For the past 10 years, he’s created a collection of Volkswagens that includes a 1958 Bug, a 1967 Bug, a 1967 Microbus Deluxe, and a 1971 Super Beetle. But the centerpiece is undoubtedly his 1969 Bug.
And while Shane Stiefel spent some time in Germany, it wasn’t until his best friend introduced him to “air-cooled VWs” that Stiefel began his trek into the past. The air-cooled engine was a variant to liquid-cooled applications. It was said to disperse heat more effectively, required less sophistication than the absorption technique used in the latter, and was successful in harsh conditions and desert climates when utilized in the VWs by the Nazis in WWII. But today, owning an air-cooled VW is as much a tribute to automotive engineering history as owning a carbureted muscle car.
It may have been an icon of that decade, but Stiefel’s ’69 bug is hardly the happy-go-lucky daisy catcher of the free-wheeling ’60s. It’s a brutish machine with an industrial feel congruent to the apocalyptic cars in the Mad Max movies, featuring a flat black paint job, a high chain-linked shifter with a welded knife handle, and a hood that is bisected by a row of fabricated spikes. The engine, while loud and cranky lacks a polished veneer and looks cobbled together from a junkyard with its long exhaust pipe angled skyward.
Modifying the bug has allowed Stiefel to make changes that others might shudder to consider. The aesthetic appointments, like the shifter, represent his artistic side, associating things that seem by nature forced together.
“I have custom window handles that are vice grips,” said Stiefel. “The cheaper, the better.”
The lived-in look is not only for people who don’t care to maintain the appearance of their daily drivers; in Stiefel’s case, it’s an art form that takes an appreciative eye to understand its value. He took the same approach to the paint job.
“I wanted it to reflect the old rat rods that I loved growing up so I whipped out a can of flat black spray paint and went to town,” said Stiefel. “The good part about that is, if I get a scratch, I whip out a can and spray away. The bad part is I whip out a can and spray away.”
Stiefel is a member of Slowriders car club, a VW only group out of Maryland described as a loosely-knit network of enthusiasts of approximately 50 members sharing a common love for the German marque.
What do you drive? A 1969 VW bug.
Why do you drive it? Because it’s like no other car I’ve ever driven. Tons of fun and full of adventure.
What makes this car so special? The fact that I’ve personally fixed or replaced every single part of this car since I purchased it 7 years ago. It’s practically a new car; it just doesn’t look like it from the outside. I don’t care what anyone says. If you’re a car guy, or girl, you have a bond with a car that you’ve poured blood sweat and tears into … it’s just part of the culture you know.
What was your most memorable moment driving this vehicle? Every time I get in the car and take a trip somewhere there is story around each corner. With these old cars anything can happen at any minute. The most memorable trip was when I headed to the ocean for a car show. Half way there, I started hearing a really bad noise. I found an old mechanics shop on the side of the road. To make a long story short, they let me use one of their bays to fix my car. I disassembled the whole front wheel assembly only to find that one of my wheel bearing had gone bad. The guys at the shop called every place he could think of to get a new bearing. Finally the last place they found had two. They had one of the guys at the shop make a run to get the parts. The whole fiasco took about 3.5 hours.
What was your first car? My first car was a 2CV Citroen nicknamed “The Duck.” It was manual and the shifter came straight out of the dash. The whole top of the car peeled back like a sardine can. I bought it from a German couple, then learned to drive it in the old German school yard down the street from my house.
What’s currently in your CD player? CD player? In an old VW? That’s a good one.
And your first ticket? What was it for? My first ticket was for reckless driving. My friend and I were allowed to take my dad’s new 1992 Camaro RS to the prom. On the way to pick up our dates, I decided it would be cool to use the cruise control. After the coolness wore off, I tried to turn it off. We both didn’t know how it worked so I proceeded to swerve back and forth while I was looking for the off switch. Little did I know there was a police officer right on my tail. He went easy on me, but I still got a slight fine.
CHECK OUT HIS RIDE
Engine: Single-port 1600
Wheels: 8-spoke rims
Interior: custom fiberglass speaker enclosures (front/back), vice grip window handles, knife handle shifter, dropped seats, concealed starter control,
Exterior: 5-inch lowered front beam, custom drop spindle, 4 inch drop in the back, Stinger exhaust, luggage rack, shaved turn signals, rear pop-out windows
