Volkswagen Ends Beetle Production

Vigo said:

A new beetle as a cheeky low cost EV might work well. VW is already bringing back the bus as an EV. 

maybe they are doing that for this very reason? Hype for promotion. 

I loved the 73 Superbeetle I had in college.  That little thing took me through the "Storm of the Century" back in 1993.   It was simple, well built and fun.  Yeah, I had to scrape the windshield's INSIDE with a credit card to clear the ice in the winter.... but that just added character! 

I never could muster any love for the Golf Beetle---- it was only a beetle in silhouette.   

Joe Gearin said:

 

I never could muster any love for the Golf Beetle---- it was only a beetle in silhouette.  

Kind of like the mini for me.

Locally, the hot car for mini stock is the Golf. Nothing can touch them. The odd Jetta is in there too, but I've searched the local classifieds for new Beetles more than once. Could be a fun mini stock project.

I thought it was already dead.  Our local dealer doesn't even stock them.

Suprf1y said:

Joe Gearin said:

 

I never could muster any love for the Golf Beetle---- it was only a beetle in silhouette.  

Kind of like the mini for me.

Locally, the hot car for mini stock is the Golf. Nothing can touch them. The odd Jetta is in there too, but I've searched the local classifieds for new Beetles more than once. Could be a fun mini stock project.

At least the MINI was FWD with a liquid cooled engine like the original Mini.  

The New Beetle and A5 Beetle are just nostalgia bodies on a Golf, applying what was a logical design eight decades ago for a rear-engine small sedan to a modern front-drive hatch, where it doesn't make any sense.

I expect that the Beetle name and general shape (probably much more like a New Beetle than a real Beetle) will reappear as a nostalgia bodies on whatever VW actually builds as a dedicated EV platform. It won't make sense, either, but they'll sell some to people who think that a Beetle is cute and never drove a real one.

The news doesn't mean much, as there is no significant change in the model lineup. Both nameplates and body styles come and go - who really cares?

And yes, the BMW Mini makes much more sense as a tribute to the Austin Mini. On the other hand, its configuration is completely generic modern small car, while the original was relatively innovative.

I never warmed up to the New Beetle and it's not because I'm a purist, I just think making such a significant change like engine location and drive wheels means that it's not honoring the legacy of the original. The new MINI does a pretty good job of honoring the original (not the variants, just the Cooper and Cooper S) and the new Fiat 500 is also a good continuation of the old (again, not the crappy big variants, only the 2 door ones). Would a Porsche 911 still be a Porsche 911 if they built it on the Panamera platform? Of course not.  I won't miss the front engine Beetle

In reply to loosecannon :

The FIAT 500 is a similar story to the Beetle/New Beetle:

In reply to Mike :

You are correct, I am wrong about the Fiat 500

Body shop technicians will rejoice. What a miserable car to work on. Though glad for the unique look in a sea of jellybean cars that inspire zero passion the Beetle has run its course. This insurance estimator will delight in never seeing any again.