Our spy photographers have managed to capture the 2012 New Beetle coupe completely undisguised and without any pesky camouflage. Be forewarned: If you loved the funky curves of the last model, the newest New Beetle will take a little getting used to. The overall design appears to include a lower roofline and flatter nose—which might allow for a wider range of engines under the hood.
VW will likely address some of our recent complaints about the current New Beetle. After 13 years in production (that’s right, the VW New Beetle hasn’t actually been all that ‘new’ in quite a long time) the car’s tight rear seating, limited cargo room and, most recently, some sub-par safety ratings have dented its image. While few cars offer as much cuteness and nostalgia as the outgoing New Beetle, this fact remains—the competition has moved the game on since the car’s introduction.
The New Beetle’s lower greenhouse is flatter and much less rounded than before, which should permit a welcome boost in rear headroom. A longer rear end and more vertical back glass also hint at an increase in cargo capacity. At the moment, a 2010 New Beetle offers 12 cubic feet of luggage space. A 2010 VW Golf offers only a fractionally more (12.4) but the practical hatchback layout and square-shaped trunk make the available room much more useful.
A170-bhp 2.5-liter 5-cylinder engine will be standard in the 2012 New Beetle, mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic transmission. It remains to be seen whether the New Beetle convertible—presently offered only with an automatic—receives a manual transmission.
The current New Beetle is priced at $19,440, which is a good deal of money for a car that has limited its functionality in the spirit of nostalgia. Of late, VW has been extremely aggressive with bringing down the sticker-price of new models, particularly with the new Jetta and Passat sedans. It remains to be seen whether the 2012 New Beetle will similarly undercut the outgoing model’s base price, but it wouldn’t surprise us if it did.