
1967 Volkswagen Beetle Restoration
- 2018/12/08
- 1 051 919
- 14 746
Kathleen Brooks bought her first Beetle in December 1966 in Riverside, Calif.-a red 1967 model she quickly named “Annie.” Ever since, Annie has been Kathleen’s daily transportation, racking up more than 350,000 miles over 51 years, or enough to circle the globe 14 times, and Kathleen, now 73, still drives Annie to work.
After hearing about Kathleen and Annie’s special relationship last year, Volkswagen’s North American Region undertook a unusual project-offering to restore Annie at the North American home of the Beetle at the Puebla, Mexico, factory. Over the past 11 months, a team of some 60 Volkswagen employees and trainees reworked Annie back to factory-quality specs, with several custom touches that celebrate Kathleen’s dedication. This week, Kathleen and Annie were reunited, and Kathleen met key members of the Volkswagen team that led the restoration.
“We often hear stories of dedicated Volkswagen owners, but there was something special about Kathleen and Annie that we felt we needed to honor,” said Derrick Hatami, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Volkswagen of America, Inc. “The original Beetle launched our business in the United States. This isn’t just a Beetle, it’s a member of her family, and after all the time our employees have spent with this special vehicle, we feel Annie is a part of our family as well.”
Brooks works with breast-cancer patients and survivors to provide comfort and cosmetic care during treatment and recovery. A three-time breast cancer survivor herself, Brooks says for over five decades Annie was a constant conversation starter with Beetle fans and owners, but also “always there for me.” “I’ve said many times she and I are so much alike because she’s old, she’s faded, she’s dinged, she’s dented, she’s rusted, but you know what? She keeps running,” says Brooks with a laugh. “And as long as I take as good care of her as I can, she’s going to continue to run.”
Even with Brooks’ best efforts, Annie had several needs when her restoration began in Puebla early this year, from a floor pan rusted through to the ground in spots to suspension, transmission and electrical challenges. Over 11 months, the Puebla team replaced roughly 40 percent of Annie’s parts and restored 357 original pieces, down to recreating the stickers that Brooks had added to the body and windows over the years. To properly restore her faded red paint, the team matched the original shade from the inside of the glovebox, sandblasted the body, repaired with a mix of period-correct and updated parts, and then reassembled.
Several parts of the vehicle were restored with better than their original factory parts, from the disc brakes that were an upgrade on later Beetles produced in Mexico to the AM/FM/Bluetooth stereo designed to mimic the look and feel of original Beetle radios. The wiring was completely redone; the transmission rebuilt and suspension upgraded. The engine was completely disassembled, cleaned, updated and rebuilt. Even the seats received a special touch, with “Kathleen” and “Annie” embroidered in a classic VW font over new leather. And to tie the car to the modern era, the car’s toolkit and jack was painted in deep sea teal metallic, the color of the 2018 Beetle Coast edition.
The goal, says project manager and mechatronics engineer Augusto Zamudio, was not to create a museum quality Beetle, but to bring Annie back to a state where Kathleen could drive and enjoy her for many more years to come.
“When Annie arrived, our team members quickly understood the connection Kathleen had with her car and embraced this project wholeheartedly,” said Steffen Reiche, CEO of Volkswagen of Mexico. “Restoring this car posed a number of challenges, but also provided a demonstration of the dedication we put into every Volkswagen we build.”
When Brooks parted with Annie, she wrote a heartfelt note to the Puebla team members thanking them for their efforts and asking them to take care of her special car. Zamudio says the feeling is mutual - and the team wrote Brooks back a note of their own.
コメント数
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Lil Durk
Lil Durk & Only The Family- Riot feat. Booka600 & G Herbo (Official Music Video)
再生回数 852 655
WeBe Autos Ltd.
1967 Volkswagen Beetle For Sale~Beautiful Restoration~1600 Motor~Vintage Luggage Rack
再生回数 277
おもちゃんねるん Omotyannerun
トミカ トミカリミテッドヴィンテージ / TOMICA LIMITED VINTAGE / パトカー・ゴミ収集車・消防車・バス・カーキャリア 年末特集2019
再生回数 47 084
Charles Duzzie4 日 前
This doesn't look like much, but every part for this car is made in America.....
Obie Cano8 日 前
Nothing more beautiful that the original bug.......perfect mini-porsche.....I would take this less powerful, less fuel efficient, heavier, less techie bug over the lame attempt of recent years. This car was a work of art.
G Bohmbach17 日 前
My father was working in the Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, manufacturing many many beetles from 1966 to 1974. I have tears in my eyes watching this beautiful restoration. Excellent job, gentlemen!
Sungodv18 日 前
I drove a 67 back in the late 70s...always needed something, but never left me stranded.
Gustavo Ferreira19 日 前
Muita gente querendo mostrar serviço e quase ngm fazendo nada kkkkk
JayinMI20 日 前
I wasn't as worried about the crooked bumper, but the front headlights were wrong, the rear bumper was wrong, and I'm sure there was more. '67's have a lot of 1 and 2 year only parts. But it was still cool that they did this for her, and the she enjoys it.
Edmar Caetano20 日 前
Acabaram de restaurar o fusca já levaram ele para Praia perto das água salgadas kkkkk
Michael Seow21 日 前
Perfect
Fabian Pizaña Molina24 日 前
5:52 lo mejor del vídeo6:55 adoro esa imagen
Ed King25 日 前
Nice 👍👍👍
Dr . Pepper26 日 前
Absolutely Beautiful!! 👌
alonso zuniga26 日 前
😃😃😃👍👍👍
Oliver Tapia28 日 前
Like si alguna vez pensaste en un día tendré un vw
Ethan Hurlヶ月 前
Did these things even have frames or was that the car body
Ellen Hersteadヶ月 前
Simply beautiful
Tribute Filmsヶ月 前
What I would give to have this car
Richard Beckermanヶ月 前
Estos si son autos no chigaderas
Octavio Cuitunヶ月 前
Made in Mexico
Squeakypizza101ヶ月 前
U brought it on sand it gonna rust😭😭😭
Aldren Joy Banalヶ月 前
I hope someone will.restore my VM beetle 1979
Didier Mukendiヶ月 前
This beetle is loved
bman 99ヶ月 前
This music makes me feel like I AM A BETTLE!!!
The Missouri Traveler6 日 前
A what?!
NOAH DRIVERヶ月 前
Herbie is back again
G Bヶ月 前
This Beetle is called Annie
Gilberto Nedel Juniorヶ月 前
Uhuuuu, great car
ajmal yusafヶ月 前
Excellant rennovation except one thing noticed was the number plate...which was not changed or even seen cleaned. Any how good efforts to restore vw.
Peter Burnettヶ月 前
why bother. still and ugly bug.
Fotomov2 ヶ月 前
Un cordial saludo desde Alemania! Gran rendimiento! Gran coche! ¡Me gusta que se haya mantenido lo más original posible! Todo lo mejor! Axel
Oscarvalente Sanches hernandez2 ヶ月 前
Beautiful Volkswagen Sedán Made In México ra ra ra
Chris Chrossy2 ヶ月 前
I don't know what it is, old cars have a face and character....❣
Christer Albäck2 ヶ月 前
Seems like going electric would have been a better idea, after all that effort. And the front bumper, how on earth....?
Stacey Weeaks2 ヶ月 前
It's the classic "crooked smile" and I love it!
John Roberts2 ヶ月 前
Better than when she left the factory.
smith jones2 ヶ月 前
Good for a another 51 years
Furrowed Brow2 ヶ月 前
Great idea. Take a newly restored car to the beach for a photo shoot. It started to rust on the way home.
Charles Addison Ociones2 ヶ月 前
It's Annie the beetle
Clyde Cox2 ヶ月 前
How much did you pay for this VW? Just curious
wellington xavier santos2 ヶ月 前
Muito bom só de ver o comprometimento da equipe....Parabéns!
Príncipe azteca2 ヶ月 前
Muy buen trabajo chavos!!! 👍
masini retro2 ヶ月 前
depinde de buget!
Mauricio Alves2 ヶ月 前
6'11 para-choque torto. AFF!
Murilo Carneiroヶ月 前
Mais facil a areia da praia tá torta... Essa equipe da Nasa nao iria cometer esse vacilo.