Alright, so you're probably all Beetled out at this point; what with my blog about Berlin, my first impressions review, what it's like to drive on German roads (behind the wheel of a Beetle), and now this. But, trust me, you want to read this one. This isn't going to be some year-by-year account of each model and how it's changed. Nope. Instead, I wanted to look at the Beetle as a living and breathing entity, because truly that's what it's become to so many.
This is a look at where the VW Beetle came from, and where it is now.
The Volkswagen Beetle is a part of everyone's history, no matter where they're from. Ask anyone, and I guarantee they'll have a Bug story to tell. Yours truly even has one: My very first automotive experience was in a baby-blue '70s-era Bug. My mother and father brought me home from the hospital in North Vancouver in it. Sure, the driver's door had to be tied shut with rope and the engine eventually lit the back seat on fire, but it was good while it lasted and well worth the $500 my mother originally paid for it. She still thinks about it fondly.
The more research I did on this spunky little car, the more I realized it's more about the overall experience of the Beetle than it is the model name (which only came about because of the nickname it was given), engine size or even the driveability. This car is all about the story, the experience, the feeling. And I think that's absolutely amazing.
Some told me about how the Beetle was their very first car, or the car they used on their first date. Others told me stories about their parents owning a Beetle and how they remembered the bumpy, loud ride in the back. While others still told me tales of trays over holes in the floor; mirrors held on with duct tape; hoses attached to heaters to bring the heat to the windscreen in the winter; and all these stories were told with smiles and laughs. Everyone loved their Beetle, no matter what condition, no matter what the circumstance. The memories were fond and the emotions were high.
There are very few cars on the road today that can evoke emotional reactions. Sure, Ferraris and Lambos are up there, but that's a given. The only other car I can think to compete with the Beetle's emotional evocation is the MINI. But, I'm not here to talk about that...
This is a look at where the VW Beetle came from, and where it is now.
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| In all their glory, a lineup of 1938 VW Beetles. (Photo: Volkswagen) |
The Volkswagen Beetle is a part of everyone's history, no matter where they're from. Ask anyone, and I guarantee they'll have a Bug story to tell. Yours truly even has one: My very first automotive experience was in a baby-blue '70s-era Bug. My mother and father brought me home from the hospital in North Vancouver in it. Sure, the driver's door had to be tied shut with rope and the engine eventually lit the back seat on fire, but it was good while it lasted and well worth the $500 my mother originally paid for it. She still thinks about it fondly.
The more research I did on this spunky little car, the more I realized it's more about the overall experience of the Beetle than it is the model name (which only came about because of the nickname it was given), engine size or even the driveability. This car is all about the story, the experience, the feeling. And I think that's absolutely amazing.
Some told me about how the Beetle was their very first car, or the car they used on their first date. Others told me stories about their parents owning a Beetle and how they remembered the bumpy, loud ride in the back. While others still told me tales of trays over holes in the floor; mirrors held on with duct tape; hoses attached to heaters to bring the heat to the windscreen in the winter; and all these stories were told with smiles and laughs. Everyone loved their Beetle, no matter what condition, no matter what the circumstance. The memories were fond and the emotions were high.
There are very few cars on the road today that can evoke emotional reactions. Sure, Ferraris and Lambos are up there, but that's a given. The only other car I can think to compete with the Beetle's emotional evocation is the MINI. But, I'm not here to talk about that...
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| Beetle through the ages, from 1938 (left) up to 1976 (right). (Photo: Volkswagen) |