As expected, Volkswagen has confirmed the end of production of the current New Beetle and New Beetle Cabriolet models.
An all-new version of the reincarnated classic will debut internationally later this year and Volkswagen insiders have told Car Showroom while it will have some cues to the iconic original, it will be a totally modern interpretation – unlike the existing model which closely mirrored the classic German.
In the meantime, Australian Volkswagen dealers are now taking orders for the remaining New Beetle models with no new stock coming from Volkswagen’s assembly plant in Puebla, Mexico.
The current New Beetle models ride on chassis architecture which is no longer part of Volkswagen’s worldwide lineup.
By any measure, Volkswagen’s second go at the Beetle concept – which was conceived by Volkswagen in North America – has been a success.
In fact the New Beetle was the lynchpin which brought the company back from the brink in North America – its creation and marketing chronicled in a book written by David Kiley entitled Getting The Bugs Out – The Rise, Fall and Comeback of Volkswagen in North America.
