The '79 Volkswagen Rabbit (that's a Golf to you shifty-eyed foreign types) probably didn't accelerate very rapidly with Mr. Chamberlain aboard, what with its 71-horsepower engine and all. But it has enough headroom- somehow- to accommodate a 7-footer. Wait, did we say 71 horsepower? Make that 48 horses for the Diesel Rabbit!
classic ad watch, 1970s, 1979, vw, wilt chamberlain, basketball, golf, malaise, rabbit...
Wilt Chamberlain: Why I Prefer My 1979 VW Rabbit To My Rolls
11:20 AM on Mon Feb 25 2008
By Murilee Martin
1,654 views
22 comments










The '79 Volkswagen Rabbit (that's a Golf to you shifty-eyed foreign types) probably didn't accelerate very rapidly with Mr. Chamberlain aboard, what with its 71-horsepower engine and all. But it has enough headroom- somehow- to accommodate a 7-footer. Wait, did we say 71 horsepower? Make that 48 horses for the Diesel Rabbit!


Comments
I want to see more of bad 70s combover man at the end.
Yeah, that car works only because he didn't need any help with the wimminfolk.
Yea but i bet he preferred the Rolls when he bonked all those women.
This was my first car. My parents bought it new in 1979 and still had it to give to me in 1992.
0-50?
Knowing Wilt's reputation, I'm surprised he didn't prefer a car with tilt steering - for more head room.
"If this subcompact's a-rockin', it's because VW softened the springs for the American market. And also because, statistically, I am engaging in intercourse."
/small font
Are you driving it because we gave you a big pile of money?
The man, the myth, the sans-a-belt slacks.
I am frankly surprised anyone made it out of the '70s alive.
Myself included.
0-50 in 8.3 sounds like a bit of an exaggeration to me. A buddy of mine had one in high school - it was only 5 or 6 years old at the time, and it only went 0-50 when pointed down hill.
@teargas: 55MPH national speed limit meant there wasn't much point in advertising 0-60 times.
0-50... because the speed limit on highways was 55 mph at the time thanks to Richard Nixon.
I used to see Wilt driving a Ferrari 400 (2+2) to the beach in Santa Monica to play volleyball. He had the driver's seat repositioned so it looked like he was driving from the back seat.
I remember sitting in a VW Dealers sales conference, probably in Denver, CO and watching this and other commercials which they were previewing for dealers and sales people. This is the only one I remember but I do remember all of us kind rolled our eyes at this one. One of the ad guys assured is that he really in it.
This was at the beginning of the American-made VW's, in Pennsylvania. Square headlights.
Bull Wilt you can't have sex with thousands of women comfortably or at all in a car of those dimensions, I'm not buying it.
They got better with detail changes. I had an '84 1.8L (90HP) and it would run 123 mph on the autostrade in Italy when I was stationed there. I had the convertible and it did not roll that bad and there was more subsantial rubber under that car (something like 185/65-R14 tires. It's all relative you know.) We'd run it 150 miles to Rome at 100 mph+ the whole way. 190K miles on the original drivetrain when I sold it, nothing rebuilt.
Fun little car. I drive a '97 VW Cabrio today but it isn't as fun. Much heavier with soft springs again. Definitely feels more refined but I prefer the '84.
I loved when I got to drive a Diesel Rabbit. It belonged to my boss at the time. In the hills of eastern Tennessee, I drove with the throttle wide open on I-40. 60 mph uphill, 75 down. Would not overheat.
@halfshaft: Different type of headroom.
ZING!
My Daily right now is a 1981 Rabbit, and its tough driving it and I am only 6'3", I can't imagine someone his size driving it!!
Jojo
I am partial to the false comparison marketing ploy--"More legroom than a Rolls" -- "More luggage room than a Caddy" "Shorter turning radius" "Longer wheelbase" -- you have to consider the thing they are crowing about is all they got. VW Rarebit: "Hey, there's room in here for a big guy! And he'll be marginally comfortable as he waits for that speedometer to crawl up to 50!"
0-50 IN 8.3 SECONDS! NO WAY!
I drive a '85 Westy. I only wish I could do 0-50 in 8 seconds...
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