Is a vintage Volkswagen Beetle a good first car?

Question

Hello, I am 15 years old and am already looking for my first car. I was thinking a 1973-ish VW bug.

I would need this car for simple daily tasks a like traveling to and from school, and the occasional cafe run. I would use this car for 2 years, and then I would go to college and have to sell it. It would not be kept in a garage and would have to deal with Mid-Atlantic winter conditions.

I am willing to spend around $7,000 and am looking for a beetle in drive-able conditions. Is this car good for me?

Answer 1

Whether an old bug lasts depends entirely on two things.



1. How you take care of it. It has no oil filter, only a metal screen, so oil changes must be frequent compared to new cars. Valve adjustments must be done regularly.



2. How you drive it. These cars CAN last a long time IF you drive it like a little old lady, which means gently. The PROBLEM is, they only have 40-50 HP, and most people drive them with the go pedal always floored. Americans are always in a big hurry, especially younger ones.



Drive it gently and maintain it properly and it will last forever. Otherwise, you'll be putting engines in about once each year. (I know this from experience my friend)

Answer 2

Sorry, but I think that this is not such a bright idea. I really doubt that a vintage car could be a good daily driver. I understood that good first cars are old vehicles so you can practice with them. However, they should not be that ancient. 2004-2006 Volkswagen New Beetles, Honda Civics, Mercury Grand Marquises are also tend to be good first cars. Choose wisely.

Answer 3

Well, it depends on where you live. If the local driving is mostly on freeways, the older Bugs just can't keep up because they accelerate slowly and do not stop on a dime, but on surface roads they're fine.They're fairly cheap, fun and easy to maintain, and a classic. However, in 70's cars "easy to maintain" means the maintenance is simple, but you have to work on them a lot compared to modern cars. The Bug can be quite fiddly and unreliable if not maintained regularly and well. A drawback too is that the crash-worthiness is lightyears behind modern cars. My first car was a '72 Bug and I loved it and drove it all over the U.S. in it with no troubles at all.



With a budget of $3,000 - $5,000 plus about $2,000 or a year for insurance (teens are very expensive to insure), I'd recommend a more modern vehicle that is low maintenance and gets great mileage. That pretty much means Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Subaru Impreza sedan. if you want something a little more "interesting", a late 90's Jeep Wrangler might fit the bill, but they don't get great gas mileage.



Of you still want to go "retro" 70's kind of nerd-cool, the '68 to '73 Datsun 510 is a neat little classic to look for.

Answer 4

1973 Super Beetle was my first car. That was in mid 80s.



Problem with this type of car is rust. Floor pan is NOT galvanized. They rust though. Doors rust. Everything rust. So much so that my battery (which is under the rear seat) almost fall through the floor.



A friend of mine had a car that battery actually did fall though during the time car was in motion.



Rust is easy to cover up. Just bondo and paint. So if you are going to buy one, you'll have to have a professional look through the car and make sure you are not buying a Swiss cheese. By today, finding one that is NOT rusted everywhere is nearly impossible.



So, NO, I don't recommend it, unless you want it as a project car.

Answer 5

Sure. Though you might not like how long it takes that air cooled motor to give you warm air. During winter. Know those oil bearing electric heaters that look like old steam radiators? Get a good one. You'll need it.

Answer 6

men yu live in mid atlantic then go 2 the source/s, a bug out or sumthin similar & ask



owners, also will find sum 4 sale, btw I prefer ghia's, owned sev vintage kg'z, ay btdt



yu know add filter doncha?

Answer 7

I often spend my half an hour to read this blog's posts daily along with a mug of coffee.