HobbyWagen

Most kids play with toy cars. When I was 10 years old, I owned a 1990 Volkswagen Scirocco. A real one. I still have it.

Hanzalah's Story

From the age of two or three, I started to ask my dad questions when we were out on our travels, stuff like, “What does that pedal do? Is that the brake?” How does an accelerator work?” I started tinkering with cars when I was eight or nine. I’d pick up a spanner here and there, help dad out when he was doing a service in the garage.

A week or two before my 10th birthday, dad just walked into the room one morning and said, “Do you want a car?” I was like, “What car... what car?” And he said, “A Volkswagen,” I asked him, “Which one... which one?” He replied, “Uh, a Volkswagen Scirocco.”

The young apprentice

I passed my driving test first time without taking any lessons because I grew up moving the cars at Dad’s garage. I've got pictures of me driving around in the Scirocco with L plates on.

What I love about cars is that every car is like a character. It's emotional, especially when you work on a car yourself and then you go out and drive that car, you feel very connected to it.

Like father, like son

Dad and I still work on cars together. Up until I was about 16 or 17, a lot of the stuff that I'd do he'd supervise, purely because of how young I was. And probably due to the fact that my mum wouldn't be happy if he left me on my own in the garage. It gets annoying because often, when he does make a suggestion, and this is where the knowledge part comes in, he's right. 

A Haynes manual is useful. If anyone ever wants to work on a car, get yourself a Haynes manual. It's literally written out in a black and white. There are still some things where you do need someone with a lot of knowledge, though.

The big reveal

Driving to the Prom was an interesting one. I remember when I was driving in, everyone moved forward, and they were looking at me. 

I could hear comments like, “Oh, no way, he's driving it in,” and “That's his car.” I'd just driven to my secondary school prom in the car that I'd spent years working on. You can't describe that buzz, that feeling of, you know, I've done this.

Your favourite thing about the Scirocco?

Hmm, that’s a difficult one. It's like asking a parent, who's their favourite child. I wouldn't say anything physically on it. I think my favourite thing about it is the fact I can jump in it, drive it, and sort of forget everything else.

There are certain parts of the car which I really do like. For example, the wheels. It's like a pair of shoes. The wheels are like my first pair of shoes, and I can never take them off.

You're never alone

I've got to know the Volkswagen community due my passion. A lot of people are more than happy to come over and spend a few hours with me helping me put something together.

A FaceTime call has literally saved me hours when I've been stuck trying to put something back together and I don't know how to do it. You pass on what you know in the hope that the passion and the drive lives on. It’s like a friend. It's one of those emotions you can't describe. You kind of have to feel it for yourself. When I come back from uni sometimes, I'm on the train, and I've got this big smile on my face thinking... soon I’ll get to drive the car.

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Meet the Volks and their Wagens

This film is dedicated to our fans. Each story within it reflects the sincere affection Volks hold for their Wagens. It includes people from every corner of the country, from all walks of life, driving all kinds of Volkswagens, from vintage Beetles to contemporary SUVs and the all-electric ID Range.