I passed what looked for all the world like a racing VWBug, being towed on a trailer
Could have been. They race them in rallies, and possibly track races too, I don't know.
although he has expressed reservations in the past wrt LDS's stance on homosexuality
Nothing to add to the wise advice, other than to comment that at least one of my Mormon friends does not agree with the Church's position on homosexuality, so this won't necessarily be the deal-breaker. My own experience with dating religious proselytizing teens when I was a teen suggests that teen dating is more about finding out what works and what doesn't, and what you'll tolerate and what you won't, and basically just trying relationships on. It's probably good experience for both of them to decide how important religion is in a partner.
They used arpanet to coordinate smuggling
I didn't know that! That's awesome.