In memory of the classic Volkswagen ladybug: NPR

At one time, the Volkswagen Beetle was so ubiquitous that its observation is often punctuated by a quick punch in the arm and a cry of "Punch Buggy!" (Or "Slug Bug!" Depending on your regional position in the road game).

But this week, the Ladybug is on the road to extinction. On Wednesday, Volkswagen ended the production of the Beetle, claiming to focus on the manufacture of electric vehicles.

Over the decades, Volkswagen has managed to rearrange the image of the beloved car by distancing itself from an uncomfortable story.

Adolph Hitler formulated the original Ladybug in search of a "people's car" or a "Volkswagen". But the car was not made for civilians until the late 1940s, when victorious allies wanted to refuel the German economy.

Many rebranding campaigns afterwards, a hipster favorite was born.

For many Beetle owners, saying goodbye to the auto icon calls for nostalgia.

NPR asked its audience to share their favorite memories of the Volkswagen Beetle. More than 900 of you have written. We have extracted a handful of your stories below – both expensive and unpleasant -.

Hippie's best friend

Kristine Smith's parents offered her a 2005 Blue Egg Convertible Beetle for her 16th birthday.

Although the car withstood her move to Los Angeles better than her Chicago winter, she has accessorized her patched denim and her long, fluid tie-dye skirts from eBay.

"I was obsessed with everything that was hippie / bohemian in high school, and my Beetle was at the heart of my identity," she said in an interview with Michel Martin of NPR.

Unfortunately, she said, she sold it in 2013 to use graduate money in Washington, D.C.

"The car really looks like a pet I used to have at a machine," she said.

But, in memory of her first and only car, Smith kept the fake flowers that she had kept in the vase near the steering wheel.

Engraved in memory

A hot summer day in Oklahoma was too much for Robert Rillo's Beetle family.

At the age of 13, he and his 23-year-old sister were stuck in traffic jams before heading to a Huey Lewis and News concert.

Rillo remembered that the friend of his sister sitting in the back seat had said, "It's hot here."

"It was a hot summer day, so we did not think about it until he said again," It's really hot! Suddenly he got up and the back seat was on fire. "

The battery, located under the back seat, was warming – catching fire on the seat. Damage control follows.

"We took out the seat of the car and went out to go to the concert."

Alas, they missed the opening act of the series: Stevie Ray Vaughan, famous for his album. Could not stand the time.

Bug of love

Paul Weidenbach of Topeka, Kan., Said that he had promised the previous owner of his first car that he would keep "Gladys" as the name.

The 1973 Super Beetle, third-hand, with a Starsky and Hutch The bands that cut off his top and sides testified to Weidenbach's first love.

"My high school friend, Vicky, and I went around with the help of Gladys, including a movie in which we sat Vicky's six-year-old brother, Matt. The jungle Book to the Chief Drive-In of Topeka, he said. In a full disclosure, we only spoke and held hands. "

He had not spoken to Vicky since 1991, but last year she died suddenly, he said. When he went to his funeral, the memory came back in force. "Of course, that night at Chief Drive-In with Matt on the roof played over and over in my mind," he recalls.

For Weidenbach, Gladys reincarnated his engine in a rare 1950s VW truck.

"We were ahead of our time!"

One could say that Jessica Bray's husband has infiltrated his life. Bray met with her five years ago while she was presiding over a local auto show in Kentucky.

"While cars were lining up to park, here's a guy driving a quiet VW Beetle," she said.

After starting a conversation with him, she learned that he had converted his Beetle & 70 into an electric vehicle by replacing the engine with a forklift engine and adding batteries, she said. . They went out for dinner that night.

"Six months later, he asked me to be his wife," she said.

Now, Volkswagen says to give up the classic model for pouring money into electric car companies.

"We were ahead of our time!" she says.

Painted in black

In high school, "cool" preceded the comfort of Damian Rodriguez.

When his mother gave him his blue baby "73" Bug in 1991, he painted it black to make it "less" like a mother ". "

In Austin stuffy, her parents thought the idea was crazy. The car did not even have air conditioning. "I have so much perspired in this car, but I loved it and I kept very good memories," Damian said.

But when a slag mastered the virus while he was delivering to the grocery store where he was working, he said, "I've been literally crushed."

So, when he recently stumbled upon a black and molded 70s VW Bug toy car, he gave it to his 2 year old son.

But as it happens – as a father, as a son.

He dropped, cracking the rear brake light, Rodriguez said, "making him ironically more like my insect was."

NPR's Eliza Dennis and Natalie Winston produced and edited this story for broadcast.