In my last post, I wrote that I had decided that a ’69-’72 Beetle
would be just the ticket to get back into the bug trade. I had identified a few
local candidates that looked good off The Samba (www.thesamba.com) and Craigslist but two in
particular stood out. Interestingly, it looked like the same guy had both cars and
the ads contained the magic phrase “rust free”. These two were a white ’70 and
an orange ’71 located not far from me in Roseville, CA.
So, after sitting on my hands for a week after Bugorama, I
called up the owner of these two cars who was a fellow named JD. JD agreed to
meet me and we set a time for the following morning.
When I showed up both Bugs were parked side-by-side outside
a neat old brick warehouse right by the main railroad line that runs from the
Bay Area up to Reno and beyond. There was also a tow yard next door and the
area surrounding the building was littered with derelict classics-some very
familiar to me from my childhood.
I looked at the white ’70 first and immediately found a
bunch of Bondo lurking and some fairly botched repairs that I did not want to
deal with. I moved on to the orange ’71 and I am so glad that I did.
JD told me the car belonged to a fellow who was a civil
engineer and also an endurance horseback rider. He used the ’71 and a sister yellow '72
Beetle as his work trucks so neither had the passenger seats when JD got them
as the owner used to carry his tools and saddles in that space. The orange car
also was rigged up with an electrical plug in the front apron as he used to tow
this behind an old semi-based rig he had that he used to take his horses to
events and camp out in.
As I looked the car over, it became readily apparent that it
had been loved and had never been hit hard enough to have any panels replaced.
The left door and fender had some pretty good dents that had been pounded out
but I could not find a speck of Bondo anywhere on the car. The floorpans also
looked pristine and there was patina galore but none of the usual hacking that
was done to most of these cars. I began to get excited as this car was a real “survivor”
type ride that would be the perfect base for what I had in mind.
JD let me take a quick run around the block that revealed a
nice tight gearbox with no grinds and a motor with a surprising amount of pep
that started right up on the first turn of the key. The brakes were doughy and
the steering was a bit darty, but I wrote this off to old fluid and the 30 year
old Michelin XZX tires on the front end. The car had been off the road since
1993 so some of this was of course expected.
I thanked JD for his time and told him I would call tomorrow
with a decision, but I knew I was sunk. The little car was practically winking
at me when I looked back and it was by far the nicest original car I had found
in months of looking. I did not want to lose the car but I also wanted to
marinate on the decision a little.
I headed home, did some chores around the house, and then
called JD back to buy the car for the full asking price. I am sure I could have
knocked off a few Franklins or Grants but there just aren’t many cars like this
one still out there.
As I pondered plans to pick up the car the next day, I began
to think about the many signs telling me this was the right car for me.
Sign #1-The color of the car was code L20D “Clementine”
which is also the name of the main character in the traditional Gold Country and
Boy Scout dirge “My Darling Clementine”. Turns out the car spent most of its
life up there in those some ‘49er hills so this was the first interesting coincidence.
Sign #2-When I pulled into the lot at the warehouse, I
parked in front of a beat old Chevy pickup. When I went to leave, I gave it a
closer look and it turned out to be a twin of the truck my Grandpa Fred had when I was a kid. It was a ’71 Chevy
C20 longbed finished in Russet Gold and White with the same 400 small block and
Camper Special package. Spooky indeed.
Sign #3-The Beetle was last on the road in 1993 which was
the year I graduated college. Here we are 20 years later and she had not turned
a wheel since the University of Southern California kicked me out the gates.
She was waiting for me to grow up apparently.
Sign #4-The Beetle and I are only four months apart in
age-both of us are 1971 models.
Sign #5-I found the car in Roseville, CA. My late Mom
collected “Roseville” pottery for most of her adult life and loved it dearly.
It is true that the pottery was named after a city in Ohio but the coincidence
is still there.
Sign #6-The color of the car is the same shade of a ’71 Super
Beetle that my buddy John Deacon bought in high school. He had it repainted a
horrid red at Earl Scheib but it started out as this shade when new.
The Seventh Sign-When JD gave me the title, the last name of
the previous owner was Davis and the little car now lives in my backyard in
Davis, CA.
With all these things in mind and the song “Synchronicity”
by The Police ringing in my ears, I present to you the newest member of the
Gearhead Tourist fleet, Clementine the Beetle. The kids and I will be digging in
soon to get her back on the road so as usual stay tuned…
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