08/10/2018
It all started as a childhood dream. The iconic Volkswagen Beetle - an image of its shape had stayed in my mind. As time went by, the shape I had in mind evolved but the desire to own one always remained. I dreamed the Beetle in so many colours and in so many shapes.
Last year, I was looking to try something different besides customising motorcycles. This was when I decided to learn about vintage car restoration. At first, I was toying with the idea of restoring a Morris Minor but when I got my hands on a 1965 Volkswagen Beetle, I didn’t look back.
When I bought this Beetle, it was in pieces. The previous owner had already began restoring it but I didn’t want the standard local restoration work. So I toed the car and took it to Sachin Man’s Swayambhu garage. The first few months went by quickly, sanding the paint job and fixing the body work. Despite a busy schedule, Swayambhu uncle and his garage team rebuilt the engine. I chose to paint her in a custom shade of green but named her Laalee, to keep a part of her old red-self alive.
My expectations for this VW Beetle were high, I had accumulated so many ideas since childhood. At the beginning I had planned to go custom. Then I decided to build it with as many original parts as possible but there were days when I got carried away and ordered way too many parts. In the end, I didn’t fully go for a ‘stock look’ but maybe that’s just who I am. To call it my own, she needs to have a personal touch. After spending every day at the garage together with the team, assembling the rest of the parts somehow came to us naturally.
Now the car is finally on the road but Laalee’s journey is not yet finished, as I am still learning the nuts and bolts of car restoration. This is just the start of her journey, in a country where breathing life into classics is about to begin. 📷 Bibhas Maharjan Suwal
