volkswagens

There you are! I've only been in a Beetle once- snow and cold and Christmas time, a priest knew us kids and Mom could use a ride so he stuffed us all into the Beetle and got home quicker and warmer.

@sallypup I drove a series of VWs, started w/a Karmann Ghia convertible—it was destroyed by my 2d hubs who drove it into salty floodwaters in Houston—but that's a whole story in itself. Then a series of Beetles, 1967 was my favorite year/model. Then briefly a Vanagon, and back to Beetles, including one dunebuggy. I loved my Beetles for driving in snow. All that rear-end traction negated the need for chains, even though I was required by law to chain up when I drove to Mount Hood in the winter. They were easy enough to work on that I could change my own oil, adjust the valves, replace the fuel pump and the one fan belt, adust the clutch (it was just a cable with a wingnut adjustment). I think that's all the work I ever did on them myself. But I worked as a mech assistant to a shadetree VW mech and learned a ton, including how to rebuild a VW engine. Yes, those were the days.

@blitzfrick Your thoughtful comment brings me way back to when I was on the WA Olympic peninsula, worrying about a snowy mountain hill. That was probably you in that VW, zipping up that slope like it was high summer in California.