Ludwig turned 34 today. I wonder what his first owner(s) would think if they knew he was still kicking around all these years later.
Some data:
-Given his 217,000 miles (nearly 8.75 times around the world, or circa 91% of the distance to the Moon), it works out that he's gone about 6,382 miles a year, which is 17 1/2 miles a day, every day.
-All this gadding about has burned 13,500 gallons or so of gasoline.
-Very roughly, that's $16,000 worth of fuel.
-Whoever took him off the lot paid $5,274 for him, which when adjusted for inflation is $23,000 today. For comparison, in 1974, new Ford and Chevy 1-ton vans cost $3,500 and $3,125, respectively. Apparently Ludwig was pretty expensive brand new.
(Don't be confused that Ludwig is a 1974 model, yet turned 34 in 2007. Model years and calendar years haven't matched up in forever.)
Happy birthday, Ludwig!
6 comments:
Did you take him out for a spin for his birthday? Give him a bath?
I enjoyed this post. Had a smidgen of heart.
I thought about doing both of those, but in the end I did for him what I knew he wanted most: I took all the stuff out of him that was still in him from our move. He's back in ready-to-camp form now.
Alright,
Mitch.
Mitch there are some '72 & '74 volkswagon camper vans for sale in my area $750. for both are you interested? I got room at the farm. I think Ludwig had a midlife crisis in the 90's when he was on his side on hwy. 24 anyway happy birthday Ludwig many more
That's a pretty tempting price, and thanks for the offer of your space, but we don't really have the money now. I can think of all kinds of parts that'd be nice to have (thermostats, fuel pumps, air cleaner stuff, nose clip, sliding door) if you want to get us an awesome Christmas gift.
When are you coming up to snowboard?
Alright,
Mitch.
Happy Birthday Ludwig!
Are you going by the day he was first purchased?
Mitch got Ludwig's "birth" date from Ludwig's M Codes. Wednesday October 31, 1973 is the actual day Ludwig rolled off the assembly line intact in Hanover, Germany. He probably wasn't sold to his first driver until after he was shipped to California (either San Francisco or San Diego). I'm not sure if Mitch has the details of the first purchase, but if he does he'll probably post another comment.
If you're interested in what else Mitch found from Ludwig's M Codes, check out the last section of this general info & FAQ post.
Thanks for visiting,
Melissa
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