The 2012 VW Beetle is exactly what the Beetle needed to be in this day and age. VW has gotten rid of the cute and overly feminine look for a much more mature look that draws much from Dr. Ferdinand Porsche’s original Volkswagen design.  

The Beetle is clearly now being marketed as more of a sports car than before, with the base engine offering 170hp and the 2.0T from the GTI putting out 200hp. The 2.0L diesel will also appear in the Beetle as well, for customers concerned with high gas mileage, but overall, the Beetle seems to be upping the fun factor by a serious amount. The interior is quite good, and the seats I experienced at the auto show were actually similar to the buckets from the Golf R.

It will however be interesting to see how the Beetle affects the Golf’s sales, especially the GTI given its similarity to the Beetle Turbo. Volkswagen seems to be banking on the practicality differences between the two cars, but I’m not entirely sure that will be enough to avoid some internal competition between these models. Either way, the 2012 Beetle seems to be aimed directly at the Mini Cooper, and I look forward to some epic retro hot hatch battles between them. The Fiat 500 Abarth should be a fun rival in this segment as well when it gets to the States. All in all, I am really looking forward to the Beetle’s arrival in showrooms, and definitely expect a test drive review when it does.

-Nick