I’ve owned a few classic cars in my life – a 1965 Fiat 1500 Cabriolet, a 1960 Triumph TR3A and a 1969 Triumph Spitfire, but VW Beetles have always held a special place in my heart. On December 28, 1977, my new wife and I set off on our honeymoon in our yellow 1972 VW Bug I had just bought a few months earlier.

That Bug served us well until kids came along and a four door car made more sense. In the early 1990s I acquired a custom painted 1970 Bug as a daily driver. It served me well for at least 8 years. Then VWs became a distant memory as life took over and more modern cars were purchased for the next 30 years. But I never lost my love for the VW Bug and always hoped I’d be able to own another one.

Fast forward about 30 years…. in the summer of 2022 I found a wild yellow 1967 Bug for sale and after some back and forth with the owner, we agreed on a price that I thought was more than fair. When she arrived on the flatbed the name Lemon Drop popped into my mind because that’s what she looked like!

I was pleasantly surprised at the condition she was in and realized all she needed was a little TLC to get her nice enough to take to car shows. I spent 10 months redoing the entire interior, refreshing the engine and bringing the paint job back to life, keeping a log of everything I did and every part I replaced.

Finally in June of 2023 she was ready and it was a blast to take her to several car shows over that summer. She's also been featured in a couple of VW magazines. I try to get Lemon Drop out for a drive every couple of weeks and enjoy taking photos of her at different scenic locations here in town. And three of my grandkids are now old enough to ride around town with me!

She’s a blast to drive every time I get the chance and always gets a honk or wave from people. So from 1977 to 2024… you're never too old to own a classic VW... again!