So Long, Love Bug. Volkswagen Beetle Hits The End Of The Road.

[packman]

Source: Huffington Post

The little German car that started in a Nazi-era factory and later carried countless hippies to concerts, lovefests and be-ins is nearly at the end of its 80-year journey. Volkswagen announced Thursday that it will cease production of its Beetle in July 2019.


Sales of the carmaker’s reboot of the “people’s car” have fallen dramatically in the U.S., where drivers are increasingly turning to larger cars and SUVs, and away from the modern version of the quirky car that once starred as Disney’s Herbie the 1963 “Love Bug.”

Production of the Beetle has ceased and restarted several times over the decades, and sales of the original air-cooled version ― battered by compact car competition and environmental laws ― ceased in the U.S. in 1979. The “New Beetle” redesign of the 1990s ― essentially a repurposed VW Golf ― captivated the U.S. market, and sold more than 80,000 in 1999.


“The loss of the Beetle after three generations, over nearly seven decades, will evoke a host of emotions from the Beetle’s many devoted fans,” said Hinrich Woebcken, CEO of Volkswagen Group of



Read more: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/volkswagen-beetle-to-end-production-in-2019_us_5b9b5b36e4b013b097795859

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My first "new" car was a VW convertible way back when and it holds fond memories. It took on the snows of Pennsylvania like it was born to conquer them. Great little car but a growing family made it impractical. Loved the gas mileage and the close, snug feel of the car when driving it.

[lagomorph777]

1. Herbie will ride again.

People will eventually tire of their gigantic phallic SUVs. Environmental morality will become a thing again. The Beetle is too cute to die forever.

[bucolic_frolic]

2. What kind of MPG did you get?

Was wheel alignment an issue? I don't ever recall my dad getting a tire or an alignment on his beetles.

From the article it sounds like catalytic converters were a no-no without a liquid cooling system?

[packman]

11. As I recall, got around 40 MPG on the highway, 25-30 on city streets

The main bug in the bug was the master brake cylinder, seems like I had to replace it too many times. But still loved it.

[Honeycombe8]

3. Beetles are cute as a bug, but they are death traps.

Very unsafe. But they sure are among the cutest cars that ever existed. The Mini Cooper is right up there with it. An awesome looking vehicle.

[malthaussen]

4. This cannot stand.

VW will re-introduce the Beetle within five years.

Hey, my cracked crystal ball is as good as anyone else's.

-- Mal

[MichMan]

5. It had run it's course

Surprised it went on this long. Car has been in production since 1998. Anyone who wanted to buy one has already done so by now

Retro designed cars are challenging because they are difficult to restyle and still maintain the design cues that make them maintain a connection to the original .

[mithnanthy]

6. Best car I ever had.

I still miss it.

[BumRushDaShow]

7. I remember back in college

during the summer of '82, we packed 9 of us (counselors at the time) in one and drove from Amherst to the Cape (Brewster) in Massachusetts (true story).

They may look tiny on the outside but the originals with the bench seats in the back and front, were actually pretty roomy and could fit all kinds of folks!

[Aristus]

8. My little brother was three years old when he helped my father pick out a 1973 Super Beetle.

It's been in the family since then. The odometer broke sometime in the late eighties with close to a quarter of a million miles on it.

My brother restored the car in the late 1990's and still drives it once in a while. Incredible car. Practically indestructible.

[nykym]

9. I've got a

1959 Beetle in my yard just waiting for a resto.
along with my 69-72 franken-bus and a 81 rabbit pickup.
If anyone is interested I might part with them for the right price.

[JohnnyRingo]

10. I had a '67 back in the mid '70s

It was a gray sunroof model with a hand painted bug on the panel. It would crawl in or out when the sunroof was cranked. I loved it until someone turned left in front of me it. Now I wear a mustache.

Not the safest car I've owned, since the near head-on wreck totaled the Bug and the girl who turned in front of me gave me and my dog a ride home. I'd lost my license and just wanted away from the scene, so total loss of about $300 and some scars.

RIP Beetle.

[iscooterliberally]

12. I learned to drive in a '74 bug.

I took my driving test at 16 in a '73 bus. I really loved that little bug, but my dad destroyed it. We used to drive it out to concerts near the Everglades in the late 70s and early 80s. The bug could go just about anywhere the 4-wheel drive trucks could go. They were fun to drive back in the day, but they were not safe at all. Ah the memories!

[PatSeg]

13. The Beetle was such a big part of my life

I had five Beetles, one VW van, and a Karmann Ghia. I was never terribly impressed with the reboot though. There was something very special about the original Beetle.

[47of74]

14. I wish VW would have made an EV version of the Beetle convertible with the range of the Bolt.

I would have totally gone for one of those if it was an option.

[William Seger]

15. I owned two bugs and a Karmann Ghia

The Karmann Ghia -- really just a beetle with a cool Italian body -- was my first new car and my all-time favorite. I think I paid $2600 for it in 1970, which was only about $600 more than than a beetle that year.

[Gore1FL]

18. I didn't see this until I posted below.

I have a yellow one in my garage. Unfortunately, no fire is making it to the distributor, it has two flat tires, and recently the gas tank sprung a leak. One day when I get time, I'll finally get it running--or I'll convert it to electric.

[William Seger]

24. Did you ever drive it? They were fun

The VWs from that time were basically very similar to early Porches, but with punier engines. You sat lower in a KG, so it definitely "felt" more like a sports car than the beetle. I had a mechanic friend do what he had done to his VWs -- replaced the (pollution controlled) carburetor, replaced the vacuum-advance distributor with a mechanical one, and put on a glass-pack muffler -- and that extra 10hp made it even more fun.

[Gore1FL]

28. It sort of ran when I first got it, but it was a mess.

We managed to get most of that fixed and then the electrical system crashed. Since then life events and logistics got in the way of doing much more with it.

[maxsolomon]

16. The Bus re-boot needs to hurry up already

I had a '78, and I miss driving it.

Like sitting in a kitchen chair!

[DeminPennswoods]

19. According to the dealer where we bought

our last car (they have another dealership that sells VWs), VW is thinking about bringing back the mini-bus as an electric vehicle.

[maxsolomon]

20. They've been teasing a Bus re-boot for decades.

20 year old Eurovans go for >20K still. They've been shooting themselves in the foot.

[DeminPennswoods]

21. Just passing along what I heard a year ago

nt

[maxsolomon]

22. I've been hearing that too.

Didn't mean to jump down your throat - sorry if I came off that way.

I have Trump-related Anger Issues.

[DeminPennswoods]

23. no harm, no foul

[Gore1FL]

17. I was hoping they'd reboot the Karman Ghia.

I have a non-running 1974 in my garage.

[Paladin]

25. I'm betting The Bug won't be gone for long.

What's VW got, besides The Bug? A bunch of BMW wannabe models and rumors of the bus being re-introduced?

[jberryhill]

26. I blame Yoko Ono for the loss of the Beetles

[JustAnotherGen]

27. Whoa - I bought a silver white turbo last year

I'm seriously going to get a second hand car now - and use the turbo just for special.

[Scurrilous]

29. Best car I ever jump started.

[MountCleaners]

30. Ha! When I was young, my friend had a vintage Beetle...

I remember driving the streets of Chicago at night in it. It had a HOLE IN THE FLOOR on the passenger side and you could see the street underneath as you were driving. It was a convertible and you had to prop your feet up on the dash if you were riding passenger.

Classic beetle experience.

[sellitman]

31. My Dad had a Bright Yellow one with a sun roof

He loved that car. I think they will be back. Maybe in the form of a plug in electric. Give it time.

[BlueIdaho]

32. Loved my Beetles...

I had two of them - a 66 and 70. I really loved my Scirocco S too. For fun, my 1st. generation Rabbit was almost as fun as the Scirocco... Light, nimble, and it just hopped down the road.

[ooky]

33. I had 3 beetles

A standard version, an automatic stick version, and a rag top. Never cared for the reboot though.

If they would build one in the original convertible body I would probably buy it. My rag top was super fun to drive.

[Mr. Ected]

34. 1969

The Love Bug was released in 1969, not 1963.

[OriginalGeek]

35. The movie yes

But Herbie was a 63.

[LompocDem]

36. '61 Bug...

Was my first car. Bought it from my brother while he was in Vietnam in '68. It had a 10 gallon gas tank and no gas gauge. There was a reserve valve lever that you could switch with your right foot. Never put more than 3 bucks in the tank because the gas price in SoCal was around .32 cents a gallon back then. Had a '69 wagon in '81 for a surfmobile. Hopefully, restoring a '60-'65 Bug or Bus will be my retirement project.

Sad to see the demise of the Bug again after the disaster of the Super Beetle. The new incarnations didn't have the charm of the old ones.