...it threw a rod in the engine.

Let's see... '57 VW would be a 1200cc, 36 horsepower engine, and this is absolutely the first time I have ever heard of one of those throwing a rod. You can run them out of oil and seize them up, but other than that it would usually be pretty hard to get one of them to quit.

You know, that '57 bug in average mechanical and cosmetic condition today would be worth more than your Nova! (Not as fast through the quarter mile, though... )

Just to throw a bit of fuel on the flames... the New Beetle is superior in every aspect to the old, with the possible exception of totally mis-remembered nostalgia. Trust me when I say that the old VW Beetles were dreadful cars by any modern standard of comparison: noisy, ill-handling, slow, miserable in cold weather, uncomfortable, and not (again by today's standards) particularly economical to operate. Factor in that in today's money, the New Beetle actually costs less than the old one did (calculate the number of hours you had to work to buy an old Beetle in 1970 compared to a New Beetle today...) and there's no doubt which is the better car.

Let the Flame War Begin!!

tanstaafl.

"There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"