A Long History of Volkswagens

This 1995 Jetta is the third in now 6 consecutive Volkswagen products.

CURRENT: 2009 Jetta GL (Black) ~ The first automatic in this house since the 1974 Chevy stepside. SO far 1,000 miles on it and you gotta love the new paint and the fresh car smell.

CURRENT: 1995 Jetta III (Gold) ~ purchased in 2001 when it had 68,000 miles on it. Now over 178,000 and still on original clutch. This becomes Dino's 'new ride'

1995 Jetta III (Black) ~ 1995 to 2009 ~ First car ever purchased new. Leased it and then purchased it outright. Best car ever had. Drove it 263,516 miles on the original clutch, and it never left the State of California, except maybe for Lake Tahoe. Tough to top

1985 Jetta (Black) ~ 1993 to 1995 ~ this was a salvage purchase, so I got a good deal on it at $3,500. Drove it for a year and 35,000 miles and still got $3,000 for it.

1983 GTI (Black) ~ 1984 to 1993 ~ Bought this car from the old Carlsen VW in Palo Alto when I went in to pick up a dome light for the Diesel! Drove it 192,000 plus miles before the odometer stopped working, sold it for effectively scrap when the transmission went. First clutch lasted 130,000 miles

1980 Diesel (Copper) ~ 1982 to 1984 ~ drove it 35,000 miles, sold it to my brother who let the engine seize up on it (although he does deny it)

The Final Departure

Here are a couple shorts that show the 1995 Jetta III final departure. Donated to KQED. Replaced admirably by a new 2009 Jetta GL with Cruise Control AND Power Windows!

Special credit goes to Fred's Garage (www.fredsgarage.com) in Redwood City and previously the Volks Cafe in Soquel for keeping this car rolling for the last 14 years.

The Last Waltz

Final voyage - 263,516

That is the final tally of mileage on the 1995 Jetta III. That also equates to 431,993 kilometers for those of you who prefer the metric system. Either way you slice it, it is to the moon, and about 25,000 miles back. Or for those who prefer to mood at it another way, over 10 roundtrips around the circumference of the earth.

This final voyage was on St Patrick's Day 2009 for an appointment up in Novato. Fittingly, I took my camera with me and took a few snaps. I hope you enjoy...

Rolling in San Jose

Dave Bondi thought that our lunch in San Jose would be the last time he would see the Jetta. thus, he took it upon himself to take a few snaps.

A Very Brief History

In 1995, I went out and purchased my only brand new car to date. In fact, it was a lease at the beginning. I have had great luck with this car, and the only issues that are self-inflicted. A few dents and a bit of 'oxidation' on the black paint.

Shockingly, I have very few photos of the car in digital. I will be coming back and adding some in the future as I get around to it. The first digital photo that I have is this one, taken in the Napa Valley near Trefethen Winery.