In its 73-year history, the Beetle has evolved from the hippie ride of choice to a cute chick car. Now Volkswagen is reinventing it again. The company introduced an edgy new design on Monday for its signature model, giving it a flatter roof, a less bulbous shape, narrowed windows and a sharp crease along the side. Gone is the built-in flower vase on the dashboard.The design is based not on the New Beetle but on the original Beetle, which was created in Nazi Germany in the 1930s, came to the US after World War II and became a counterculture favorite because of its low cost and unusual look.
“I hope they keep the fun in the car, and all the round angles,” said Howie Lipton, who owns a computer repair business in Hamilton, Ontario, and helps organise an annual New Beetle show in Roswell, New Mexico. Lipton says he was hoping VolksWagen would update the spare interior, and his wish has been granted. VW’s lead Beetle project manager for the US, Andres Valbuena, says the 2012 model will have a navigation system, a significantly larger trunk, more luxurious materials and ambient lighting. “It ties in more with our other products. It’s more upscale,” Valbuena said. The 2012 Beetle goes on sale this fall. VolksWagen won’t yet say how much it costs.
Valbuena says VW believes the new design stays true to the name but will broaden the car’s appeal beyond the 1998 version, which appealed heavily to women in their 50s and 60s. In focus groups, men liked the more aggressive design. In addition to an upgraded, 170-horsepower, 2.5-litre gas engine, VW will offer a sportier, 200-horsepower, turbo-charged gas engine — Volkswagen hopes it will appeal to guys — and a fuel-efficient diesel. VW estimates that the new basic engine will be slightly more efficient than the current one, which gets 29 mpg on the highway. The diesel will get up to 40 mpg. Even if it satisfies its fans, the third incarnation of the Beetle will have to compete in a US smallcar market that is bigger and much more competitive than it was in 1998.
“I hope they keep the fun in the car, and all the round angles,” said Howie Lipton, who owns a computer repair business in Hamilton, Ontario, and helps organise an annual New Beetle show in Roswell, New Mexico. Lipton says he was hoping VolksWagen would update the spare interior, and his wish has been granted. VW’s lead Beetle project manager for the US, Andres Valbuena, says the 2012 model will have a navigation system, a significantly larger trunk, more luxurious materials and ambient lighting. “It ties in more with our other products. It’s more upscale,” Valbuena said. The 2012 Beetle goes on sale this fall. VolksWagen won’t yet say how much it costs.
Valbuena says VW believes the new design stays true to the name but will broaden the car’s appeal beyond the 1998 version, which appealed heavily to women in their 50s and 60s. In focus groups, men liked the more aggressive design. In addition to an upgraded, 170-horsepower, 2.5-litre gas engine, VW will offer a sportier, 200-horsepower, turbo-charged gas engine — Volkswagen hopes it will appeal to guys — and a fuel-efficient diesel. VW estimates that the new basic engine will be slightly more efficient than the current one, which gets 29 mpg on the highway. The diesel will get up to 40 mpg. Even if it satisfies its fans, the third incarnation of the Beetle will have to compete in a US smallcar market that is bigger and much more competitive than it was in 1998.
