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My daughter will be 16 in January, and has dreamed for years of owning a VW bus - an old one. Living in CA, that would not really be a problem. She could drive it to the beach, and around town. I would not let her drive it on the freeway, of course. My question is that now that we are moving to CT, is this car even an option? I would really be uncomfortable with her out in the snow driving it. Has anyone had this kind of car and driven it in "weather?"
A VW bus would be no problem with the snow. The key factor with winter is for your cars to have good winter tires on them. All seasons do not count. And even an AWD car with all season tires or summer tires would slide in the snow.
However an old VW bus is indeed a neat old vehicle. And I hope that you will let her keep it, but if at all possible, the bus should be stored for the winter and have her drive another car instead. It'd be a shame to let the road salt get on the body. But the great thing about a VW is that it's not too fast and the driver gets a little more height for better visibilty. How often does your daughter really need to drive at her age?
But anyway... if you are moving to CT, real snow tires are a must for all of your cars. Don't get the Blizzaks that have the soft sticky layer of rubber for the treads, because once that layer wears off, the rest of the tire is very slick. And human nature being what it is, most people don't examine the tread depth of the tires often enough.
If your daughter does get a used car, teach her the good habits of once a week checking the fluids under the hood, the air pressure and tread dept of her tires, and to listen for new noises or new smells produced by her car. Or if it suddenly starts handling differently. And of course, teach her how to change a flat tire. Getting her a AAA membership and a cellphone of her own is not enough.
Other than the charm and character associated with these buses at The Family gatherings ... I can't think of much good about these vehicles in light of more modern transportation.
They weren't very good on fuel economy (maybe mid-to-high teens), didn't handle very well, had miserable brakes, and (unless equipped with the optional gas heater which helped reduce fuel economy) had virtually no effective heating/defrosting in cold weather (a real safety deficit). Driving one of these on a windy day will have you wishing for a lower profile vehicle not getting blown all over the road (which can really tank the fuel economy in a headwind) and barely able to keep up with traffic.
Traction in snow isn't too bad, but they're not a good choice of vehicle for slick surfaces due to the handling. Their saving grace was they don't have enough horsepower in stock trim to get into trouble too easily.
Most importantly, these were not a very "safe" vehicle in an accident.
There's a lot better choices available for someone besides the nostalgia of one of these air-cooled VW vans ... if one must have a Van to drive, which is very consumptive transportation. Check out the older 6 cylinder Econolines or RAM Vans ... much better built, and even deliver better fuel economy while having the power to keep up with traffic. I got better fuel mileage with a 318 V-8 powered 3/4 ton RAM Extended Body Van than the VW buses that my friends used to haul dirt bikes to the tracks ... and I could keep up with traffic.
I think once your daughter has an opportunity to drive one of these vehicles for awhile, and pay the high costs of maintaining/driving it ... she'll be opting for something a bit more practical & economical than all that "flower power" hype surrounding the old air-cooled vans.
A further consideration ... as one who taught two teenagers to drive ... do you really think you're going to be able to control where your child drives this vehicle? Forbidding her to drive on the freeway sounds like quite the challenge.
EXCELLENT post, Sunsprit! Couldn't agree with you more. In the 1980's I was stationed in Germany and we had VW vans as non-tactical vehicles to use around base. The heating/defrost is just like you say and horsepower is to the point of being dangerous in traffic. A VW van might be a nice vehicle to store in a garage and bring out for local car shows, but I wouldn't even consider using it as a daily driver...
Well, those are opposing views, to be sure! I think it is probably a good idea to have her drive one and see what she thinks. If we do get one, storing it for the winter seems like a good option. Thanks for the input everyone.
There isn't a chance in hell I'd let my teenager drive a rattlebox like that. If she gets in a crash, she might as well be in a car made out of cardboard boxes.
My daughter will be 16 in January, and has dreamed for years of owning a VW bus - an old one. Living in CA, that would not really be a problem. She could drive it to the beach, and around town. I would not let her drive it on the freeway, of course. My question is that now that we are moving to CT, is this car even an option? I would really be uncomfortable with her out in the snow driving it. Has anyone had this kind of car and driven it in "weather?"
My personal opinion is put her in a car that has air bags and A.B.S.. I've had a couple of old bugs and like other posters have said the brakes leave much to be desired, the heating system is terrible and they are underpowered.
There isn't a chance in hell I'd let my teenager drive a rattlebox like that. If she gets in a crash, she might as well be in a car made out of cardboard boxes.
I think she was going for coolness and not safety - arean't all 16 year olds invincible? Anyway, thanks for the input - I understand and share your concerns...just curious to get a varied cross section of people so that when I tell her why we didn't get it for her, we can blame you guys!
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both very safe though.
Ok, guys...I get the picture!
