2012 Beetle

[BrianAbington]

2012 Volkswagen Beetle Makes World Debut

VW like the American manufacturers is making a retromodern car.
This is not the first time VW has tried this.

The "new beetle" that debuted in 1998 certainly captured the simple design essence of the original. You could tell that it was supposed to be a Beetle. However its bodylines...lets just say that the new beetle mostly appealed to teenage girls, retirees and soccer moms who only had one kid left at home so they no longer needed a mini van.

The '98 new beetle had a very narrow demographic.

The "NEW" 2012 Beetle looks amazing. It has a design that sets it apart from anything else on the road yet walks that fine design line that keeps it from being mainstream boring but not so quirky that it only appeals to a few. Masculine enough that a 29 year old guy like myself really likes it but not so much so that women will still swoon over it.

When I first saw the photos of the white car I kind of thought that it looked like a small Porsche hatchback.

I just got called into work so I will add more to this tonight once I get home.

Sorry this seemed like the best place for this so moderators if you think its a better fit elsewhere please feel free to move it.

[SoobieOut]

Looks like the audi coupe.

Without a flower vase on the dash it will lose the chick-status...

Hope the cd numbers are better.

[BrianAbington]

I get the impression that the fuel economy improvements come primarily from aero improvements.

[jakobnev]

I'd like to see them design a rear end inspired by the Porsche 959. I bet it would result in a much sexier looking car with much better aero.



The Porsche managed a cd of 0.31 despite the Saab 900 windshield and the body going in deep between the wheels.

[akumabito]

The new version looks a lot less girly than before, definitely a good thing..

[kir_kenix]

I think it looks pretty cool...compared to the 1998 "new" beetle anyway. We probably won't be jumping on one anytime soon, but its good to see VW trying new things. Hopefully this car has alot better CD and mpg then the last batch of beetles.

[Christ]

Chopped roof, lower apparent frontal area, good things. Gaudy 19" wheels and hernia-hammer tires, really?

[euromodder]

Don't like it.
Looks like a smashed bug.

Aerodynamics are still a mess - turn it around, little doubt it'll be better !

[Nevyn]

Engine choices are barf.

[Frank Lee]

It's still a VW which means it's still an average product with premium prices for acquisition, parts, and service, and you will be paying them because a) they are in the shop a lot and b) there's a lot of specialty stuff on them that makes it harder to go to independent shops with.

As for the new styling, yesterday I was reading about it and the designer said how he looked to the original beetle for inspiration, not the '98 New Beetle... yeah, right. Just like the designer for the 350Z said he didn't look at other sports cars. Good gawd they must think we're dumb.

As far as the redesign, I try to not pass judgement on photos alone as I've learned that I can have quite a different impression of something in real life. That said, I don't find it any more appealing than the last version... yet.