Bad Beetle

The Beetle production comes to an end this year and to mark this occasion VW are releasing special Final Edition models.

The new beetle has achieved 11 years of production. There will be 1,500 Final Edition Coupes and another 1,500 Convertibles built.

The exterior of the coupes will be painted in a special Aquarius Blue paint with a painted black roof. The exterior of the convertibles will come in a two-tone Aquarius Blue and Campanella White paint scheme with a white top.

Other upgrades include unique badging, fog lights integrated into the bumper, a sports suspension and special 17-inch wheels. Inside, there’s a custom Final Edition steering wheel, sumptuous white trim, and individually numbered badges. Read the rest of this entry →

For this week’s concept car Friday, we’re taking a step back from the supercars and luxury sports sedans that we normally feature and take a look at the People’s Car of the future. It’s no secret that Volkswagen’s New Beetle is at the end of its life cycle and that a major redesign is just around the corner. But what will this Newer Beetle look like? We hope not nearly as bland as the new Jetta, but VW isn’t talking.

Meanwhile in Brazil, where the classic VW Beetle (or VW Fusca, as it is known there) is still hugely popular, designer Eduardo Oliveira offers his take on what he thinks the next-generation punch buggy should look like and–unsurprisingly–it borrows more than a few styling cues from the 1960s vintage.

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David Holzman

Unlike the New Beetle, an impractical fashion statement of a car, the (Real) Beetle eschewed style for utility. The ads of my youth played that up relentlessly, amusingly, logically. The Beetle was cheap. It was a cinch to fix. Fender-bender? Just undo several bolts, pop the old one off, put a new one on. The car was so tightly constructed that you had to open a window to close the door. Heck, the Beetle was so tight it could float. “If Senator Kennedy had been driving a VW, he’d be President today,” the National Lampoon opined. Read the rest of this entry →

Buying a Classic VW Beetle? What to look for…

By eric2112

Introduction
If you are a classic Volkswagen lover like I am, then chances are that you either own, or are looking to purchase one. The Volkswagen Beetle has been a favorite around the world for decades, and is one of the longest production cars in existence!

One of the primary items to consider when shopping for your Beetle is, are you looking for a car that you can drive right away, or a project. Another thing to consider if it will be a project is, how involved do you want to get and how much money are you willing to spend? Read the rest of this entry →

By: laudeman.com

I bought a Gravity Feed HVLP spray gun from Harbor Freight. The brand name is Central Pneumatic. It was their low end model, and used to goes on sale for $40. Now, the same gun (or a very similar model) is more expensive. There is no indication of who manufactured the spray gun, and from the package I’m not sure where it was made. I’m pretty sure it’s was made in Taiwan or China.

Built quality is good to very good. I only found nearly microscopic burrs inside the spray nozzle where the small nozzle hole had been drilled. There are no rough edges. It works smoothly, and all the adjustments are smooth. It includes a regulator. The handle is anodized green. It includes a little regulator that attaches to the handle between the gun and the air line. Read the rest of this entry →

Fiberglass Fender Installation Tutorial :

eXtremeSuper

I decided to include this tutorial in my blog for the simple fact that I have learned a lot installing my own fenders, and there are some do’s and don’ts which I learned that can and will save someone time and money if they set out to install their own fiberglass fenders.

My fenders were made by a company called “Glass Action”. They are made of very durable heavy duty hand laid fiberglass, and despite being heavy duty they are flexible enough to form to your late model VW very nicely. Read the rest of this entry →

I am about to get started on the hood of my beetle, but i am in luck, i dont have to tackle any horrifying rust problems on the hood or the entire body for that matter but anyways … i am posting this so that every one can beniffit from my new experance. i have done some bondo work in the past on a 66 mustang but as you know the mustang body lines are mostly straight and if you are still reading this than you know the beetles lines are much more curved. hell its a freaking beetle if you didnt have a wheel base you could put two together and have a giant steel ball.

here is the steps to bondo work … thanks eHow!!!

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First thing’s First

The only reason I am going to put these fenders on my Bug (besides they look sick) is because the great thing about a beetle is the fenders bolt on. Unlike the “awesome” Hondas you see screaming around town like a pissed off bumble bee in a mason jar. these fenders just need a little surface sanding paint and holes drilled. and they bolt right into the factory anchor bolt holes. Read the rest of this entry →

1974 Volkswagen Beetle information.

I finally got my beetle … it took a long time for the the IRS to give me my money but i finally have the beetle. It’s a 1974 but the best thing about it and you car nuts can really respect this … I bought it from the original owner. It has all the paper work from the original purchase and he kept the milage record of every maintenance that he did on the car. this is so awesome. here is a little information about the 1974 beetle. Read the rest of this entry →

The iconic Volkswagen Beetle has caught the imagination of well-heeled Indians who do not mind forking out a fortune to buy the bug. After all, it has a steep price tag of Rs 20.45 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). One could buy a Merc or the sporty BMW by throwing in few more lakhs.

Despite that, the company has sold 284 units of the New Beetle in less than five months of its launch. In April, alone it sold 92 cars. If that is not enough, this iconic model has a waiting list of two-three months, as it is being imported from the Volkswagen plant in
Mexico and sold as a completely-built unit. The company says the Beetle is being lapped up by businessmen and Bollywood celebrities, who want to show off their new toy.

Buoyed by the success, Volkswagen India hopes the demand for Beetle would go up even more. “The Beetle is a much loved car in India and our intent to introduce it was to cater to our customer demand. Consequently, we expect a decent increase of sales of the New Beetle over a period of time,” said Neeraj Garg, director (passenger cars), Volkswagen India.

According to him, the response has been phenomenal as it has a huge fan following. “The product is positioned for discerning Indian customers to meet their intrinsic wish for a style statement and uniqueness. We are confident it will be well appreciated for its value offered to customers,” he added.

Said Abdul Majeed, leader, automotive practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers India: “While there is no dearth of cash-rich people in India, the introduction of Beetle has proved there is a huge potential for such high-end brands in the country, especially in markets like Punjab, where the rich farmers have deep pockets to splurge on such luxurious possessions.”

The shipment of Beetle takes a month. With demand being more than anticipated, the New Beetle has a huge waiting period. “Each Volkswagen dealer gets one or two bookings a month for Beetle. It has led to a waiting period of at least two months, which is higher than what we anticipated at the time of launch of the vehicle last year,” said a Volkswagen dealer in Delhi.

Currently, Volkswagen India has about 45 dealers across the country selling Polo, Jetta, Passat, Beetle, Touareg and Phaeton.

The New Beetle was launched in India in the first week of December, with an advance booking of 150 units. It is powered by a four-cylinder 2000cc petrol engine with six-speed automatic transmission. Even BMW has been contemplating of bringing in the Mini which is their specially designed small car and would have been priced at a similar level. However, plans were shelved due to recession.