I am. In Olds Station, there is an automotive tech program. They do welding, rust restore, ding and wobble repair and then painting etc...they teach people how to remove imperfections and get a car looking brand new. And each fall, one vehicle is selected to be the "restore" vehicle and a ton of people apply to be that restore vehicle; mainly beat up hot rod oldies that need to be restored to original status. Mustangs, Novas, Corvettes, Chevy trucks...you get the idea. And, my volkswagen was chosen to be THAT restore vehicle. I consider myself to be extremely lucky. So last Tuesday I dropped off Nigel after I spent two days completely stripping him off all outside trim, lights, mirrors, wipers, bumpers, racks...everything on the outside that could possibly be an interference. I drove him totally ridiculous looking out to the school and parked him in a giant parking garage, and all the students surrounded him like he was fresh meat. Because well, he was. One kid, Michael, his second year in the program, yelled "OHMYGOD A VOLKSWAGEN! A FUCKING VOLKSWAGEN" and was scolded for his poor language. He retaliated by saying "Yeah, but volkswagens are my favorite. And busses are my absolute favorite" and I knew at that point, my car was in good hands. He would be the leader of this restore.
All the dings and wobbles are going to be smoothed to perfection, and then painted with two layers...a paint coat and a clear coat; something I don't have right now. I am beyond excited. The cost of this is going to be between 800-1000, and when I dropped him off I dropped 400 in cash as a deposit, with the remainder due upon completion. I was told I would be getting approximately about 6k of bodywork and paint, and my jaw dropped and eyes popped like a cartoon. Pimp. Status.
I debated over the color of Nigel; would I get him done in the same color, or done in a different color? But Niagara Blue was only done on busses, and only covered busses from 1971-1972. I would be sticking with Niagara Blue. Besides, I LOVE the blue he is. And his name is Nigel TuffAsNails. Set it stone I say.
I miss my bus already and it's only been a week. I was given the go ahead to watch them work on it at any time, and also to check and see how progress is going. Once he is sanded down to metal, I will go and take pictures. It's going to be sad to see him completely silver or covered in bondo, but I know the end result is going to be astronomical.
I took my gas cap home with me when I parked my VW in the lot where he will reside for the next 4 months, and taped off the opening with duct tape so the fumes won't be an issue. There's something really significant about that old school gas cap. It's one of my favorite things about my VW. It looks like a hubcap with the vw logo. I just love it. I didn't want anything to happen to it. Call me superstitious. Or possibly not trusting. Meh. I just really don't want to lose it. I consider it TONY. And if I ever lost it, Id be heartbroken.
My woman told me the other day "would you sell him? He would bring you a lot of money when he is done being restored." and I told her "No way woman. He's my peach." She smiled at me.
He is my peach. I love him dearly, and he's only a car. Here's to the future.
