Today I visited Vintage Vee Dub at Campsie/belmore, to buy some clips, got back in my 66 beetle only to get 50 metres down the road,
It seems that it decided that a VW supplier (and a good one at that) would be the best place foir the fuel pump to give up
so I thought I'd pose the question
were have you broken down and was fortuatus

No Breakdown. But ran out of petrol on a busy road and rolled into a petrol station and stopped at the pump without touching the brakes.

I too had a fuelpump die right alongside a volkswagen parts store.
Very thoughtful of it!

i broke down just up the road from a pub once,didn't do shit for the car but after a few pots i didn't give a rats..

On the other hand, I ran out of petrol on the Forster/Tuncurry bridge. For those that don't know it, it's a long two lane with big humps either end to allow boats to go underneath (no pushing off) I had traffic back up for miles when I got back from the servo.

I only once ran out of fuel and it was going up my drive way fuel gauge said I still had just under a 1/4

I ran out of fuel outside a servo on pennant hills road which was convenient. The inconvenient part was the cop car pulled up next to me. Thankfully they just looked at me weird.

Mine is a run out of fuel yarn as well.

On a long weekend in the mid 70's, I went to an Area Scout Venture at Barrington Tops in my '59 bug - 4 of us with all our camp gear etc.

One of the activities was canoeing, which was about 40kms from where we were camping, and at one stage, I was driving through the paddocks following the canoes in the river below. The front beam hit a football size rock and rolled it out of the ground, making the car roll over it untill it came out the back. While I was there, one of the leaders was checking if everyone had enough fuel, and as I knew I was getting short, I bought a 20L jerry can full off him and put it in the tank.

At the end of the camp, the battery was dead flat - it turned out that when the rock had rolled along under the floor pan, it had punched the floor up under the battery and cracked it. It still wouldn't start after a push around the paddock, and I knew I was again low on fuel (I had been driving around quite a bit), so switched to reserve and it started. I could usually go about 11 miles on reserve, and it was 11 miles into Gloucester - through the mountains, fording the river 7 times etc, and all with a fully loaded car.

After we loaded, the drive was a case of use the throttle as little as possible, turn off and coast downhill (and clutch start before the car stopped) untill we got into Gloucester. Went past a few servos, but Gloucester on a long weekend in the mid 70s wasn't really bustling. Finally found the one servo that was open, pulled up at the bowser (but left the engine running - no battery remember), opened the front and moved all the tents and gear off the filler cap while the driveway attendant waited with the hose ready to fill it (it was the 70s remember). I got the fuel cap off and he asked "how much do you want?". Before I had a chance to answer, the car ran out of fuel and stopped.

"A full tank full" I said.

Back when I was first driving it and still learning as I went along (still am), it didn't start in the morning as I was leaving my mate's after a night out with the boys. Had to do a push/rolling start down the length of his massive apartment complex's carpark - a first for me as well. Later found out the rotor was shot, literally perishing. Lucky I even got spark!
Other than outside a parts store, can't go wrong with a mate's carpark, if it doesn't work out you head back up to his for food and drinks - or head down to the beach to think it over!

i normally don't break down as I replace things on My cars long before they break etc. but When in Newcastle to see the ship that had run aground at Newcastle a few years ago..
I forgot to switch My electric fuel pump back on after being parked... about 50 meters later the engine stopped...
only one lane each way.. people started honking their horns..
and luckily some young fellows came and pushed Me into a parking space... I then realised that My battery wasn't quite flat
and My electric fuel pump OFF lamp was ON...
flick of the switch and away I went..

other time last year, in Macdonalds carpark, when My points wore down then twisted and shorted out My Hi Power ignition kit... and No ignition... Coil had to be connected to distributor and new points fitted, but I didn't have a torch with Me...
Very odd as I usually carry at least 2 of those LED torches..
Luckily My Son lived closeby...

LEE

Just to correct everyone, old VW's don't break down they allow their owners the opportunity to enhance and improve.

Bout time that was cleared up!

I had just got mine on the road and spent a few weeks tinkering with bits and pieces, and then I read on the forum that there was a drive out to Patonga organised, so I thought it would be good to get in on it. It just happened to be my birthday, and the mrs and I decided on breakfast in terrigal before heading up towards Kariong to join in on the drive.

Went to the servo in west gosford to fill up, but as I was pulling in I felt the brakes go spongy. I filled up and thought I would check the mater cylinder, which was fine, but the brake resovoir had snapped at the hose and all my brake fluid was gone. Plus, the rubber seal on the top of the fuel tank around the float had perished and fuel was pouring out from around it.

Ended up calling Liong at VW performance, who was in the work shop on a saturday, who then came round and patched the bug up enough to get it round to his workshop. We then proceeded to spend the next 2 and a half hours re bleeding brakes and adapting a resovior to fit. Ended up using a dual circuit one from a Kombi with one outlet plugged up.

Then, we went over and met up with the others for the drive and went down to Patonga. For those of you who have never been, it is a mess of hairpin corners, tight streets and cliff drops for the unwary - and we did it in a car that didn't have brakes 1 hour earlier. Great fun though! It was like the car's birthday present to me - 3 hours in a VW workshop tinkering.

Many years ago (1980's) I had a Baja, got stuck in the sand up near Double island Point north of Noosa. This kind 4wd guy towed me out, the tow rope got stuck around the wheel pulled tight and broke the rear brake line. So here I am over 100 klms from home with only a hand brake to stop the car, with big sand wheels on the beast was pretty hard to stop with just a handbrake!

On the way to a servo at Tawantin saw what looked like a derelict Beetle parked up the back. Asked the friendly servo guy if he new what the story was with the Beetle, he told me it had been there for a couple months, customer couldn't afford to repair it so just left it . So borrowed a brake line spanner salvaged the brake line blead the brakes,
fixed, made it home safe and sound!

Two kind people saved my bacon!