Life-Love-Volkswagens-Jose Rodriguez-Factor Volkswagen Ep69
DubLife Diaries The VW Lifestyle Podcast
Life-Love-Volkswagens-Jose Rodriguez-Factor Volkswagen Ep69
DubLife Diaries The VW Lifestyle Podcast · Jun 13, 2026
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0:00
69:07
Car
Volkswagen Rabbit
The Volkswagen Rabbit is a small Volkswagen car that was made for everyday driving. People often remember it because it was common in families and is tied to older Volkswagen memories. The podcast mention suggests the speaker’s dad owned one when they were growing up.
Term
motor
People sometimes say “motor” when they mean the engine. In this story, they’re taking the engine out and putting it back in, which is a big job.
Term
clutch
A clutch is the part that helps a manual-transmission car smoothly connect the engine to the gearbox. If it’s not there, you can’t properly put the car back together and drive it.
Term
head gasket
A head gasket is a seal inside the engine that keeps different fluids and gases from mixing. When it blows, the engine can start smoking—often white smoke—because something is leaking where it shouldn’t.
Term
white smoke
White smoke coming out of the exhaust can mean the engine is burning something it shouldn’t—often coolant. It’s a warning sign that the car likely needs attention.
Term
2.4
“2.4” is the engine size measured in liters. Bigger numbers usually mean a larger engine, and the speaker is saying they changed which engine size they had.
Term
2.2 head
A “head” is the top part of the engine where the valves and combustion happen. Saying “2.2 head” means they used a cylinder head from a 2.2-liter setup, which can change engine behavior.
Term
GTO covers
These sound like aftermarket covers you put over headlights to change how they look. The speaker also mentions “smoke” plastic over the lights, which matches that idea.
Term
smoke lenses
“Smoke lenses” are tinted covers for your lights that make them look darker. Some places don’t like them because they can reduce how bright the lights are.
Term
carburetor
A carburetor is a part that helps the engine get the right mix of fuel and air. Some older cars use carburetors, while newer ones use electronic fuel systems. Here, the mechanic brings one to fix the van.
Term
fuel injection
Fuel injection is how a car delivers fuel to the engine using a controlled system. The host is saying that was the source of the problem on their van. If you switch between fuel injection and carburetion, the parts and tuning are different.
Term
computers
When people say “computers” in a car, they usually mean the electronic control boxes that manage how the engine runs. The speaker is saying they had to buy those parts while trying to fix the van. That’s often a sign the problem was tied to the car’s electronics, not just a simple mechanical part.
Term
carbrated it
“Carbrated it” sounds like they changed the van so it uses a carburetor instead of the original fuel system. The story suggests that swap is what made the van run reliably afterward. It’s a big change because carburetors and fuel injection work differently.
Car
Volkswagen Bug
“Bug” is what a lot of people call the Volkswagen Beetle. It’s a classic VW that lots of enthusiasts customize, and the host is describing theirs getting painted.
Part
porch wheels, the phone dials
They’re talking about a particular wheel design (“phone dials”) that looks like classic VW custom wheels. Wheels like this are chosen both for looks and for fitting the stance they want.
Part
15 by 7
“15 by 7” is the wheel size—15 inches across the wheel, and 7 inches wide. Wider or narrower wheels can change what tires fit and how safely the car can be lowered.
Term
slam it
“Slam it” means lowering the car a lot so it sits very close to the ground. People do it for the look, but it can require suspension and wheel setup to keep it from hitting or rubbing.
Part
four inch adjustable beam
That “adjustable beam” is a suspension part at the front that lets you lower the car. The “four inch” suggests how much drop they’re targeting for the stance.
Part
spring plates for the rear
Spring plates are parts in the rear suspension that help determine how high or low the car sits. Swapping or adjusting them is a typical way to lower the back of a classic VW.
Topic
Bug Jam
“Bug Jam” is a VW car meet/show. The host is telling listeners their car will show up there once it’s finished.
Term
bondo
“Bondo” is a putty/body filler used to patch dents or holes on a car before painting. The speaker didn’t want to just fill the holes with filler—they wanted them welded shut first.
Term
trim holes
When you remove exterior trim, you can be left with holes in the paint/body. Those holes can let water in and lead to rust, so you usually have to repair them properly before repainting.
Term
rust
Rust is when metal starts corroding and breaking down, usually from moisture. Fixing rust is important before you do bodywork and paint so it doesn’t come back.
Term
primer
Primer is the base coat you put on before the final paint. It helps the paint stick better and protects the metal underneath.
Term
stove cleaner
They’re talking about using a household cleaner (meant for stoves) as a DIY chemical to help clean up chrome. The idea is to remove rust and restore the shine without buying special car chemicals.
Term
scotch bright
Scotch-Brite is a scrub pad. People use it to clean and polish surfaces like chrome, but you have to be gentle so you don’t scratch or haze the shine.
LIVE
[SPEAKER_01]: Welcome to Dub Life Diaries.
[SPEAKER_01]: The podcast where passion meets the open road.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm Joe Parson, your host, and also a lifelong lover.
[SPEAKER_01]: Book it up because this ride is just beginning.
[SPEAKER_01]: This podcast is sponsored by Volk's Mania Magazine.
[SPEAKER_01]: Good times, great cars, awesome Volk's Maniacs.
[SPEAKER_01]: Visit Volk'sMania.com to learn more about this class leading VW Magazine.
[SPEAKER_01]: Welcome back to Dublife Diaries.
[SPEAKER_01]: My next guest grew up in Puerto Rico.
[SPEAKER_01]: Watch it as dad rip engines out of Volkswagen's like it was nothing.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now he's helping build one of the most passionate VW communities between Puerto Rico and Florida.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's broken down on the highway.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's pushed his car on date night.
[SPEAKER_01]: A lot of us can relate to that.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's built cars from scraps for his wife, and somewhere along the way he realized he wasn't really built in the car, well, the car was actually building him.
[SPEAKER_01]: This one's going to hit just a little bit different.
[SPEAKER_01]: Jose Rodriguez, welcome to Double Life Diaries.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's not me.
[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for that interview.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was sick.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: You're very welcome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Very welcome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now, before we get going, let me give just a quick shout out to a couple of my sponsors.
[SPEAKER_01]: First up on the list of folks, Mania Magazine.
[SPEAKER_01]: You guys know how I feel.
[SPEAKER_01]: Fly as VW Magazine on the face of the planet.
[SPEAKER_01]: The new one is in stores.
[SPEAKER_01]: On the shelves right now, this is issue 26.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's the summer issue.
[SPEAKER_01]: The Blife Diaries is in here.
[SPEAKER_01]: Bug jam.
[SPEAKER_01]: You see the story on Bug Jam.
[SPEAKER_01]: bug jams in there it's it's rocking anyhow shout out to those guys Paul cave in the team Volkswagen Magazine checked them out volks mania dot com you can use dub life ten at checkout for 10% off of your subscription also shout out the salty dub from the beach to the bay salty dub is tearing up the vw coastal scene west coast central florida right here epic events and swag speaking of epic events [SPEAKER_01]: I was just telling Jose about this event that we just had this past Saturday.
[SPEAKER_01]: We did Jeep's versus Volkswagen's.
[SPEAKER_01]: We called the event Jeep's versus V-Dubs and it wasn't like a head-to-head competition like, you know, tug-of-war or anything like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was just how many y'all can show up versus how many of us, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Can show up.
[SPEAKER_01]: Man, the Jeep community busted our asses.
[SPEAKER_01]: But we had a really good time.
[SPEAKER_01]: They're very cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just like we are great community.
[SPEAKER_01]: All about their rides.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just like we are.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it was a good time.
[SPEAKER_01]: We had about 220 maybe 230 cars in total.
[SPEAKER_01]: Awesome time.
[SPEAKER_01]: Quaker stake and loop up on the 49 street shout out to everybody that came.
[SPEAKER_01]: Appreciate you guys.
[SPEAKER_01]: The energy, the effort.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Last shout out.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then it's back to you, my friend.
[SPEAKER_01]: Vera, a poultry of St. Pete, my buddy, Alan Guvara, my partner in salty dub, a very talented crafty builder.
[SPEAKER_01]: This guy's got some pretty amazing things that he builds out of the shop here in St. Petersburg.
[SPEAKER_01]: He does just a very professional job at building interiors for boats, but also his new automotive line.
[SPEAKER_01]: He does cat skins, [SPEAKER_01]: uh... he does custom you know all kinds of stuff i've told you guys before and you probably heard me say uh... his seventy three thing uh... one best in its class uh... that interior is just absolutely slamming uh... it's all black it's all custom it's all sick the the outer stitching in the in the seat is the vw logo stitched how sick is that how sick is that so shout out to my guy uh... allen and the team at vera upholstery check those guys out
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, my friend, I'm done with my shoutouts.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's back to you.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's back to you, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Let's go.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, let's go.
[SPEAKER_01]: So let's do this, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: Let's go back to the beginning for your life.
[SPEAKER_01]: Take me back, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: What was life like for you growing up in Puerto Rico?
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just normal.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were meet on a class family, you know, that always working.
[SPEAKER_00]: We are seven, five kids, mom and dad.
[SPEAKER_00]: Wow, just normal, public schools grow, around going to church, you know, Catholic.
[SPEAKER_00]: Normal, way different than here though.
[SPEAKER_00]: Grow, grow cars, see some little, you know.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm the oldest of five.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: So you got that natural leader in you?
[SPEAKER_01]: Kind of, yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: You get pushed into it.
[SPEAKER_01]: You get pushed into the leadership when you're an oldest brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: I said, I grow and probably go again here when I was 18, fresh out of high school and I'm being here since then.
[SPEAKER_01]: You had originally said that Volkswagen's were always around, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: So what did that actually look like for you on a day to day basis?
[SPEAKER_00]: have run both so I can sing rallies since I was a kid and my uncle always owns both so I can see it's crazy with the MK's on the cab real.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, the rabbit, all that, my dad has had a 70 when I was growing up that I remember, I should remember just a picture [SPEAKER_00]: And then we're going to remember why not my sister first card was a horse again, but yeah, in Puerto Rico, there's wolf sounds everywhere.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, that's what I've heard and I know that to be true, don't they use Volkswagen says taxi cabs and that type of stuff as well.
[SPEAKER_00]: they used to, they used to back, back, back in the day.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, our uncle has won, I remember the nons of the shirt had a Volkswagen out of stick.
[SPEAKER_00]: And they traveled from church to church in it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, there was always a sunrail at home or there was something.
[SPEAKER_00]: And if we see a horse, I think we would punch each other.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm in.
[SPEAKER_01]: A bunch of buggy health care.
[SPEAKER_01]: Let's go back to, I guess, maybe how old you were your first thoughts about being around the VW culture, how old were you, what were your first memories of being around the culture?
[SPEAKER_00]: It was my dad with the sand grills.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was kind of the, we used to go from county to county with my uncle to raise the sand rills.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it did like rally style racing, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, exactly.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we used to run to the street to the, to the mud from the house, back roads all the way to the mall so we can not find.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, it was, it was really nice times, that's, that's my early, remember, we'll say in a round.
[SPEAKER_00]: That was.
[SPEAKER_01]: You would said one of your memories, too, was that your sister got a Volkswagen, was that that purple beetle that you talked about in your, yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, tell me why you think that that stuck with you, why that memory stick with you in your life.
[SPEAKER_00]: So my sister wanted a bud, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: found for her birthday when she's got his hair license.
[SPEAKER_00]: So my dad found our 70s, also I get purple.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember it had purple with the cloth and he brought it home and it was a boy who was doing what everybody was saying.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then one day he told me, we're going to change the cloth from the car and I was like [SPEAKER_00]: And a cement pad, all right, he said he told me to look that how easy this is, and I was, I was, okay, I close for me was, and saying job, yeah, and I was still a kid, sure.
[SPEAKER_00]: So, he dropped the motor in like 20 minutes or less, all right, and he asked me to pick up the car with him.
[SPEAKER_00]: All right, he dropped the motor to the floor.
[SPEAKER_00]: We pick up the car, we put it to the side and the motor was already out.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was like, hopefully, like, I was like, so surprised.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was like, he said, I don't have the clutch.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to buy it tomorrow.
[SPEAKER_00]: We're going to put it back to business and where we took it out.
[SPEAKER_01]: I got up, put it back on top of it, put Jack motor up.
[SPEAKER_01]: That was it.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then, six days, I mean, I was good.
[SPEAKER_00]: of the time.
[SPEAKER_00]: Since then, I was also proud of DC, it was.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I saw engine support.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, my brother had a sound rail.
[SPEAKER_00]: They had three same pistons and one different piston.
[SPEAKER_00]: Right?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, that motor was built from business.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that thing run actually.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, busy.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was for me, it was, it was insane.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, that's one of the first things you mentioned.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you think growing up in a family like that with your dad kind of, you know, given you those types of examples?
[SPEAKER_01]: Did you actually absorb a lot of what you learned about the mechanical side or did, were you taught?
[SPEAKER_01]: Were you, did they teach you about the mechanical side?
[SPEAKER_01]: Did you absorb it or were you taught it?
[SPEAKER_00]: No, I mean, I'm about to solve it, because I've already asked him for it, being around it, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_00]: Not only that, I mean, in my house, there was something up.
[SPEAKER_00]: There was always a toy.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was a G or both or anything.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, my dad always had a toy.
[SPEAKER_00]: that I can't remember, motorcycle or something and hit him bring the car to anyone.
[SPEAKER_00]: He will fix himself.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I was always right behind him, and said, like, let's see what he's gonna do or he will call me to hoping out, you know?
[SPEAKER_00]: So yeah, that's it with me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, that's why I can't because you said originally that you got into more of the like the street racing side of things first.
[SPEAKER_01]: Talk to me about about that.
[SPEAKER_01]: What were you, what do you first, what were you first racing when you first got into it?
[SPEAKER_00]: So, so let's talk [SPEAKER_00]: So I saved some money and I bought myself from my aunt on 1991 Chibi Carolea.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, stay chief.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Two point two liter or something like that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember two point two liter.
[SPEAKER_00]: It had a blowing head gasket at the time.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it was still runs.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, so just don't barrel white smoke out the exhaust then, huh?
[SPEAKER_00]: So I used it for a little bit and um, till they were broke.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then we put in a 2.4 band and I'm ending with a 2.2 head and all.
[SPEAKER_00]: All right.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that was from there.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just down here, man.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, I was just a kid.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I got in someone's trouble racing.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I even raised my dad, man.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, I got grounded a couple of times because of that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I went from there on, it stick with me to 10 years ago, I was too racing.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I broke the car more than eight times.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, every single grandma I'm okay with here that I saw, that it was don't cure or that I saw in a patio of a house or something, I would buy it or buy the box or the engine so I can just keep raising it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, and it was a tank.
[SPEAKER_00]: That thing was a tank.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was heavy.
[SPEAKER_00]: It had those old GT, do you remember the GTO covers for the lights?
[SPEAKER_00]: The smoke, plastic over that you put on top of the lights?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, I totally remember those.
[SPEAKER_01]: We used to get sweated by the cops for those here.
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_01]: On St. Pete Beach, yeah, I totally remember those.
[SPEAKER_01]: The smoke lenses.
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know you were doing a big when you had one on the front and the back.
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_00]: That was absolutely.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was one of the few people in high school that had got a car.
[SPEAKER_00]: So, I mean, that's because that's kind of cool.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean.
[SPEAKER_01]: you mentioned in your back story that your brother Jonathan had a sandrail.
[SPEAKER_01]: How old were you guys at this point or was this more was this something recent or was this while you were growing up?
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, I will see you're ready.
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, he he you know only had a sandrail.
[SPEAKER_00]: He had, uh, I won't [SPEAKER_00]: He had the Samuel that he put a piece from nothing and he had one of the cleanest mannequin, a cool that I ever seen or you know, paint AC, I mean, that thing was beautiful, book caps, you name it, I mean, yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: But that was, that was more recent and my brother won, which is, um, fact normal second.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, let's talk about him for a sec.
[SPEAKER_01]: Um, sounds like one maybe played a big role in the in your Volkswagen journey, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: So when, when, when, [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, there was a red, I was already collecting both so I guess I have over 300 on whole wheels and I can't small tokens.
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay, so because they're always got my attention, like, I always want one.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't know if it was morning wise or what, but I never went into it, but I always [SPEAKER_00]: We factor most back in and I went to his first show.
[SPEAKER_00]: I couldn't believe it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, and he bow his first, his 65.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't know.
[SPEAKER_00]: and he started taking pictures of all the activities, of also arguing that's how he started, and he did his first midnight in our body, yeah Puerto Rico.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was a success, so he told me, which I don't know if you know this, [SPEAKER_00]: There's a bunch of people from Puerto de Trabdo, almost every show in Florida, and he told me, I said, there's a lot of good shows in Florida.
[SPEAKER_00]: Can you look into that?
[SPEAKER_00]: I was like, yeah, he said, I want to go to Buckham in November.
[SPEAKER_00]: So he came and visited with [SPEAKER_00]: And he came and vissing me, he stayed for task given.
[SPEAKER_00]: We went to Bogdan, he took pictures, all the cars, there's a lot of pictures back in the page, back in the day in Bogdan, four or five years, four or five years ago.
[SPEAKER_00]: And from now on, I will look.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, seeing the cars, the people, the Latino community in the most right games, I mean, [SPEAKER_00]: the people know him from the page, but the hand that they would say him in person, he didn't know who the people was.
[SPEAKER_00]: And the people calling me one, thinking that I was him.
[SPEAKER_00]: And those, those crazy for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, people that you don't know, comment up to you like they know you forever.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I was really surprised because we don't got that in the racing aspect, you know, it's more like quiet, don't look, don't look at this, don't look at my car or the end, you know, whatever.
[SPEAKER_00]: So he came, it was just a success for him.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, people start tagging other people's because of the big shares that he took.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I started looking for a little saying.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, saying his success because he was into racing too.
[SPEAKER_00]: More dangerous than I was.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was like, and I had a motorcycle at the time.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was like, I like this, I'm going to try it.
[SPEAKER_00]: a boss.
[SPEAKER_00]: I wanted, I wanted a boss.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then one of his friends told me, I know boss is a fancy, but what about a ban again?
[SPEAKER_00]: So I started looking to a ban [SPEAKER_00]: till I saw the motorcycle and all of that to find it.
[SPEAKER_00]: My band again was under a tree for nine years.
[SPEAKER_00]: So about a fairly cheap and it is on work.
[SPEAKER_00]: From that day, I realized how cool the motorcycle and community is.
[SPEAKER_01]: You were getting some help.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think from some strangers in this, uh, in this build, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: had a electrical problem.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I bought a computer, I took a name and I bought everything and she didn't want to start.
[SPEAKER_00]: But Johnny was coming close.
[SPEAKER_00]: My brother fly it out again to learn budget, take pictures.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he started calling people.
[SPEAKER_00]: And people started showing up on my house [SPEAKER_01]: That's it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, that's the community.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, oh my god, I'd like.
[SPEAKER_00]: And in my brother, he knows I'm more like serious type.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't bring nobody home.
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, I'm just calm and chill and family guy.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he said, man, God, this guy is going to bring me a switch.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I called this all the guy and he told me the check that's, I was like, oh my god, I got people asking me where am I, yeah, so they can come and help.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we couldn't figure it out and we went to Belgium and all that and then I had this guy that I used to work in front of his shop.
[SPEAKER_00]: His name is Pedro, all the Volkswagen Latino community know that he works only both eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he's really special person for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I call him.
[SPEAKER_00]: He has, he has like five or six most seconds his own.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I asked him, hey, I got this problem.
[SPEAKER_00]: He said, I'll be there tomorrow.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to fix it for you.
[SPEAKER_00]: Next day, he came in with a carburetor.
[SPEAKER_00]: He read the full edition of and that van start right up.
[SPEAKER_00]: He put a 32 36 in it and I have never had problems again with that with that van.
[SPEAKER_01]: So you had an issue with fuel injection.
[SPEAKER_01]: That was your problem.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I spend a lot of money buying computers and and full edition parts for it.
[SPEAKER_00]: And wow, he carbrated it.
[SPEAKER_00]: He calculated it and it's been working awesome since then.
[SPEAKER_00]: I have a couple of issues here and there, you know, also again, guy, you're always going to have, but not problems are all the story retirement.
[SPEAKER_00]: That was that was my first actually Volkswagen experience that I like to talk to myself.
[SPEAKER_00]: I can do this.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: And you, you know, you touched on the community a couple of times showing up for you.
[SPEAKER_01]: Why do you, what do you think makes VW people different than other car cultures?
[SPEAKER_00]: I, I believe to myself is a passion that that you have.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, also in people are different.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to agree with you, but I'd like to have your take on this.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you think [SPEAKER_01]: It's the cars, or do you think it's the type of people that the cars attract?
[SPEAKER_01]: I think it's both.
[SPEAKER_00]: OK.
[SPEAKER_00]: I believe it's both.
[SPEAKER_00]: This is my son's crazy.
[SPEAKER_00]: And my family, we believe.
[SPEAKER_00]: Volts are again cast feelings.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, if you don't think and all they can say, they can matter to you, and you're going to be stranded if you don't use it.
[SPEAKER_01]: You're a, you're not wrong.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's what they always say in the culture, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: They're designed to be driven.
[SPEAKER_01]: And if you don't drive them, then they're going to failure.
[SPEAKER_01]: They're going to break down.
[SPEAKER_01]: And, you know, so yeah, I respect that stance.
[SPEAKER_01]: You said something powerful in your, in your back story, though.
[SPEAKER_01]: You said we think we're, we're building the car, [SPEAKER_00]: So, all it came when I bought the 62, about I almost two years ago, as a human being, you always have ups and downs, like everybody.
[SPEAKER_00]: I started looking for a book, I found the 62, and it had no factors, no doors, no interior, but it did run.
[SPEAKER_00]: So, remember what I decided to buy it, and we bought a home, [SPEAKER_00]: And we started working on it and I had new floors in new floors.
[SPEAKER_00]: I had new on door pose.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we started working on it and put it back together.
[SPEAKER_00]: I had the past and my ground father passed away.
[SPEAKER_00]: That Christmas about the current October.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, man.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I remember calling my dad to talk to him that I bought that sister to and he was in the hospital.
[SPEAKER_00]: And my grandfather opened the eyes like really big.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he couldn't talk, but my dad taught him like, I'll save all that sister to, and he was like, I don't care, he wouldn't tell him.
[SPEAKER_00]: We would tell him about interior color.
[SPEAKER_00]: and he they like that.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I said, black, he was hearing me because I was on a speaker phone and he did.
[SPEAKER_00]: So between life and and he passed in a way and nobody knows about this.
[SPEAKER_00]: Darkard has all my time and and all my time since that is being focused on that card.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's not the period, it's not pretty, it's not car show quality, but the sentimental body that car has for me is something else.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's awesome, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: What's that?
[SPEAKER_01]: What's that car's name?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I like it.
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, yeah, it's one of the most beautiful beaches in Puerto Rico.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: Cool, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: I like it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love how these cars get their names, you know?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now, let's touch on factor for a second, you know.
[SPEAKER_01]: So tell me how the VW show started for your brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: So he started doing pictures.
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: He started going to shows [SPEAKER_00]: other club or people's shows and having fun.
[SPEAKER_00]: He's always, he's always like the camera and the pictures with the people and the car and all that.
[SPEAKER_00]: He did that for midnight in [SPEAKER_00]: with different people, different car clubs, you can call.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he called me one day and he said, I'm going to do a show in Bogotong.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's going to call Bogotong most, so I can weaken by factor most writing.
[SPEAKER_00]: Perfect.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was like, you're nuts, but I'm going to be there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Uh, which is, um, book at home.
[SPEAKER_00]: We, nobody had camp in it since 89.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, he pulled that off.
[SPEAKER_00]: He was the first to camp in it since 89.
[SPEAKER_01]: Awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, bro.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was the most.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't did it.
[SPEAKER_00]: That was.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's insane.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: I got a couple of success stories from some events around here that we were able to bring back.
[SPEAKER_01]: And the only reason that they were able to come back was because people in the higher ups in the city.
[SPEAKER_01]: They said, Oh, we remember you Volkswagen people.
[SPEAKER_01]: You guys were always chill blah blah blah.
[SPEAKER_01]: So yeah, we're gonna, we're gonna let that come back.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we were, you know, that's always like, oh, of course, you know, that's so awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: But uh, but buckle around.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hopefully I'm saying that right three days.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right three days Beach music.
[SPEAKER_01]: Obviously sounds epic camping.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, just maybe maybe describe this event just a little bit more.
[SPEAKER_01]: What's it feel like seeing that many cars show up.
[SPEAKER_01]: We don't need to talk about numbers, but seeing that many cars show up lined up on the beach.
[SPEAKER_01]: How's that feel?
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, [SPEAKER_00]: It's just, I don't believe he got, he don't get an idea how far we are of him.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's, I mean, just a traffic to go in on Sunday.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's not, I mean, you got the stage, it's on the beach.
[SPEAKER_00]: behind this stage is just one of the most beautiful beaches in Perribeville.
[SPEAKER_00]: Nice.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, you have, you don't think houses for kids.
[SPEAKER_00]: You have life-minsic.
[SPEAKER_00]: You got great food or affordable food for the family.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, you have people selling shirts and [SPEAKER_00]: He always dedicated the show to, for example, the splits or the ovals or the boogies.
[SPEAKER_00]: These years, there were some lot of boogies on the tarps.
[SPEAKER_00]: The people that are, is amazing.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I have people that every time they come to me, I say they call me, that I met through the most science with my brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: The show has become, for me, one of the greatest thing ever, this year, this year couldn't make it and I was so sad because of work, but the past three years, that's my vacation.
[SPEAKER_00]: I take two weeks and I get there, I'll see the family and after that, I'm just [SPEAKER_00]: There, I mean, a lot of work, a lot of work and inward, and we, I have to take a lot of people, I mean, I don't want to say the name, but all the sponsors from here in the United States and Puerto Rico, I mean, I appreciate all of you guys and all the people who are helping us make the activities here in the United States possible.
[SPEAKER_01]: I saw something else in your story that you had mentioned.
[SPEAKER_01]: I thought it was, it looked like a pretty awesome milestone for you guys, but you partnered up with Bug Jam at one point, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, we were, we were, when you were, the fridge year, we just sponsor Bug Jam.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then the second year, my brother asked me, if I could get a hold of a Randy, which we all, a lot to him, he helped us a lot.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we are forever grateful for the opportunity.
[SPEAKER_00]: he wanted to do a midnight with the bot jam, which we did.
[SPEAKER_00]: He gave us the opportunity to do before write it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was amazing.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, we have a canopy just like the back of [SPEAKER_00]: like the shirt on like that, the he ordered the wave haven't here.
[SPEAKER_00]: We have a sound system too, for fact, the Volkswagen and man, the people just show up.
[SPEAKER_00]: He, he, he, he, but way 150 shirts lost some random gifts to the people that showed up to be forgotten.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then, that's saying, we can, on Sunday, we have the privilege to put the first Latin banal stage.
[SPEAKER_00]: We ran the end.
[SPEAKER_00]: Other people from different pages in Puerto Rico jump into, and that was an amazing brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, this still people talking about it.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, I had Randy on not long ago, and we recapped Bug Jam last year and talked about some of the changes that are coming up for this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: And one of the things that he really talked about that he wants to bring back is a Latin band.
[SPEAKER_01]: Um, so I think that's, you know, that's, that's pretty awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Something else he's bringing back this year, because it did a little better than we all thought.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I don't know if you saw this when you were there in November, but my podcast was there.
[SPEAKER_01]: And the podcast sponsored the stereo contest.
[SPEAKER_01]: So, you know, the first day, there wasn't that much energy around the stereo contest.
[SPEAKER_01]: The second day, we had like 26, 27 cars that had entered the stereo contest.
[SPEAKER_01]: And dude, it was awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, some of these cars, some of the guys did not enter that should have because their stereos were just absolutely crazy.
[SPEAKER_01]: Some of them were the Puerto Rican community that had come and traveled.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, oh, yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, man, rocking.
[SPEAKER_01]: We had a really, really good time.
[SPEAKER_01]: So Randy was just saying just when he was all not long ago that we're going to be doing the stereo contest again and he was talking about bringing, you know, bringing a Latin band back and and all that good stuff.
[SPEAKER_01]: So.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, man, it's cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: He really, you know, he gave me that opportunity as well.
[SPEAKER_01]: Randy does a lot.
[SPEAKER_01]: He catches a lot of heat from the, from the Volkswagen community because, you know, he's not a a rider-dive Volkswagen guy, but man, he's just like all of us.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's very community-driven and he does a lot behind the scenes for Volkswagen culture.
[SPEAKER_01]: uh... whether people know man is a very good man very good man uh... like a city gave me that opportunity to do the stereo contest and you know he's he's got a couple other cool things he's thinking about doing this year um... he wants to do like uh...
[SPEAKER_01]: What do he call it?
[SPEAKER_01]: He called it like, Pimp your campsite or something like that where I saw the interview.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, yeah, that was not this.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, yeah, they're going to have a contest of how dope your campsite can be, how mapped out you can make your campsite.
[SPEAKER_01]: And he's talking about donating like a smoker or like, you know, some high ticket, badass item for the winner, which I mean, [SPEAKER_01]: how cool, you know, how cool is that?
[SPEAKER_01]: And then other small changes, you know, you want to bring the stage indoor that way.
[SPEAKER_01]: It can't be affected by the weather or the rain or anything like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I got that new barn, you know, so indoor.
[SPEAKER_01]: But anyhow, yeah, Randy's awesome man.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm glad you brought him up.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm glad you brought him up.
[SPEAKER_00]: We have to be grateful because my brother came to visit, and I call Randy, I said, look, Randy, it was good that we wanted to be responsible when I do something else, and want to hear, and he said, let have breakfast tomorrow.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was like great and we went to the city.
[SPEAKER_00]: We made up with him and we sit down for I want to ask two hours of what we're going to do and at the end of the day, he made it awesome for us.
[SPEAKER_00]: We are forever grateful.
[SPEAKER_00]: We cannot do it and this is one talk that [SPEAKER_00]: We would love to, and we would love a sponsor every single deal that we can't, but we can't.
[SPEAKER_00]: Most of the stability that we sponsor, or we hear new United States, it comes out of our body.
[SPEAKER_00]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_00]: So, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so [SPEAKER_00]: We just two regular guys and his team, my brother has a awesome team that helped him out with everything, but now all this time, they can come over here in English and things.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I've got my people over here, they have troubles, tremendous doing all this years and we make it happen.
[SPEAKER_00]: We've asked something in the words, [SPEAKER_00]: something is going to be the same team, free shirts, because this is us, free gift, free shirts, and a good time.
[SPEAKER_00]: Family time.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, a love event.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's all we like.
[SPEAKER_00]: There's something coming.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I can't say anything, but we're, we're, [SPEAKER_00]: happy and grateful for all this order that we have been here and for the, I mean, it's insane.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I'm excited.
[SPEAKER_01]: You can't share yet, but it's all good.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm excited.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'll be here.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll be at, uh, I'll be at Bug Jam.
[SPEAKER_01]: Again, my podcast will be there.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll be setting up again, same spot right up front at the entrance right next to the stage doing the stereo contest again this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: And again, I'm grateful as well.
[SPEAKER_01]: Randy is an awesome guy.
[SPEAKER_01]: He hooks it up man.
[SPEAKER_01]: He hooks it up.
[SPEAKER_01]: I want to touch on your 62 just a little bit more because I know we we touched on it a little bit, but that's your current car, right.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I still have their band again.
[SPEAKER_01]: So the van again, and you got to see a bug.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I have this used to do bug too.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I've got a 62 as well.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, bug.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I've got a 71 Carmen guilla.
[SPEAKER_01]: I like that one.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, I love it.
[SPEAKER_01]: I actually just dropped it off today for paint.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it's getting painted.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to show you this.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm a flashed this picture real quick.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's getting painted by an artist who does, he's making a YouTube video on it, but he does cars that look like the cartoon type image.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, nice.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love the green.
[SPEAKER_00]: And you see it, yeah, you can.
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I love the green.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, and I've got those porch wheels, the phone dials.
[SPEAKER_01]: I went small, 15 by 7, and I did that on purpose.
[SPEAKER_01]: I did that for a reason, so I could slam it.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I got a four inch adjustable beam going on, and I've got some spring plates for the rear.
[SPEAKER_01]: and I'm going to slam it.
[SPEAKER_01]: So this year at Bug Jam, you'll see it.
[SPEAKER_01]: That car's name is Carma Gettin.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now instead of Armageddon, it's Carma Gettin.
[SPEAKER_01]: I saw it again.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's a disaster and it's going to be awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's actually my wife's car.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, 71, all original.
[SPEAKER_01]: We founded in Pennsylvania right [SPEAKER_01]: Oh man, I'm I'm I'm drawing a blank on the name of the town, but a cool town farm farm kind of town.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was in a it was in a barn 46,000 original miles when I bought it.
[SPEAKER_01]: It hit 40 48,000 miles today when I brought it.
[SPEAKER_01]: I drove it over the skyway.
[SPEAKER_01]: and brought it down to to my buddy Matt McCallister Matt McCallister art shout out to him for sure he's doing the paint on it and he's hooking me up he's going to clear it after he paints it like that, but I'm excited man I'm excited.
[SPEAKER_01]: That car's been itching for some work since I picked it up and I've done little tiny bits and pieces to it.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, I've I've done I've fixed the rust and then you know, I removed the trim off the side because I just I don't like that the the metal trim and when you take that trim off you got those trim holes so I didn't just want them filled with bondo so I had them all welded so I had them all closed up and done right and that that car has been for like the last.
[SPEAKER_01]: eight months nine months ten months it's been actually dude it's been it's been a year it's been a year because it was about June or so of last year uh 2025 when i had that body work done so it's been chillin for like a year almost eleven months where [SPEAKER_01]: It's been primer to cross the bottom and sanded faded paint up top and my wife's like, I only want to get in it.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's ugly.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh my, okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, paint jobs ain't cheap.
[SPEAKER_01]: But finally, I'm able to to make that happen.
[SPEAKER_01]: So man, I'm excited about that.
[SPEAKER_01]: But back to your 62, you built that car with your wife, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, sir.
[SPEAKER_01]: How did you spend a time like that building that car with your wife?
[SPEAKER_01]: How did that impact your relationship or your marriage?
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, my wife, the whole second, both of them.
[SPEAKER_00]: I can give you an example.
[SPEAKER_00]: We can go for a ride.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, it's because of work.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't have a lot of time.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we can go for a ride and we are getting closest to home.
[SPEAKER_00]: She looked at me like, [SPEAKER_00]: don't even turn.
[SPEAKER_00]: Just keep going.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't want to go.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, that's awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, so yeah, and she loved the campaign and, and I mean, it's just when we about the 62, um, about it because she like it, she didn't see a first, because they had no fenders, no the horse, no interior, but, um, [SPEAKER_00]: She trust me and I thought it's like that I have a really cool idea.
[SPEAKER_00]: I want to piece it together.
[SPEAKER_00]: I want to find out main close to us.
[SPEAKER_00]: I can just spray it and put it together.
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, it is.
[SPEAKER_00]: And just enjoy the car.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I started up before I bought it.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I know the engine, even though I didn't know much about the engine, I know the engine was solid.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: It sounds good.
[SPEAKER_00]: when she saw me that I run the car with no doors, no seat, just with a milk break around, and I came back.
[SPEAKER_01]: You got any pictures of that?
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh yeah, you better share a little bit of pictures of that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm putting those on the YouTube version of the podcast.
[SPEAKER_00]: All right, perfect.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was gone from that on.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I didn't realize it when the car showed up to my house.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then the guy gave me a lot of parts and I started taking everything out and playing in it and see what it have.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I don't remember that was in October.
[SPEAKER_00]: So Borgian was coming in.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I make a list that what I needed it so I can buy it on this one me.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: You lose me on this one, meets.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, I have to have a budget because it's not I will go broke.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Some people say mindset with like gambling or something like that, a casino.
[SPEAKER_01]: Not my weakness is the swap.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I'm saying, say more here and so.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we started working together, the flows were new.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we painted the floors, so we didn't got no rust.
[SPEAKER_00]: We found the doors, we sprayed it in it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't all the hall to the engine.
[SPEAKER_00]: Put that out, paint everything, put back everything together, all new gas dudes.
[SPEAKER_00]: I put a new clutch in it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Same way your dad taught you.
[SPEAKER_00]: No, no, no, and then my boy Grover showed up with some parts, I mean, the he know I needed it.
[SPEAKER_00]: And he just not get out of the park.
[SPEAKER_00]: He's the one that [SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's the white sister seven with three big wheels.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was one of the pieces that helped us out.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I mean, seeing my wife, something down, all blue, I met in 2009, [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, and she showed me a trick with the stove cleaner, you can remove the rust from the chrome and use perfect with a brallo scotch bright path or that pink stuff they use for cleaning the stove.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah [SPEAKER_00]: I went to, let me see, after that, I went to a clean water.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's the same thing that you were talking about earlier, um, and I found the [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, quick quick quick quicker it that is it's considered clear water there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember the name of the show, but I remember I got the bumpers from there and to the time that we first rode it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you come down for the other shows the pier the skyway?
[SPEAKER_00]: I do most of the times I don't bring a car.
[SPEAKER_00]: OK, I just enjoyed that weekend.
[SPEAKER_00]: I went to with some friends from Puerto Rico with Papito and his wife.
[SPEAKER_00]: I went to the one is from you guys.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, here.
[SPEAKER_00]: No, it was like in an excellent.
[SPEAKER_00]: You need to be there really early, so you can pass the Volkswagen [SPEAKER_00]: all the way to the back and there's water around it.
[SPEAKER_00]: And all the most science are there in December.
[SPEAKER_01]: The scam, the PM ride, the nighttime ride, well, all the Christmas lights.
[SPEAKER_00]: No, it was doing the day, but it's well, I'll let's show.
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember I registered and the Van Gogh was broke and I couldn't make it.
[SPEAKER_01]: up the St. Pete Pier downtown where you have the parade in the morning and you all line up and then you can only got one shot where you got to go out and park on spot beach.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a good shot.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I remember I register for it and not going to bother.
[SPEAKER_00]: The man again, but I did went because I have people coming from Puerto Rico that was going there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: A couple guys, just this last one in January, a couple guys were pissed because they showed up and the fire marshal after that convoy goes on the pier that the fire marshal shuts it down.
[SPEAKER_01]: You can't get on or off until the show wraps up in the afternoon.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think it like three [SPEAKER_01]: So you're stuck out there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, the downside to that is there's also no cars allowed to come on.
[SPEAKER_01]: So there were a couple guys from Puerto Rico that had showed up late and they they paid and everything and they couldn't get on.
[SPEAKER_01]: And they were like, no, you know, where's Allen, you know, and they want to talk to us and, you know, year before, uh, which was May 2025 before we had that January date, one of those guys from Puerto Rico, he won best engine.
[SPEAKER_01]: So he won on the ward from the show, he was one of the ones that couldn't get on.
[SPEAKER_01]: His car's bad asked too, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, shoot out all those cars, 250 cars, you know, he had best best engine, so, but he couldn't get back on.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's that spot is beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, water on all sides.
[SPEAKER_00]: And there's so many things to do around to.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, I mean, it's here in the heart of the city.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, there's different kinds of words and that I don't take my ball seconds and I go to the shows and I stay close and I just pass like a couple of days, you know, to relax and and some pieces, this one of the places.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love it here.
[SPEAKER_01]: Born and raised here.
[SPEAKER_01]: I do love it here.
[SPEAKER_01]: I have one other city that I've lived in in my life that I love equally.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's Colorado Springs, Colorado, Colorado has a banging Volkswagen community and it's just one of my favorite places, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love the mountains.
[SPEAKER_01]: I just love the mountains.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love the beach.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I'll give me your own.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm born and raised here.
[SPEAKER_01]: But something about that crisp, cool dry air in the mountains out in Colorado, man, just something about the seasons and haven't snow and, man, it just really just peaks my interest, man, I love it.
[SPEAKER_01]: But enough of me back to you back to you.
[SPEAKER_01]: Tell me this answer this question for me.
[SPEAKER_01]: What has Volkswagen?
[SPEAKER_01]: Volkswagen's as a whole.
[SPEAKER_01]: What is it talking about life?
[SPEAKER_00]: to be patient with how them to be prepared.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's not the one.
[SPEAKER_00]: And and these most of our hands has changed so much how our students and the people have helped me to like us on a really good friends.
[SPEAKER_00]: They're tell me just focus in the positive [SPEAKER_00]: just enjoy the bad intention, just relax, you're good, you know.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't have this feeling for a long time.
[SPEAKER_00]: I just want to get to my house to open my garage, so I can see my two cars.
[SPEAKER_00]: And there's nothing to it.
[SPEAKER_00]: There are two ugly rusty cars.
[SPEAKER_00]: But there's something about it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, [SPEAKER_00]: my brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: See my brother driving my car.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, we were, my daughter flew to Nado this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, we, I was just by Alan.
[SPEAKER_00]: You were.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Did you see that you see day two, the salty dub set up.
[SPEAKER_01]: My podcast tent was there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Alan was [SPEAKER_01]: I was 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 faces down to the left where those vendors were right over to the bathrooms.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was out there.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was right there with the podcast 10.
[SPEAKER_01]: I have my podcast 10 set up and I had all four salty dub tables out.
[SPEAKER_01]: I had all my salty dub merch.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't know about campground.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was, um, I'll end there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: So you were next to the big, the big blue bus.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, yeah, there was one in the middle and it was me in the bandica on the blue bud.
[SPEAKER_01]: That big bus he's got's bad asthma.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it is.
[SPEAKER_00]: So they trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: We my brother every year.
[SPEAKER_00]: We pulled the bug with the bandica from that important to Daytona.
[SPEAKER_00]: And my wife and my friends and my cousin.
[SPEAKER_00]: My cousin is in Bolsa, I'm because of us now.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm right.
[SPEAKER_00]: He had a nasty tool before he has a.
[SPEAKER_00]: He won the top five award on the Vanilla show.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: The blue one with the white wheels.
[SPEAKER_01]: There are Kennery had put that on this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, shout out to him.
[SPEAKER_01]: We haven't been able to make it, but we're going to the bugs on the bio.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, show is I think this year his show was the same date of my birth.
[SPEAKER_00]: So he's complicated.
[SPEAKER_00]: You know.
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, yeah, man.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's amazing, like this community, you can talk to anyone, anyone would come close to you ask your questions, so you will go to anyone and ask questions that will answer the question for you, that will help you out, that will land you upwards, my family too, my family has come [SPEAKER_01]: I love that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Describe the Volkswagen community for me in just one word.
[SPEAKER_01]: I haven't.
[SPEAKER_01]: I hear that a lot.
[SPEAKER_00]: I like that.
[SPEAKER_00]: My dad owns that banagam now, too.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, come on back to get some.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: He had a beautiful diesel banagam in Puerto Rico.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, nice.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, [SPEAKER_00]: Seeing everybody jump off all the family, even though they don't own old science to help my little brother do his thing.
[SPEAKER_00]: And every time I need something, I can just call him and ask him more.
[SPEAKER_00]: And see how brawma all the brothers are of everything.
[SPEAKER_00]: And every time I'm a prosecutor on my car or anything, all the brothers don't have that post to it or I mean, [SPEAKER_00]: don't give me wrong.
[SPEAKER_00]: I have my downsides too, but it's 90% good things for me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, and my family, you know, what it's all about.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's what it's all about.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, I got some rapid fire questions for you.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, these questions are questions that should get a fast response.
[SPEAKER_01]: If a story comes of it, though, not gonna cut you off, I'm not gonna stop you.
[SPEAKER_01]: You ready for?
[SPEAKER_01]: These are rapid fire.
[SPEAKER_01]: I said.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, let's do it.
[SPEAKER_01]: First one.
[SPEAKER_01]: You only can choose one, air cooled or water cooled.
[SPEAKER_01]: Air cooled, all right, not bad, not bad.
[SPEAKER_01]: Cause you know, you got the water cooled then again as well.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, only choose one, ready?
[SPEAKER_01]: Beetle or bus, Beetle, all right.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, again, only choose one, the streets or the dunes.
[SPEAKER_01]: Off road, streets, streets, all right.
[SPEAKER_01]: only choose one.
[SPEAKER_01]: Ready?
[SPEAKER_01]: Buy it or build it.
[SPEAKER_00]: Build that per cent.
[SPEAKER_01]: Of course.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, manual or automatic manual.
[SPEAKER_01]: Best VW memory that you can think of right now.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll put [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I'm real.
[SPEAKER_00]: You want to tell me a story?
[SPEAKER_00]: So I call my uncle because I remember parts of it and he refresh me on my dad wasn't a crew so I couldn't call him and ask him.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I know we went to to the mud just to look around and I remember my uncle saying don't go there don't go there and hear my dad go with me and we got stuck.
[SPEAKER_00]: on the mud like bad.
[SPEAKER_00]: There was a couple hours for us to get out of there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I call my uncle and ask him to, hey, do you have any memories that are still on the Wolf's hands?
[SPEAKER_00]: And he was the one that told me about the Raleigh.
[SPEAKER_00]: Wow, because I was a kid.
[SPEAKER_00]: I couldn't remember that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_00]: And the sound rail, when he told me about the sound rail, I was like, yeah, I remember exactly what kind of triangular it was.
[SPEAKER_00]: What color it was and everything.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's all fun memory that I had.
[SPEAKER_01]: How about your your worst breakdown location?
[SPEAKER_00]: Do you like a couple years ago?
[SPEAKER_00]: 10 to two was 105.
[SPEAKER_00]: In 275.
[SPEAKER_00]: What is it?
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, no.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, you're right here, brother, my back yard.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I was with a friend of mine.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were going to the beach, you liked her.
[SPEAKER_00]: One of the first long trips that I did in the van again.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I remember I had that brand new Everbrook fuel pump carburetor fruit pump that I bought from Arizona.
[SPEAKER_00]: A guy cook.
[SPEAKER_00]: completely shut down in 275.
[SPEAKER_00]: We pushed it to the side.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think that road assistant came in because I was right there by the curve to go to a cold water as you could, what is it?
[SPEAKER_00]: That's a busy asset.
[SPEAKER_00]: Man, I was nervous.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I had a extra fuel pump.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we did our own side of the roadman.
[SPEAKER_01]: Damn.
[SPEAKER_00]: True, right there, true, right there.
[SPEAKER_00]: And since that day, that field won't tend all the football.
[SPEAKER_00]: Compared to a whole lot of football, it's still on the band working perfectly, it's not.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right, how about this one?
[SPEAKER_01]: Dream VW that you don't own yet.
[SPEAKER_01]: Ernie, convertible.
[SPEAKER_01]: Early convertible beetle.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, sir.
[SPEAKER_01]: Ooh, sexy.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, love.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I love that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you like them low, or you like them stock.
[SPEAKER_01]: To the ground.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, me too.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think that's just my culture, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: I grew up on my 80s kid.
[SPEAKER_01]: I grew up in the 80s, the 90s.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was born in 77.
[SPEAKER_01]: So, you know, when I was a teenager, early teen, [SPEAKER_01]: like 10, 11, 12, I had three older, two older brothers, but all their friends as well, they all had low riders.
[SPEAKER_01]: uh... they were all into the many trucking and the big stereos and fifteen fifteen inch subwoofers in your trunk and the bad use to stand up and dance all around and they had hydraulics and you know it was just that it was that culture because of that it's been burned in me that any car that i drive has to be lowered and not just lowered slammed
[SPEAKER_00]: It's sad.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, so I feel that.
[SPEAKER_01]: I feel that.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right.
[SPEAKER_01]: How about this one?
[SPEAKER_01]: One tool that you can't live without.
[SPEAKER_01]: One tool.
[SPEAKER_01]: Part plus socket.
[SPEAKER_01]: Spark looks socket.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right.
[SPEAKER_01]: How about this one?
[SPEAKER_01]: One person, one person that impacted your journey the most.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's my life for his bullseggins.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just bullseggins.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just your bullseggins journey.
[SPEAKER_00]: My brother.
[SPEAKER_00]: Awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: In a short amount of time, the fact of bullseggins being that has changed my life completely.
[SPEAKER_00]: How has pressed myself?
[SPEAKER_00]: How have I do things?
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh man, that's awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: here in the United States, so I don't want him to go back to something, because something I said or something I did.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I have to control myself a lot more that I used to.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's been in the public, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Public eye.
[SPEAKER_01]: Public, public image.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love him too much.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it's awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: for me something stupid that they can if you had to give up all of your cars but only one could stay which one stay in the middle the 62 this is a nice man okay all right finish the sentence for me finish the sentence [SPEAKER_01]: Volkswagen changed my life because made me a better person.
[SPEAKER_01]: The whole.
[SPEAKER_01]: Great.
[SPEAKER_01]: Good job.
[SPEAKER_01]: I like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Volkswagen changed my life because it made me a better person.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: Tell us this.
[SPEAKER_01]: Where?
[SPEAKER_01]: Where can people find you?
[SPEAKER_01]: Where can people find your brother or find the events?
[SPEAKER_01]: I got the logo behind me.
[SPEAKER_01]: We got factor Volkswagen.
[SPEAKER_01]: What are you guys on social media?
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, one child Rodriguez, um, is my brother personally, a very good pitch and, um, if you know United States and you want to do something effectively, so I'm going to do a space banish.
[SPEAKER_00]: You can look me up, or Sarah Rodriguez, and it's a very good, or you can [SPEAKER_00]: We're looking to do new things.
[SPEAKER_00]: And don't matter what it is.
[SPEAKER_00]: We want to do new things in the United States.
[SPEAKER_00]: Um, we also looking for a sponsor like everybody else is tough outside and it is man.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's tough.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's the hardest hill that we have to climb for our events is sponsors.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's like it's we're coming up on our third year of of putting these shows together.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we've got some some sponsors that are standing out that are really starting to be consistent with every ride.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, consistent with the amount of money they gave and that type of stuff, but brother, it is taking some effort and some work, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: Work.
[SPEAKER_00]: People has people behind a computer.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I'm sorry about this.
[SPEAKER_00]: It has no idea how much effort.
[SPEAKER_00]: For a second, guys.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I'm taking a look talk about sacrifice.
[SPEAKER_01]: I can just say this just this one thing I can I can say when we talk about sacrifice personal sacrifice I have gone to like the last four shows that we have put together all the way back to the peer and I haven't even had a car at the shows at my own show because I'm sacrificing not just my time, but money.
[SPEAKER_01]: that I could spend on my car.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not I'm not being selfish and saying no I'm going to make sure that my car.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm focusing my time.
[SPEAKER_01]: My finances and everything else on making sure that I provide an experience for everybody else to come and bring their cars.
[SPEAKER_01]: So man, I feel that when you say that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah, I feel that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, when when we had our shows, [SPEAKER_00]: My Berlin went all in.
[SPEAKER_00]: Music system, the canopy 11 by 20 with graphics, factible, sorry, all over the place.
[SPEAKER_00]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hell yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, it's it's you guys are going to be there in November.
[SPEAKER_00]: We don't sure yet.
[SPEAKER_00]: We, um, I think, uh, the brothers are coming together for Thanksgiving.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we're not sure how it's going to play it out yet.
[SPEAKER_00]: Uh, we did talk about it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Keep in touch.
[SPEAKER_01]: Let me know.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll be there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_00]: We always even know.
[SPEAKER_00]: We don't stay.
[SPEAKER_00]: We always go and show up, you know, and and support.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, you, you've seen my championship belt, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, sorry.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, so come anybody that comes on the podcast, I always get them, you know, I put the strap on them and get a picture with them.
[SPEAKER_01]: So come see me.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, come see me this time get it get a picture.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, they picture with the belt.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'll be awesome.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, man, I might brought him to.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, hell yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: So tell me what's what's next for you guys.
[SPEAKER_01]: You work on on on on anything.
[SPEAKER_01]: I know you say you want to get into some stuff, but are you working on anything aside from the surprise that you can't talk about.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, we are.
[SPEAKER_00]: We always working to make our show better, but we also working to see where we can show factoring.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I can hear that things.
[SPEAKER_00]: No, we are sponsored not to.
[SPEAKER_00]: um, but are we looking for something different?
[SPEAKER_00]: We have some ideas and something on the words, but like I said, it's going to be Simon Barrowman, family environment, good music, some gift, like far, far too long always do, and having a blast.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm pulling my strings and [SPEAKER_00]: and doing some dancing is doing his part over there too, um, I don't know what's next.
[SPEAKER_00]: Whatever idea my crazy brother has in his head, and he called me that he wanted to do, I'm gonna be there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah man, I can't fall in.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a wrap for this episode of Dub Life Diaries.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thanks for riding along with us and diving into these incredible stories of the people in the Dub that drive their dreams.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you love today's episode, don't forget to subscribe or hit that follow button so you never miss an adventure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you have a story to tell, or know somebody else who's living the dub life?
[SPEAKER_01]: Awesome!
[SPEAKER_01]: Reach out to us!
[SPEAKER_01]: You can find us on all socials and dub life diaries, or shoot me an email.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not hard to find, dublife diaries at gmail.com.
[SPEAKER_01]: Until next time, keep the engine tummen and the wheels turning and always follow the road that inspires you.
[SPEAKER_01]: This is Joe Person, I'm signing off, I'll catch you on the next ride.
About this episode
Jose Rodriguez’s Volkswagen story ties together Puerto Rico roots, family wrenching, and building a community between Puerto Rico and Florida. The conversation moves through show culture and event logistics—turnout numbers, “Jeep’s versus V-Dubs,” and how contests like a stereo competition and “Pimp your campsite” are planned. Along the way, they swap practical DIY and troubleshooting moments (from head gasket smoke to carburetor fixes) and share how VW changed their lives and shaped their identity.
Original notes
What happens when a childhood surrounded by Volkswagens turns into a lifelong passion that brings families, friends, and an entire community together?
In Episode 69 of DubLife Diaries, Joe sits down with José Rodriguez of Factor Volkswagen to explore his incredible journey from growing up in Puerto Rico to becoming a driving force in the Volkswagen scene in Florida.
José shares stories of learning mechanics alongside his father, the influence of his brother Juan, and how Factor Volkswagen grew from a simple idea into one of Puerto Rico’s premier VW events—bringing together camping, live music, beach vibes, incredible cars, and lifelong friendships.
From restoring his beloved 1983 Vanagon and building a stunning 1962 Beetle with his wife, to overcoming breakdowns in 105-degree heat and discovering that the VW community is always there when you need it most, this episode is packed with inspiration, laughter, and genuine passion.
We also dive into:
- 🇵🇷 The rich Volkswagen culture of Puerto Rico
- 🚐 The story behind Factor Volkswagen’s incredible events
- 🔧 Learning to wrench from family and experience
- ❤️ How building Volkswagens strengthened family bonds
- 🏕️ Camping, road trips, and adventures in a Vanagon
- 🤝 Why the VW community feels more like family than a hobby
- 🌴 The vision for bringing Puerto Rican VW culture to the mainland U.S.
- 🚗 José’s dream Volkswagen and rapid-fire VW questions
Whether you own a Beetle, Bus, Vanagon, Karmann Ghia, Golf, or simply love hearing stories about people whose lives have been transformed through cars and community, this episode is for you.
Connect with Factor Volkswagen and keep an eye on their upcoming events as they continue building bridges between Puerto Rico and the U.S. VW scene.
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with another VW enthusiast. Every share helps keep the DubLife alive.
#DubLifeDiaries #FactorVolkswagen #PuertoRico #Volkswagen #VWCommunity #Vanagon #Beetle #AirCooled #VWLife #ClassicCars #RoadTrips #Family #Podcast #JoseRodriguez
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DubLife Diaries The VW Lifestyle Podcast
Joe Person
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69:07