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OTAGO VOLKSWAGEN ENTHUSIASTS CLUB

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THE OTAGO VOLKSWAGEN ENTHUSIASTS CLUB

NEWSLETTER

JUNE 2009


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EDITORIAL Welcome to a bumper edition of the OVWEC Newsletter – hopefully there’ll be something for everyone in this issue, and many thanks to all those who sent in contributions following my plea for material.

Also bigger than ever next month is our annual contribution to the July 4th Autospectacular, which will comprise a supersized VW display to celebrate 70 years of Volkswagen, thanks mainly to Bruce Adams for negotiating an entire tennis court for us to display on – how’s that for a Brucie Bonus!! Ahem…… Now we’ll be pulling out all the stops for this one so please get ready to respond positively to an invitation you might receive from me to borrow your car for the day. If you are invited you will need to drop the car(s) off at the Edgar Centre on Friday afternoon/evening, and take them away again immediately after the show at 4.00pm Saturday, so please bear this in mind before responding. Also, in lieu of the clash with the French test which caused us to re-schedule, we will be having a big night out on the evening of Saturday 4th July, commencing as soon as possible after the Autospectacular closes and we get everything cleared away. So, get a cab booked to bring you back into town after you get home from the show, and we’ll have a few sherries to celebrate the day. Another couple of points worth mentioning about forthcoming VW Nationals : 1) 2010 Nationals in Nelson – we need to start planning a route up to Nelson and

booking accommodation for the Easter weekend, so if you are planning to go can you please let me know so we can get an idea of numbers.

2) 2012 Nationals in Dunedin – that’s right, we have confirmation that this will be hosted by us, and we’ll be aiming to make it a HUGE event. Planning starts now, so any ideas for activities you might have will be most welcome. If anyone knows the contact number to get an early bird booking for the new stadium please let me know…

Keep on Dubbing! Jim Young OVWEC Secretary


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THE SMALL PRINT ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Club Officials : Patron Ken Berry President Elaine Young Secretary/Editor Jim Young Treasurer Chris Timms Address PO Box 7101 Mornington, Dunedin The Otago Volkswagen Enthusiasts Email [email protected] Club Inc meet on the first Tuesday of each month at 7.30pm at Website www.vwotago.co.nz Robbie’s Bar & Bistro, South Dunedin ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As officials of the Club our first duty is to the members and that means organising things that you want to do, and being a focus for any requests, queries or suggestions you might have. If there are any activities or events that you would like to suggest, items for the newsletter you might have, or if you cannot attend the monthly meetings, please contact Jim Young directly as follows : Telephone 03 455 8729 Post PO Box 7101, Mornington, Dunedin Email [email protected] NEW MEMBERS John and Diane Noble are our latest recruits, having purchased a 1966 1300 Beetle to add to their collection of classic and vintage automobiles. John also owns a Ford Mustang (also 1966) as well as a 1930s Ford Model A. John and Diane Joined us for their debut Club trip on the Mystery Tour outing in May. Hopefully we’ll be seeing a lot more of them in the future. Here’s their 1300 Beetle :


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MOERAKI TRIP Words and pics by Jim Young

Planned by Bill Bell this took us along a circuitous and dusty back road route up to Moeraki, where an al fresco lunch was enjoyed until a distinctly cold front descended upon us. A few of us made our way over to the Careys Bay Hotel for a coffee in front of the fire afterwards. Thanks Bill for an enjoyable road trip. More photos at. www.vwotago.co.nz


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READERS’ RIDES

I’ll kick things off this time with developments on my own car. The new motor is finished and ready to be fitted, however there’s no point in doubling your horsepower if the car still bump-steers into on-coming traffic like it’s got a death wish and doesn’t care who it takes with it, which is what Lil’ Lil’s been doing ever since I had adjusters fitted and lowered the front end. So what’s the answer? Do it again, but this time do it properly – using dropped spindles. The only drawback here is that the spindles add ½ inch of track each side, which is no good to me. Rectifying this problem involves buying an angle grinder and undertaking a bit of experimental home surgery. The finished beam is now a total of 34mm narrower than VW intended it to be. The dropped spindles mean that the suspension and steering geometry remain unaltered, so the car should handle just as good as standard. Well that’s the theory, anyway…


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Adam Harvey has turned his one Kombi into a collection recently with the purchase of a 1968 deluxe microbus, powered by a flat-six air-cooled Chevrolet Corvair engine, which apparently was expertly fitted by our very own Ken Berry some time in the dim and distant past (when he was just a lad and still enjoyed messing about with VWs…). Adam heard about the van from a woman who he works with who happened to be wearing a Kombi T-shirt one day. It transpires that the van had been sitting unused since the engine lost power many years ago, and Adam has persuaded the woman to part with it to a good home and for something of a bargain price. 1968 was the first year of production for the bay window vans, and the Deluxe Microbus came with all the top-of-the-line extras similar to those available on the previous split window deluxe - chrome swage-line and bumper trim, chrome wheel trims and nose badge, “jail bars” in the luggage area, a sliding steel sunroof and heating to the rear passenger area via ducts in the cab doors. Adam’s bus also boasts a rare Eberspacher petrol heater in the engine bay, to supplement the meagre heating air provided by the standard system. He’s not yet plucked up the courage to attempt to fire that thing up, though… Adam has already had the brakes fully re-lined and reconditioned, and is planning a sympathetic restoration and repaint once the engine is sorted out. All the seats and most of the trim are still present on the ‘bus, which, interestingly, is an automatic, with the drive selector located in the dash panel in place of one of the heater controls. Adam says if anyone knows where he can get his hands on an air filter for a Corvair he’d like to hear from you. Corvair power Eberspacher heater


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Never one to stand still, Chris Timms has been busy making a few more improvements to his “street sleeper” 1302S. Having had Ken Berry build him a potent 1915cc engine in the new year, Chris has turned his attention to some items of comfort, such as a new carpet set, new boot liner, new windscreen after a rock landed in his lap, and a newly re-chromed front bumper courtesy of the muppet from the windscreen company who pranged the car while starting it up.

1915cc and twin Weber 40s.

Shiny bumper New carpets and oil temp gauge


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VEE DUB SPECIAL MANOEUVRES Words by Elaine Young, pics by Jim Young Date ...... Sunday 24 May Time ..... 1330 hours Rendezvous…..Jaco’s Timber Yard Mission ….To follow the trail, gather evidence, lay assault on friendly hosts, have some jolly good, clean fun Not to be put off by ‘a little moisture’ 10 cars turned up, 7 Beetles, a Kombi and two Golfs. All happy smiling faces looking forward to an afternoon of mystery and evidence gathering… We had a good ride which took us along Andy Bay Road, over to Tomahawk Road and then on to Highcliff. Then we drove right along to the end of the peninsular with a stop at Otakou Marae, then on to the Albatross colony. After that we travelled back along Portobello Road to a secret location where exceptional provisions were dished out a plenty… The overall mission winner was Bill Bell who correctly answered the tie-breaker question ‘what was the middle name of Ferdinand Porsche?’ Well done Bill. I would like to extend a warm ‘thank you’ to the Adams family for their kind hospitality and especially to Ruby for her most excellent questionnaire preparing and marking! I’d also like to welcome John and Diane Noble to the club, they braved the weather to introduce themselves to us and we hope to see them at other meetings and events.


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CATLINS CRUISE – TAUTUKU MARCH 2009 Words and pics by Jim Young With a soul-destroyingly poor subscription in the run up to the second annual Catlins Cruise, and with the added insult of a couple of late cancellations on the day, I can’t honestly say I was full of eager anticipation as I sat alone in the pouring rain outside the Commercial Tavern on Friday night, watching the allotted meeting time come and go with not a single other soul braving the elements to join me in my silent despair. How I managed to ignore the beckoning of the glowing interior lights of the tavern, and the promise of blissful care-free inebriation waiting within I don’t know, but after what seemed an eternity the others finally rallied round, and after a short period of eye-rolling, shoulder shrugging and re-checking of numbers to see if it was still a viable proposition, it was indeed a very small band of wannabe VeeDub festival goers that finally set off into the darkening gloom of the rain-filled southern skies. There’s something almost magical about driving a VW Beetle alone at night, in the pouring rain with dismal forward lighting, no intermittent wipers, a barely-working stereo that only seems to pick up whisps of radio channels from the seventies, and the constant thrum of the motor behind pervading your thoughts. It was with ever-lifting spirits that I followed along the winding roads towards the Catlins, part of a little convoy of Beetles intent on having a great weekend away despite the diminished numbers and threatening weather, and as a band of increasingly clear sky began to appear in the distance in front of us, I found myself a lot more optimistic of an enjoyable trip in good company. The six Beetles in our group arrived at the Youth Adventure camp at around 9.00pm and we were joined shortly afterward by our Oamaru contingent in their orange camper van. While I set up the sound system everyone else found themselves a suitable bedroom and then began preparations for the evening meal. We had full use of the camp’s large kitchens, and a good time was had as we pulled a couple of tables up in front of the by now roaring open fire and tucked into dinner, accompanied by lashings of wine and beer!


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Saturday morning we were all up bright (!) and early for breakfast, and it wasn’t long before the kid’s pestering for the flying fox became too much to bear and the safety harnesses were liberated from the stores, much to the delight of all kids of all ages! Sightseeing was on the agenda for the early afternoon for everyone except Chris and I, as we headed off to set up the course for the Grasskana later in the day. We’d been offered free use of a local farmer’s paddock, and what a great field it was; nicely undulating, smooth and free of stones and rocks, and absolutely huge! We really do owe Alan Burgess a huge debt of gratitude for allowing us to carve up his beautifully kept grass like we did – I feel the box of Speights that we gave him (and we had difficulty even getting him to accept that) was a pretty small sum to pay for the huge fun we had in ripping up his paddock! Thanks very much Alan.


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Now, Chris and I were beginning to suspect that the Grasskana might also be a little under-subscribed given the presence of a number of either recently purchased or recently painted cars in our line up, and given the apparent reluctance of some to even drive on the short bit of gravel to get to the site we thought it would be a time trial between just me and him. How wrong we were! As soon as Chris had finished demonstrating the circuit among the cones we had set out in his 1915cc 1302S, getting it good and sideways in the process, everyone was clambering to be the first out to have a go in their own cars! Even Clare in her 1300 managed to get the back end out around the bottom hairpin! We also had a good laugh watching Deano, who had joined us together with June earlier in the afternoon, desperately trying to wring some speed out of his year-old Golf GTi as its traction control and ABS steadfastly refused to break traction. Great fun all round, and a huge thanks to Chris for loaning his car out to those who fancied a blast in it. The driving at the grasskana was pretty competitive at times. Each lap was from a standing start, and results were as follows :

Position Driver Co-driver Car Fastest Time 1 Bruce Adams Marty van Elst 1303 Beetle cabriolet 46.80

2 Dave Finnie Chris Timms 1302S Beetle 47.20

3 Jim Young 1500 Beetle 48.60

4 Chris Timms Dave Finnie 1302S Beetle 48.80

5 Dean Driver June Driver Golf GTi 49.20

6 Clare Madden 1300 Beetle 57.00

7 June Driver Dean Driver 1302S Beetle 57.20 As part of the prizegiving I factored in cubic capacity for each vehicle in order to level the playing field a little, which made for some interesting results. On this basis fastest time of the day was set by Clare in her 1300 “Snowdrop”. Well done Clare, and commiserations to Chris, who was beaten in his own car……(again!).

Position Driver Co-driver Car Capacity Adjusted Time 1 Clare Madden 1300 Beetle 1300 74.10

2 Jim Young 1500 Beetle 1600 77.76

3 Bruce Adams Marty van Elst 1303 Beetle cabriolet 1915 89.62

4 Dave Finnie Chris Timms 1302S Beetle 1915 90.39

5 Chris Timms Dave Finnie 1302S Beetle 1915 93.45

6 Dean Driver June Driver Golf GTi 2000 98.40

7 June Driver Dean Driver 1302S Beetle 1915 109.54


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Back to the camp and another huge feed was communally prepared, and a full-on party followed late into the night. We had an hilarious time doing a prizegiving for any kind of category we could think of for the weekend, not just the Grasskana, and the selection of party, disco, rock, pop and dance music I’d loaded onto an MP3 player for the weekend kept the hardcore party-goers up well past silly o’clock. It was Deano who finally put a halt to it by leaving his bed, walking into the hall, holding up three fingers to indicate the lateness of the hour, and drawing a finger across his throat to say enough is enough. Sunday morning was a little bleary for some, I suspect, but we all made a good job of cleaning and tidying the camp before a brief photo call , and then headed off North and back home, accompanied by blazing sunshine all the way back. All in all it was a thoroughly fantastic trip, made all the better by the determined few who were intent on having a damn good party. It just goes to show, you don’t need a good turn out to have a good time! Thanks very much to all who participated.


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More photos and some great grasskana videos are on the website. Go www.vwotago.co.nz and click on Photos FOR SALE….SOON


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SOMETHING FOR THE KIDS Vintage VWs to colour in!! This time a split screen pick-up :


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VOLKSWAGEN ODDITIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD


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A Beetle traffic jam…


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IN MEMORIAM

For Reb

You’re special to me, Affectionate, Loyal, And good company You’re there when I’m lonely, And life seems a bore, You cheer me and offer, A comforting paw The look in your eyes, Says you quite understand, As you thrust a bewhiskered Wet nose in my hand

You never desert me, Wherever I go, You’re a far better friend, Than some people I know I thank you by writing, This short monologue To my faithful, Devoted Companion – Rebel MY DOG


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GENERAL TRIVIA Not much to do with Volkswagens, but interesting nonetheless, the following was gratefully received from new member “Herr Nobes”, John Noble. If anyone has anything they think might be an interesting read, on (practically) any subject, please send them in. WWII - Monopoly Starting in 1941, an increasing number of British airmen found themselves as the involuntary guests of the Third Reich, and the Crown was casting about for ways and means to facilitate their escape. Now obviously, one of the most helpful aids to that end is a useful and accurate map, one showing not only where stuff was, but also showing the locations of 'safe houses' where a POW on-the-lam could go for food and shelter. Paper maps had some real drawbacks - they make a lot of noise when you open and fold them, they wear out rapidly, and if they get wet, they turn into mush. Someone in MI-5 got the idea of printing escape maps on silk. It's durable, can be scrunched-up into tiny wads, and unfolded as many times as needed, and makes no noise whatsoever. At that time, there was only one manufacturer in Great Britain that had perfected the technology of printing on silk, and that was John Waddington Ltd. When approached by the government, the firm was only too happy to do its bit for the war effort. By pure coincidence, Waddington was also the manufacturer of the popular board game, Monopoly. As it happened, 'games and pastimes' was a category of item qualified for insertion into 'CARE packages' dispatched by the International Red Cross to prisoners of war. Under the strictest of secrecy, in a securely guarded and inaccessible old workshop on the grounds of Waddington's, a group of sworn-to-secrecy employees began mass-producing escape maps, keyed to each region of Germany or Italy where Allied POW (camps were regional system). When processed, these maps could be folded into such tiny dots that they would actually fit inside a Monopoly playing piece. As long as they were at it, the clever workmen at Waddington's also managed to add: 1. A playing token, containing a small magnetic compass 2. A two-part metal file that could easily be screwed together 3. Useful amounts of genuine high-denomination German, Italian, and French currency, hidden within the piles of Monopoly money! British and American air crews were advised, before taking off on their first mission, how to identify a 'rigged' Monopoly set -- by means of a tiny red dot, one cleverly rigged to look like an ordinary printing glitch, located in the corner of the Free Parking square.


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Of the estimated 35,000 Allied POWS who successfully escaped, an estimated one-third were aided in their flight by the rigged Monopoly sets. Everyone who did so was sworn to secrecy indefinitely, since the British Government might want to use this highly successful ruse in still another, future war. The story wasn't de-classified until 2007, when the surviving craftsmen from Waddington's, as well as the firm itself, were finally honoured in a public ceremony. Anyway, it’s always nice when you can play that ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card.

VOLKSWAGEN NEWS


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Don't let the plain Jane clothing fool you, there's impressive powertrain technology hiding in this Passat that emits only water as exhaust.

Volkswagen brought a number of these Passat Ling Yu fuel cell vehicles to the California Fuel Cell Partnership for research. The cars were built in China and were used at the Beijing Olympics. These cars have fuel cell, compressor, and control hardware under the hood. The hydrogen tanks are on either side of the rear axle, and a battery is mounted in the middle of the chassis, letting the car store some electricity. The Passat Ling Yu gets a range of 146 miles and has a top speed of 90 mph.

Porsche to merge with Volkswagen

Carmaker Porsche says it has agreed a merger with fellow German manufacturer

Volkswagen (VW) after weeks of talks between the two firms' management.

The luxury carmaker said in a statement

that it wanted to see the "creation of an

integrated car manufacturing group".

VW hailed the decision of the Porsche and

Piech families, owners of Porsche group, to

create the merger.

It means a Porsche takeover of VW will not

happen. The format of the new group will be

decided in the next four weeks.

Talks will now take place between the two

carmakers, VW's home state of Lower

Saxony, and employee representatives.

The state's president Christian Wulff said in

a statement: "We are ready for discussions,

which must be carried out quickly."

Brand independence

The move should unite 10 brands under one

roof, Porsche said.

Nine of the brands are owned by VW, and

the other is the Porsche sports car brand.

"In the final structure 10 brands shall stand

below an integrative leading company

alongside each other, whereby the

independence of all brands and explicitly

also of Porsche shall be ensured," a Porsche

statement said.

It also said that its plan would also include

unspecified "capital measures".

In January, Porsche announced it had

increased its stake in Volkswagen to more

than 50%, and said it planned to lift its

stake in VW to 75%.

However, even with a 75% stake it would

not have been able to take complete control

because under the "VW law" the state of

Lower Saxony, which holds a 20% stake,

can block strategic decisions.


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COOKING IN A CAMPER?

This month’s recipe sent in by Don & April Woodward :

Westphalian Beef Stew (Westfalischer Pffeffer- Potthast)

Yes, it's true - they do eat meat other than pork in Germany. Here is a traditional "Eintopfgerichte" or one-pot-meal from the German area of Westphalia. Be sure to serve it with mashed potatoes just like the natives do.

Westphalian Beef Stew (Westfalischer Pffeffer-Potthast)

2-3 lbs (900-1350 g) beef short ribs, including bones, cut into 2-inch (5 cm) lengths by your butcher 2-3 lbs (900-1350 g) onions, sliced 4 cups (2 L) beef stock or water 6 cloves 1 bay (laurel) leaf 1 strip lemon peel

2-3 slices rye bread, processed or grated to crumbs 2 Tbs (30 ml) capers Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste Lemon juice to taste

Combine the beef ribs, onions, beef stock, cloves, bay leaf, and lemon peel in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer covered until the meat is tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Stir in about 1/2 cup (125 ml) rye bread crumbs, until the sauce has thickened slightly. Add capers, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Serve with mashed potatoes. Serves 4 to 6.

Westphalian stew

Westphalia camper


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VINTAGE VW ADVERTISING


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Ken Berry

Over 50 Years of Volkswagen Experience

Ph: 453 4310 Fax: 453 4310 Cell: 021 125 6427

Plenty of new and used parts – including restoration essentials Performance parts available

Sound advice and service- second to none!

“Dunedin’s Mr V.W” – Classic Driver Magazine

www.fishandtricks.co.nz

Somethin’ Fishy and

Flaming Phoenix Dog Training and Breeding Kennels

~ Fish Tank Cleaning and Rentals ~ Dog Training and Obedience ~ Designer Puppies ~ Pure Bred Kittens ~ Pure Bred Rabbits ~ Designer Pet Products

Check out our Website!! Kara van Raalte

[email protected]

THE OTAGO VOLKSWAGEN ENTHUSIASTS CLUB

APPLICATION FOR CLUB MEMBERSHIP

Full Name/s : ……………………………………………………………………………… Address : ……………………………………………………………………………… Phone Numbers : …………………………..… .....……………………………… Email : ………………………………........................................................................ Your Volkswagens (if applicable) : ………………………………………………………. The principle object of the Club is to “further the interests of owners and drivers of Volkswagen vehicles”. To do this we hold various events, have a monthly club night, publish a members’ newsletter, and join and exchange information with other Volkswagen Clubs. To help us provide the things you are interested in, please indicate which of the following Club activities you would be interested in supporting :

Car displays Day runs Economy runs Motokanas Restorations Social functions

Please list any other events or activities you would like to see the Club organise, or be involved with …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. The Club year commences at the start of October. The present yearly subscription is $15.00 per individual or family. If paying by cheque please make payable to the “Otago Volkswagen Enthusiasts Club”. Return to PO Box 7101, Mornington, Dunedin. Signature: ………………………………………….. Date : ……………………… The Otago Volkswagen Enthusiasts Club Inc meet on the first Tuesday of each month at 7.30pm at Robbie’s Bar, South Dunedin

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