A former Kona boy brought back the big prize from the Ultimate VW Build-Off earlier this month in Las Vegas.
Leroy Tagavilla’s Kahiko Kula VW Club’s 1961 Volkswagen Bug took best paint, best motor and best of the best at the Oct. 1-4 show. The club comprises about 20 Hawaii and Guam residents living in Washington state.
The victory was the result of Tagavilla’s long attachment to the brand, one that dates to his high school days in Kona, said his mother Lucy Tagavilla. Leroy Tagavilla’s first rebuilt Volkswagen was a 1961 Bug found abandoned in a field, his mother remembers. He negotiated a loan with his father, then rebuilt the car. He had it until he left the island for Washington, when he sold it to a cousin.
The competition was a confluence of two motions in his life. One was a discovery that a friend from Oahu, also living in Washington, was selling a 1961 Bug. Tagavilla couldn’t resist returning to the model year that had started his connection.
Then he heard from his friend Telly Carsten about the show. It seemed perfect for the club, he said, but little interest was garnered.
Finally, one member pointed out that he should enter the Bug among 19 other Volkswagen vehicles. Organizers had hoped for 30 shops to arrive, but some withdrew. There were competitors from California, Arizona and Nevada.
Each competitor had 365 days to build their vehicle and was limited to spending $20,000. Sponsorships allowed Tagavilla to bring the cost just under that number, he said.
“I just started to tear it down and build it the way I wanted,” he said.
The process started with a complete disassembly, which included taking the floor pan off the frame. From little more than a transmission and frame, an entire car grew. Every part was cleaned or replaced, including stainless steel bolts and new rubber.
The effort was extensive. According to a 1960 advertisement for the Beetle, there were 5,008 parts in the machine.
“It takes a lot of coordination and help” to work all of those parts, he said.
After the assembly was done, a new interior was installed and a fresh coat of paint applied.
Just looking good wasn’t the end of the competition, said Tagavilla, who worked on the vehicle until 8:30 the night before the competition. The vehicle had to drive into the competition area under its own power.
A circle of his ohana and friends and a pule were on hand when the engine of the brown Volkswagen classic turned over.
“I drove it in like nothing ever happened,” he said.
As the winner of best in show, the car has to return to next year’s VW event.
“I’m proud to represent the 808 state,” he said.
Email Graham Milldrum at gmilldrum@westhawaiitoday.com.
