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“This car and I were meant to be,” declares Robert Stomann as we delve into his Volkswagen Beetle. “It just keeps finding me.” he adds, making the point that he and his recently acquired survivor have history.
Fact is, Robert first found this remarkable Beetle (or rather it found him) over twenty years ago when he set out to replace his ageing ’54 Morris Minor. “I needed something to get me up and down the Eastern Freeway each day. Since I’d owned Beetles before I decided to get one of them.”
A self confessed sucker for low mileage cars, Rob was after nothing but the best and decided a WANTED ad for a low mileage late model Beetle in The Saturday Age classifieds was the best way to flush it out. Unfortunately, his ad failed to deliver a single response, forcing him to settle for a clean ’71 Beetle 1300 from Geelong that was “at least up to the job”.
Then it came. A call out of the blue from a fellow named John with a 1975 Superbug for sale. “I’d completely forgotten about the ad and had the 1300 by then, but figured it was worth a look.”
What an understatement! With hardly any blemishes on its period-perfect Martini Olive duco, John's car was a gem. Not only that, but it was also a one year only model, as the '75-Superbug mix made it an especially rare find.
Problem was, buying the 1300 had left Rob a bit skint - so he did a deal with John to pay the car off. “Every pay day I would go down to the bank and make a payment until the car was eventually mine.”
According to the handbook, the Volkswagen was first registered to a Mr F. A. Whiteley who purchased it new from Pound Motors - one of Melbourne’s then-principal Volkswagen dealerships - in November 1975.
Apparently, a recent windfall had left Mr Whiteley in a good position to consider his new car.
For practical reasons he settled for a Volkswagen, opting for the “L” with its punchy 1600 engine because he wanted something “sporty.” To jazz it up further, Mr Whitely had Pound’s fit twin external mirrors, rear stone guards and a Clarion AM/FM stereo cassette player that was considered state of the art back in the day. The finishing touch was a set of personalized plates: BW 600.
Curiously, the love affair proved short-lived. Within ten months the almost-new Beetle was on Mr Whiteley’s nature strip with a 'For Sale' sign propped under the wiper. It then promptly caught the eye of nearby resident, and soon to be new owner, Norma Lacey.
Now registered IKI 392, the Beetle would be Norma’s first foray into four-wheeled motoring.
Until then, she’d been an avid scooter fan. A bit of a legend in scooter circles - we’re told - who never missed an opportunity to show her immaculate, prize-winning Vespa at scooter gatherings. Her new Beetle would be no-less cherished, and for the next eight years received diligent upkeep bordering on the obsessive.
So it must have been with a heavy heart that in 1982 Norma decided to let her Beetle go.
It seems love of another kind played a part as Norma had met a new fella, Mr Skillen, who - as luck would have it - had just bought a new Datsun 200B. With no room in the new household for more than one car an ad appeared in the Saturday Age:
"VW 1600 LBeetle Lady Owner 25,000 kms E.C $3,900"
It was a case of ‘first to see will buy’ when John, who’d been searching for six months, turned up to view Norma’s car. With Norma’s phone still running hot as he eyed the car off, John couldn’t seal the deal quick enough in case someone else snapped it up.
It wasn’t long before John decided to show off his new toy and with the “Day of The Volkswagen” event coming up in October that year, John had the already immaculate Beetle buffed and ready for its debut outing where it romped home with top honors. A feat it would repeat again and again for the next ten years.
Source: Survivor Car Australia
What's your favourite Beetle? Tell us in the comments.
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