I decided that I would surprise the family with a VW Kombi for Christmas – there are tons of them on the road here because they were made in Brazil until very recently and they’re a common workhorse. I looked around, did my research and finally found a ’92, former Church bus, but was subsequently owned by a Yoga teacher (from whom I bought it). He hauled his family thousands of km in it from the deserts of the North to the glaciers of the South. It’s in great shape – all accessories work and it’s cleaner than most houses here, and came with lots of good karma. As soon as I picked it up on Tuesday, I couldn’t contain my own excitement, so I put the kids in the back and picked up Alison from the bus stop. I don’t think she expected it.
Wednesday was a national holiday – Conception Day - so I decide it was an auspicious day to take the Kombi for it's first family road trip. We headed for a colleague’s family ranch about 120km away.
Cruising in the Kombi is a great sensation – the kids love it, you go slow, you have a panoramic view out of the windows and seated right at the front. Plus you have to dig the rattle of the mechanically simple, air-cooled engine. The sun was out, the sky was clear and it was the perfect day for a trip to the country.
Well, here is what happened on the roadtrip. I had to take the highway transponder out of my Subaru, but it didn't work in the Kombi; I think the nice people who own the highways are going to track me down for a big fine. Then, I was pulled over in a routine police inspection (they seem to target old cars) and as it turned out, my emissions test is overdue. The cop confiscated my license and gave me 9 days to get the car certified. Ouch! Well, that wasn’t going to kill my Kombi buzz. I'm back in my groove. Cruising at 85km/h I came to a big hill as we were crossing a valley, so I needed to drop it down to third gear. Wow big hill, I say …does she need a lower gear? Okay down to 2 - the engine is at high RPM, and I wonder how much that air cooled powerhouse can put out. Suddenly, something doesn't sound quite right - and the battery light comes on. Smoke starts pouring in from the vents - light at first, enough to convince myself it's from oil on the outside of the crank case burning because the engine got hot on the climb- but then I look back and William is holding his stuffed animal to filter the smoke...I think, uh oh, better pull over. Alison was also freaking out because she was convinced to Kombi was on fire and that it was going to blow up.
Okay okay, I say, I will pull over and take a look. I go around back and open the engine hatch and think, hmm, I think there was a belt between those pulleys...and I look down and by coincidence, there is a perfect belt lying under the engine. How, I ask, does that happen, I don't know. Kombi Gods? The Kombi still could start and run, but the smoooke, the smooooke!
I waited for the engine to cool down, and said, well to hell with this, I'm gonna put that belt back on. And I did, with nothing but a key as a lever (felt like McGyver). But I go to start it and the battery is drained – while the belt was off, the alternator wasn’t charging the battery. Damn.
We sit on the side of the highway, waiting for my buddy to show up (he was going to back to get his truck and some rope to tow me). But he was way ahead, and I was anxious about sitting at the side of the road, so I pushed the Kombi (with the family inside) up a slight hill in the hopes of getting some momentum for a jump start. I almost got there but go too tired.
Well, I did manage to get her started again with the momentum of the tow. We got to the ranch, had a nice day with the horses and barbeque, but I was anxious about getting back to Santiago…would I have more problems on the way home? Would I get back today?
The Kombi started, and I managed to get us on our way. But something happened to the carburator setting because at low idle, it'd stall out. Everything was fine until we had to stop at a toll booth....she conked out about 3m from the payment window. I had to run up to the lady at the booth, pay my money, and say "lo siento, mi Kombi no va, uno momento por favor" and a couple people came out to give it a push and got me through the gate. I got it started, but had to learn to manage the clutch, gas and break at every stop.
We got home safe, and earned about 10 friendly beeps, a bunch of thumbs-up and the kindness of strangers. What a day it was.
Now, off to the Kombi doctor for a Revision Buena and a trip to the Planta Tecnica for my emissions check - I can't wait to have her back. Whoever comes to visit can have the keys to their own Kombi adventure.
