Airhead Parts brings “Max” to Life

Parts and Technical expertise makes Max athe inside scoop:
commercial star in record time.Bob begins, “My part in the Max project started in
Seems VW’s is now aware of what air-cooledthe middle of December 2007, when I received a call
VW enthusiasts have known for years….That thefrom Brian Schultz of CP&B. We had worked together
vintage air-cooled VW Beetle is an icon.on a previous project, and he knew that I was his man
In Volkswagen’s newest series of TVfor an upcoming project to restore a number of
commercials, Max, a black 1964 VW Beetle (AKABeetles for the new “08” ad campaign.
Bug), is given a German accent and hosts a little talkBrian put me in touch with Dave Sherman from AMCI
show complete with celebrity interviews, a band, andInc. Dave in turn hired me to locate and purchase the
once in a while, a new VW model.Beetles as well as all the parts that would be
In a June 2008 Hot VWs article by Lynn Anderson;needed.” Bob adds, “ I was also in charge of
Scott Linnen, Vice President of VW’s Ad companyauthenticity, and the mechanical restoration portion of
CP+B Stated, “Something we thought a lot aboutthis HUGE project
as we worked on this was how to expand the brandNext, we had to find a shop to do the paint and body
to lead toward volume success…. To once and for allportion. Many shops were screened for quality work,
balance our past with our future and create a newbut also had to be Vintage VW fluent, not to mention
true VW brand in America,… a brand that has athe tight timeline. A local VW enthusiast, and shop
great history and heritage”.owner, John Bickell of State of Mind Customs stepped
From an enthusiast’s point of view, that’s likeforward, and turned out to be the perfect man for the
discovery the sky is blue and puppy’s are cute.job. John, his apprentice Drew, and I, all took absences
So VW’s ad company is going for whatfrom our day jobs for 3 months and took on a
enthusiasts see as the obvious, but CP+B followed uprestoration project that we’ll never forget.
in a smart way. From the Detroit News story byWe all moved in for the duration, including my 3000 LB
Maureen McDonald on April 18th, 2008, Brian Shultz,toolbox. The first 2 cars were done in 14 days, the
another member of the ad company team explained,third in 7 more days, and the other 2 were at a more
"There were a large field of vendors to select from,relaxed pace. 80% of the parts were from Airhead
but we wanted a team with passion for the brand toParts”.
bring Max to life".The restoration was videotaped using time-lapse
First to be contacted was soon to be Projectphotography and can be seen on YouTube. The
Manager Bob Ellis of Airhead Parts. Bob writes techcommercials are also there and feature celebrities
articles and helps Airhead Parts customers with partsHeidi Klum, David Hasselhoff, Leonard Nimoy, NCAA
and restoration tips. Airhead Parts was the companyCoach Bob Knight, Napster’s Sean Fanning, and
that supplied the majority of the beetle restorationNASA Shuttle commander Rick Seafross, and Max of
parts, including the “hard to find” Steeringcourse.
Wheels. Bob, a VW enthusiast to the bone gives us