I was out racing around at the local boulevard and was very surprised by a beatle that was even with my mr-2 if not a little faster. I mean the mr-2 is no rocket but its not slow by any means and this beatle was right next to me and even pulled on me the first run. I talked to the guy and hes running a few upgrades on a 1.8 turbo with a 6 speed. He said exactly what I was thinking, nobody expects a beatle to be fast. My only question was did he buy the beatle just for that purpose or mod out his girlfriends car? No offense to anyone who likes the new bugs but I feel as though its the last thing a man would drive.

 

yeah, beatles are kinda fruity for the fellas, but they do make a Sport version which comes with a 6speed 180 hp engine. then you add some light APR tuning, you have a good 220 HP to the ground, if not more.

 

The "Sport" version you're referring to is the Beetle Turbo S model with the 1.8 Turbo engine at 180 HP. (Get the spelling right...it's BEETLE, not BEATLE. John and George are dead...there's only two Beatles left...Paul and Ringo).
Though I don't believe in automotive stereotypes, and I don't recommend vehicles based on "image" or other people in general think of them, it IS true that non-turbo Beetles...especially the convertibles... do appeal a lot to women...the sales figures do show a distinct female bias in the customer base. But a number of older male baby-boomers who grew up with the original Beetle in the 50's and 60's are buying the new one, and the Turbo S model is distinctly less "feminine" than the base model. The little flower holder in the current Beetle is more a throwback to the " flower-power " hippie drug generation of the late 60's that drove mostly VW's back then than it is to today's females.

 

nod nod

 

Excellent write-up M. I agree with every bit of it.

-Anthony

 

i'd personally never buy one... but to each their own.

 

Well, also keep in mind that whatever you think of a Beetle personally, they have not been reliable...especially compared to Hondas and Toyotas....and the Turbo just adds that many more parts under the hood to fail.

 

Actually what your saying is not 100% accurate. There is a "sport" version of the Bug. there are 4 basic versions which then spawn diffrent models. there is the basic bug (2.0, 1.8t, TDI), the turbo sport (180 hp 1.8t), the Turbo S (180hp 6speed ), and the finally the crapvertible (turbo, 2.0). the sport and the s are two diffrent animals. The Sport has a color matched interoir, including the leather, with no body kit and the color matched covers for the thin five spoke wheels. The S on the other hand has the body kit with the full face silver wheels. it doesnt come with the color coded interior, just the body kit, suspension and the beefy engine. But the S and the Sport both share the 180hp engine. so before you get your panties in twist about the spelling, check your facts first. Plus, all bugs, gtis (except for the r32), and jettas that come to north america are made in Mexico, thats why they are such crap cars. The Passat, which is going to be phased to mexican production, the Toureg, and the Phaeton are currently the only models still built in Germany. As for them appealing to girls mainly, its true. there is not two ways around it. VWs way of correcting that is by putting bigger wheels on it, a body kit and changing the flower vase from a clear container to a stainless steel version for the turbo S. Never the less, there are some bugs out there that will beat the snot out of a lot of the cars on this board.