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FEBRUARY 2002 - Volkswagen of the Month |
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Rich’s "Valentine Red" 1964 Beetle
- By Roxanna J.
You know, the things you do for your kids! And then, the things you are stuck with when they get tired of them! At my house, it is a snake. For Rich, it is his 1964 VW that he lovingly calls "Francine." This little car was bought in March of 1998 by his daughter, which she drove to and from school and work for about a year. But no radio, no air conditioning, and frequent breakdowns equaled no fun! So, Rich took over the care taking of her, and now she is his daily driver.
"Francine" was built on September 23, 1963 in Wolfsburg, Germany and shipped to Philadelphia, PA. Her original color was Pearl White. Unfortunately, she has a "nasty" taste for crankshafts, as Rich has learned the hard way. First taste was on his way to work on Nonconnah Parkway. Then, after the repair and driving home from work on the Nonconnah Parkway. Remanufactured engines? Bah humbug! In disgust, Rich just gave the engine away! I believe that I would have quit using the Nonconnah Parkway, or just quit work!
However, as luck would have it, and of course, money too, Francine now has a custom built, brand new 1600cc dual port! And it is a beauty. This one has balanced everything's, crankshaft/fly wheel, rods and pistons; and new 12volt generator, Bosch 009 distributor, fuel pump, Pentronix electronic ignition, hydraulic valve lifters, dog house oil cooler. (Hey! Even I am barking like Tim Allen!) To keep an eye on all that hardware, he installed a full instrument gauge cluster on the left side of the speedometer. He hated to cut the dash, but felt that with the improvements he had made, it would be worth it, insurance, if you will!
The interior of Francine is rather plain, as they typically are in those little babies. But, Rich has replaced and fully restored the driver's seat and frame. The pedals are upgraded to the mid-70's (does that mean it has one of those cool foot print looking pedals?). The electrical system has been totally repaired and upgraded. She has a stereo system now that even his daughter would be proud of!
Of course, there is always a good story behind these cars. You can look back and laugh, but at the time, you would like to shoot them and put YOU out of your misery! Francine had to be unceremoniously towed back to "Barker's garage" (Isn't that the place in the Twilight Zone?) in Memphis after the 2000 Stuttgart, AR Maifest. There she spent a whole month getting a rear-end job! (Man, I hate it when that happens!) Rich has almost lost wheels too! On his way to one of our VW meetings, he had to bring her to a screeching halt, to find she was only holding on by one lug nut! But being the die-hard VW enthusiast that, he just tightened them down and chugged right on. That just goes to show that neither rain, nor sleet, nor hail will keep a VDubber from a meeting! (sounded like the postman to me!)
In all seriousness, a lot of hard work, love and money has gone into the restoration of Francine." Rich hopes she returns the favor and provides him many years of driving pleasure!