Beloved VW Beetle being donated to a New Zealand museum after 54 years in the family

AFTER 54 years touring the world in their vintage VW Beetle, Ivan and Beth Hodge are saying goodbye before the car is donated to a New Zealand museum.

Ivan and Beth Hodge with the beloved VW Beetle. Picture: Graham Monro of gm photographics

AFTER 54 years touring the world in their vintage VW Beetle, Ivan and Beth Hodge are saying goodbye to their beloved vehicle at a special going-away party.

The couple bought the car in London in 1961 for their honeymoon.

They set out to India with strip maps and a budget of one pound per day for living, and one pound a day for running the car.

The couple spent six months driving from London to India in the Volkswagen, sleeping every night in the small confines of the car (not an easy feat for Mr Hodge who is more than 6ft tall).

Ivan and Beth Hodge also drove their beloved car from Sydney to Perth.

They arrived in Calcutta in November 1961 and shipped the car and themselves as passengers to Auckland.

The couple repeated the journey 35 years later and the Hodges regard the car as “the symbol of their marriage.’’

“You can’t get angry with each other when you sit that close to each other for months,’’ Mr Hodges said.

Ivan Hodge pictured with the car in 1996 during one of its many travels.

The car has taken pride of place every year at the couple’s famous anniversary party at Balmoral. Everyone is invited to the annual celebration at the Balmoral Rotunda and the Hodges, where the NSW Fire Brigade Band and Precision Marching Team will perform.

THE HODGES CELEBRATE THEIR ANNIVERSARY

A PERFECT DAY FOR A PERFECT PARTNERSHIP

The centrepiece of the party is the VW Beetle, which Mr Hodge described as “the third person in our marriage’’. The party is on Sunday, April 19.

The couple has donated the car to the MOTAT motor museum in Auckland. It will leave Mosman on April 20.