After I sold Abbey to Brian Rathfelder, he sent me a picture of how he was treating the car. This photo, selected from others he sent, made my heart swell with pride. Go get 'em, girl! Abbey was a great project. It is with great sadness that this picture ends my involvement with the new life I gave her but down the road, we may meet again. In the meantime, I hope she keeps flinging mud.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 08:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The new clutch has been installed - just needs to be buttoned up. After this was done, the car shifted like a new car with no slippage and no slop in the stick.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 06:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jim after pulling the tranny out of his project VW Rabbit, Abbey. This photo was taken in the newly constructed garage at the Rocket Lane house in Port Orchard.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 05:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Aha! The culprit has been revealed! Abbey's clutch had started to slip pretty bad, which actually can be very common with VW Rabbit models. Look at your rear main seal. Here, Abbey's is exposed for all to see.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 06:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Another shot of Abbey new completion in preparation for "The Cruz" car show in Port Orchard. I am an author, damnit! You'd think people would come to my website looking to buy my books. But month after month, the number one search result with direct hits to my website comes from this car. I proclaim it the most popular VW Rabbit on the Internet. You can dispute that if you like, just send me your server logs ...

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 09:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Face it, for a first-time rebuild, this was tits. A lot of work, a lot of bloody knuckles, a lot of sweat, and more than enough tears. This car always held a special place in my heart. I hated to sell her, but that led, eventually, to the 1971 Super Beetle, purchased (in a round-about sort of way) from the same owner who previously owned Abbey. Here, Abbey sits in all her glory...

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 08:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Abbey was bought after my divorce, for $500. I couldn't afford a pot to piss in, and after many months, I finally saved enough money to buy this car. I read a lot of books and talked to a lot of people, and did a TON of work. Eventually, this car became the number one attraction to my website, and that continues to this day.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 08:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 08:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 08:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here, Jim W. Coleman works beneath one of his favorite VW's ...

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 03:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jim's pet VW project car, "Abbey," after substantial bodywork finally moves into the primering stage in preparation for a final sanding and paint job.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 09:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is a photo of Jim's beloved VW Rabbit as he was rebuilding it from the ground up to turn into the jewel she became. Here, she shows her bare necessities, naked and stripped of paint as Jim begins to prepare body panels for painting.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 09:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Abbey sits beside Kharma, a VW parts car, in the driveway at the Collins Road rental house. Abbey is being readied for more bodywork and a final paint job.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 07:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here, Jim takes a moment to inspect his work removing and repairing rust damage on his VW Rabbit, "Abbey" - a car which, when finished, was perfectly rebuilt and restored.

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 09:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here, "Abbey," Jim W. Coleman's project VW Rabbit car, is pulled sideways up to the garage to protect it from a fierce wind storm. Jim hadn't yet gotten too far into the restoration project and wanted to ensure that no further damage was done to the car. See Linda?

Posted by Jim W Coleman at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)