Traveling the USA with our ´70 Baywindow Bus

[ducmic]

Hi,
my name is Michael from Braunschweig, Germany. I worked at Volkswagen at the engine design dept (sorry, only watercooled engines)

After 4 years of intensive travelling in a ´63 Split bus in Europe and Morocco, we changed it over for a ´70 Baywindow weekender. I bought it by Samba from NY 9 years ago. After 60k miles in Europe it gets time to ship it to the US and visit it´s home coutry.
We will arrive End of August in Halifax and will have a first time slot of three month until end of November.
We will start at the east coast to visit the old home adress of the Bus in Long Island and New York. I will also try to contact the first owner. He is retired and I found his name at an adress near NY. Next stop will be St.Petersburg, Fl to visit my sister...
After this, we are free to head where we want. I hope there will be some VW meetings on the way to visit. I just started to find some POI we have to see. The idea is to end anywhere in the west (because of the weather) after 3 month, store the car and come back in January to go down the Baja together with my daughter.

If you have any advices for me. May be meetings, junkyards, shops, lonely back roads or POI, please write...........

Totally happy to see you and your country

Michael

[Abscate]

Wilkommen, Ducmic!

I’m in Port Jefferson area of Long Island so let me know your timing. Every first month Sunday we gather up vintage cars for Cars and Coffee and we have only lonely sage Green Bay Bus right now.

Pm me for communication here
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[Shonandb]

Welcome Michael!

There are a lot of POI's throughout the US so you may need about 10 years to see them all.

If you find yourself in the Pacific Northwest, there are VW meet ups a few times a month.

Feel free to reach out if you make it up to the Vancouver BC area in Canada.
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*******************************
76 Westy with a 2.5L Subaru SOHC + Vanagon (010) Automatic Transaxle
Build & Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=758760
Previous 1973 Panel Bus:
Click to view image

[TDCTDI]

You might want to rethink your journey into Mexico.


https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd13vgg720jo.amp

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/15/mexi...an-surfers
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Everybody born before 1975 has a story, good, bad, or indifferent, about a VW.


GOFUNDYOURSELF, quit asking everyone to do it for you!


An air cooled VW will make you a hoarder.


Do something, anything, to your project every day, and you will eventually complete it.

[dodger tom]

welcome michael.

there is no place in the us of a that doesn’t have something worth seeing.

if you make it to the central coast of california, let me know.
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1978 Champaign Edition 2 Westfalia
Would never find the time to keep up another classic air-cooled.

[airschooled]

I recommend skipping most of Southern California and getting straight to Baja. Far safer, cheaper, less crowded, and more welcoming.

Make sure you plan your trip west according to the elevation changes as well as mileage. What looks like a straight shot on a map could take 2-4 times as long in a bus due to elevation and the pure emptiness compared to other parts of the country. Gas can be more scarce… You’ll want an app like iOverlander if you plan on staying in free/public land campsites along the way. Unlike the east coast, not every square inch of the western US is covered in gates and “no trespassing” signs.

Enjoy your trip!
Robbie
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One-on-one tech help for your vintage Volkswagen:
www.airschooled.com

Road trip reports and tech blog:
https://www.patreon.com/airschooled

[ducmic]

Hi,
after starting the threat I got only one answer and wondered........but then I wake up. You are minimum 6h later then central european time
I will try to contact anybody there after we arrived and get near to the place you are living.
I ordered a map for the USA and take a box of needles to mark points that must be visited.
One of the first stops will be at Port Jefferson for Cars and Coffee and will visit the place where the Bus was located in Brookhaven.

Regars Michael

[Lind]

In the middle of january there is a large VW campout, BBB (Buses By the Bridge) in Lake Havasu, Arizona. Well worth attending.

I think Mexico is fine as long as you aren't a surfer and don't have fancy tires.
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Wanted:
Idaho VW license plate frames or other dealership items.
VWoA literature and early dealership or distributor literature/pictures/information
.

[KTPhil]

[Abscate]

[ducmic]

[ducmic]

[NJ John]

If your coming down the RT95 corridor. In Maryland check out on Facebook, Harford County Vintage Volkswagens. They meet usually once a week. Or you can stop at my empanada restaurant. We can maybe work it out with the club and have a VW gathering. All this is right off RT95 in north eastern Maryland.
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1973 standard, yellow, lowered, 3” narrowed front, 1600 blo-thru turbo w/single dell 15.4@86, so far
11.41 et buggy. Long gone
Let’s go O’s! Let’s go O’s!
https://www.youtube.com/@AirSpooledGarage

[my59]

Having driven the I95 corridor Maine to Florida more than once, i'd be looking at alternate routes for driving a bus.
I95 is a shit way to "see the country" on the East Coast.
It all depends on how much time you have. I've a penchant for staying near the coast rather than go inland.
Parts of RT1 in Maine, Acadia national park, to Brunswick are nice driving. Between Portland Maine and Boston, the choices of route narrow, same as they do between Boston And NYC.
RT 1 near population centers typically turns into big box stores, strip malls, and traffic lights. This is where getting on an interstate highway makes sense and will improve gas milage with reduced frustration of having to slow down and stop endlessly.
From NYC south, consider the Cape May ferry from NJ to Delaware, then eastern shore MD to the bridge tunnel to Norfolk. Or ferry ride and head to Annapolis MD, then follow 301 to 17 to Yorktown VA.
RT 13 and 17 south outside of Norfolk wander through North Carolina. 17 will get you well into Florida.
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my59: Well son, my grandfather died before I got to drive it, so does that answer your question?
our79: sunroof bus w/camper interior and 2.0 FI
Other:'12 Jetta, '77 Benz 300D, and a 74 MG Midget.

[CanStan]

[dodger tom]

i respectfully disagree with robbie. southern california is full of things to see and do, and has plenty of friendly people. like robbie.

plus, some of the world’s best beer is brewed there.

being german, i assume you like beer.
_________________
1978 Champaign Edition 2 Westfalia
Would never find the time to keep up another classic air-cooled.

[TDCTDI]

[Abscate]

Using aggregate statistics as a surrogate for safety is a poor strategy.

Leaving Germany, you have already made a 8x jump in murder “ risk” coming to the US, most Americans who fear travel to Mexico fear brown people more than murder rates. This happens from watching too much “Narcos”
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[Cusser]

[CanStan]