Funeral mass for Michael James Tynan, 75, who died Aug. 9, 2024, was Friday morning, Aug. 16, at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Denver.

I met Mike almost 50 years ago at Tynan’s Volkswagen dealership on South Havana Street in Aurora, where Mike and his brother, Pete, worked for their uncle, “Big Ed” Tynan.

“Come on out and drive anything you want, anytime,” the Tynans said to me, and I did that for many years.

Mike, born June 6, 1949, to James and Mary Jo Tynan, graduated from Regis High School and Regis  College. A beloved family man, he was known for his unwavering faith and vibrant charisma.

He is survived by his wife, Angela, two sons Casey and John, daughter Meghan Riecker, seven grandchildren, sisters Carol Spierings, Mary Tolley and Joan Johnson, brother Pete and many other relatives.

Mike and Pete, in an 18-month period from June 1979 to January 1981, provided four Volkswagens for my tests – a Rabbit four-door, Rabbit mini-pickup, the newly introduced Jetta and a Dasher wagon. The Tynan brothers continued pushing the product, and in 1987 Tynan’s Volkswagen was ranked No. 1 in VW sales in the country.

Following are excerpts from a review of the ’79 Rabbit four-door, which appeared in The Denver Post on July 7, 1979:

German car workers, known for excellence in producing quality bodies, turned the building of gasoline-powered Volkswagen Rabbits over to the Americans this year (1979) – with no apparent lessening in the car’s standards.

Some say the American version is more to their liking. The only basic differences are that the U.S.-built Rabbits have rectangular headlamps instead of round and have more brightly colored interiors.

A test of a Rabbit four-door built at Westmoreland, Pa., brought out the same features as a test 18 months ago of one built in Germany – it’s a high-mileage, fast 4-cylinder, with good handling in its front-wheel-drive fashion and of good fit-and-finish.

The bright red interior is flashy and refreshing, the car was a good runner (it will go from 0 to 60 in 11.8 seconds) and its 5-speed transmission shifted very easily. Automatic shoulder belts are a safety feature.

The 89-cubic-inch engine is transversely mounted and has a compression ratio of 8-to-1. It averaged 28 miles a gallon in town driving and 35 on a rolling highway (EPA rating is 42 mpg). Wheelbase is 94.4 inches; curb weight is 1,800 pounds. With destination charge of $164, the window-sticker price totaled $6,190.