were interested in
selling the Bug. Much to my surprise,
they were just getting ready to put
a For Sale sign on it asking 4K OBO.
I then asked if we could take it for
a test drive. When I turned the key
and started the car for the first time,
the rear engine sounds and smells brought
back all the fond memories of my first
VW. Upon our return from the test drive,
I made an offer of $2,750 which they
graciously excepted.
For
the next 4 years I would cruise her
around town, to work and car shows.
Even with the ratty interior, oil dripping
motor and patina paint, people would
constantly give me a big smile and a
thumbs up. After my Mother passed away
from complications due to a long battle
with Parkinson's, I made a commitment
to do a resto-mod in her memory.
I
then spoke to my mechanic Stephan at
Import Car Service on Broadway in Lemon
Grove. I asked who he would suggest
do the body and paint work while he
built me a new 1776cc motor.
Specs:
- 69mm crank
- Engle 100 cam
- AA 90.5 pistons & cylinders
- 041 AA cylinder heads
- High volume oil pump
- 009 with electronic ignition
- Tri Mil exhaust
- 8.0 to 1 compression
Stephan
suggested that I stop by his shop the
next day to meet Mike Blackburn of Mike
& Mike Auto Body. He was delivering
a completed Bug so Stephan could install
the new motor in it. After Mike's assessment
of my car, we set the ball in motion
with Steffen building the new motor
while Mike & Mike started stripping
the car inside and out. For the next
10 months they worked tediously stripping
9 coats of paint to get to bare metal.
Since I chose to leave all body moldings
off, change front turn signals to '58,
tail lights to '57 relocate the antenna,
and change to Ice Pick door handles,
each hole that wasn't used was welded
up.
As
the layers of paint and primer were
removed a few areas of rust were exposed.
The bottom 1 1/2" of both door
jambs had to be cut out and custom patch
panels welded in place. There was a
cancer section in the bottom center
of the windshield which also was addressed
in the same fashion. We
all were aware of the car being hit
under the passenger side window. Mike
attempted to bang it back into shape
but was too far gone. Therefore, we
acquired a complete donor shell body,
cut out the entire panel and welded
in the new one.
I
had selected the paint color long before
the project started. I saw the color
on a Convertible Kia Optima concept
car at the San Diego International Car
Show. After much research I selected
Cascade Green which was used by Chevy
in 1957. I also sent the original license
plates out to be restored.
The
new headliner, reupholstered back seat
and bra were done by Ray at The Dub
Shop. The balance of the restoration
was done by Mike & Mike which included,
sound deadening thru out, carpet, door
panels, complete steering wheel, LED
headlights,'58 front turn signals, '57
taillights, replacement of all body
seals and gaskets and ice pick door
handles. Stephan at Import Car Service
had previously installed 2" drop
spindles in the front and lowered the
rear 2" also to give the Bug a
mild drop.
After
much searching for dove gray reclining
front buckets seats, I was able to order
them and the 4 point harnesses from
Jeg's. I was able to install the new
seat guides on top of the stock bases.
Since
the Bug's restoration completion last
year, we have really enjoyed cruising
around town and entering in as many
car shows as time allows. It amazes
me how many people love the car as much
or more than some of the other Classics
I've had over the years.
Future plans may include, an up to date
sound system and roof rack. But, for
now let's go CRUZIN!!
