New Beetle Volkswagen to ditch retro for new Beetle?

[PanterroR]

If new illustrations from German magazine Auto Motor und Sport are any indication, the next-generation Volkswagen Beetle will lose much of its retro styling for something considerably more modern.

When the new Beetle was introduced in 1998, it arrived with styling derived directly from the original. If Volkswagen's California design studio has its way, the 2010 model will have a completely fresh interpretation of the classic Beetle theme.

It will also become sportier, with the aim of competing more directly with BMW's MINI, according to the magazine report. The new model will also have more interior space — it will feature a lower roofline but a longer overall cabin, with more space behind the front seats.

AMS says the regular coupe and cabriolet versions will be offered, in addition to a crossover/wagon and possibly even a pickup.

 

[NarutoRamen]

While this is a good idea to ditch retro...the fact that the car just looks like a combo of the current beetle and the GTI doesn't do anything for me. Hopefully they can come up with something more original because afterall that was the reason the beetle sold so well.

 

[MikeJ]

I'm surprised they're not ditching the Beetle altogether. I always figured being retro was its raison d'être.

 

[Mr. M]

I think they should keep the retroness. It is, after all as MikeJ said, the reason why the Beetle is around today...

 

[bum-man]

What they really need to do is set the platform away from all the others like the last one. Then design a new flatfour with that unique sound and chuck it in the back...but that will never happen.

 

[rev]

Could it look something like this?

 

[Giannis]

reminds me of volvo C30

 

[Osnabrueck]

I don't know about those cars specifally, but the retro beetle has run out of steam. VW should do a radically fresh interpretation of what the beetle is for today's audience. A redesign a la Mini cooper won't cut it.

 

[phaeton]

I think the sketches rev8000 is what VW may aim for.

Its a funky cool design, affordable and most likely to be aimed at Nth Americas youth market ala Scion.

 

[Brookside]

I think the trouble with retro is that you can only revisit it once...
a "been-there-did-that" kind of thing. So it's a short term tactic rather than a long range strategy.
Time for something new.

 

[Monster]

I think the trouble with retro is that you can only revisit it once...
a "been-there-did-that" kind of thing. So it's a short term tactic rather than a long range strategy.
Time for something new.

Exactly mate. The current retro styling of the car doesn't exactly allow for space efficient packaging at all. The current car was just too retro, it is loosing touch with what the current customer demand of a small compact car.

 

[Sunny]

I think the trouble with retro is that you can only revisit it once...
a "been-there-did-that" kind of thing. So it's a short term tactic rather than a long range strategy.
Time for something new.

Unless you are Porsche... and you keep revisiting every few years... not that I mind it.

 

[SDNR]

I have never really understood the point of the 'New Beetle' beyond it being an utterly contrived cult-object dreamed up by marketing execs.

The VW Golf is the real successor to the original Beetle -- the new Beetle is gimmicky and disingenuous.

However, BMW have done a fantastic job with Mini. It is not just a pastiche of the original car ...it has its own character and identity.

 

[Brookside]

Unless you are Porsche... and you keep revisiting every few years... not that I mind it.

Yeah, you and Rob are right on it. I thought about Porsche immediately after I posted.
The new Beetle seemed a "POP" commentary on the original...whereas Porsche, Mini .... more of a dna thing that's been treated with reverence...or respect.

 

[iluvbugs1970]

Obviously, you can tell by my name that I love the original Beetle. So when I was selling VWs (1998-2001), and was given a New Beetle for a demo, I was thrilled. Until I started to live with the car and found it uncomfortable and basically a two seater. To me, it was no where near as practical as the first one.

I once slammed the hatch of a New Beetle and nearly gave someone sitting in the back seat a concussion! Talk about bad design. It seemed to me that they kept the Beetle shape at all costs, not actually thinking about making it a usable car.

I think because the Germans hated the New Beetle from the start, they got it to market and then left it there, untouched, to die a slow death. So I don't think radically changing the car is a bad thing, they should just change the name too. If they lose the Beetle shape-it's no longer a Beetle.

 

[PanterroR]

I think because the Germans hated the New Beetle from the start, they got it to market and then left it there, untouched, to die a slow death. So I don't think radically changing the car is a bad thing, they should just change the name too. If they lose the Beetle shape-it's no longer a Beetle.

Totally agree with you here!

And by the way, welcome to the forums!

 

[Bartek S.]

VW boss hints at next-gen Beetle

Volkswagen’s new Beetle has been on the market now for just on ten years and has enjoyed relatively strong sales despite the lack of significant changes during its life. More than one million new Beetles have been built at VW’s Puebla plant in Mexico and it looks like developers have even more ambitious plans for the next-gen model, which is due to arrive in 2010.

Speaking with Automotive News, VW boss Martin Winterkorn confirmed that a successor was currently being developed and that it would likely be manufactured once again in Mexico, although he didn’t rule out the possibility of it being built elsewhere. Winterkorn was actually in Puebla to celebrate production of the plant’s seventh million vehicle. He also used the opportunity to announce that $1 billion would be invested in the site over the next three years.
Not much is known about the next Beetle except that it will share a platform with the Mark VI Golf and will be slightly larger than the current car. Final styling will be handled by a Californian team but engineering work will be completed in Germany. Once again both coupe and roadster variants will be on offer, although there are rumors of new hatch and SUV versions making production as well.
http://www.motorauthority.com/news/coupes/vw-boss-hints-at-next-gen-beetle/

 

[Bartek S.]

Beetlemania is coming: VW plans a "new" New Beetle -- and a baby Bug

It's being developed on the sixth-generation Golf platform and may appear as a 2011 model. And Volkswagen's strategy for the iconic retromobile may extend even to adapting the Beetle's distinctive style to a North American version of the Up! minicar.

The new New Beetle will come off that platform, in the 2010, or more likely, the 2011 calendar year and will include a hybrid version. VW would be smart, in fact, to make the MkII New Beetle hybrid-only, as its distinctive style lends it the same kind of instant recognition as the Toyota Prius. VW of America hasn't officially confirmed the next New Beetle, saying only that it's under study. But what does it need to study? Even with sales sliding to the low 30,000s as the current model has aged, it's selling at twice the rate of Golf/GTI sales in the U.S.​

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