There are only a few cars that may be considered as equal to the VW Beetle in terms of popularity and historical significance.
Generations
You might not know, but the first VW Beetle (officially named Type 1 at that time) went into production in 1938, a year before World War II. It was designed by Ferdinand Porsche, an automotive engineer and founder of Porsche car company, as a people’s car for the pre-war Germany.
Although designed in the 1930s, the VW Beetle was only produced in significant numbers after World War II.
It is astounding that the car survived nearly a century. From 1938 to 2003, Volkswagen and its associates built 21,529,464 units of various types of the VW Beetle. The lion’s share amounting to 15,444,858 vehicles was built in Germany.
In the 1999 Car of the Century competition organized to determine the world’s most influential car of the century, the VW Beetle came fourth, after the Ford Model T, the Mini, and the Citroën DS.
2016 VW Beetle Dune © Volkswagen AG
The New Beetle
Volkswagen built the New Beetle in 1997, drawing heavy inspiration from the exterior design of the original vehicle. However, there were some major differences.
Unlike the original VW Beetle, the New Beetle has its engine in the front, driving the front wheels, with luggage storage in the rear. The notion was rather short in comparison with New Beetle’s predecessor; the new model never approached the success of the first Beetle. In May 2010, the company announced that production of the current body of the iconic car would cease in 2011.
The New Beetle Revised
The revised generation of VW Beetle debuted in 2011, dropping the word ‘New’ in the title and with an emphasis on a more aggressive style. It is based on the same Volkswagen’s A5 platform as the current-generation VW Jetta. Both models are assembled at Volkswagen’s plant in Puebla, Mexico.
2016 VW Beetle
The VW Beetle is available in the United States in two body styles: Coupe and Convertible. The MSRP starts at $19,795 for the first and at $25,490 for the second. There is also the special edition called the VW Beetle R-Line 2.0T that is racing-inspired and has a turbocharged engine. The starting MSRP for the VW Beetle R-Line 2.0T is $25,995.
