i have wanted a beetle ever since i saw one of the "herbie" movies as a child. upon reaching driving age, my parents bought me an oh-so-practical, but brand new, 1993 saturn SL1. at that time in my life (high school), owning an old bug was something i knew i'd do someday, but as long as my parents were footing the bill, whatever they chose for me, i would drive. 1998 came and the new beetles hit the market. i remember thinking "how ugly"! i thought they were a horrible attempt to bring back a true classic. the new beetles were a passing thought and nothing more.

my saturn served me well over a period of nine years and 129,000 miles. i liked their customer service so much that when it came time to buy my first car at the age of 25, all by myself, i went back to saturn and bought a new 2002 SL1. saturn #2 proved to be a reliable and affordable car, but three years into owning my silver piece of mediocrity, i wanted out. i was an a "smart buy" program, so my car could be a lease and i could dump it at three years or i could choose to refinance the gigantic final payment. i had always planned to do the sensible thing and buy out the rest of the car; if i dumped it at three years, i'd have nothing - no car, no money. however, this little voice in the back of my head told me this was my chance to own a car i loved, instead of a car that was practical.

i'd never been much of a car person and fell somewhere in between my dad's philosophy of "as long as it gets you from point 'A' to point 'B'..." and "pimp my ride". my friends always associated me with saturns since it's what i always drove. i was a bit of an enthusiast, but this was mostly due to saturn's customer service. the car itself was fairly uninspiring.

in early 2005, i knew come may, i would have to make the decision to buy out the rest of my car or drop it and purchase something else. i couldn't say i was fond of the idea of buying another new car; they were a waste of money - and i bought a cheap one (relatively speaking)! i felt trapped and knew i had little time.

one night my friend ben and i were cruising through a local used car lot. my budget was small (under $9000) and of course, i had to have a 5-speed. i didn't even know what i was looking for, and i knew my price range and need of a 5-speed would limit my choices. my tastes in cars, in the past, had always been dictated by what i could afford. since i knew i could never afford a nice car, it wouldn't make sense for me to be all nuts about BMWs.

every time was saw a car in my price range, i left disappointed when i saw it was an automatic. then, i came upon a black 1998 new beetle. i peered in the windows. hmmmm, i thought. a new beetle. huh. this could be kinda cool. it was black, it had a sunroof, it was stick shift (!) and was priced under $9000. it did have 88K miles however. i made a mental note to come check it out the next day and take a test drive. i have to admit, i got really excited after that. it was as if all of a sudden, this new beetle was calling to me. i think i may have lost a little sleep that night as i thought about driving this car the next day.

saturday i awoke, showered and drove straight to the dealership. i again peered into the car and within one minute a sales rep appeared and opened the car for me. i was ready to take a test drive! and then i looked around. the inside of the car looked like it had been through a tornado; door handles were peeling, the carpet was filthy, the leather was split and worn. i was so let down. i am incredibly anal when it comes to the cosmetic aspect of my cars; my cars are almost always clean and in pristine condition.

i walked away from the dealership without even taking a test drive. no sense in driving a car i would never buy. a few days later, i drove a used new beetle from the VW dealership across the street. now, in all fairness, i'd driven a co-worker's mom's new beetle a few months before this test drive, but i just didn't think anything about it at the time. however, after my jaunt around the block in a shiny yellow 2002, i was sold. just not on that one! the VW dealership definitely didn't have anything in my price range. so, i hit the internet. i searched the paper, ebay, autotrader.com, cars.com and wrote local used car dealerships with my specs. i knew it would be hard to find my beetle, but i was determined.

i finally found my beetle on autotrader.com. a lady across the river in illinois was selling it for her sister. i went for a test drive and promised myself i wouldn't make any quick decisions. i was a little disappointed when i saw the car. there was quite a bit of cosmetic damage; a large scratch on the rear fender, paint chips off the rocker panel and all kinds of scrapes on front bumper from when the seller hit a fence. i took a test drive anyway and tried my hardest to pay attention to how the car drove instead of the seller's sister yammering on about nothing in particular.

long story short, i called and agreed to purchase the car that night. i got a great price on it ($7350) and even though it had 82K miles on it, it's been a great ride ever since. i love my car and for the first time in my life, just driving it puts a smile on my face. i've become quite the enthusiast since i bought my beetle and have learned so much about the car and it's history. i know people think i'm joking, but i just might drive one the rest of my life. :)