MILLIONAIRE gearhead Ewan McGregor has launched a search for his first love – a VW Beetle he bought for £500 in 1987.
Early on Monday morning the famed Scots actor posted a family picture of himself at the age of 16 – posing next to the first ever car he owned.
In stonewashed jeans the future star can be seen perched on the bonnet of a newly-bought lime green VW bug with a bottle of champagne.
The actor – believed to be worth £23m – revealed that he scrubbed dishes for two years to afford the car.
And now he has launched a search effort to be reunited with his first ride – appealing to his 1.3m social media followers to keep an eye out for the vintage vehicle.
McGregor posted the vintage photo to his Instagram page in the early hours of Monday morning.
The polaroid snap is captioned: “The day I bought my first car. I was 16. I’d washed dishes for two years and saved the £500 she cost.
“It seems she’s gone now, old ESL380V – I can’t find her. If you ever come across her let me know. Cheers.”
The original post was made on Instagram – to 500,000 followers – but McGregor later posted it on his Twitter account to widen the search to a further 843,000 followers.
His devoted fanbase were quick to kindle a search for the missing car.
Michel Stafford said: “Great picture. She’s a beauty, hope you can find her again!”
After some research one commenter replied “Last taxed October 1990” – implying that the car has been off the road for over 25 years.
Another suggested: “You’ll just have to buy one identical, then put a 911 turbo engine as a mark of how much you’ve grown since then.”
McGregor is known to be a keen automobile enthusiast.
He has filmed two series of “The Long Way” documentaries – in which he and his childhood friend Charley Boorman undertook marathon motorbike journeys.
McGregor is currently filming his directorial debut – an adaptation of Philip Roth’s novel American Pastoral.
The 44-year-old – who lives with his family in LA – will direct and star in the movie, which is being shot in the Pittsburgh area.
But the father of four could soon be returning to Scotland to film a much-anticipated sequel to the 1996 hit Trainspotting.
In September Danny Boyle – the director of the original – announced that his next project would be a sequel to the movie.
Speaking at the Telluride festival in Colorado, he said: “‘All the four main actors want to come back and do it.
“Now it is only a matter of getting all their schedules together.”
