We bought the car, but before we took it off the lot on Saturday, April 15 of 1972, I put on a few extra goodies for accessories.

I took off the original steering wheel and put on a wood grain with three chrome spokes and the wolfsburg VW logo for the centre horn button.

I also installed 4 mag wheels with w/w/ tires, chrome license plate holders and more items to mention later.

When we first looked at this automobile it was Clementine orange with black seats. Being black draws the heat, with two children soon to be, I had them put in white seats to help with having the sunroof.

Soon we were on our way home, stopped to pick up a small black book to keep my records in (gas, oil changes etc.)

Upon arriving home I put an ATV logo sticker inside the glove box along with the black book.

Needless to say I was a pretty happy camper, 27 years old and a brand new car . . . I HAD it made!

Within the next few months we bought two plaid blankets comprising of orange, white and black. One for the back seat and the other my wife made me a jacket. She also made me an orange ceramic bug for the dashboard.

Our second son was born in June of 1972, two months after we got the car.

Now, in the early 70's CB's were the IN thing . . . Bill had to have one, so off to Radio Shack to purchase same . . . another item off the list.

Next came an 8 Track — have to have some decent music — KMart and a Kraco 8 track were added. I put two speakers under the back seat facing the front of the car. Also a walnut dash and a walnut gear shift knob.

This was the Cadillac of cars, no questions asked, bar none!!!! This car had more bells than a church steeple and more whistles than a bikini clad young lady on Portage Island in the heat of summer . . . Serious business!

Now to backtrack for a moment, this car in 1972 cost $2,150 on the lot, naturally the accessories were an extra cost.

To fill the gas tank was $4.00 — seriously!

This car was an eye-catcher . . . believe me — had to be the colour!

Our third child, a daughter was born in February 1975.

Now, three children in a VW just wasn't going to work, cut the cake any way you like, the numbers outgrew the car . . . now the crunch!

In September of 1977 we sold Archie. A young fellow bought it and drove it away on a Friday night. I had tears in my eyes like never before. I had lost my DREAM car. I was, to say the least, devastated. My best friend was gone!

Before selling, I removed the jacket, blanket, ceramic bug, 8 track, CB and the car key with a yellow happy face dangling from it.

I left the mags, steering wheel and the little black book and sticker from ATV.

I wondered for weeks if I had lost my mind. How could you be so ridiculous as to sell that car!?

The years passed. The kids grew up, off to college and moved onward with their lives until one day in the fall of 1997 . . .

NOW! The rest of the story . . .

My middle son, born in June of ' 72, was visiting one evening in the fall of 1997. Glancing at the local paper, he asked if I had read the Autos For Sale section because there was a 1972 bug with sunroof for sale.

"Suppose its ours?" he queried.

"No chance of that," I replied. "Long gone to the bone yard."

Well, he decided to call and ask some questions.

Colour? — Orange . . .

Interior? — White . . .

WHITE! — Can't be.

Off we go to the location of the car, Chartersville, a few miles outside Moncton.

As we drove closer to our destination my heart was pounding . . . it CAN'T be Archie . . . not after 20 years!

There he was . . . or was it? Archie was a sick puppy, and I mean sick.

Not one to get discouraged we gingerly stepped out and looked the car over. I wasn't sure.

The mags were on it but the wheel was gone and the walnut shifter knob had also disappeared.

As we looked inside I was heartbroken, seats were all ripped and tore, floor mats gone as well — what a mess!

I tenderly opened the glove box and what was staring me in the face but the ATV sticker I put there 20 years earlier . . . lo’ and behold, as I looked closer, the little black book was still there — AMAZING!

This book had never been wrote in except by me, no pages missing, no doodling, the book appeared to have been DORMANT for all those years.

I couldn't believe my eyes . . . Archie was alive, but not well!

The couple who owned the car were totally shocked that this car was mine . . . elated would be a better word.

Me, I was ecstatic.

To shorten the story, he gave me the car on one condition: IF you ever fix it we would love to see it when complete.

This cat needed a LOT of work, TLC and tons of elbow grease as well as the green stuff.

Late fall 1997 we started, along with two other gentlemen, to put Archie back together again.

In October of the following year Archie was purring. Total restoration from the ground up. It had the same engine as new but I had it rebuilt, numbered and balanced.

All the things I took out and put away in a box 20 years earlier for mementoes I retrieved and put back in the car — key with yellow smiling face, blanket, jacket, 8 track and tapes, CB, ceramic bug — the whole nine yards.

I had a problem finding a steering wheel like my original but with the help of other VW enthusiasts I found one in Falmouth, Maine.

As this is written, the car is AS GOOD AS NEW, back the way it was in 1972.

I drive it from May until October, attend most car shows in the area and keep it stored in the winter.

Archie is part of this family, loved by all of my family and our grandchildren.

Little did I know on that fall night in 1977 that something I missed so dearly would return one day . . . little BLACK BOOK and ALL!

*Footnotes:

*Yes, the couple did see the car when complete. They had tears in their eyes and wanted to buy it back!

*I am the ninth owner, number one and nine seven in between, with the thanks of the Motor Vehicle Department.

*The car never left NB. All owners registered in this province.

*Have I had any offers to sell? Too many to mention, but it is a great investment. Especially now, since these models are no longer made.

Bill Anderson, formerly of Newcastle, and now residing in Moncton with his wife, is the proud owner of Archie, the 1972 Volkswagen in this article. Any comments or questions please contact Bill at (506) 384-2259.