In the late 60's, I took my big V8 Chevy Biscayne to the Black Hills in South Dakota, and had trouble driving up the mountains. Volkswagen Beetles kept passing me.
For years, this car was a regular at local VW show that I host here in Maryland. I gave him our Promotor's Choice award in August of 2015 because I loved that he preserved and drove the car 75 miles to the event each year. The magazine photographer thought I was crazy for not picking a shiny restored car. Less than 2 years later, this car was featured on Jay Leno's garage! #justified
Good for you! And that's why most car shows have various classes and awards. Since the turn of the century, my feeling is, a car show that doesn't have a "Most Original Vehicle/Car" Award is simply not a car show. Further, a car show that actually has the balls to award a "Best In Show" to something unrestored with patina and rust...that's a good thing. Shiny, restored cars are great and of course they have their place in the world of cars. But, to me a shiny, restored car is just a cash flex. "Hey! Look at me! Look at what I spent my money on!" (And granted, maybe they did do the work or some of the work themselves...) But, I have far more respect for a car owner who simply does what needs to be done to keep a car on the road mechanically and let the aesthetics age gracefully. Cars were meant to be used; to be driven. Not stored so their internals rot...
Fun Fact: this video popped up in my feed about a year ago, and rekindled the obsession I had for beetles as a boy. One thing led to another, and six months later I have a beautiful 64' sitting in my garage. Really thankful this video came my way.
You got last year of good model, year I got the brother Show Car 100% better than this bug you see here this is pretty basic with some accessories he is lucky to have Leno Listen to his long story I like to put this bug to Challenge
In the early eighties my dad had three VW’s in the drive way. None of them ran. We spent the summer removing parts from them to assemble one great car. It ended up being my first car, I loved it so much. It was great in the rain, snow, heat, cold...well the heater wasn’t great but it always started and got me where I was going. Would love to have one today.
Back in 1958 (first year of big back window) got a new VW 1200 Deluxe in the UK. Extras specified before delivery were Diamond Grey metallic paint, Windscreen washer, self-cancelling trafficators, fuel gauge, a front anti-roll bar, parcel shelf, Phillips Radio LW/MW, passenger sun visor, rear wing chip guards, full-length webasto sunroof. Kept the car 14 years repainted 3 times.
My grandmother had one of these in the 50s and hers was a lemon and always broke down. She sold it eventually and wrote VW about it and sent the letter in and months later an VW executive from Germany came all the way down to CT to talk to her about the issues she had and have her a full refund after showing receipts for repair work. That is customer service!
Matt Whitmire thanks it really is! Although she received a full refund for the car she never bought or trusted a VW again. But then in the late 50's your putting 2-3 grand into a beetle I wouldn't either.
It's refreshing to hear a new owner of a vehicle give credit to the person who built it. Often times the new owner takes credit for everything...not the case here. Matt repeatedly gave credit to the previous owner, good on you Matt!
What's funny though is that you have two people fawning over this, when they were garbage vehicles even when they were new. The only reason you bought a bug over another vehicle is because all you could afford was a bug, lol!
@@JasonSmith-vp6vl Most people were poor after ww2, especially if you didn't live in America. That is why it was a huge deal. This, the 2CV, cinquecento 500, FIAT 600, Renault 4 and Austin 7 etc. were all dumpy econoboxes by today's standard, but they were the norm in Europe, and put countless people on the roads without the risk of falling off a scooter.
I had a 1956 for a few years back in the '70s. It was rough, it had a few dings, paint deterioration like the one in the video, no headliner and the carpets were in threads. But I loved certain things about it. There was no gas gauge; when the engine started to cut out, you took your foot off of the gas and flipped the lever just above the floor tunnel to the right to open the reserve fuel tank valve, which gave you an additional 20 miles or so. There was no accelerator pedal, just a roller on a lever that was connected to 28 PCI carburetor , which was equipped with a manual choke. The 36 HP engine was almost bomb proof; just adjust the valves and change the oil at 3,000 miles. The 1956 was the first Type 1 to have turn signals, clear little bullet lenses low on the front fenders and in the taillights. Although I became a German car mechanic specializing in VW a few years later, that car was pretty easy to maintain, as long as you had a simple metric tool kit and John Muir's "How To Fix Your Volkswagen For The Complete Idiot" book, which launched my 30 year career as a foreign car technician. I owned at least 15 different VWs from 1974 through 2016, but I will always love the air cooled ones.
The linseed-oil shine brought back a memory of grandfather who used coal-oil to clean and shine his car. His last vehicle was a '63 Chevy and it always looked great and had no rust.
The U.S.ad agency was BBD&O. You guys should have let us hear you crank it up because the 6 volt VW Bug has a distinctive nostalgic sound unlike the 12 volt. (1960s VW TV ad voice text) "The VW Beetle will definitely float, but the VW Beetle will not float indefinitely!"
I owned a 56 VW beetle back in 1973. I paid $100 for it. Later I owned 5 more old VW beetles when I was stationed in Germany in the 70's. I was constantly having to do repairs on the motors especially the generators and charging systems. Engines were known to overheat and freeze up but you could buy a used VW engine for $50 and it took about 1 hour to change out an engine. They were never all that dependable, but they were a cheap used car that a poor Airman could afford and easy to work on. I still love them.
The comment Jay made about the single school teachers, cracked me up. I'm 59 and in grade school I had a lady teacher who was unwed and drove a beetle. He brought back that memory of my childhood with that comment.
I had a single guy as a Principal at my school and HE drove a powder blue "BUG" too. (We hated that guy! He was a total "FREUDIAN"... EVERYTHING, EVERY PTOBLEM WAS SOMEHOW REKATED TO OUR "SEXUAL EXPERIENCES, ORIENTATIONS AND ORGANS". The guy was a total."DWEEB"!!!
"HERBIE THE LOVE BUG" would be VERY proud of his older sibling! How could you NOT like a "VW BUG"?. Women ADORED them! My favorite was a special, low production variant called "THE THING" which actually was a military vehicle eventually redone for civilians. Totally cool!
My very first car was a 57 VW bug. Gutless, no heat in the winter, no gas gauge. But I loved the thing. In 1966 gas was 19 cents a gallon and it got 35 MPG. I could drive it anywhere for nothing. And it always started.
My first car was also a 57 VW in New Zealand. My memory of it was that, at night, a car driving behind lit up the road ahead brighter than the 6v headlights could. Possibly your's like mine originally had a heater but the tubes running along the sill carrying the heat forward had rusted out. I owned it in the late 60s
What fabulous memories this video reminds me of. My Mum and Dad had a 1958 Beetle with a similar style of roof rack. Back in 1961, Dad purchased the new roof rack and fitted it onto the car (inside the Garage) on the Saturday afternoon, before we left for our holiday to Canberra on the following Sunday morning. They sent quite a lot of time loading the roof rack with all the holiday luggage. Come Sunday morning the four of us are sitting in the car, Dad selects reverse gear, lets out the clutch, we travel 6 feet and come to an abrupt halt against the head of the Garage door! Hilarious. So. we unpacked the car, drove outside and repacked the roof rack and set off on our trip. I remember sleeping fully stretched out in the luggage compartment just above the engine, and listening to the sound of that beautiful air cooled engine. Such a unique sound. Can you tell, I love Volkswagens?
When I was a teenager I got a summer job picking dew worms for bait shops. It was run by a German guy, he'd haul a bunch of us in the back of a cube truck to area golf courses at night to grab up the worms, in the late 60's. He also had a VW bug. One day he was negotiating a price for the rights to pick worms for a different golf course so he suggested a few guys could pick worms the next night to see how many worms might be there's he took the VW and two guys, a stack of worm boxes beside the guy in the back seat. The boxes were wooden, about 2'x 2' by 5" high, 500 worms each. They picked a few hours, filled the boxes and started for home, I guess they had around 3,000 worms. Anyway, on the way home a woman ran a stop sign and came in right in front of the rear wheel, rolling them over right quick. You don't have to hit too hard if you pick your spot. They just rolled once, landing back on the wheels. So the woman got out to see if they were OK. She couldn't see through the windows, they were plastered with worms, then as the doors opened and the three guys got out they had worms hanging off them and I guess they were standing funny because the worms were crawling down their necks and whatnot. Anyways she screamed and jumped back in the car and tore off. The Cops showed up and when they explained to them what happened, the Cop said "So it's a hit and run?" "I wouldn't really call it a hit and run," said the old German. So meanwhile the worms crawled onto the heat vents, inside the doors and up around the seat springs and into the upholstery and died. He sold the car in the winter as is, windows down for a week, the heater doesn't work.
We bought on new in 1968. Some of our family members and their neighbors thought that we had gone Communist. It was the first year that had heat ducts going to the back of the car so everyone would be comfortable. Some people "would not" ride in it. It was incredibly excellent for local and long distance use. Thank you for posting this.
I owned a 1968 Toyota Corona 4 door that got great gas mileage my brother still owns two of them they are drive around town car's but not good for traveling the little 4 cylinder made like the straight 6 cylinder I guessing the Japanese copied the Chevrolet 6?
@@thomask837 The people saying this must not have known about the Trabant. Or the GAZ limos that various Soviet premiers and politburo members used to ride around in. I can't even call the Ford a fascist car, and Henry Ford was a Nazi sympathizer.
What an amazing time-capsule! Great find! When I was a kid back in the '70s, there were *so many* of these on the roads -- and they're all gone now. They used to be a dime-a-dozen. No longer.
This episode shows the special thing about Mr. Leno. He has more fun and passion with this car than with a multi-million-dollar car. I thins this is the best episode so far, I like how that Beetle is restored. Not about perfection, the car still has its soul.
I have had lots of VWs including a 1955, I bought it around 1981 for $150. Was advertised as having a bad transmission since it wouldn’t go into gear. I go look at it and the shifter would just flop around. Hmm...Pull up the back seat and the view plate and sure enough the shifter linkage had come undone. I paid him and hooked it up and drove the car home Drove it for a few years as a daily driver. No gas gauge, had a reserve tank with a lever you kicked over...I always forgot if it was on reserve so many times when I ran out of gas, I drove out of gas ! Could have used that spare tire gas can. Over the years I have had a few of the tool kits. Mine had a gasoline heater behind the rear seat...always scared me to use it. I put it up for sale a few years later for $700 Meet a guy who really beat me on the price finally we agreed on $550 but I was supposed to get the tires which he didn’t want. He had all $100s and I didn’t have change, gives me $500 and said he would give me the other $50 when I came to pick up the tires...OK So week later I go to his house...two tires there and his wife said she doesn’t know anything about the $50 I finally get him on the phone and he just tells me he isn’t going to give me the $50 or the tires! We went back and forth for about a month, finally I was fed up with him. Went up in the middle of the night and spray painted $ signs on his restored type 2 truck and cut the roof about off his ‘75 convertible
It is really hard to describe in words the attraction of these Beetles. Horsepower sounds ridiculous, but it has torque, it's light, and 4th gear is overdrive, so it can cruise pretty fast. Of course the unique sound and feel of the engine is the best part. These cars feel almost like animals as much as machines. Loved this!
One of my favorite car sounds is a VW boxer engine. When I was in 6th grade, my dad bought a used '67 Beetle. It was a 9 year old car at the time. It was a bit in rough shape, but a little TLC would get it sorted. He knew I wanted to hear the engine, so he shut off the radio. The car in this video is a cool old car. And a great catch!
Brother was an executive with Volkwagen of America (VWoA) from early 60's to early 80's. And so I grew up around these bugs and later all the other models, as he brought these home. Got alot of "first look" at many of these. Still love anything air cooled, esp VWs!
Growing up, a friend of mine used to borrow his brother's Bug all the time and we used to tool around Chicago in it-Fond Memories-Froze in the winter, no heat, No AC boiling in the summer-Had an automatic stick too!! No clutch but you shifted a stick through the gears! Fun to drive! I have always loved the sound of Bugs too...
I have a 1970 Beetle that could use some work. It doesnt look the best but it runs great and is such a good-looking car. This video makes me feel better about not being able to restore it yet.
Worry about the restoration bits last. Protect from rust with clear coat or something and sand down the rust. Then get it working and consistent. Fix wiring, the engine, dial in your carb, and then later on when you can afford it, restore it
I had an early 1960 bug. No fuel gauge,6 voltage, no radio No real heater or defroster. Loved it. Almost always ran Except when ran out of gas. Gave it away when moved back to nyc😊
Now the paint is beautiful, especially including fade and scratches and big scraggly areas. I guess there are some antiques that you would paint to show how it looked from factory. However, this Beetle bears it's 'battle scars' beautifully. Love original and unrestored, love that it's 6 volt. My 1956 Bug in Pennsylvania was 12 volt. That was 1967-70ish, went everywhere, drove to Los Angeles (hippie days, dates, contortions, yeah, ran forever. Drove 5 adults to Wash DC for Vietnam peace protests 1969ish. Had 4 or 5 Beetles 20+ years til the end, dozens of times for years packed 3 kayaks on roof 3 guys & gear 4-6 hours to rivers, fun forcing it to slide sideways in deep snow, ice, yeah, Never broke down. You loved yours, too. twtdmf.
I remember that ad in the United States. Also a full-page newspaper ad that ran during the period when American astronauts were landing on the moon. The ad depicted a small lunar module at the bottom of the page instead of a VW -- only the VW logo clued you into what was being advertised. And there was no text at all, just a headline that read "It's ugly, but it gets you there."
I remember the one where they raced a Beetle against a jet-powered dragster. The VW "won" the absurdly short race because the jet car took a few seconds to spool up its turbine.
It was a fruitful time seeing the small, European autos around town in the '50s and '60s. VW, Renault, SAAB, DKW, Austin, Morris Minor, Vauxhall, etc... . I miss the simplicity in some ways. Nice to see this man's energy and honesty.
Jay you're the only other person that knows about that stop light prism. I had one and I used it all the time. I would like to find another, but no one knows what I'm talking because they've never seen one.
When I was a high school senior in 1963/64 my parents purchased a VW bug for me. I don't remember the exact year, probably a '58 or '59. The stock 0-60 mph time was 30 seconds. I was aware that Judson made an aftermarket supercharger (a sliding vane type) for the vehicle but I couldn't afford one with my part time job income. I always perused the the classified ads in the local paper (pre-pre-internet). Amazingly, I saw an ad for one of the Judson's. A person had purchased it but never installed it on a vehicle. It was being sold, new in the box, for half the price of a new one. I jumped right on it and bought it. I installed it myself. The car barely ran but sufficient to allow me to drive it to my VW mechanic (a native of Germany). He tuned it so it ran great, but not without grumbling about how I was going to ruin the engine. I also ripped out the internals of the two exhaust tips to give it a pleasing lower exhaust tone. In addition, I broke off the springs on the wheels that attached the hub caps, reversed the wheels to give a wider wheel base and spray painted the wheels silver (aluminum). After the supercharger installation the 0-60 mph time was cut to 15 seconds! Hold on to your hat! A high school acquaintance had the use of his mom's MG Magnette sedan of about the same vintage. He thought it was a pretty hot car. We used to drive out to a a dead-end (at that time) access road on the east side of the Bayshore Freeway (US 101) in Palo Alto, CA. We would pull everything we could out of the cars, e.g., spare tires, back seats, etc. and drag race. I beat him every time. When I went away to college I sold the car to the daughter of one of my mom's friends. At some point it got rear ended sufficient to prevent the engine cover from being opened. The Judson supercharger had an oil reservoir that dripped into the compressor to lubricate the sliding vanes. Because she couldn't open and inspect the engine the oil ran out and trashed the supercharger. She had it removed and continued to use the vehicle in stock form. I now drive a modified 1994 Lexus SC300 sports coupe with a supercharged (aftermarket product) 2JZ inline six with a (stock) manual 5-speed transmission. The SC300's were essentially the same mechanically as the same year Toyota Supra's, i.e., same power train and suspension. I purchased it used in stock form in 1997 and have continued to enjoy it to this day. The only real problem with the vehicle is that the instrument cluster gauges are flakey, gas and temp gauges don 't work. I might be able to find a shop to repair them but it hasn't gotten annoying enough to park it and pull the cluster out and send it off for repair. I had it on a dyno a few years ago and it pulled 338 rwhp. The VW and the Lexus were the most fun and memorable vehicles I have ever owned.
In my late teens I drove a 1950 something Beetle in Washington DC and loved how it drove. Bought a 1962 model and drove it in USA, had the Army ship it to Germany and then ship it back. My wife drove it with two kids while I was in Vietnam. Finally sold it in Kentucky after the brakes locked up trying to avoid hitting a dog. I priced it too low because the first buyer took it at my requested price.
Thanks, Jay. Our Granddad had one, I think ‘53, for his house-calls, when we visited in ‘60. With the “Winker” (Semaphore turn-indicators). Opa let me drive it to Impfingen from TBB, one day. Memories!
I had a 1960 VW Beetle that I purchased in 1969, my first car. When I took it on the highway I would drive closely behind a truck or bus, so I could keep my speed up.
I've owned a lot of old cars in my life most of which were born in the 50's and 60's most of which I hot rodded out and I loved them all but the truth is the Volkswagons I owned (Beetles, Transporters, Karmen Gias, a Notchback) were all my favorite and the most fun to drive. I just love this unresorted Beetle. It is funny that it was once painted with house paint because I did the same thing to my 69 Transporter and every once in a while I'd get tired of the color and buy another gallon of house paint and repaint it.
This reminds me as my Pops ! I always knew when he was coming home from work because i could here his engine around the corner . In his life he owned and drove 2 bugs and a Karmann Ghia .He swore they were the best cars he ever drove. I still remember going to get Thrifty's ice cream for $0.25 in his VW :) He said the German cars & watches were the best !
I had a '71 Super Beetle with a semi-automatic transmission. No clutch - just take foot off gas and shift. But getting it into reverse . . . I never could master. You had to jam down the stick all the way and then shift. Very noisy engine - no need for radio because you wouldn't hear it. As mentioned, spare tire air pressure provided the power to spray washer fluid on front windshield. Heat came from a sleeve around the muffler and piped through channels in the chassis. Car did rust - mine had a sunroof and the rust in the drain channels prevented the water from draining - instead the rain water would accumulate inside the car. Yes, the car was watertight because after a heavy rainstorm I had to bail out the insides. But that said, I miss it - it was fun to drive. Does anyone remember the popular fix-it guide back then, "A step by step guide for the complete idiot?"
My family of 7 had one in 1964. My brother and I were the youngest at 3and 5; and we would both sit in the very back storage space. I hated it because the material they used was so itchy. Sure glad no one hit us from behind. But drivers were more civilised back then; along with the whole country.
When I was fresh out of high school, about 1975, my cousin bought a Bug to get around in. It was a cheap buy. It was a neat car, but not well-suited for our Minnesota cold climate. I can still remember going to the Burger King with him, and we were like both rubbing the windows to see what was ahead of us. The "defrost" was so inadequate for our winters. And, we were freezing! The hot air off that little engine just couldn't cut it. Well, it left us with some memories. LoL
Ah, he left out the auxillary gas lever on the firewall ( no gas gauge), which you engaged when it ran out of gas,which gave you about a gallon reserve, but then the burden was on you to remember to fill up! Also, looking at that engine compartment with the exposed gas line brought back memories of it vapor locking in the summer ( first time on the PA turnpike!). The cure for that was to make a heat sink by wrapping the line in aluminum foil and clipping on clothes pins all along the line. Mine was a 1957, not too much different from the '55.
That's funny I have driven VW's my whole life and in southern California and never had one vapor lock on me! always ran at least a 2 quart oil sump through!
We had a gas station in the Sierras, and I was pumping gas and washing windshields at 12 years old. On a VW, you had to be extra careful removing the filler nozzle, as little as one or two drips of gas on the outside of the gas tank would bath the interior in gasoline odor. No one mentioned how the rear wheels would fold under causing you to lose complete control if you swerved to miss something on the road at 40 MPH plus. How would I know that? ha
My father bought one in 67 for his brother from Germany, and drive it to Syria , my uncle had it until about 94 , and I believe it’s still running until today,,, remember when uncle was talking us in it. I really love how everyone is writing about this car in the comments, that someone related to him had one once , it’s really peace of history.
Owner reminds me of Norm McDonald. I had an uncle who was a rocket scientist at White Sands in the late 50s and All the buy that worked there were always pulling pranks on each other. One day a co-worker showed up with a New VW. He immediately started bragging about how many miles he was getting to the gallon. Since they all had a 60 mile commute every day that was a big deal. So his buddies started adding a gallon or two of gas to his tank every day when he wasn't looking and he started telling everyone how he was getting over 100 miles to the gallon of gas. This went on for about a month and then they started siphoning a couple of gallons out of his tank and then every day and he showed up complaining that he was now getting horrible gas mileage. He even took the car back to the dealer to have it looked at. Of course they found nothing wrong. At that point they stopped messing with him but never told him what they had done.
My friend had a bug when I was in high school. It would stall at every light and we'd need to get out and push it to get it to start back up; that was half the fun though. ^^
@@Onlinesully the first one I owned was in 1959. Black in color with white seats. It was a blast to drive for a man in his twenties. And it was just odd enough the girls liked it. It wasn't fast (had the 1300 engine) if memories serve s. I only drove the newer Beatle once in 2004? It just wasn't the same.
a question... I've heard that the first gear, is so heavy and is proper for off-roading & hills. so you can start drivong with 2nd gear... is that right?
In Germany they ran these six volt beetles off a slope in second gear to start the engine. Hardly ever used the starter, when they didn't live in flat parts of the country.
Jay, We lived in Germany in the very early 60's and the semaphores were referred to by us Americans as "Mox NIx Sticks" (machts nichts means "makes no difference" in German) because the Germans would signal and not turn or whatever. Also, you could get a brand new bug AND a bus for like $1,500 USD but you had to take the color bus they made that year because they only made one color combo (like green and white) per year.
SquillyMon They didn’t offer many but it was more than 2. My 1960 VW truck was offered in 4 colors, or you could order a fleet for your company in plain primer. They would also custom paint your entire fleet in your own custom paint and graphic scheme
Funny as you watch Leno asking, 'is this original (parts)?' and the guy knows he cant lie to him at all. Bringing your car to Leno is knowing about your car more than you thought you ever would.
My favorite story of a trick played by an old friend of mine: In mid 60`s his neighbor, an Ok guy for the most part, had this certain obnoxious nature of the type that, If you weren't in sync with whatever enlightened philosophy he embraced this week then you entitled to hear him boast endlessly. When this fellow was the 1st in the area to order a new VW, hear about it they all did, if everyone didn't get one, Oh, they were just not thinking straight at all.....! From the day the new VW arrived in his driveway, that night my friend `Wally` would sneak over under cover of darkness and poured one gallon of gas into his tank, and he continued to do so night after night. The owner of the car was driving everyone crazy how much mileage he got, at the end of the week it only took a dollar and a half to fill it! Then the day came for the neighbor to take the car to the dealer for it`s first service check, Wally stopped adding gas at night. The guy nearly lost his mind trying to figure out what the dealer did to his car that made it start using so much gas. Wally was a rare breed of mischievous Genius!
My auntie had a red Beetle she called Bessie. She used to urge it on when going up a hill "Come on Bessie" she'd yell. Hahahaha. She had it for over 35 years and it never ever gave her any issues, none. It was all original and she sold it to a friend. I think we all cried when Bessie went. That car is emblazoned in my memory. That car WAS family. I used to sit in the luggage compartment at the back as a kid (in the 60s and 70s) and marvelled at how the indicator lights would pop out of the B pillar. My Dad also sold VW for many years in the 70s so he'd bring home fastbacks, Kombis (which we went on holidays in). Love 'em.
Thank you very much for loading. My dad had a volkeswagon with an unknown flat, and it was practically a blizzard out. But it got us home from church, and it was no problem getting home and it did not hurt the tire because the recent snow gave it a padding. This was terrific.
Back in the days when you could fill the tank for less than $10, and no one had thought of Global Warming, and they were so simple to work on. Makes you want to cry sometimes. Thanks Jay and Matt.
Great Job Jay, I watched entire episode and learned a lot about these 50s Beetle. You two were like magic very knowledgable about Beetles. I see every question you asked was to going deeper and detail. You two are def. enthusiasts in my book.
True, Beetle were common until the 80s, you don't see many now. There is still one in my neighbourhood parked on the street and used regularly! The last year they sold 'em here in Australia was 1975!
Mr. Leno, thank you so mich for "Jay Leno's Garage." I have learned so much from watching your videos. The best part is it helps me to appreciate more and more what was really behind these old classics. Back then yes the engineers were looking to make money, but no way can you deny their passion for the development of these classics. They wanted there names to be remembered because they built something of great quality. Quality in looks and "workmanship." Today if a company builds a car it seems like the only passion is for the money they make. I know that's not every car maker. It's just that so many are that way! Thank you again for sharing your passion. That makes my passion grow. PS - don't stop making "Jay Leno's Garage."
@@irongoatrocky2343 That's not 'rat rod'. "Preservation" is what I like. I'm glad the owner didnt do any more than he did. If he lives near a coast with salt in the air he should thoroughly hose underneath twice a year. Like the bias ply sidewalls although whitewalls were rather luxurious.
Thanks Jay Leno for a great video. When I was stationed in Fairbanks Alaska (67-69) I bought a 1959 Beetle and latter a 1960. The 59 was a great little car. It had a gas heater for the cold Winter months. I rented out the 60 to others G.I.'s until I sold it. When it was my time to leave Fairbanks, where I was able to bring my wife to, we decided to drive to the lower 48. We then drove it to Indiana, where we kept the car, until my brother blew the engine and I sold it. Wish I would have kept it. I do now have a 1958 Beetle. Also made a Myers Manx Dune Buggy out of one. I probably have owned 6 beetle's over the years. Good cars.
I drove a lot of VWs in the late 1970s and 1980s. They were a solid dependable ride, but you had to be willing to wrench on them to keep them that way. Valve adjustment every 3,000 miles. Set the timing while you are at it, adjust the points in the distributor. The carburetor had to be dialed in. They were high maintenance vehicles for a daily driver. But we were young and they were a cool ride. The last one I owned was a 1961 rag top. Bought it in the late 1980s for 5 or 6 hundred bucks. Had a 1600 dual port engine, no rust, straight body. Had no gas gauge. There was a lever on the floor board that kicked in the reserve tank. How cool is that, lol! Loved driving around on a nice day with that rag top rolled back. Drove it from Reno to Seattle in 1990. Got married and sold it. She said it was not safe for a family car, which was true.
:) a. In High School I had a used 64 type one and than purchased a new 68 type one for $1,815 (no radio). Ended up replacing it with a Datsun PL620 in 1974 (I still have the rusty hulk)...... b. In 1970 Uncle Sam stationed me in Germany for 9 months. The big rear red lamp was called a nebelleuchte (fog light), after market on many a German's car. I never seen one weird up as a stop light, they were always on bright red continually in bad weather from my vantage point...... c. For decades now I have often seen a gray 68 Bug being used as a daily driver by an older gentleman in my area of the Poconos in PA. Just saw it again last week.... :)
The first time I rode in a VW Beetle was in Brooklyn back in 1969 during the winter. I asked why it didn't have a heater/defroster and my friend said probably because they don't have winters there. I laughed so hard my sides hurt because he was serious, he didn't know they have very cold winters there. Anyway,,the cars were horrid in the winter, no heater, no defroster, no traction on ice and they got blown off the road by semis all the time.
They are great cars in the snow if you got good tires. I used my 1970 for years to go skiing to the ski hill, whether the road is plowed and sanded or NOT. Many times was loaded, total 4 people. . Semis affected the VW Vans 1959-71(those with the hinged french side doors) Then in 1972 they changed the suspension stance making it wider(the vans with the sliding side door) Now when semi's go by the wind did not blow the boxy van off the road.
Bullettube There was an optional gasoline powered heater available, that was mounted in the trunk up front. Very few of them had those. I only remember seeing one of them. I do not know how well they worked, but I would guess that they made more heat than those that did not have the optional gas heater.
An added comment: Don't talk to me about the gas heater! It was incredibly dangerous, prone to leaks and used more gas per mile then the engine used. There was also a heater that used the heat around the exhaust manifold, and it occasionally brought exhaust fumes into the car! An electric heater was available on the market but the electrical system couldn't keep up with it. Air cooled engines always had this problem and very few had a decent work-around. For instance; Trojan front-end Loaders I worked on had air cooled Deutz diesel engines and used propane heaters that were just as dangerous as you could imagine.
My bus has a gas heater that I use every day in the winter time. If you think they are incredibly dangerous you need to read up. They are 10 times safer than the engine. The engine will not shut its self off if it springs a leak, a gas heater will. My gas heater outputs 49,000 btu's an hour at 223F. Been using it for 10 years with nary a problem.
It’s like patina for the ear! VWs just have that sound, like 6-cyl jeep truck that has an exhaust leak at the manifold just enough where you can here it evenly staccato fire every cylinder when it lugs a little on hills. Music
I remember filling up my 61....$7...... That was the car that taught me everything. Replaced or worked on every part, except for front end. Huge learning tool. Miss her, would love to see her again. Those were the day...trout fishing, camping, hunting, she was always reliable and fun to run.
My father brought home a '57 one night. We looked out the window wondering what it was. Great fun. I bought a '62 in the late 70's and had it 17 years.
For those of us who were there when these cars were new...we know. We just know. This is one of the few cars where no matter what condition its in, whenever I see one it puts a smile on my face every time. I am also coming around to the notion of preservation not restoration.
I had a ‘64 then up graded to 12 Volt ‘69 when in college with a gas heater, my dad and I took a ‘65 from western NY to LA and back home again and found different parts that we needed ( chrome muffler silencer pipe ) in vagus. made it allot quieter, it even had a sun roof! but I was the starter due to the switch failing. then it started to work once we were home. love seeing all the great cars!
@14:30: A few years ago, I had a coworker with an late(?) 1960s one with around 2K miles on it. It cost him like $25K in that condition, but he couldn't drive it or the miles would severely depreciate it's museum quality. He asked me if I wanted to buy it, but I said NO. I buy cars to drive...not as an investment.
Takes me back to when I owned a VW TS 1600 Fastback and I've been kicking myself ever since I sold it. I loved that car...Thanks for the memories Jay and Matt...
Drove a '58 from the Gulf Coast to New York and back in 1961. Great ride. Handled snow just fine. Great little cars. Got a bit nostalgic when Jay's guest mentioned that he was after a 2002 tii. Had one of those too, a '74 model, and kept it eight years, drove it through the mountains and up and down the east coast. Wish I still had it. Fjord blue with tan leather seats, and a fuel injected four. Held the road like a Porsche. You'll never guess what I drive now.
![[#2024MAMA] ROSÉ (로제), Bruno Mars - APT. | Mnet 241122 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/dgGqD28J6aQ/mqdefault.jpg)
In the late 60's, I took my big V8 Chevy Biscayne to the Black Hills in South Dakota, and had trouble driving up the mountains. Volkswagen Beetles kept passing me.
For years, this car was a regular at local VW show that I host here in Maryland. I gave him our Promotor's Choice award in August of 2015 because I loved that he preserved and drove the car 75 miles to the event each year. The magazine photographer thought I was crazy for not picking a shiny restored car. Less than 2 years later, this car was featured on Jay Leno's garage! #justified
Good for you! And that's why most car shows have various classes and awards. Since the turn of the century, my feeling is, a car show that doesn't have a "Most Original Vehicle/Car" Award is simply not a car show. Further, a car show that actually has the balls to award a "Best In Show" to something unrestored with patina and rust...that's a good thing. Shiny, restored cars are great and of course they have their place in the world of cars. But, to me a shiny, restored car is just a cash flex. "Hey! Look at me! Look at what I spent my money on!" (And granted, maybe they did do the work or some of the work themselves...) But, I have far more respect for a car owner who simply does what needs to be done to keep a car on the road mechanically and let the aesthetics age gracefully. Cars were meant to be used; to be driven. Not stored so their internals rot...
Fun Fact: this video popped up in my feed about a year ago, and rekindled the obsession I had for beetles as a boy. One thing led to another, and six months later I have a beautiful 64' sitting in my garage. Really thankful this video came my way.
That's awesome :)
wish they were more affordable :/
Awesome!!
You got last year of good model, year I got the brother Show Car 100% better than this bug you see here this is pretty basic with some accessories he is lucky to have Leno Listen to his long story I like to put this bug to Challenge
In the early eighties my dad had three VW’s in the drive way. None of them ran. We spent the summer removing parts from them to assemble one great car. It ended up being my first car, I loved it so much. It was great in the rain, snow, heat, cold...well the heater wasn’t great but it always started and got me where I was going. Would love to have one today.
Now we have electric seat heaters
Back in 1958 (first year of big back window) got a new VW 1200 Deluxe in the UK. Extras specified before delivery were Diamond Grey metallic paint, Windscreen washer, self-cancelling trafficators, fuel gauge, a front anti-roll bar, parcel shelf, Phillips Radio LW/MW, passenger sun visor, rear wing chip guards, full-length webasto sunroof. Kept the car 14 years repainted 3 times.
My grandmother had one of these in the 50s and hers was a lemon and always broke down. She sold it eventually and wrote VW about it and sent the letter in and months later an VW executive from Germany came all the way down to CT to talk to her about the issues she had and have her a full refund after showing receipts for repair work. That is customer service!
that is really an amazing story!
Matt Whitmire thanks it really is! Although she received a full refund for the car she never bought or trusted a VW again. But then in the late 50's your putting 2-3 grand into a beetle I wouldn't either.
Was she hot? Your Nanna?
+Jimmy M
was it the "bee hive" hair cut?
Bilb Ono no, just the stereotypical 1950's nurse haircut. Shoulder length nurse hair cut.
It's refreshing to hear a new owner of a vehicle give credit to the person who built it. Often times the new owner takes credit for everything...not the case here. Matt repeatedly gave credit to the previous owner, good on you Matt!
This is Leno's forte. Educating the public about vintage cars and preserving these cars and driving them..which is what they were designed to do!
What's funny though is that you have two people fawning over this, when they were garbage vehicles even when they were new. The only reason you bought a bug over another vehicle is because all you could afford was a bug, lol!
@@JasonSmith-vp6vl Most people were poor after ww2, especially if you didn't live in America. That is why it was a huge deal. This, the 2CV, cinquecento 500, FIAT 600, Renault 4 and Austin 7 etc. were all dumpy econoboxes by today's standard, but they were the norm in Europe, and put countless people on the roads without the risk of falling off a scooter.
Owned a 56 bug , me and my brothers first ( shared ) car. Loved it in 1967 .
I like that Jay knows how an obscure aftermarket window shade sounds. He doesn't miss anything.
My Uncle Jimmy pulled the old _'no engine'_ trick on me with his Bug when I was a kid.
My uncle played a trick on me too. :(
@@SRNF Xddddd
I had a 1956 for a few years back in the '70s. It was rough, it had a few dings, paint deterioration like the one in the video, no headliner and the carpets were in threads. But I loved certain things about it. There was no gas gauge; when the engine started to cut out, you took your foot off of the gas and flipped the lever just above the floor tunnel to the right to open the reserve fuel tank valve, which gave you an additional 20 miles or so. There was no accelerator pedal, just a roller on a lever that was connected to 28 PCI carburetor , which was equipped with a manual choke. The 36 HP engine was almost bomb proof; just adjust the valves and change the oil at 3,000 miles. The 1956 was the first Type 1 to have turn signals, clear little bullet lenses low on the front fenders and in the taillights. Although I became a German car mechanic specializing in VW a few years later, that car was pretty easy to maintain, as long as you had a simple metric tool kit and John Muir's "How To Fix Your Volkswagen For The Complete Idiot" book, which launched my 30 year career as a foreign car technician. I owned at least 15 different VWs from 1974 through 2016, but I will always love the air cooled ones.
The linseed-oil shine brought back a memory of grandfather who used coal-oil to clean and shine his car. His last vehicle was a '63 Chevy and it always looked great and had no rust.
The U.S.ad agency was BBD&O. You guys should have let us hear you crank it up because the 6 volt VW Bug has a distinctive nostalgic sound unlike the 12 volt. (1960s VW TV ad voice text) "The VW Beetle will definitely float, but the VW Beetle will not float indefinitely!"
I owned a 56 VW beetle back in 1973. I paid $100 for it. Later I owned 5 more old VW beetles when I was stationed in Germany in the 70's. I was constantly having to do repairs on the motors especially the generators and charging systems. Engines were known to overheat and freeze up but you could buy a used VW engine for $50 and it took about 1 hour to change out an engine. They were never all that dependable, but they were a cheap used car that a poor Airman could afford and easy to work on. I still love them.
YEP!
The comment Jay made about the single school teachers, cracked me up. I'm 59 and in grade school I had a lady teacher who was unwed and drove a beetle. He brought back that memory of my childhood with that comment.
I had a single guy as a Principal at my school and HE drove a powder blue "BUG" too. (We hated that guy! He was a total "FREUDIAN"... EVERYTHING, EVERY PTOBLEM WAS SOMEHOW REKATED TO OUR "SEXUAL EXPERIENCES, ORIENTATIONS AND ORGANS". The guy was a total."DWEEB"!!!
Trouble was on the highway? We couldn't have a conversation between the back seat and front seat passengers without SHOUTING... LOUDLY!!!
"HERBIE THE LOVE BUG" would be VERY proud of his older sibling! How could you NOT like a "VW BUG"?. Women ADORED them! My favorite was a special, low production variant called "THE THING" which actually was a military vehicle eventually redone for civilians. Totally cool!
My very first car was a 57 VW
bug. Gutless, no heat in the
winter, no gas gauge. But I
loved the thing. In 1966 gas
was 19 cents a gallon and it
got 35 MPG. I could drive it
anywhere for nothing. And
it always started.
I just got my first car, a 66 bug. Wish gas was still 19 cents a gallon 😭
A C lol same here lol i mean atleast our 66’s arent v8’s😂
My first car was also a 57 VW in New Zealand. My memory of it was that, at night, a car driving behind lit up the road ahead brighter than the 6v headlights could. Possibly your's like mine originally had a heater but the tubes running along the sill carrying the heat forward had rusted out. I owned it in the late 60s
Learned to drive on one and was my first car..loved it. Just bought a white 78 convertible in excellent condition. I'm in love all over again
my first car a 67 bug, threw the belt and didn't realize that I cooked the motor - bummer
What fabulous memories this video reminds me of. My Mum and Dad had a 1958 Beetle with a similar style of roof rack. Back in 1961, Dad purchased the new roof rack and fitted it onto the car (inside the Garage) on the Saturday afternoon, before we left for our holiday to Canberra on the following Sunday morning. They sent quite a lot of time loading the roof rack with all the holiday luggage. Come Sunday morning the four of us are sitting in the car, Dad selects reverse gear, lets out the clutch, we travel 6 feet and come to an abrupt halt against the head of the Garage door! Hilarious. So. we unpacked the car, drove outside and repacked the roof rack and set off on our trip. I remember sleeping fully stretched out in the luggage compartment just above the engine, and listening to the sound of that beautiful air cooled engine. Such a unique sound. Can you tell, I love Volkswagens?
I got my license 20th of December 1972, in the morning. Bought a VW lunchtime and drove to Sweden in the afternoon. 1500+ km. Crazy.
When I was a teenager I got a summer job picking dew worms for bait shops. It was run by a German guy, he'd haul a bunch of us in the back of a cube truck to area golf courses at night to grab up the worms, in the late 60's. He also had a VW bug. One day he was negotiating a price for the rights to pick worms for a different golf course so he suggested a few guys could pick worms the next night to see how many worms might be there's he took the VW and two guys, a stack of worm boxes beside the guy in the back seat. The boxes were wooden, about 2'x 2' by 5" high, 500 worms each. They picked a few hours, filled the boxes and started for home, I guess they had around 3,000 worms. Anyway, on the way home a woman ran a stop sign and came in right in front of the rear wheel, rolling them over right quick. You don't have to hit too hard if you pick your spot. They just rolled once, landing back on the wheels. So the woman got out to see if they were OK. She couldn't see through the windows, they were plastered with worms, then as the doors opened and the three guys got out they had worms hanging off them and I guess they were standing funny because the worms were crawling down their necks and whatnot. Anyways she screamed and jumped back in the car and tore off. The Cops showed up and when they explained to them what happened, the Cop said "So it's a hit and run?" "I wouldn't really call it a hit and run," said the old German. So meanwhile the worms crawled onto the heat vents, inside the doors and up around the seat springs and into the upholstery and died. He sold the car in the winter as is, windows down for a week, the heater doesn't work.
We bought on new in 1968. Some of our family members and their neighbors thought that we had gone Communist. It was the first year that had heat ducts going to the back of the car so everyone would be comfortable. Some people "would not" ride in it. It was incredibly excellent for local and long distance use. Thank you for posting this.
bruce miller The one memory I had as a young child was driving in the snow in the beetles my dad collected. The heater was one of the best!
Heater ducts under the back seat were around long before 1968, and those ducts acquired control flaps in the '65 model year.
I owned a 1968 Toyota Corona 4 door that got great gas mileage my brother still owns two of them they are drive around town car's but not good for traveling the little 4 cylinder made like the straight 6 cylinder I guessing the Japanese copied the Chevrolet 6?
You have to laugh at the ignorance of not wanting to ride in a 'communist' car. FFS! That is like saying Fords or GM are communist cars.
@@thomask837 The people saying this must not have known about the Trabant. Or the GAZ limos that various Soviet premiers and politburo members used to ride around in. I can't even call the Ford a fascist car, and Henry Ford was a Nazi sympathizer.
What an amazing time-capsule! Great find!
When I was a kid back in the '70s, there were *so many* of these on the roads -- and they're all gone now. They used to be a dime-a-dozen. No longer.
Did you play "slug bug" on road trips?
This episode shows the special thing about Mr. Leno. He has more fun and passion with this car than with a multi-million-dollar car. I thins this is the best episode so far, I like how that Beetle is restored. Not about perfection, the car still has its soul.
lensdu I
Oops. I meant I love the vw beetle. Not today's beetle.
Been to many car shows and get tired of seeing the over chromed resto mods
He was seen driving a steam-powered car once. It broke down. He pulled over, fixed it, and was back on the road.
Hate to disappoint you but this Volkswagen beetle as it is most likely cost more than a 2020 SUV Lincoln.
I like the idea of preservation instead of restoration. Gives it a lot of character!
I have had lots of VWs including a 1955, I bought it around 1981 for $150. Was advertised as having a bad transmission since it wouldn’t go into gear. I go look at it and the shifter would just flop around. Hmm...Pull up the back seat and the view plate and sure enough the shifter linkage had come undone. I paid him and hooked it up and drove the car home
Drove it for a few years as a daily driver. No gas gauge, had a reserve tank with a lever you kicked over...I always forgot if it was on reserve so many times when I ran out of gas, I drove out of gas !
Could have used that spare tire gas can. Over the years I have had a few of the tool kits.
Mine had a gasoline heater behind the rear seat...always scared me to use it.
I put it up for sale a few years later for $700
Meet a guy who really beat me on the price finally we agreed on $550 but I was supposed to get the tires which he didn’t want. He had all $100s and I didn’t have change, gives me $500 and said he would give me the other $50 when I came to pick up the tires...OK
So week later I go to his house...two tires there and his wife said she doesn’t know anything about the $50
I finally get him on the phone and he just tells me he isn’t going to give me the $50 or the tires!
We went back and forth for about a month, finally I was fed up with him.
Went up in the middle of the night and spray painted $ signs on his restored type 2 truck and cut the roof about off his ‘75 convertible
It is really hard to describe in words the attraction of these Beetles. Horsepower sounds ridiculous, but it has torque, it's light, and 4th gear is overdrive, so it can cruise pretty fast. Of course the unique sound and feel of the engine is the best part. These cars feel almost like animals as much as machines. Loved this!
Love the old beetle! The fact that Jay W all his collection can enjoy it just proves how much of a real car guy he is.
One of my favorite car sounds is a VW boxer engine. When I was in 6th grade, my dad bought a used '67 Beetle. It was a 9 year old car at the time. It was a bit in rough shape, but a little TLC would get it sorted. He knew I wanted to hear the engine, so he shut off the radio. The car in this video is a cool old car. And a great catch!
Brother was an executive with Volkwagen of America (VWoA) from early 60's to early 80's. And so I grew up around these bugs and later all the other models, as he brought these home. Got alot of "first look" at many of these. Still love anything air cooled, esp VWs!
Growing up, a friend of mine used to borrow his brother's Bug all the time and we used to tool around Chicago in it-Fond Memories-Froze in the winter, no heat, No AC boiling in the summer-Had an automatic stick too!! No clutch but you shifted a stick through the gears! Fun to drive! I have always loved the sound of Bugs too...
Legend has it that if Jay doesn't mention the McLaren F1 in every episode, McLaren comes and takes the car back
I have a 1970 Beetle that could use some work. It doesnt look the best but it runs great and is such a good-looking car. This video makes me feel better about not being able to restore it yet.
Worry about the restoration bits last. Protect from rust with clear coat or something and sand down the rust. Then get it working and consistent. Fix wiring, the engine, dial in your carb, and then later on when you can afford it, restore it
"Wow, thats great"
Love this guys enthusiasm
lol
I had an early 1960 bug. No fuel gauge,6 voltage, no radio
No real heater or defroster. Loved it. Almost always ran
Except when ran out of gas. Gave it away when moved back to nyc😊
That finish is yeeeeeeeears in the making. "No, I'm not going to paint it". Love it.
yea i noticed that vinyl too lol
Now the paint is beautiful, especially including fade and scratches and big scraggly areas. I guess there are some antiques that you would paint to show how it looked from factory. However, this Beetle bears it's 'battle scars' beautifully. Love original and unrestored, love that it's 6 volt. My 1956 Bug in Pennsylvania was 12 volt. That was 1967-70ish, went everywhere, drove to Los Angeles (hippie days, dates, contortions, yeah, ran forever. Drove 5 adults to Wash DC for Vietnam peace protests 1969ish. Had 4 or 5 Beetles 20+ years til the end, dozens of times for years packed 3 kayaks on roof 3 guys & gear 4-6 hours to rivers, fun forcing it to slide sideways in deep snow, ice, yeah, Never broke down. You loved yours, too. twtdmf.
In Canada we had a Volkswagen commercial "A lot of people wonder how the snowplow driver gets to the snowplow. This one drives a Volkswagen."
I remember that ad in the United States. Also a full-page newspaper ad that ran during the period when American astronauts were landing on the moon. The ad depicted a small lunar module at the bottom of the page instead of a VW -- only the VW logo clued you into what was being advertised. And there was no text at all, just a headline that read "It's ugly, but it gets you there."
I saw that one too, only I lived in Louisiana!
I remember the one where they raced a Beetle against a jet-powered dragster. The VW "won" the absurdly short race because the jet car took a few seconds to spool up its turbine.
It was a fruitful time seeing the small, European autos around town in the '50s and '60s. VW, Renault, SAAB, DKW, Austin, Morris Minor, Vauxhall, etc... . I miss the simplicity in some ways. Nice to see this man's energy and honesty.
My dad has a 1960 semaphore convertible beetle, these cars are a blast.
Jay you're the only other person that knows about that stop light prism. I had one and I used it all the time. I would like to find another, but no one knows what I'm talking because they've never seen one.
When I was a high school senior in 1963/64 my parents purchased a VW bug for me. I don't remember the exact year, probably a '58 or '59. The stock 0-60 mph time was 30 seconds. I was aware that Judson made an aftermarket supercharger (a sliding vane type) for the vehicle but I couldn't afford one with my part time job income. I always perused the the classified ads in the local paper (pre-pre-internet). Amazingly, I saw an ad for one of the Judson's. A person had purchased it but never installed it on a vehicle. It was being sold, new in the box, for half the price of a new one. I jumped right on it and bought it. I installed it myself. The car barely ran but sufficient to allow me to drive it to my VW mechanic (a native of Germany). He tuned it so it ran great, but not without grumbling about how I was going to ruin the engine. I also ripped out the internals of the two exhaust tips to give it a pleasing lower exhaust tone. In addition, I broke off the springs on the wheels that attached the hub caps, reversed the wheels to give a wider wheel base and spray painted the wheels silver (aluminum). After the supercharger installation the 0-60 mph time was cut to 15 seconds! Hold on to your hat! A high school acquaintance had the use of his mom's MG Magnette sedan of about the same vintage. He thought it was a pretty hot car. We used to drive out to a a dead-end (at that time) access road on the east side of the Bayshore Freeway (US 101) in Palo Alto, CA. We would pull everything we could out of the cars, e.g., spare tires, back seats, etc. and drag race. I beat him every time. When I went away to college I sold the car to the daughter of one of my mom's friends. At some point it got rear ended sufficient to prevent the engine cover from being opened. The Judson supercharger had an oil reservoir that dripped into the compressor to lubricate the sliding vanes. Because she couldn't open and inspect the engine the oil ran out and trashed the supercharger. She had it removed and continued to use the vehicle in stock form. I now drive a modified 1994 Lexus SC300 sports coupe with a supercharged (aftermarket product) 2JZ inline six with a (stock) manual 5-speed transmission. The SC300's were essentially the same mechanically as the same year Toyota Supra's, i.e., same power train and suspension. I purchased it used in stock form in 1997 and have continued to enjoy it to this day. The only real problem with the vehicle is that the instrument cluster gauges are flakey, gas and temp gauges don 't work. I might be able to find a shop to repair them but it hasn't gotten annoying enough to park it and pull the cluster out and send it off for repair. I had it on a dyno a few years ago and it pulled 338 rwhp. The VW and the Lexus were the most fun and memorable vehicles I have ever owned.
You sound like me, medicated or hypomanic. It's okay.. I enjoyed the story.
@@cbadtom Speak for yourself.
In my late teens I drove a 1950 something Beetle in Washington DC and loved how it drove. Bought a 1962 model and drove it in USA, had the Army ship it to Germany and then ship it back. My wife drove it with two kids while I was in Vietnam. Finally sold it in Kentucky after the brakes locked up trying to avoid hitting a dog. I priced it too low because the first buyer took it at my requested price.
I was born in 86. This was the first car I ever rode in - at that point, restored by my dad.
I just love the fact that you do cars like this from time to time, great!
Well you learn something new watching Jay Leno, linseed oil bursts into flames unless you soak your rags in water, priceless.
Thanks, Jay. Our Granddad had one, I think ‘53, for his house-calls, when we visited in ‘60. With the “Winker” (Semaphore turn-indicators). Opa let me drive it to Impfingen from TBB, one day.
Memories!
I had a 1960 VW Beetle that I purchased in 1969, my first car. When I took it on the highway I would drive closely behind a truck or bus, so I could keep my speed up.
I've owned a lot of old cars in my life most of which were born in the 50's and 60's most of which I hot rodded out and I loved them all but the truth is the Volkswagons I owned (Beetles, Transporters, Karmen Gias, a Notchback) were all my favorite and the most fun to drive. I just love this unresorted Beetle. It is funny that it was once painted with house paint because I did the same thing to my 69 Transporter and every once in a while I'd get tired of the color and buy another gallon of house paint and repaint it.
All those cars, and you never noticed that Volkswagen is spelled with an 'e'?
Gary Seefeld
troll much?
9:00 Little trivia. The split rear window in Germany is commonly referred to as the "Brezelfenster" (pretzel window) for obvious reasons.
Wegen der Heckfensterform nennt man dieses Model "Ovali Käfer".
First car engine I rebuilt was a 36 HP VW parts cost 18 dollars at JC Whitney mailorder.
My dad had 3 of these back in the day bring back memory when we use to go the drive inn and watch movies
This reminds me as my Pops ! I always knew when he was coming home from work because i could here his engine around the corner . In his life he owned and drove 2 bugs and a Karmann Ghia .He swore they were the best cars he ever drove. I still remember going to get Thrifty's ice cream for $0.25 in his VW :) He said the German cars & watches were the best !
Thrifty's? Were you in Marin County? They had $0.05 cones when I was a kid back in the 1960s.
I had a '71 Super Beetle with a semi-automatic transmission. No clutch - just take foot off gas and shift. But getting it into reverse . . . I never could master. You had to jam down the stick all the way and then shift. Very noisy engine - no need for radio because you wouldn't hear it. As mentioned, spare tire air pressure provided the power to spray washer fluid on front windshield. Heat came from a sleeve around the muffler and piped through channels in the chassis. Car did rust - mine had a sunroof and the rust in the drain channels prevented the water from draining - instead the rain water would accumulate inside the car. Yes, the car was watertight because after a heavy rainstorm I had to bail out the insides. But that said, I miss it - it was fun to drive. Does anyone remember the popular fix-it guide back then, "A step by step guide for the complete idiot?"
My first car was a 72 Super Beetle with the Auto-Stick. Loved that car.
That owner is super chill. I'd have a beer with that guy.
He sounds a bit like Norm MacDonald.
My family of 7 had one in 1964. My brother and I were the youngest at 3and 5; and we would both sit in the very back storage space. I hated it because the material they used was so itchy. Sure glad no one hit us from behind. But drivers were more civilised back then; along with the whole country.
When I was fresh out of high school, about 1975, my cousin bought a Bug to get around in. It was a cheap buy. It was a neat car, but not well-suited for our Minnesota cold climate. I can still remember going to the Burger King with him, and we were like both rubbing the windows to see what was ahead of us. The "defrost" was so inadequate for our winters. And, we were freezing! The hot air off that little engine just couldn't cut it. Well, it left us with some memories. LoL
Ah, he left out the auxillary gas lever on the firewall ( no gas gauge), which you engaged when it ran out of gas,which gave you about a gallon reserve, but then the burden was on you to remember to fill up! Also, looking at that engine compartment with the exposed gas line brought back memories of it vapor locking in the summer ( first time on the PA turnpike!). The cure for that was to make a heat sink by wrapping the line in aluminum foil and clipping on clothes pins all along the line. Mine was a 1957, not too much different from the '55.
That's funny I have driven VW's my whole life and in southern California and never had one vapor lock on me! always ran at least a 2 quart oil sump through!
We had a gas station in the Sierras, and I was pumping gas and washing windshields at 12 years old. On a VW, you had to be extra careful removing the filler nozzle, as little as one or two drips of gas on the outside of the gas tank would bath the interior in gasoline odor. No one mentioned how the rear wheels would fold under causing you to lose complete control if you swerved to miss something on the road at 40 MPH plus. How would I know that? ha
I really appreciate this video about a classic car that was once common. It's great to see "everyday" cars being featured.
I just love these old Beetles,found my dream car.1962 Corvair,just need the money,air cooled forever.
My father bought one in 67 for his brother from Germany, and drive it to Syria , my uncle had it until about 94 , and I believe it’s still running until today,,, remember when uncle was talking us in it.
I really love how everyone is writing about this car in the comments, that someone related to him had one once , it’s really peace of history.
Owner reminds me of Norm McDonald.
I had an uncle who was a rocket scientist at White Sands in the late 50s and All the buy that worked there were always pulling pranks on each other.
One day a co-worker showed up with a New VW. He immediately started bragging about how many miles he was getting to the gallon. Since they all had a 60 mile commute every day that was a big deal.
So his buddies started adding a gallon or two of gas to his tank every day when he wasn't looking and he started telling everyone how he was getting over 100 miles to the gallon of gas.
This went on for about a month and then they started siphoning a couple of gallons out of his tank and then every day and he showed up complaining that he was now getting horrible gas mileage.
He even took the car back to the dealer to have it looked at. Of course they found nothing wrong.
At that point they stopped messing with him but never told him what they had done.
My friend had a bug when I was in high school. It would stall at every light and we'd need to get out and push it to get it to start back up; that was half the fun though. ^^
Clutch pedal. If dead battery sure just push it 3mph, light clutch in 2nd.
Memories I owned 3 bugs And still miss driving them all these years later.
zed1stwizard
when did you have them ?
Were they as cool then as now ?
@@Onlinesully
the first one I owned was in 1959. Black in color with white seats. It was a blast to drive for a man in his twenties. And it was just odd enough the girls liked it. It wasn't fast (had the 1300 engine) if memories serve s. I only drove the newer Beatle once in 2004? It just wasn't the same.
zed1stwizard
wicked
Have owned 11 different types since '68.
a question... I've heard that the first gear, is so heavy and is proper for off-roading & hills. so you can start drivong with 2nd gear... is that right?
In Germany they ran these six volt beetles off a slope in second gear to start the engine.
Hardly ever used the starter, when they didn't live in flat parts of the country.
I had a '64 and a '68 they were great.
Type I beetle..my first love riding in the back as a child. The smell..the sound..still makes my heart race to this day.
Jay, We lived in Germany in the very early 60's and the semaphores were referred to by us Americans as "Mox NIx Sticks" (machts nichts means "makes no difference" in German) because the Germans would signal and not turn or whatever. Also, you could get a brand new bug AND a bus for like $1,500 USD but you had to take the color bus they made that year because they only made one color combo (like green and white) per year.
I didn't know that about the bus colors!
SquillyMon They didn’t offer many but it was more than 2. My 1960 VW truck was offered in 4 colors, or you could order a fleet for your company in plain primer. They would also custom paint your entire fleet in your own custom paint and graphic scheme
Funny as you watch Leno asking, 'is this original (parts)?' and the guy knows he cant lie to him at all. Bringing your car to Leno is knowing about your car more than you thought you ever would.
hahaha, he got caught lying multiple times. An overall fake person.
It was fun watching Jay keep laying traps for the car's owner.
My favorite story of a trick played by an old friend of mine: In mid 60`s his neighbor, an Ok guy for the most part, had this certain obnoxious nature of the type that, If you weren't in sync with whatever enlightened philosophy he embraced this week then you entitled to hear him boast endlessly. When this fellow was the 1st in the area to order a new VW, hear about it they all did, if everyone didn't get one, Oh, they were just not thinking straight at all.....!
From the day the new VW arrived in his driveway, that night my friend `Wally` would sneak over under cover of darkness and poured one gallon of gas into his tank, and he continued to do so night after night. The owner of the car was driving everyone crazy how much mileage he got, at the end of the week it only took a dollar and a half to fill it! Then the day came for the neighbor to take the car to the dealer for it`s first service check, Wally stopped adding gas at night. The guy nearly lost his mind trying to figure out what the dealer did to his car that made it start using so much gas. Wally was a rare breed of mischievous Genius!
rheniformer - Great story!
Thats a new one on me... Hahaha Great story
rheniformer , now that is having a great sense of humor! Every body had fun and the neighbor got some free gas. Shear Genius.
Now that's hilarious!
Sounds like something I would like to do!
Punny!
My auntie had a red Beetle she called Bessie. She used to urge it on when going up a hill "Come on Bessie" she'd yell. Hahahaha. She had it for over 35 years and it never ever gave her any issues, none. It was all original and she sold it to a friend. I think we all cried when Bessie went. That car is emblazoned in my memory. That car WAS family. I used to sit in the luggage compartment at the back as a kid (in the 60s and 70s) and marvelled at how the indicator lights would pop out of the B pillar. My Dad also sold VW for many years in the 70s so he'd bring home fastbacks, Kombis (which we went on holidays in). Love 'em.
Thank you very much for loading. My dad had a volkeswagon with an unknown flat, and it was practically a blizzard out. But it got us home from church, and it was no problem getting home and it did not hurt the tire because the recent snow gave it a padding. This was terrific.
Back in the days when you could fill the tank for less than $10, and no one had thought of Global Warming, and they were so simple to work on. Makes you want to cry sometimes. Thanks Jay and Matt.
Remember gas wars ? I once bought gas for 11 cents a gallon.
Those were the days.
DLDHistory x
1977 was the start recession and the gas embargo, but in 1955, gas was at less than 10 cents a gallon.
If you buy a Honda Grom, you can fill tank for $5.
Linseed oil for preservation. Gotta love it.
Great Job Jay, I watched entire episode and learned a lot about these 50s Beetle. You two were like magic very knowledgable about Beetles. I see every question you asked was to going deeper and detail. You two are def. enthusiasts in my book.
True, Beetle were common until the 80s, you don't see many now. There is still one in my neighbourhood parked on the street and used regularly! The last year they sold 'em here in Australia was 1975!
Mr. Leno, thank you so mich for "Jay Leno's Garage."
I have learned so much from watching your videos. The best part is it helps me to appreciate more and more what was really behind these old classics. Back then yes the engineers were looking to make money, but no way can you deny their passion for the development of these classics. They wanted there names to be remembered because they built something of great quality. Quality in looks and "workmanship."
Today if a company builds a car it seems like the only passion is for the money they make.
I know that's not every car maker. It's just that so many are that way!
Thank you again for sharing your passion. That makes my passion grow.
PS - don't stop making "Jay Leno's Garage."
Love seeing these old Porsches.
Keep them coming Jay!
FINALLY A VW
There is a video of him at the factory museum, driving the oldest remaining beetle. Search for it! :)
There's also the wankel engined Beetle he's done.
and Seinfeld has been by with his too
Fluffy (Gabriel Iglesias) rolled through with his bus.
sure but he doesnt do them that often but at the same time he doesnt any car often really lol and its weird because I dont think he owns one
Unrestored?, Clearly a ton of work went into everything... Just a different type of restoration..
Preservation versus restoration.
its restored to "Rat Rod" condition!
@@irongoatrocky2343 That's not 'rat rod'. "Preservation" is what I like. I'm glad the owner didnt do any more than he did. If he lives near a coast with salt in the air he should thoroughly hose underneath twice a year. Like the bias ply sidewalls although whitewalls were rather luxurious.
Thanks Jay Leno for a great video. When I was stationed in Fairbanks Alaska (67-69) I bought a 1959 Beetle and latter a 1960. The 59 was a great little car. It had a gas heater for the cold Winter months. I rented out the 60 to others G.I.'s until I sold it. When it was my time to leave Fairbanks, where I was able to bring my wife to, we decided to drive to the lower 48. We then drove it to Indiana, where we kept the car, until my brother blew the engine and I sold it. Wish I would have kept it. I do now have a 1958 Beetle. Also made a Myers Manx Dune Buggy out of one. I probably have owned 6 beetle's over the years. Good cars.
I drove a lot of VWs in the late 1970s and 1980s. They were a solid dependable ride, but you had to be willing to wrench on them to keep them that way. Valve adjustment every 3,000 miles. Set the timing while you are at it, adjust the points in the distributor. The carburetor had to be dialed in. They were high maintenance vehicles for a daily driver. But we were young and they were a cool ride. The last one I owned was a 1961 rag top. Bought it in the late 1980s for 5 or 6 hundred bucks. Had a 1600 dual port engine, no rust, straight body. Had no gas gauge. There was a lever on the floor board that kicked in the reserve tank. How cool is that, lol! Loved driving around on a nice day with that rag top rolled back. Drove it from Reno to Seattle in 1990. Got married and sold it. She said it was not safe for a family car, which was true.
:)
a. In High School I had a used 64 type one and than purchased a new 68 type one
for $1,815 (no radio). Ended up replacing it with a Datsun PL620 in 1974 (I still
have the rusty hulk)......
b. In 1970 Uncle Sam stationed me in Germany for 9 months. The big rear red lamp
was called a nebelleuchte (fog light), after market on many a German's car.
I never seen one weird up as a stop light, they were always on bright red continually
in bad weather from my vantage point......
c. For decades now I have often seen a gray 68 Bug being used as a daily driver by an
older gentleman in my area of the Poconos in PA. Just saw it again last week....
:)
The first time I rode in a VW Beetle was in Brooklyn back in 1969 during the winter. I asked why it didn't have a heater/defroster and my friend said probably because they don't have winters there. I laughed so hard my sides hurt because he was serious, he didn't know they have very cold winters there. Anyway,,the cars were horrid in the winter, no heater, no defroster, no traction on ice and they got blown off the road by semis all the time.
They are great cars in the snow if you got good tires. I used my 1970 for years to go skiing to the ski hill, whether the road is plowed and sanded or NOT. Many times was loaded, total 4 people.
. Semis affected the VW Vans 1959-71(those with the hinged french side doors) Then in 1972 they changed the suspension stance making it wider(the vans with the sliding side door) Now when semi's go by the wind did not blow the boxy van off the road.
Bullettube
There was an optional gasoline powered heater available, that was mounted in the trunk up front. Very few of them had those. I only remember seeing one of them. I do not know how well they worked, but I would guess that they made more heat than those that did not have the optional gas heater.
Bullettube they did have heaters. My 65 has heaters. Your buddy just didn't have the stock heater still on it
An added comment: Don't talk to me about the gas heater! It was incredibly dangerous, prone to leaks and used more gas per mile then the engine used. There was also a heater that used the heat around the exhaust manifold, and it occasionally brought exhaust fumes into the car! An electric heater was available on the market but the electrical system couldn't keep up with it. Air cooled engines always had this problem and very few had a decent work-around. For instance; Trojan front-end Loaders I worked on had air cooled Deutz diesel engines and used propane heaters that were just as dangerous as you could imagine.
My bus has a gas heater that I use every day in the winter time. If you think they are incredibly dangerous you need to read up. They are 10 times safer than the engine. The engine will not shut its self off if it springs a leak, a gas heater will. My gas heater outputs 49,000 btu's an hour at 223F. Been using it for 10 years with nary a problem.
Seems the owners favorite part is the engine sound, he mentioned it about four times at least. Thanks Jay always fun and informative!
It’s like patina for the ear! VWs just have that sound, like 6-cyl jeep truck that has an exhaust leak at the manifold just enough where you can here it evenly staccato fire every cylinder when it lugs a little on hills. Music
I remember filling up my 61....$7......
That was the car that taught me everything.
Replaced or worked on every part, except for front end. Huge learning tool.
Miss her, would love to see her again.
Those were the day...trout fishing, camping, hunting, she was always reliable and fun to run.
My father brought home a '57 one night. We looked out the window wondering what it was. Great fun. I bought a '62 in the late 70's and had it 17 years.
Growing up in the 69s and 70s my neighborhood had the beetle all over the place.
This car is gorgeous!
Velocity Labs indeed.. one i seen it i thought about your VW!
rely agree nice won looks great over all
When they opened up the engine bay.. I was thinking.. "Watch out for the squirrel" !! Don't let that guy get away or you will be stranded.
For those of us who were there when these cars were new...we know. We just know. This is one of the few cars where no matter what condition its in, whenever I see one it puts a smile on my face every time. I am also coming around to the notion of preservation not restoration.
The smile on Jay's face after he's taken this patina survivor Bug for a spin says it ALL! These little gems bring smiles for miles! Great show, Jay!
“ Speedometer optimistically goes to 80 mph”. Love it!
55 mph 60 top was the max, 60 was a load of noise.
But, downhill and following wind, wouldn't you want to know at what velocity you impacted the roadside tree??
This is hands down the most beautiful beetle I've ever seen. Nice vid!
Fun car Jay thanks for sharing I had the 65 and the 70 back the days cool bugs. "Backseat memories" ✌😁😋👍
That roof rack was very popular outside the US I don’t know who made them but they were all exactly like that one.
I had a ‘64 then up graded to 12 Volt ‘69 when in college with a gas heater, my dad and I took a ‘65
from western NY to LA and back home again and found different parts that we needed ( chrome
muffler silencer pipe ) in vagus. made it allot quieter, it even had a sun roof! but I was the starter
due to the switch failing. then it started to work once we were home. love seeing all the great cars!
I miss my 67' bug. they are different but in a really good way.
The split rear window was produced until March 1953.
@14:30: A few years ago, I had a coworker with an late(?) 1960s one with around 2K miles on it. It cost him like $25K in that condition, but he couldn't drive it or the miles would severely depreciate it's museum quality. He asked me if I wanted to buy it, but I said NO. I buy cars to drive...not as an investment.
Takes me back to when I owned a VW TS 1600 Fastback and I've been kicking myself ever since I sold it. I loved that car...Thanks for the memories Jay and Matt...
Drove a '58 from the Gulf Coast to New York and back in 1961. Great ride. Handled snow just fine. Great little cars. Got a bit nostalgic when Jay's guest mentioned that he was after a 2002 tii. Had one of those too, a '74 model, and kept it eight years, drove it through the mountains and up and down the east coast. Wish I still had it. Fjord blue with tan leather seats, and a fuel injected four. Held the road like a Porsche. You'll never guess what I drive now.