Disney's Herbie Hits the Road on May 13th for a 60-City, 19-State VW Caravan Tour to Celebrate Upcoming Release of 'Herbie: Fully Loaded'

Disney's Herbie Hits the Road on May 13th for a 60-City, 19-State VW Caravan Tour to Celebrate Upcoming Release of 'Herbie: Fully Loaded'

LOS ANGELES, May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Herbie, the most beloved car star of them all, is getting ready to hit the road on Friday, May 13th for a coast-to-coast 60-city, 19-state "Herbie and Friends Cruise Across America," where he'll be joined by a caravan of hundreds of other Volkswagen enthusiasts, to help celebrate his latest starring vehicle Walt Disney Pictures' "Herbie: Fully Loaded." The tour will hold a Ceremonial Launch Event at 6:30 a.m. at The Santa Monica Pier -- the western end of historic Route 66 -- before setting out on Sunday across the United States. The caravan, presented by Airheadparts, will return to VW of Santa Monica early Sunday morning to begin the journey east. VW enthusiasts wanting to join in should arrive at 2440 Santa Monica Blvd. by 8 AM. For information on other tour stops, go to www.airheadparts.com. The coast-to-coast round-trip will include stops at the "Michigan Vintage Volkswagen Festival" near Detroit, the "Bug-Out 57 VW" event in Manassas, Virginia and will culminate at the "VW Classic" in Irvine, California on June 12th. In each city, Herbie and friends (hundreds of local VW owners and enthusiasts) will participate in local events, take part in a traveling Classic Car Show, and be greeted by friends and fans of the films.

Herbie is scheduled to visit such national landmarks as the St. Louis Arch, Chicago's Navy Pier, the Automotive Heritage Museum near Detroit, New York's Manhattan skyline, the Washington D.C. Mall, Tampa Bay, New Orleans' French Quarter, and the Del Mar Fair near San Diego. For details on the "Herbie and Friends Tour," go to www.herbiemovie.com. "Herbie: Full Loaded" starring Lindsay Lohan, Justin Long, Breckin Meyer with Matt Dillon and Michael Keaton, opens in theaters everywhere on Wednesday, June 22nd.

Participating with Disney in the "Herbie and Friends Tour" is Volkswagen of America, which will be providing an entourage of escort cars that includes two Touaregs, a Phaeton, a Jetta A5, and a Eurovan Weekender. The tour caravan will stop at Volkswagen dealerships along the route, where mini-car shows, contests, games, giveaways, and food will be featured.

Nextel will maximize communication throughout the tour, with all "friends" using Nextel mobile phones equipped with Nextel Direct Connect (the instant walkie-talkie service that connects users in under a second), and Direct Talk (the service that allows users who are far beyond wireless coverage to keep in touch using a two-way radio-to-radio communication mode with a range of up to six miles).

Other participants include: Goodyear Tires, used in the film "Herbie Fully Loaded" and on the "Herbie and Friends Tour," and providing "Class of 2005" posters that feature NASCAR Nextel Cup drivers as a tie-in to the NASCAR scenes in the film; and RadioShack, which is rolling out a limited-edition Herbie 1963 Volkswagen Beetle ZipZaps(R) Micro RC car at stores nationwide for Herbie aficionados as well as for prizes on the tour. The tour will visit RadioShack's newly opened flagship store, StoreOne, in Fort Worth, June 6. Airheadparts is a Ventura, CA based company that supplies parts for old VW's.

Up to 10,000 vintage VWs and their owners are expected to join the ranks of the "Herbie and Friends Tour" during the course of its 30-day run. Enthusiasts predict that this could be the largest caravan of vintage Volkswagens ever attempted, and might reach up to six miles in length.

Opening in theaters everywhere on June 22nd, Walt Disney Pictures' high-octane comedy, "Herbie: Fully Loaded," follows the all-new adventures of the most beloved car star of them all. Lindsay Lohan stars as Maggie Peyton, the new owner of Number 53 -- the freewheelin' Volkswagen Bug with a mind of its own -- who puts the car through its paces on the road to becoming a NASCAR competitor. Herbie's got some new tricks under his hood as he takes audiences for an action-packed spin in this high-speed comedy. With an all-star cast along for a wild ride, this comedy puts Herbie to the test -- on-road, off-road, on the track and into the record books.

For Further Information
Charlie Nelson
Vice President,
National Publicity
(818) 560-1103

Source: Walt Disney Pictures

CONTACT: Charlie Nelson, Vice President, National Publicity of Walt
Disney Pictures, +1-818-560-1103

Web site: http://www.airheadparts.com/

Web site: http://www.herbiemovie.com/

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