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"To leave the bus the way it is, forces the observer to think about history, where we've come from and who we are as a society." -Brian Piercey |
| This story starts...well, truly this story starts long before I was born. My parents owned a series of VW Beetles from the 60s and when I was brought home from the hospital, it was in a blue 1967 Beetle. I've been raised around old VWs my whole life and it's become a bit of an obsession and a passion for me.
This particular story starts in 2003 when I decided once and for all that I was a bus driver. Bugs are nice, Type 3s have their appeal, but I really love being up there above the front wheels with nothing in front of me save for a steering wheel, windshield, and the road! I never wanted a VW for speed; for me, it was always reliability, fixability, and having a bit of a canvas on which to express my personality. |
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| I found my 1967 Riviera camper on The Samba for a little over two grand in 2003. The interior was fairly original for this type of camper and, while it didn't have the original tent, the price was right and I'd previous fallen in love with the Riviera style of camper. I had to have it. So, making a weekend out of it, Amber and I headed south to San Luis Obispo to check out the bus, see the sights, spend the night, and make the 200 mile trek north the next day. The bus was more or less as advertised. The engine was a funky attempt at a high performance motor and I didn't trust it much at all. The speedometer (or the cable) was broken, so Amber had to get out ahead of me in traffic and set the cruise control to 65mph so I could keep a steady pace. |
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Judging by the outside, all it seems I've done is minor cosmetic work. Some paint here, lots of stickers, a new roof rack, that sort of thing. But the first part of this bus's life with me was fraught with breakdowns and repairs. Needless to say, AAA roadside service got to know me pretty well! The two years alone saw a new engine (stock, totally the way to go) and having the reduction gear boxes rebuilt. The brakes have also been gone through, I've managed the jerryrig the heater so it works well enough, and I've had to replace the steering box. You'd think it was an all-new bus, but there's still a laundry list of items that either can be or should be done. Regardless, lots of people still find the bus a head-turner in its current state. Even the North American Auto Auctioneers Asso liked it enough to use in the promotional video for their 2009 conference! |
| Simply put, owning and driving an old VW bus is a symbol of freedom. The idea of the open road and exploring all those little blue highways on the map has always appealed to me. Major interstates really do not raise any interest in me. Why would I want to race from A to B at 75mph stopping only to eat, pee, and get gas at a large chain of corporate gas stations? I'd rather trundle down a minor highway (or a completely dirt road!), taking in the sights, doing a respectable speed, and enjoying myself! One of the greatest trips I've taken has been The Shasta Snow Trip. A bunch of old VW bus drivers (old meaning the buses not necessarily the drivers) taking their buses down random back roads in the dead of winter in an attempt to reach Mt. Shasta City inside of a day. Sounds easy; the reality, not so much. Took us 18 hours last year! |
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There's no denying it. I love my bus and I love driving it!|
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