This is what a 315,000-mile VW Beetle looks like

The subhead for this quick update could so easily be Mrs MajorGav gets the PetrolBlog Bug. You see, we now own what is probably best described as a very high mileage Volkswagen New Beetle. Like, 315,000 miles high.

Sure, it’s not uncommon for German engines to achieve mega miles, but what’s remarkable about this particular VW Beetle is that it’s powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine. Furthermore, it spent the early part of its life as a hire car in Somerset, dispelling any thoughts that buying an ex rental hack is a bad idea.

Even more remarkably, this 2000 Volkswagen Beetle has always been serviced at the same VW dealer in Yeovil, right up until the point it was laid up in 2012/2013. Everything has been done at Loders in Yeovil. Big stuff, small stuff… you name it, there’s a receipt for it. Leafing through the service history takes time and effort. War & Peace has got nothing on this Beetle’s folder of receipts.

So we own a Volkswagen New Beetle, which is an unexpected twist in the ever-changing world of the PetrolBlog fleet. The question is, what is it doing here and what are we going to do with it?

Reputation, reputation, reputation

You know you’ve developed a reputation in a village when your wife is asked if we’d be interested in a tired old VW Beetle. Our local farmer was attempting to do some work at a property in the village, but his path was blocked by the resting Beetle. Long story short: if he could move it, he could have it. Which is where we come in.

Having towed it to his farm, the farmer invited us over to take a look. First impressions were very good. A few bits of moss here and there, some mould on the inside, but nothing that couldn’t be sorted with a few tonnes of elbow grease. But then we clocked the mileage. At first it looked like 31,500 miles, but in a classic double-take moment, we realised that it was actually 315,000, or 315,451 to be precise.

At this point, most normal people would thank the farmer for his time, before walking away, thinking no more of it. But we’re not like normal people and once we’d seen the pile of receipts and the two-owner V5 doc, we decided a rescue mission was in order. So the Volkswagen Beetle is now sitting at PetrolBlog HQ awaiting surgery.

Wanted: dead or alive?

Of course, there’s probably a very good reason why the Beetle was laid up – terminal failure is a distinct possibility. It’s strange that after a lifetime of wanting for nothing, it was discarded and left for dead. But in our view it deserves better. A car that has travelled so far has a right to expect a second chance.

Considering the action it has seen, the Beetle is in remarkably good shape. You should only enter the cabin whilst wearing Breaking Bad style protective suits, but there’s nothing a deep clean couldn’t sort. Aside from making it hygienically clean, the long term aim is to keep her as is. This Beetle will wear its battle scars with pride.

There’s no blank chequebook here. We’ve placed a ceiling on the amount we’re prepared to spend on resurrecting the Beetle and we intend to stick to it. Worst case scenario: the likely costs will be so high, she’ll be turned into a chicken shed. Best case scenario: she’ll require a few hundred pounds of work and will drive on to achieve 400,000 miles.

Of course, the brakes will need sorting, all the fluids will need changing and the tyres will be flat-spotted, but bigger issues could concern the gearbox, clutch, head gasket or something deep within the bowels of the engine. Time will tell, but for now we have huge respect for this blue survivor.

Besides, the 400,000-mile Beetle featured on Jalopnik gives it a target to aim for.

Side view Volkswagen Beetle

2000 Volkswagen Beetle interior

Rear of 2000 Volkswagen Beetle

315000 miles on clock

2000 Volkswagen Beetle

2000 Volkswagen Beetle dashboard

Loders Volkswagen plate

Loders of Yeovil

Faded Volkswagen Beetle badge

2000 Volkswagen Beetle alloy wheel

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Back for good: Volkswagen Corrado VR6

A lost passport. I have a lost passport to thank for being reunited with an old flame. After an absence of  seven years, my old Volkswagen Corrado VR6 is back in the PetrolBlog fold.

Actually, that’s not strictly true, because my ownership of the Corrado pre-dates PetrolBlog by a year. It was sold – somewhat reluctantly – to fund a new boiler, way back in 2009. You’ll remember the Corrado was the star of first ever Regrets feature, which you can read here.

Right, back to that missing passport. Back in early February, I had a call from Alex, the chap who bought my beloved Corrado. He had found my expired passport in the huge folder containing the Corrado’s service history and out of courtesy had phoned me to ask if I wanted it back.

Naturally, I let it slip that I could be interested in buying the Corrado, should he ever decide to sell. I requested a pic, just for old time’s sake, but thought no more of it.

Head vs heart

That was until a month later when I received a text from Alex letting me know that he would sell the Corrado, not least because he has a rather lovely Porsche 911 in the garage and a project 924 in desperate need of attention. Could I, should I, buy it back? A proper head vs heart decision…

The fact that I’m writing this tells you all you need to know. In many ways it was an easy decision to make. In the seven years of absence, Alex had improved the Corrado in a number of ways, but crucially, he had done so sympathetically and with originality in mind. It still looked and felt like my Corrado. Only better.

New shocks and bushes all round, new headlights, aftermarket headlight loom, full closure alarm, de-locked door handles, new sunroof cables, roof liner cleaned and replaced, knock sensor, water pump, thermostat housing and new leather seats are amongst the highlights. The folder of receipts was burgeoning back in 2009. Today, it’s fit to burst. Proper maintenance of a VR6 doesn’t come cheap.

If I’m honest, I wouldn’t have considered fitting leather seats, but having seen them and, more importantly, perched my bottom in them, I’m totally won over. They also have the heating elements fitted, so I could upgrade to the warmth of heated leather seats. Middle age means features such as this are a bonus.

It also helped that Alex is one of us – a proper petrolhead and a decent bloke. It’s often said that you buy into the seller before you buy into the car and it was immediately obvious that Alex had taken great care of the Corrado. Following a test drive, a number of texts, some head scratching and a lengthy conversation about the state of the classic car market, a deal was done. The Corrado was coming home.

Getting to know you. Again.

The relatively short drive back from North Devon was like getting to know an old friend. The subsequent tweet said it all and received more than its fair share of comments, likes and retweets. Seems like there’s a whole lotta love for Volkswagen’s coupe of the 1990s.

Of course, the danger of becoming reacquainted with an old flame is the gradual realisation that there were reasons why you drifted apart in the first place. OK, in this instance the divorce was caused by the urgent need for heat and water, but was the Corrado VR6 really that good? Two weeks on, and reaching for some wood, the answer is yes.

There are things which are as good as I remember, like the terrific noise, the sweet handling, the wonderfully direct steering and the low-slung driving position. By today’s standards, 190bhp doesn’t give the Corrado VR6 the right to sit at the performance top table, heck it only puts it alongside the Nissan Pulsar 190, but it’s the way it delivers the power that matters.

Low-end grunt makes way for top-end thrust, as the VR6 delivers the magic. The 0-60 time of around 6.7 seconds is quick, even today, and the power is delivered with that oh-so-wonderful accompanying soundtrack.

There are also things which aren’t quite as good as I remember. Like the brakes, which are rubbish. And the gear-change, which is nowhere near as sweet as I recall. The brakes can be improved, but the gear-shift is something I’ll have to learn to live with. Again. Not that I’m complaining.

But it’s the little things that stand out. Chief of which is the smell of a cabin, which I’m finding impossible to describe. It’s a pleasant whiff, but it’s unique to Volkswagens of this era.

There are many other things to say, but for fear of overloading you with saccharin-enriched sweetness, these will be delivered in the fullness in time. For now, this is a welcome back message and a thank you to Alex for giving the Corrado a good home.

Because the car isn’t perfect there are things to be done. Thankfully – and touching even more wood – the issues are cosmetic, like the need to respray the front bumper and to sort the peeling lacquer on the driver’s door. It was passable when I owned the car, now it’s much worse. I’d also like to refurbish the alloy wheels and consider replacing the modern Sony headunit with something a little more contemporary.

I’m also toying with the idea of slamming her to the floor, fitting some Lexus-style rear lights and putting a huge subwoofer in the boot.*

I’ll readily admit the car isn’t perfect, but it’s mine, and that’s something I never thought I’d be able to say again. Only time will tell if I learn to regret the Corrado VR6 for a second time, but for now, it’s great to have her (it) back. And this time it’s back for good.

*None of this sentence is true, obviously.

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