Don’t Bug Me
What has four forward gears, less horsepower than most motorcycles, higher gas mileage than a hybrid, was designed by Porsche, promoted by Adolf Hitler, endorsed by 4 out of 5 hippies, and has achieved iconic status? The classic Volkswagen Bug! The Beetle, as it was also called, was designed to be used by volks “the people” prior to the advent of WWII in Germany. The cars became popular in this country during the ‘60s and into the ‘70s. Volkswagen offered other variations on the same platform, but none proved nearly as successful as the Bug. The 1956 model pictured here is a collector’s dream! I have never owned a Beetle but have always had close encounters with them. In 1971 I ran a small VW repair shop at a friend’s garage in a residential neighborhood just north of the OSU campus, a hotbed of Beetle owners surrounding me. A steady girlfriend owned a Bug and allowed me to drive it whenever we were together. I think she got the idea that I was using her for her car when I would repeatedly offer to change the oil on Friday nights instead of spending money on a date! These cars were loud, polluting, hot in the summer, and cold in the winter…no air conditioning and a joke of a heater, and came standard without the AM radio, but captured the hearts and minds of many in this country and around the world until the end came. Like most icons, when the thing became mainstreamed into the American psyche, it’s popularity began to wane. Also, a little competition in the form of Honda, Datsun, and Toyota came along, not to mention new pollution standards that the pancake engine could never live up to. By the early 1980’s you would hardly see one on the road unless the Grateful Dead was jamming nearby. I’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for the beloved Bug.
What has four forward gears, less horsepower than most motorcycles, higher gas mileage than a hybrid, was designed by Porsche, promoted by Adolf Hitler, endorsed by 4 out of 5 hippies, and has achieved iconic status? The classic Volkswagen Bug! The Beetle, as it was also called, was designed to be used by volks “the people” prior to the advent of WWII in Germany. The cars became popular in this country during the ‘60s and into the ‘70s. Volkswagen offered other variations on the same platform, but none proved nearly as successful as the Bug. The 1956 model pictured here is a collector’s dream! I have never owned a Beetle but have always had close encounters with them. In 1971 I ran a small VW repair shop at a friend’s garage in a residential neighborhood just north of the OSU campus, a hotbed of Beetle owners surrounding me. A steady girlfriend owned a Bug and allowed me to drive it whenever we were together. I think she got the idea that I was using her for her car when I would repeatedly offer to change the oil on Friday nights instead of spending money on a date! These cars were loud, polluting, hot in the summer, and cold in the winter…no air conditioning and a joke of a heater, and came standard without the AM radio, but captured the hearts and minds of many in this country and around the world until the end came. Like most icons, when the thing became mainstreamed into the American psyche, it’s popularity began to wane. Also, a little competition in the form of Honda, Datsun, and Toyota came along, not to mention new pollution standards that the pancake engine could never live up to. By the early 1980’s you would hardly see one on the road unless the Grateful Dead was jamming nearby. I’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for the beloved Bug.
Image
1956 Volkswagen Beetle. Fair use Image. Picsearch. (2009) Retrieved from http://www.picsearch.com/info.cgi?q=Volkswagen%20Beetle&id=t9cuNVwhnC68uTRtQgsqS7aCqeelhsuR6yCp76w-KGc&start=57&opt=%26cols%3D3%26thumbs%3D18
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