I think, and this is just a thought, that everyone from my generation has, or knows someone who has, a Bug story.
This is my story. I grew up in the small town of Groton, CT (latest population: 40,000) The town of Groton was a great place to raise families in as it appeared, back then, that everyone was married with children. My parents had seven children (5 girls, 2 boys) so if we couldn’t find anyone to play with, we always had each other.
When I turned 16 I decided that not only did I need a license, but also a car to get around in. Groton was not known for public transportation so you really needed either your own car or access to one to get from point A to point B as everything, and I mean everything, was spread out.
As much as I wanted to get my license at age 16, I wound up getting it at age 17 as outdoor track practice got in the way of Drivers Education. Yes, Driver’s Ed, as it was called, was “free” back then and part of the high school curriculum. I recall having 6 hours of instructional behind-the-wheel activity but needing 9. I also recall having the hardest time doing a Y turn and being terrified at the prospect of driving over the Gold Star Memorial bridge.
I took my state of CT license exam in the town of Old Saybrook, CT as I heard the driving test there was soooooooo easy and did not require Y turns. Consequently, I passed with flying colors. With license in hand, it was now time to find a car.
I had saved a whopping $800 from working part-time at Bonanza Steak House restaurant so I felt rich :)) My father was ‘out to sea’ so I convinced my older sister to take me to a used car dealership to purchase my first car. I had no idea what I wanted to buy, just that it had to look good and have a nice radio…
I was so impatient back then! I was on a mission to purchase a car that Saturday afternoon and neither Hell nor high water could get in my way. I don’t remember actually test driving anything, all I know is that I saw this Bug on the lot that looked like “me” and was completely sold on it. It was silver blue, a little beat up looking, an “automatic standard” which is an automatic car with a stick shift, and possessed a ‘new car’ smell. I fell in love and had to have it.
I talked the salesman, Frank, down to $700, signed the paperwork, and was asked to come back the following weekend to pick up my ‘new’ Bug.
My first red flag appeared while I was driving it off the lot the following week: it chugged and sputtered all the way home…
My second red flag was that I had to feed it oil on a regular basis. And then the majority of the oil wound up on our driveway…
My third red flag: my Bug could only go up to 60 miles per hour before the whole car started shaking…
I had clearly been had. And I aged that Summer – suddenly I was no longer 17, I felt like I was 25, or worse 30, with real life problems. My thought: if I got rid of the car, I could have my carefree teenage life back…
So I ditched the car as quickly as I could. I sold it to a junk dealer for a song and went back to being a teenager…life was good, once again…
What a great, fun read! I love the way you write…I always feel like I’m there with you. And, Bonanza!! Haven’t thought about that place in a long time!! Lots of us can relate to this story! I had a car I started with a screwdriver, and my son’s first car, that he was SO excited about, as it was SO cheap, had to be towed into our driveway cause it didn’t work!!! We all need to dump some things and go back to being a teen for a while! 🙂
Thanks Joyce for your great Bug story and kind words!
Well of course great minds…..I too, owned a bug!! I bought mine in 1983, and it was a ’74….NOT a Super Beetle, and yes, four speed. I had gotten my associates and took a year off to try to figure out what was next. So I worked downtown Mystic, then at Arthur’s (the club in New London, do you remember?), and was taking various classes at the Avery Point Branch of UCONN. I wormed with a VW fanatic and, having grown up w all boys knew enough about what to look for. So between my co worker and my own knowledge I found this bug, good shape, for $2,000. Immediately put a stereo and speakers in it, and was in love! Buffed it out to make it shiny even! It’s only issue was that the floor was rusted so much it had holes, so that it rained, when I came to a stop the water washed over my feet like waves in an ocean!, well, I had grand plans to drive it out to New Mexico where I had been accepted to school, leaving right after Christmas 1983, so the holes in the floor would not do. My Dad is a handiman and a mechanic (actually Coast Guard officer then, but had the skills), and came up with the brilliant plan to sandblast the inside of the floor and then fiberglass it.. .and it worked!! So, loaded down with my most important possessions and my friend Donna who came along for the ride, away we went. It was a great trip, we stopped along the way to see friends and family, until we reached Texas where Donna caught a fkight back, and I wejt on to start my new life. In March for spring break I decided to drive another 1,000 miles to visit friends and my brother in southern California. I found some raid trip mates who I dropped off in Arizona and cali on the way, and had a fabulous week. On the way back I left at midnight on st pats day. Picked up passenger #1 and we headed to Arizona for #2. About 6am I was ready for sleep and so my passenger took the wheel. I fell sound asleep and unfortunately as we drove through the desert, so did he. The last i saw of my bug as i was driven off via ambulance was the startburst hole in the bottom….we had rolled quite a bit and the floor gave out. The battery as you know sits beneath the back seat in the older models, and had come losse and battery acid soaked through and shredded our clothing as we all bounced around.
There’s much more to the adventure, but I’ll just say no one was horribly hurt, just some good cuts and bruises……to this day I have never loved a car more!
OMG! I absolutely love that story Bonnie and remember some parts of it so thanks for sharing!!!
My apologies for the typos, I am on my phone! And I never shared the color…..red!
Not surprised at that color — it suits your story!