“It was unbelievable. Actually, it looked way better than I remembered.”

It had been almost 50 years since Eileen Hurley had last seen the Volkswagen Beetle but to her it looked better than ever when she saw it last week, going as far as to say: “It’s in mint condition.” She would be the resident expert on the matter, having spent years driving her uncle Tommy around the county in the 1973 model.

The unlikely reunion was made possible by Finbarr O’Neill who restored the car completely, keeping it as close to the original as possible. The only change he made was the colour, going from a cream to what it is today, which clearly went down well with
Eileen.

It was fitting that the first time Eileen saw the car after nearly a half century was outside the Parkway Hotel in Dunmanway, as it was there that Finbarr first told her he still had the car a couple of months ago, after buying it from the old garage in Derrylahane in 1978.

“I rang [Eileen] the day before and I cancelled it because, remember, Thursday was very bad with wind and rain, and Friday was supposed to be the same,” Finbarr explained, speaking about organising the meeting.

“But anyway, I woke up Friday morning and the sun was blazing. So, I went back up to the garage, I had about four hours’ work to finish the car and anyway, I took it into my dinner then and she was there.”

Eileen couldn’t believe how well the car looked, saying she felt a bit overwhelmed and emotional when she saw the vehicle. She had been the designated driver for her uncle Tommy, who suffered from polio and couldn’t drive, for the five years they owned the car after buying it from Sean Collins’ Motors in Drimoleague in 1973.

Eileen previously told The Southern Star that Tommy led a “full life”, even fishing out the Beetle’s sunroof on the causeway in Rosscarbery, a habit that led to water damage Finbarr was restoring until recently.

Finbarr and Eileen agreed to meet later that day at 4pm, outside Tommy’s old jewellers in Dunmanway, now  Costcutters. The pair went on a spin down memory lane, first taking the Beetle to Sean Collins’ Motors where Eileen posed with Sean’s son John, who now runs the garage.

“Poor old Sean, he was looking forward to the photograph, but I couldn’t get the car finished in time,” Finbarr said, adding that Sean had often mentioned it before he passed away last year.

As it happened, when the article detailing the car’s history and restoration first appeared in The Southern Star in September, Finbarr said that Sean’s 12-month anniversary note was in the same edition.

It’s not the end of the road for the Beetle however, with Finbarr saying he hopes to pass it down to his grandkids one day. He said he told her “Eileen, that’ll always be your car in my eyes”, but said that his grandson Lorcan will appreciate it in years
to come.

After all, the six-year-old has already shown an interest, helping Finbarr work on the engine of the car he might one day own. So, after a long and adventurous life, the Beetle looks set to stay in capable hands for a little while
longer.