Ever owned anything else that made strangers so happy?

[ultralite]

Today I took my Bus and kids to a “cruise-in” for Fathers Day.

On the way there, you know the drill; honks, waves, gleeful shouting out windows “I love you van!” (With you smiling and whispering “it’s a Bus”) Today, I even got a thumbs up from a cop.

At the cruise-in/show, folks can’t wipe the smiles off their faces. This was mainly a show of American V8s. So the Bus stood out.

There it hit me “you know, I can’t really do anything else that makes this many strangers this happy, and all I’m doing is driving my favorite vehicle”.

It almost feels like charity
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Godspeed

'76 Beetle (sold)
'69 Beetle (sold)
'72 BMW 2002 (RIP)
'69 Westy
'02 BMW wagon AWD w/stick shift(sold)
'67 Beetle (sold)

[SevenOaks]

That’s my experience, too. When I drive my bus I often make it a point to notice the people smiling, waving, thumbs up, etc ... especially kids.
It’s a little different when I drive my single cab - along with all of that, people want to stop, talk and take pictures.
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David
1974 9-passenger bus
1969 Single cab
1966 Beetle

[cmonSTART]

Yup, it makes people smile!
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'78 Bus 2.0FI
de K1IGS

[h~moto]

I went to a flea market in Arlington, VA in my `71 Bus. They were having some special events there to celebrate the flea markets 30 year anniversary. As I pulled into a parking lot, off in the distance was a marching band from a local school. One member of the band turned and saw me in my Bus then turned back to the other members and apparently alerted the others. Next thing I know is there is an entire band waving & cheering.
The best moment though was when I was driving my lowlight Ghia. An elderly lady with a European accent approached me. She said that she and her husband had toured Europe in a Ghia for their honeymoon. Seeing my Ghia brought back the memories. She was quite emotional and even thanked me for driving a Karmann Ghia.

[Oilspot11]

Great post.

From the waves and thumb's-ups and shouts, to folks tapping friends to get their attention and pointing… To people walking up to you at filling stations with "the story", these vehicles bring a lot of memories to others. I simply love it.

[TDCTDI]

Mk1 mini. A Eurovan loosely painted as the Mystery Machine.
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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.

[sodbuster]

Yes I do. but people don't get to see that stuff nearly as much as they do my buses. That other thing is my collection of old BMX bikes. When I bust a few of those out I've seen grown men turn back into a 12 year old the moment they lay eyes on them. Fun to watch actually.

[Randy in Maine]

A bunch of Samoyed puppies is also high on the "cuteness" scale

[ultralite]

[cmonSTART]

Ya, everyone seems to have a story about one. The other day a former owner and I were comparing our whopping HP numbers, trading stories about hills..
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'78 Bus 2.0FI
de K1IGS

[jtauxe]

To answer the OP's question, another hobby of mine is railroad modeling. I find that most people do enjoy running a model railroad, so there's another thing that generates joy.

Another is music making which has the potential to generate a lot of joy.
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John
"Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippie trail, head full of zombie..." - Colin Hay and Ron Strykert
http://vw.tauxe.net
1969 Transporter, 1971 Westfalia, 1976, 1977, 1976, 1977, 1971, 1973, 1977 Westfalias,
1979 Champagne Sunroof, 1974 Westfalia Automatic, 1979 Transporter, 1972 Sportsmobile, 1973 Transporter Wild Westerner, 1974 Westfalia parts bus, 1975 Mexican single cab *FOR SALE*, 1978 Irish 4-door double cab RHD

[Glenn]

Babies, no one can resist.

_________________
Glenn
74 Beetle Specs | 74 Beetle Restoration | 2180cc Engine
"You may not get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get"

Member #1009

#BlueSquare

[The Dubbernaut]

If you are a Washington bus driver, you can get classic plates and drive EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. thanks to the new rules for collector vehicle plates! They took away the "maximum yearly miles" rule too!

http://www.dol.wa.gov/vehicleregistration/spcollector.html
May be driven:
To and from auto shows, circuses, parades, displays, special excursions, and antique car club meetings.
For testing purposes.
For the pleasure of others without compensation.
_________________
2012 Tiguan 4motion
2 Corrado's
3 Beetle's
76 Bus
2 Baja's
66 Pigalle Squareback
80 Rabbit
80 Rabbit Pickup
and still collecting!

[calebmelvin]

[slave1pilot]

all three are mine (and the cheerleader is mine too )
Brought joy to countless kids and adults for several years before I retired them.
_________________
My Photobucket for my Herbie Project - http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/TK-439/library/Herbie?sort=3&page=1

Currently:
1963 Ragtop Beetle
Previously:
1967 Beetle
1968 Beetle
1970 Beetle

[ultralite]

[Spezialist]

Surprise any 60’s van gets the same reaction. Dodge A100, Ford Econoline and even little chevys.
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[Wildthings]

Sometimes I just want to be able to buy gas without having a ten minute conversation on VW's

[richparker]

[KentABQ]