Owned by Corey Finkelstein – ON
Mayhem & Memories: Corey Finkelstein, Manager Vintage CARS ’64 Beetle That Won’t Quit
Meet the little red Beetle that’s been part of my life longer than some of my friends. I bought it in 1990 from a Beetle-loving farmer in Port Colborne while in second-year university. I didn’t know a wrench from a socket, but I did know that one childhood memory—squished with my sister behind the back seat, faces glued to the back glass—meant I had to own a Bug.
I almost bought a rough Super Beetle, but thankfully, John Spironello of John’s Bug Shop steered me to this one. (Still friends 35 years later. The Beetle has outlasted a few relationships.)
It was red with grey primer fenders and a leather-wrapped steering wheel—which turned out to be hiding cracks in the wheel. I also got a bonus surprise: a registration that said the car was a 1962. It wasn’t. It’s a 1964. The counterperson at the local MTO sent me in circles many times before I discovered the secret sauce for correcting the owners. Fun fact: I’m the only registered Canadian owner, as the car was originally sold in Washington State eventually making its way to Buffalo.
Yes, it’s had its share of mechanical meltdowns. I’ve forgotten half the fixes and probably invented a few that never should’ve worked. But the Beetle keeps going. A few years ago, I even built a transmission for it in Calgary with Ken King at Concept 1, using two junk units we Frankensteined into one that actually worked.
Oh, and one time it was in a Madonna movie. Never again. Let’s just say Hollywood’s version of “car care” isn’t up to my standards.
Today, the car still drives all over Ontario and into the U.S. It may not be perfect, but it’s mine— and it’s still the best decision I ever made on a student budget.
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