TOMMY
- UniRed Exterior Color
- Black Cloth Interior
- 2.0L 4-cylinder gasoline engine
- Automatic transmission
- Sport Package
- Convenience Package
Accessories/Mods:
- Flat-4 BRM Replica Wheels
- Kumho Ecsta Supra 712 tires
- Meep-Meep Horn
- Billet Antenna
- Wolfsburg Emblem Stickers
- Empi Logo Sticker
- Kappa Kappa Psi Plate Frame
- Kappa Kappa Psi Sticker
- "Tommy" Sticker
- "Classic" www.newbug.com Sticker
Tommy is my pride and joy: he is more than just transportation to and from places; he represents a life-style. So far, we've enjoyed nearly four years of fun together, including attending the very first Roswell 2k N.B. car show, which is sure to become an event of great historical significance (at least for the VW world). It wasn't easy to get him, however; first, I had to convince my Dad that I could actually sit in one. Dad was sure that the New Beetle would be much too small for my rather large frame. When the cars first started to ship in March 1998, we went to the dealer to sit in one: No test drive, just a sit. When my dad told the salesperson of his size concerns, the salesman replied, "I hope you don't have a bet riding on this, because if so, you just lost!" Of course the New Beetle is large on the inside! Its shaped like a bubble! Anyway, the next Monday, we put down our $500 deposit and signed up on "the list." Recent purchasers of New Beetles won't understand "the list:" they simply walked into the dealership and said, "give me a car!" Old-timers like me, though, had to wait six months or more to get our New Beetles! Shortly after plunking down our cash, I found The New Beetle E-Mail List, and my NBAD (New Beetle Affective Dissorder) took off from there; I've never looked back. Finally, During my sophomore year of high school, on September 23, my shiny red NB arrived, and I got to drive him (still on a learner's permit!) for the first time. His name was decided upon fairly early: It is from "The WHO's" rock opera of the same name. It is a fair description of him: Deaf, Dumb, and Blind. Deaf, because he can't hear, Blind because he can't see, and Dumb because thats what all the non-NB owners call him! Since I am half deaf and already have slight vision problems, we go well together.
UPDATE!: For Christmas 2002 I recieved a coveted set of BRM wheels and new tires. I never in a million YEARS thought that I would actually get these wheels, but my parents surprised me. Now that I have stopped dreaming about wheels, performance mods are next on my list. Luckily, they are not quite as expensive!
Tommy's four years have been pretty exciting! Here's a list of stuff he gotten into:
- "Egged" after a high school football games by some induhviduals. Caused small spiral paint chips, almost invisible to the untrained eye, on driver side "C" pillar. Never fixed (would have to paint entire side). Now looked on as a mark of ownership and a sign of latent toughness.
- Early in ownership, a shopping cart plunged into his passenger side door, ironically after I had just bought a Bburago NB model at Toys "Backwards R" Us. Fixed at A/S Dent Shop (paintless dent removal) for about $100.
- Fog Light broken (get protection now!). See next note.
- Idiots at dealership spill oil on front bumper 2 weeks before R2K, oil seeps into clearcoat, causes clear-coat to peel. Dealer re-paints bumper free of charge. While bumper is off, fix fog-light for low cost of about $50.
- Rock causes BIG chip on lower right hand corner of windsheild. Lies dormant for a year and a half, then spreads and cracks. Windsheild replaced...new windsheild already has very small chip, to be repaired soon.
- Screw in tire causes very slow leak. Replaced, but not after driving that way for 6 months!
- During fall of senior year, passenger side door keyed by low-life induhvidual.
- Same door gets several other scrathes, nicks, small dents, and scrapes
- Door re-painted
- Windsheild receives small rock chip on the way home to Lubbock. Fix pending
As you can see, Tommy has led an eventfull life! Be sure to visit his friend's pages on this site!