The Fusca Revival: Part 3

I have been thinking about this car; its history and how it is surviving way past the time that other cars have given out, both in practical usage and in body style, its likability.

I would bet that in Friburgo this car is one in every 20 on the streets.  Never in the Cadima Shopping parking, my car and others like it park there - like the boring, yellow newer model I showed you in my last post.  These older models line the street outside, parked bumper to bumper in front of the repair shops, the plumbing supply stores, the paint and construction stores.  On the ten Kilometer drive from my house to the gym I have counted 15 on any given day, many times seeing colors I’d never notice before.

From the bus window when coming back from Rio, as we pass over the highest point and start down into our valley, I see the police checkpoint and notice a fusca in the lot of crashed and otherwise repossessed cars.  On Friday last week Camillo drove me up to the checkpoint and we ask the policeman manning the store (!) if I could take photos.  He probably thought typical tourist – but who cares I got my photos.  

When seen up close there were TWO fuscas.  They looked like they had been there a while.  Sitting in the elements, surrounded by a small lake of rain water.  Maybe since before the revival because surely the government would auction these off if they new they were sitting on a gold mine.  Enjoy what I enjoyed.

 

I wanted to adopt them and take them home with me. A treasure trove.

Fusca Revival: part 2

 

The Fusca has been a part of the Friburgo landscape for as long as I can remember.   They seem to have been a favorite with the farmers and the forest people since they came onto the used car market. 

No matter how old, how rusted, how many parts seem to be missing, you could see them tooling along the roads, dependably getting their owners where they need to be.  Easy to park, manual transmissions all, inexpensive to operate, longevity way back in their ancestry.  Always and still are a car for the people.

Over the years I have seen them around in all sort of conditions.  They seem to have been mostly white or beige.  No frills, wearing their original faded paint, often missing back seats, floor boards, bumpers or fenders but doing their jobs with pride non-the-less.  

     

Maybe six months ago, although it might have stated much sooner than that, I began to notice snappy new paint jobs; flashy colors: bright red to bright pink, midnight blue to baby blue, forest green to olive drabs; bits of fresh chrome had been added, running boards, and custom covered seats.  There are two shops that I know of just in Mury that specialize in bringing life back to these little cars.  Taking parts from one to make up for the loss on another.

   

Until they can sell a new and shiny Fusca, in any color you might like.

     

 

The new models can’t come close to competing with these babies as far as I am concerned.  It is almost worth learning to drive stick just to be able to buy myself one – I think in Turquoise.  No burgundy….. No that orange one is really my favorite.  No maybe deep fire-engine RED!

 

The Fusca Revival

Just the FACTS

In Brazil, the beetle is called "Fusca".

• Brazilian production started in 1953, with parts imported from Germany.   By1959, the cars were 100% made in Brazil.  The car was made until 1986.  In 1993 production started again but only continued till 1996. 

• The Brazilian version retained the 1958-1964 body style (Europe and USA version) with the thick door pillars and small quarter glass. 

• Around 1973, Brazilian Beetles were updated with the 1968+ sheet metal, bumpers, and 4-lug rims; although the 5-stud rims and "bug-eyed" headlights were produced as late as 1972 (the base VW 1200 was similar to the 1964 European/USA 1200). 
• The Brazilian VW Bug have four different sized engines: 1200 cc, 1300 cc, 1500 cc, and, finally, 1600 cc.
• In Brazil the VW Bug never received electronic fuel injection (the air-cooled flat four engine from the Beetle received this, but to equip solely the VW Kombi later models), but, instead, retained single or double-single carburetion throughout its entire life, although the carburetion specs differs from engines of different years and specs.
• The production of the air-cooled engine finally ended in 2006, after more than 60 years. It was last used in the Brazilian version of the VW Bus, called the "Kombi", and was replaced by a 1.4 L water-cooled engine with a front-mounted cooling system.

Fusca/Bug/Beetle/Kafer; call them what you will, the very last Fusca rolled off the assembly line in the Sao Paulo factory on 25 June 1996, bringing to an end a Brazilian production run of over 3 million VW Fuscas.  (Wikipedia)