2012 VW Beetle
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There is now a rumor about the all new Beetle being shown at the Detroit auto show in January.
We’ll see.
I know a few things about the US version:
-We are getting the 2.5 Liter with 170hp. Maybe the 2.0 Liter Turbo as an option.
-A hybrid comes later, and they are working on an all electric version.
-18 inch wheels and navigation will be options.
-All new interior is pretty much Audi quality.
-And the whole thing is a bit cheaper than the current model.
its taken them 13 years to come up with this? VW needs to be more agile with other carmakers like Hyundai in bringing new products to market if they want to compete in this now highly competitive industry.
I hope VW doesnt do to this, what they did to the Jetta. I appreciate the fact that they made the Jetta much more affordable but I don't like the changes they made in order to do it. I don't like the idea of a semi independent rear suspension and drum brakes on the lower models. The interior is probably good quality but it looks PAINFULLY conservative. The exterior does'nt look bad at all but it too looks VERY conservative. The Beetle is a practicle niche vehicle and I don't think that they should make similar changes to the Beetle. In this picture, it does'nt look like they've made that many, if any, changes at all. I saw a significant difference with a hard top version on an artists rendering but we all know what they're worth. I will say the rendering did look good without losing the "spirit" of the vehicle. I also read, somewhere, that VW was going to make big changes to the next Beetle…..so who knows.
If it's going to cost less, it has to come out of somewhere. I doubt that the interior is going to be Audi quality. VW likes to save money in places it doesn't show like hardware that breaks. The clips that held the windows on the New Beetle were notorious for breaking. Look at all of the coil issues VW has had. I am sure that there will be those lucky VW owners who will respond how great theirs have been, but judging by VW's place at the bottom of JD Powers surveys, their experience is the exception, not the rule.
Let's see now… cheaper + tired styling + vw reliability = a recipe for disaster.
The model I saw, and sat in, was just priced about $300 less than the similar 2010 model.
So it's not like they're cutting $3000 and make the car much cheaper.
It is roomier and the interior did have quite an amazing quality, with expensive looking and soft plastics everywhere.
Except for the dashboard face, which is covered in a hard plastic that matches the exterior color.
There even a cool retro 2nd glovebox on the dash, just like the old Bug. (A larger one is still underneath)
It also has a start/stop switch on the console.
Beetle was cute in 1998, but it's stale now.
Will probably remain stale because it can't be changed too much without losing its purpose as an updated version of the original Beetle. The excitement is gone after 12 years.
The only people who don't look stupid driving a Beetle are teen-aged girls. Everybody else looks silly.
VQ needs to go back to what the original beetle was about. Emerging markets in China and India demand that sort of car. Westerners would buy it just to be cool.
Really… All these years, and they're going with a slightly 'Squished' Beetle?
VW's design's are becoming so ridiculously predictable and complacent, even the CC proved to be little more than a 'chop top' Passat with a huge front overhang.
B O R I N G!