Dana Cull, of Hendersonville, Tenn., was in Chattanooga on Friday to show off his 1962 Volkswagen bus that he and a son had driven last year to California and back.
He said the fact that VW is building a $1 billion Chattanooga auto assembly plant, slated to open in about a year, is "awesome."
"For Tennessee, it's home to VW," Mr. Cull said.
The VW enthusiast was one of several hundred vehicle owners taking part in Bug-a-Paluza 12 at Camp Jordan in East Ridge.
Zen Hendricks, show committee chairman, said organizers are expecting a record number of vehicles over the weekend.
"The final count depends on when we run out of room," he said. Last year, the show drew about 300 Beetles, VW buses, Things and other vehicles from the German company.
Steve Hanford, of Anniston, Ala., drove a 1965 Beetle he has had for eight years to the show.
While admitting he's also a big fan of Toyota, he lauded the VW plant that's expected to create more than 2,000 jobs.
"The plant will get people who want to work," Mr. Hanford said.
Tom Wilson, a Chattanoogan who brought his 1971 Beetle convertible, said the plant will do "very well" and he cited VW's green strategy.
"They're real environmentalists," Mr. Wilson said.
VW 1Q SALES UPVolkswagen AG's worldwide deliveries were up by nearly a quarter in the first three months of the year as the car market rebounded in many regions, the company said Friday.Europe's largest automaker delivered 1.73 million cars in the first quarter, an increase of 24.6 percent over a year earlier.First-quarter sales were up nearly 61 percent in China to 457,300 cars and 37.2 percent in the U.S. to 80,000, said the company.
Mr. Hendricks said the July 2008 plant announcement has brought a lot of attention to the show and the organizing club, the Scenic City Volks Folks.
"If preregistration is any indicator, this year is going to be huge," he said.
Mr. Hendricks said the show last year raised $12,000 for the Ronald McDonald House, and he expects that figure to grow.
He said the carmaker's goal of reaching No. 1 in sales by 2018 worldwide is doable.
"When they get a car designed for the American market and built for us, I think sales will soar," Mr. Hendricks said.
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