Lucky Owner Gets Her 350,000-Mile Beetle Restored by VW for Free

[Rhiannon12866]

Kathleen Brooks, owner of this red Beetle (nicknamed "Annie" ), purchased the car new in December of 1966, and has used it to commute to work for the past 51 years. Brooks works with breast cancer patients and survivors to provide comfort and cosmetic care during treatment and recovery. She's also a three-time breast cancer survivor herself. If anyone deserves a free factory restoration for their car, it's her.

Volkswagen took 11 months at the company's Mexico factory to fully restore Brooks' Beetle, replacing 40 percent of its parts, and saving 357 individual pieces. The restoration team even went as far as to recreate all of the original stickers Brooks put on the car over her years of ownership. In order to restore the paint to its original condition, the team took the color from inside the glove box and matched it to the sandblasted, restored chassis.

Project manager and mechatronics engineer Augusto Zamudio said the goal wasn't to create a museum quality Beetle, but to bring the car back to a state where Brooks could drive and enjoy it for many more years to come. As a result, the car got new, upgraded disc brakes, a modern vintage-look radio, a new wiring harness, a refreshed suspension, and a rebuilt engine and transmission. As you can see in the picture above, the end result is a stunning piece of machinery.

We hope Brooks and her car will enjoy many more miles of reliable fun together. Judging by the fantastic factory restoration job, we're confident that's exactly what'll happen.

16 photos at link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/enthusiasts/lucky-owner-gets-her-350000-mile-beetle-restored-by-vw-for-free/ar-BBQLPkM?ocid=Login#image=BBQLPkM_1|1

[byronius]

1. '66 VW is my favorite vehicle on earth.

Well, maybe the '76 TR6 Triumph. Rocket on roller skates, that one.

Had two '66 VW's and a '70, they were awesome.

[Lochloosa]

7. Worse mistake of my car life was selling my '69. Damn, I want that car back.

[byronius]

8. '66 was the last year of the 6 volt.

My second '66 was refitted with a Porsche block -- it was incredible how zippy that car was.

Broke down in Colorado and I ended up living under a staircase in a house full of weirdos in Nederland; traded it in for a four-track session.

I still listen to that album. Don't regret it. But I miss my little Zippy.

Ah, Early Life.

[Canoe52]

2. Good for her!

[KelleyKramer]

3. I learned how to drive in one of those when I was 14 yrs

Cool story, thanks for posting. The engine didn't look too bad for that old and with that many miles

[Guppy]

4. not possible

those were thieves and terrorists. my first car was a '68.I loved that car.

[Victor_c3]

5. Nice work (and a good story)

I love frame-off restorations. After I got back from Iraq in 2005, I spent 2 years doing a complete restoration of an older corvette that I had bought when I was in college for $6,500. It was a lot of work, I can’t say that it was a lot of fun, but I was proud as hell of the project when I was done.

Before doing it, I had never worked on a car at all. Everything I needed to know I found on the Internet.

Again, great story!

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Sweet.

[demgrrrll]

9. I taught myself to drive a stick in a shopping center parking lot with a 60's era Beetle. nt

[Rhiannon12866]

10. That is impressive! I still can't...

Years ago they were all over the road. Seems like they were everyone's first car.

[natheo]

11. good for her

She really deserves to have a nice car.