2013 Volkswagen Beetle Cabriolet announced

[Wimbledon]

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/la...olet-announced

Most Beetle Cabriolets will have a torsion beam suspension arrangement. Only the 2.0 TSI will have a multilink rear setup

These are the first pictures of the 2013 Volkswagen Beetle Cabriolet. It will make its public debut at the LA motor show in November.

The Beetle Cabriolet features a soft top which folds in ten seconds. Unlike the car it replaces, the roof “lies very flat, enabling good vision to the rear”.

Seven engine options will be available, closely mirroring the hatchback model. A 103bhp 1.2-litre TSI petrol engine will be available from launch, with a Bluemotion Technology version soon after. A 158bhp 1.4 TSI and 197bhp 2.0 TSI will complete the petrol range. Diesel choices will include a 103bhp 1.6-litre TDI offered with, or without Bluemotion Technology, and a 138bhp 2.0-litre TDI.

A Volkswagen spokesman confirmed the Beetle Cabriolet will feature the hatchback’s multllink front and torsion beam rear suspension. Only the range-topping 2.0 TSI model will carry a more sophisticated four-link rear arrangement.

Like the Beetle hatchback, the Cabriolet will be built in Volkswagen’s plant in Puebla, Mexico, sharing the same platform as the Jetta, itself a modified version of the Golf Mk6 platform.

The Cabriolet will be fitted with an active rollover protection system featuring two extendable modules behind the rear seat backs activated, in the event of a rollover, via the airbag control unit. Volkswagen says the system will deploy in milliseconds, providing front and rear protection for all four occupants.

No pricing has been revealed, but it is expected Cabriolet models will attract a premium of between £2500 to £3000 over the hatchback, with the first deliveries arriving next summer. More details will be revealed at the car’s public unveiling in Los Angeles.

[S4cabriofox]

Nice.

[Ungarisch]

the royaly fuq'd up the roof on this one. Notice how theres not 1 single rear shot, and the one shot that has the roof mechanism shown is covered by a model chick.

previous beetle by comparison, beautiful soft-top mechanism, especially with the cover on. No exposed rails:

[Benkennedy11]

... and sorority girls rejoice.

[Klim18]

No flower cup, no care.

[VWFSIB6]

[CK98Beeetle]

This photo came up on the Vortex home page, and I said "Damn! That looks good!" out loud. No one else around. Color me impressed.

[PJA]

Looks like the McDowell Mountains in Arizona, east of Phoenix...

[mikegilbert]

What is with that girl's jeans? They're baggier than the dude's pair.

[Ungarisch]

What is with that girl's jeans? They're baggier than the dude's pair.

they widened here in photoshop to cover that hideous retractable room mechanism.

[Mazda 3s]

Wut?

[rich!]

What is with that girl's jeans? They're baggier than the dude's pair.

they swapped... dudes in skinny, chicks in baggy

looks like they swapped shoes too...

[Swallow Doretti]

The black mirrors look terrible, and are an obvious sign of cost-cutting. They should be body color.

Otherwise, looks fine.

[Mazda 3s]

The black mirrors look terrible, and are an obvious sign of cost-cutting. They should be body color.

Otherwise, looks fine.

Black mirrors look fine to me:

[TOMPASS]

Showing your brand new car next to a "Mechanic on Duty" sign, priceless.

[Swallow Doretti]

Black mirrors look fine to me:

I think they look fine on the hardtop Golf R, but on the Beetle Convertible, without a top, they look cheap.

[Mazda 3s]

I think they look fine on the hardtop Golf R, but on the Beetle Convertible, without a top, they look cheap.

You see, I think the complete opposite. It provides a nice accent instead of being all body color. It's the same way that I like the black trim below the doors on the convertible. It provides a break of color. It also lessens the visual impact/appearance of the mirrors as well IMHO on the convertible.

If the car was all the same color, it'd look cheaper IMHO.

It's the same way that I think a Sonata looks better with chrome door handles and chrome grille versus having both of those items body color on the cheaper models.

[ClownCar]

Dude head on lady body and lady head on dude body.

[Swallow Doretti]

You see, I think the complete opposite. It provides a nice accent instead of being all body color. It's the same way that I like the black trim below the doors on the convertible. It provides a break of color. It also lessens the visual impact/appearance of the mirrors as well IMHO on the convertible.

I think if it the mirrors were chrome, I'd like it better. Black just looks cheap to me, because I know it's purely a cost-cutting move.

[ATL_Av8r]

At they put alloys on it. Not those goddamn steelies with chrome hubcaps like the coupe

[MRVW00]

Around the world homosexuals, nostalgic housewives, and fat chicks rejoice.

(I'm a homosexual, and I approved this message.)

[too_slow]

The local VW dealership has tons of Beetles on the lot, but I have seen EXACTLY one base 2.5 on the road. This is a city littered with every variation of a Mini you can find, as well as lots of Golfs/GTi's. They should have just sold the Jetta Coupe

[MJZman]

At they put alloys on it. Not those goddamn steelies with chrome hubcaps like the coupe

Actually, they are aluminum wheels, believe it or not. Still a fail though.

[Volksboy]

[Brimjolt]

cant wait to see hot chicks drive in these in the summer.

[silverspeedbuggy]

At they put alloys on it. Not those goddamn steelies with chrome hubcaps like the coupe

Those are actually alloys.

[jamie@vwvortex]

I think if it the mirrors were chrome, I'd like it better. Black just looks cheap to me, because I know it's purely a cost-cutting move.

No you don't.

The regular coupe Beetle has body colored mirrors, so this isn't a cost cutting move.

Knowing how ridiculously nit-picky the VW design team is about completely inane crap, I'm betting there was some design reason to make the mirrors black. Probably was debated endlessly and took months to make a decision as well.

[eunos94]

Black paint costs as much as any other paint so how is THAT a cost cutting move?

[feels_road]

Showing your brand new car next to a "Mechanic on Duty" sign, priceless.

My first thought, as well. And they should drop those baggy pants - one way or another.

The local VW dealership has tons of Beetles on the lot, but I have seen EXACTLY one base 2.5 on the road. This is a city littered with every variation of a Mini you can find, as well as lots of Golfs/GTi's. They should have just sold the Jetta Coupe

Sells just fine in the US - 2,622 - best September for Beetle since 2003.

No you don't.

The regular coupe Beetle has body colored mirrors, so this isn't a cost cutting move.

Knowing how ridiculously nit-picky the VW design team is about completely inane crap, I'm betting there was some design reason to make the mirrors black. Probably was debated endlessly and took months to make a decision as well.

Yeah, that's my guess as well. There's a lot of black trim all over the place and the black roof - they probably thought it matches better.

(Very) large images here.

[Son]

German video- and photographers seem to like this location.

[Son]

Just show me one that's lowered on some larger Porsche wheels.

[WD-40]

Black paint costs as much as any other paint so how is THAT a cost cutting move?

The paint itself isn't the expense. Managing inventories of unique parts is where the production costs add up.

If every car on the assembly line uses black mirrors, then they only have to produce, transport, store, and install two parts- a left mirror and a right mirror. If they build with color-matched mirrors, then they have 18 separate parts to manage instead.

[nairmac]

the royaly fuq'd up the roof on this one. Notice how theres not 1 single rear shot, and the one shot that has the roof mechanism shown is covered by a model chick.

previous beetle by comparison, beautiful soft-top mechanism, especially with the cover on. No exposed rails:

When I first saw these pics it seemed really obvious that the model was positioned to block the roof in the down position in profile. Too obvious, like they know it's ugly too.

[Shomegrown]

No you don't.

The regular coupe Beetle has body colored mirrors, so this isn't a cost cutting move.

Knowing how ridiculously nit-picky the VW design team is about completely inane crap, I'm betting there was some design reason to make the mirrors black. Probably was debated endlessly and took months to make a decision as well.

The cost cutting may be used to help offset the extra cost of the power cabrio top + structural reinforcements that come with chopping the roof off.

[feels_road]

The cost cutting may be used to help offset the extra cost of the power cabrio top + structural reinforcements that come with chopping the roof off.

Sure, if the Beetle had a thousand mirrors!