About a dozen people when I tell them about my trip have asked me, "So, are you taking the bug?"
I laugh until I realize they are asking this in all seriousness. To give you some background, I purchased a '73 Beetle at a great price in October. This is my dream car and I love this car more than anything.
Unfortunately, it doesn't love me back.
In the matter of two weeks, it tried to kill me three times: Once by trying to get me run over by a semi, another time breaking down on the i-90 bridge, and another time tried to gas me out while I was driving down a busy road (I was able to roll down the window and keep conscious).
And people honestly have asked me if I'm going to take this car on a 15,000 mile trip?! Do I have a death wish?! I don't want to be alone in the desert with this vehicle, where I'm miles from civilization and no one can hear my cries for help. No, I will not be at the bug's mercy.
The 1998 Toyota Corolla has loved me and been there for me even when I threatened to sell it. It's trudged through blazing deserts, mud in the prairies, and got me safely through several mountain blizzards. It tries its very best and has only gotten stuck twice: once in Saskatchewan miles and miles from any city (it's really my fault), and once when I was driving too fast during a snow storm.
She puts her very heart in soul in keeping me safe despite the crazy places I take her. I have passed out comfortably for 14 hours straight in her warm arms, carried a carload of hippy hitch hikers, and been across the US and Canada 5 times. She's got 240,000 miles on her and hasn't complained once. My baby Corolla, God willing, will get me through this last, longest trip yet, before she retires.
