Funkengroovin Wednesday - Rear Window

Last week VB wrote about "The Roof" of our '65 VW Beetle, that we are restoring. At that point, the rear window was not installed. The rubber that holds it in had been burned. The Boss Man ordered a new rubber and delivered it to the upholsterer. He said, it took 4 guys to put the window back in. He came back the next morning, to find it shattered all over his shop. He then ordered a new window, and a new rubber frame. He then set the new window in with the old rubber. When we left, on Saturday, we had two new rubbers, and a newer window in place. He suggested we visit a glass installation center to have the glass installed with the new rubber.

The upholsterer was doubtful that we would be able to get the metal trim back in, as well.

VB would like to add, that she heard there were rumors going around about her Beetle. She wants to set the record straight: The original engine matched the body, when we bought it in 1994. The only non-original piece was a rear fender. Now the only non-original pieces, besides the fender, are: the engine, the new front seats which we just purchased, the rear window, roof and liner. The rear window, new roof, liner, and engine all had to be replaced as a result of the fire (well, the rear window because the original exploded in the upholstery shop). Since we wanted to restore it, and the Beetle was no longer original, we decided to get the new front seats and tracks to make it safer (it's got seatbelts now too). This is not some car that has been "cobbled together" from other Beetle parts. So for those of you "know-it-alls" out there, VB wants the rumors about her baby to stop! You don't know WTF you're talkin' about. Just sayin'.

Living in a retro VW community is almost as bad as living in a gossipy expat community. Don't these people have better things to do?


(Below): Old, original rear window. Photos were taken after the fire.


(Below): Close up.



(Below): New window, with old rubber. As you can see, the new window can be wired to defrost, but then that would defeat the purpose of driving a VW Beetle in the wintertime. Half the fun, is wiping down the windows manually to defog them.


(Below): The original window, before the fire, circa 1995. This photo was taken back in Shaker Heights, Ohio where we lived when we purchased it. You can see the metal trim around the rear top roof, where the roof meets the body, and around the window. All missing now. That metal trim is apparently a real bitch to deal with.





A few Beetles we passed in Cairo.

(Below): Maadi, Digla.


(Below): Old red ragtop.



(Below): Nice old orange Beetle.



(Below): At Ramses Train Station parking lot, in Cairo.




(Below): Another crashed car parked in Maadi. Some of these sights make you wonder WTF happened. This thing is so mangled, it's hard to imagine anyone surviving.




NEWS:

You Tell Us: How Are You Avoiding Traffic This Holiday?
"Is it the awesome horsepower of a mother’s guilt, an unconscious inability to spend two consecutive weekdays days off at home or just the purely compulsive nature of traditional culture? Whatever it is that jams up nearly every out-bound lane on every metropolitan freeway in America on the Wednesday afternoon before Turkey Day probably isn’t going away." (Yes, it is "the awesome horsepower of a mother's guilt." VB can testify to that - she uses it quite regularly.)


Nov. 24, 1903: Starting Your Car Gets a Bit Easier

Autonomous VW says, "Look, Ma - No Hands"

And the Green Car of the Year Is...
"LOS ANGELES -- The 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI was named Green Car of the Year Thursday, the first time a diesel has won the award presented each year at the L.A. Auto Show."

Toyota Demands Site Remove Fan-Submitted Photos

(Great Photos)
Vintage Iron Rules the L.A. Auto Show
"For the two people on the planet who don't know what this is, the original Beetle is both the most popular and most recognizable car in history. VW sold 21.5 million of the dome-shaped, bug-eyed cars between 1934 and 2003, when the last one clattered off an assembly line in Mexico. Every single one of them was loud, slow and, to be honest, not terribly comfortable. But we love 'em just the same."

You Drive Me Crazy
"Ten of the most annoying driving habits."

(OMG! You don't say.)
Are Men More Dangerous at the Wheel?
"A new study conducted by Quality Planning, an auto insurance analytics firm, has concluded that male drivers cause more havoc on the road than their female counterparts."

Losermobiles on Film, and Up for Bids

For Yugo, a Place of Eternal Rust, er, Rest

Road trip: RV manufacturers scramble to stretch their mpgs
"Owners of Volkswagen’s popular pop-top Eurovan, discontinued in North America in 2003, reportedly can sell their vans for what they paid for them new, even if they have high mileage, due to surging demand and lack of supply."

The VW Beetle - an Austrian Identity Created by German Craftsmanship?

the VW beetle

(Video & Photos - go to "Photo Galleries" on the right, below the photo of the mangled Beetle, hanging in the air)
Volkswagen Beetle pulled from Beargrass Creek
"The steering wheel from a Volkswagen Beetle that's been stuck in the muck of Beargrass Creek for nearly 30 years will be fashioned into an environmental award"

(Nice story - No Pics)
MOORE 11/23: No air conditioner, no radio, no clock, just a lawn mower engine on steroids

(From Jalopnik, with great photos, as usual)
1965 Volkswagen Transporter Walk-Thru Panel Van

(Another article about the Verdier Van)
The future of ecoconscious camping

(New Zealand)
Naming the Beast: North Island by Campervan
"I grew up in a family that names its vehicles. Before I was born there was Henrietta, the baby blue van. After her came Dippy, the racy red Anglia whose license plate began with ‘DP’, then Goldbug the sparkling gold Holden Kingswood station wagon. I’m sad to say I didn’t continue this tradition when I started driving. That is until I spent a week alone in the North Island driving a 6.6 metre long campervan complete with shower, toilet and microwave oven. A vehicle of this stature, I decided, needs a name."


CORRECTION: Last week VB said that Opels were probably the only GM cars she ever owned. Incorrect. She owned a Chevy Malibu (how could she forget?) It was her first car, and it cost (so much money) $350.00 (back in 1974.) She sold the Malibu for an Opel 1900, which she proceeded to crash into a bridge abutment, one icy morning, in Cleveland, Ohio, 1979. The bicycle, a Champagne Raleigh International, which she bought in 1975-6, cost almost as much, at a whopping, $300.00. She still has the bike.


With the Detroit car companies begging for a bailout and Black Friday coming upon us, VB thought today's video was apropos.

This article points out the problem, and BTW, if you're refinancing your house to buy a vintage car, then you are truly crazy!
A Rough Ride in Collectible Cars
"Or maybe they just ran out of money. Amid the broad economic deterioration of recent months, spending on extravagances like antique cars has slowed. In many cases, people can no longer afford even to keep their collections, says David Gooding, president of Gooding & Co., a Los Angeles car auction house.

In the past year, many collectors who used home-equity loans or other credit to buy the vintage convertible or muscle car of their dreams have had to sell as the housing and credit markets have declined. The same factors have kept new collectors from entering the market. As a result, many staple collector cars like 1957 Chevrolets, 1940 Fords and 1960s Pontiac GTOs are selling for half what they commanded two or three years ago."

"For some collectors, the downturn could be a good time to amass a long-coveted vehicle or two -- not just because prices are often lower, but because cars that weren't for sale before are suddenly available. John McCue of Half Moon Bay, Calif., bought a 1958 Mercury Park Lane last summer for $39,000. The 61-year-old retired software executive says it probably cost him about 5% less than the car's value a year earlier. But since he has pursued the car for years, he knows the former owner wouldn't have sold it then.

"There are those cars that you think will never be for sale, the ones the owners will take to their graves," he says. "Well, now a lot of those cars are changing hands."

While many in the collecting business say there will always be enough wealthy people who want vintage cars, others fear the market could be headed for a repeat of its last crash in 1989, when speculators who had no particular interest in vintage cars drove a steep, if fleeting, run-up in prices. Today, more of the buyers are car lovers, but speculation underpins their motives as well.

"The love of cars never outweighs the love of money," Mr. Gooding says."




(Check out the green and white Beetle [Mexican taxi cab?] near the beginning.)
Shania Twain - Ka-Ching

Funkengroovin Wednesday - The Roof

Wednesday morning VB and The Boss Man head on down to "The City" for another two night stay. VB is really, really trying to be more mindful of her blogging, now that the election is over. So, she is posting this on a Tuesday afternoon, as she used to, before she became consumed by - the election.

VB mentioned at least once before, the fact that her '65 VW Beetle Convertible caught on fire. Well that was back in the late spring of 2005. The body work and a new engine install took place that summer. It took some time, what with trying to find a new trunk lid, having the body repaired and painted, and all the tinkering around with mechanics. We actually purchased another trunk lid, but found that our slightly damaged, but repaired lid fit much better, but not as well as we would like.

Last month The Boss Man spent wads of money on new upholstery, a new canvas roof, a new top liner, new carpets, and door panels. We drove the car down to Manchester, to Roger's Upholstery. He's not quite finished, but we're getting there, slowly but surely. Going through all the repairs, in one post, would take forever, so VB has decided to just do it step by step. Here's the rundown on the roof.

(Below): The rear of the car, just after the fire. Awesome Daughter and The Boss Man were out for a ride, with the roof down. Awesome Daughter heard a loud noise, turned around to discover the back end of the car was afire. They pulled over. Strangers from an apartment building, across the street, ran out carrying fire extinguishers, and took care of the flames. The poor Beetle had to be towed to Bob's in West Springfield for repair - mostly mechanical.


(Below): Even though the rear of the roof looks fine (above), you can see the extent of the fire to the interior of the car.


(Below): The damaged roof down, as it was when it caught fire.


(Below): Close-up view.


(Below): A view of the roof, almost totally repaired. The rubber around the rear window was burnt, and we have ordered a replacement. You can sneak a peek at the new interior (only the backseat is done) and new black carpet.



(Below): The front of the roof, just after the fire. That's the apartment building, in the background, where people ran out with their fire extinguishers in hand.


(Below): A close up view, taken last month.



(Below): An even closer up view.


(Below): What we have, so far, at Roger's shop. He said he had one hell of a time stretching the canvas to fit properly. He thought the lining looked a bit sloppy, but when VB compares it with old photos, it seems to look just fine. Ignore the "lipstick" red backseat - VB will get to that at a later date.


(Below): Another view, from the side. That stuff on top of the roof, will replace the metal that we had around the base and rear top of the roof previously. After the rear window is installed, Roger steams the roof. Then we need to wait for a nice warm sunny day, let the car sit outside, so the roof stretches properly, before we can put the top down. Right - the summer of 2009.





NEWS:

Ten Turkeys of Automotive Design

The Groove is in the Peace and Love at Barneys
"So Barneys decided to partner with Volkswagen to create a one-of-a-kind New Beetle painted with some of the era’s most memorable iconography. Doonan commissioned artist John-Paul Philippe to add a cool new touch to the car, which Barneys shoppers will have a chance to win if they donate $100 towards the Carbon Fund, which aids Volkswagen’s effort to plant trees in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley in order to offset the carbon footprint of their vehicles. "

New Beetle Highlights Hippie Holiday Window at Barneys

What’s Hot in Quebec? Stolen Snow Tires

Small Cars Are Nice, But Can You Have Sex In One? 4 Positions That Say Yes Yes Yes! (With Photos)
"Aerosmith may have thought having sex in an elevator was something to sing about, but what about sex in a green vehicle? Today's quest for low emissions and high efficiency has brought us yet another obstacle to overcome: How to have sex in a small green vehicles, such as the Smart Fortwo, Chevy Aveo, or Mini Cooper. These more-efficient vehicles are great, sure, but how can a couple fit so much, er, love into a cool-yet-compact vehicles? Generally narrow in the cockpit with an obtrusive shifter in the center and low ceiling height, it's clear these machines were not designed for this type of adventure.

So what's a horny 'Hugger to do? Read on for our illustrated guide to doin' it well in a small car."

Study Shows Drivers Feel Free to Ignore Speed Limits
"The study of 988 drivers in that county, where Purdue is located, found few people have any respect for speed limits, which they consider nothing more than vague guidelines they can ignore. Civil engineering and economics professor Fred Mannering says that means highway officials set artificially low speed limits because they know people will ignore it. He attributes our blatant disregard for the rule of the road to the much-maligned Emergency Highway Conservation Act of 1974 that established the 55-mph speed limit for political, not safety, reasons. "It decoupled the speed-safety association," Mannering told Wired.com. "Now, there are some roads where the speed limit should be posted as 45 but they end up getting posted at 35 because they expect people to go faster," he said."

"The phrase "speed limit" is something of a misnomer. Before 1974, the rule of thumb was to set speed limits at the 85th percentile: 85 percent of the cars should be traveling at or below the limit, while 15 percent of cars could be exceeding it. Speed limits could be used to accurately judge how safe it was to travel on any particular roadway.
Now, that black-and-white sign rarely tells you the maximum speed you can safely travel without wrapping your car around a tree or unintentionally modifying a guardrail. It factors in fuel efficiency, pedestrian safety and the concerns of those who live in the area. Drivers who get used to these artificially low speed limits begin to ignore them and end up routinely driving 5 to 10 mph faster than the number on the sign. Drivers also disregard speed limits when the police fail to enforce them."

Mark Wahlberg takes on Stig in Top Gear - exclusive
"He said: “Do I really want to beat Simon Cowell? No, it’s not one of my goals in life. But it was fun.” He first learned to drive at 13, dropping out of school and stealing cars.

He said: “I used to take my mother’s car when she was sleeping.” His first motor was a VW Beetle. “It was unlicensed, unregistered and not insured so I couldn’t bring it home.”"

VW California
"As for me, I've never had a holiday in a Volkswagen Camper before, and I knew I wouldn't enjoy it. For one thing, my family has more previous than the Krays when it comes to VW motor caravans. Three generations have owned the damned things, so I'm well aware of their deleterious effects, turning formerly sane individuals into obsessive-compulsive cleaners, camper anoraks or full-time grease monkeys. "The day I buy one of these horrible things, you're welcome to shoot me," I once said to my daughter, Scarlett, as we sat in the clashing chintz splendour of my brother's MkIII version."

Hack your VW's budvase for the iPhone

Keep warm this winter with a recycled Volkswagen
"Probably one of the most environmentally friendly and functional ideas is the Hotpod: a wood-burning (and therefore low-carbon) stove that incorporates recycled Volkswagen engine parts."


Since talk of a bailout for the auto industry is all the news these days, it's interesting to note that a unique car (one once owned by VB) was made by GM. Most likely it would be the only GM car VB would own. Actually VB and The Boss Man owned four different versions of this car (all used), one solely just for the parts. That's three Mantas and one 1900. One we called "The Silver Bullet" had a passenger side door that had the habit of flying open, while we'd be speeding down I-71 from Cleveland to Cincinnati (normally right outside of Columbus.) (Below): Our first dog, Shelby, jumped behind the wheel, while we were packing up for a camping trip to Red River Gorge, where, BTW, as we slept in an open cave, coonhounds howled, and our car was robbed. They even siphoned our tank of gas, which we had just filled before entering the park. Let's just say, we got the hell out of Dodge, while the gettin' was good. No desire to return to find the whole car stolen the next day. While we waited for the police at the toll booth, the female attendant, who rocked her office chair back and forth, while scarfing down a bologna sandwich said, "You know, there's bears and snakes up in them thar hills." Yes, and a gang of thieves too!


General Motors and Opel: An 80-year marriage for better or worse
"Twelve years later, a new Kadett was brought to the market in a bid to compete with the Volkswagen Beetle.
In the early 1970s, Opel held around 20 percent of the German market but was then surpassed by VW when Europe's biggest car maker brought out the Golf."



ZZ TOP AND WILLIE NELSON: She Loves My Automobile

In The Hood - Opel

From this post, another one of VB's neighbor's cars, in his collection. This, a 1930's Opel, on the left, is in the process of repair. He's got one more very nice car, which VB will post on later. Consider this Part 2.




















NEWS:

Herbie goes commercial: VW to feature talking Bug in new ads

"Volkswagen of America needs a boost. Once a top brand among young car buyers, the company is now ranked 18th in U.S. sales and has experienced a 32 percent decline over the past five years. So what will rescue the automaker's fortunes -- lower prices, better quality, a hot new sport coupe? How about a talking 1964 Beetle? Who needs KITT when there's Max, VW's latest and greatest ad spokesman."


From jalopnik, One-Off Steam-Powered VW Kit Car
"When we hear "steam car" we imagine a car with wooden wagon wheels that spends it's time in Jay Leno's garage. What we don't think of is a fiberglass-bodied VW kit car from the '80s."


License and registration … stop laughing
"Garner has spent as much as $2,000 of his own money giving a 1973 Volkswagen Beetle, seized in a DUI case, a new life as a department cruiser, if that term can be used loosely.

It's probably just as well. It's hard to know how useful the Bug would be as a pursuit vehicle, with its 1,600-cc, air-cooled engine, four-speed transmission and top-end speed of about 70 mph.

Indeed, one person told Garner that "if you pulled me over I'd be too embarrassed to stop."

(More and photos at the link.)


"Cory Virtue loves his fully restored '75 VW." Go here and click on the link labeled: Gallery: Cory Virtue's '75 VW roadster, to see the photogallery. Sorry, but it's the best VB could do.


Walking the walk, back to family value

"Asda's new fashion chief aims to take its label to the top and beat Tesco, Primark and M&S in the process....

Anthony Thompson bustles into an office in Carnaby Street with a bag and a nylon bomber jacket. He does not look like a big cheese in the fashion business, but he has the job of revitalising the big, but rather tired, George fashion brand for Asda.

Unlike most of the big beasts of retail, who tend towards sport and swank for their fun, Thompson likes old cars, old books, art and sculpture. The cars in the Thompson family fleet are not old E-types and Alfas, but a 1965 VW camper van and a 1967 VW Beetle. The camper, he declares, is "brilliant"....

He has his contradictions. He is running a mass-market, value-clothing label and claims he loves wearing his George kit, but is also a fan of the cool German Oska brand because it is "wonderfully produced" with "a purity of design". And while he is working for Asda, owned by the world's biggest retailer, Wal-Mart, he reckons the retail world has become bland and boring. "We need to have a point of view, not to try to second guess each other."


VB's question: "Why?" Check out the video below (no, it does not answer the question, but does provoke it.)
Soundwagon 'record player' takes the groove less traveled

Some people might not know this, but most VW Bus owners do.
Ten Things You Never Knew About Teri Hatcher
"8. Teri just loves her nipples but she isn't so keen on her posterior. She says: "It hangs a little too long. God forbid what it will look like when I'm older. It will probably be dragging along on the ground behind me!" (Ookaay - this VB did not know.)

9. Teri sued the Daily Sport in 2005 after a story called “Telly Teri’s Romps in Van” alleged that she was getting down and dirty in a VW camper van outside her house."


Covergirl Kate turns cabbie for pals with cool new set of wheels
"Kate Moss has acquired a new set of wheels with some serious street cred - a black London taxi cab....

Owning cool transportation has always been a matter of pride for the famous cover girl. Her rides in the past have included an MG Midget and a sleek 1964 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. Last year she turned up at the Glastonbury music festival with former love Pete Doherty in an impeccably appropriate VW camper van."

Just makes you wanna cry! Check out the photo and more of the tale, at the link.
VW Van Catches Fire In Lamoine
"On arrival, the 1977 Volkswagen van was fully engulfed in flames.

The driver, Deborah DeForest, said she had stopped along the road to speak with a neighbor when the van stalled. The neighbor noticed that it caught fire, and the driver quickly exited the vehicle without injury."




VB would like to thank The Boss Man for the little gift he brought back to her from the States. It's called "A COLD!"
She has never sneezed as much in her whole, entire lifetime (that's right "whole, entire"), as she did yesterday. She now has shaken brain syndrome (it's still there, but perhaps not exactly in the right place.)


Here comes my baby - The Mavericks