“You would have to search every crevice in this house to find it, and who wants to do that?”
Out of all the things my father could expect to come out of my mouth, an inquiry regarding the whereabouts of a trinket from the 1998 New York Auto Show was probably near the bottom of his list. But it was important for me to locate the one tangible item connecting me to my automotive awakening.
I had always known we were a bit different than the other families in our cul-de-sac. One of the most obvious examples was the automotive fleet in our driveway. Unlike the other households in suburban New York, my dad’s vehicles were (and still are) older and have quite a number of miles on them. Throughout the years his vehicular loyalties have shifted, but during the Clinton administration they were aimed squarely towards Volkswagen.
Now to be fair, my dad wasn’t interested in owning the New Beetle (although he would purchase a Golf some years later), he was drawn to the massive press surrounding the car. And for good reason: like those ever ubiquitous Head On commercials, the hype was everywhere. It was certainly justified; the Beetle nameplate was still popular throughout the United States, and its re-imagining took its best aesthetic qualities and modernized them. Unlike the 1996 Ford Taurus, this was a “no hard corners” design that resonated with most people.
And it wasn’t just the exterior that was endowed with good looks either. Especially with that black-and-tan combo, the Beetle interior manages to simultaneously broadcast a warm environment with that steely German sturdiness. Like the Golf and Jetta that would start arriving on American shores in MK. IV form, the New Beetle evoked a sense of quality that wouldn’t be matched by the competition for quite some time.
The funny thing about New York City is that all of the television shows and films extolling its magical essence are exactly right. They’re also inaccurate, in a sense that they cannot translate the experience well enough to substitute actually taking a trip there. For example, my first NYC memory involved dodging human excrement while navigating between two moving subway cars on the way to the Jacob Javits Center, the location of the New York Auto Show. It was both an exhilarating and slightly terrifying event, a feeling that has been replicated on subsequent trips to the Big Apple.
And what better way to first experience New York’s biggest city than by going to such a big event? All of the people and cars huddled together, judging one another…it made me realize that cars were more than just transportation devices. I’m sure every contributor and comment writer here has a similar story, but it was this event – and the introduction of the New Beetle – that really opened my eyes that man and machine really go hand in hand.
When you’re young, pop culture plays a large part in forming how you interpret the world. That I continue to personify cars well into adulthood can in no doubt be attributed to my passion for The Love Bug, which was amplified when I found out that the Beetle nameplate would be revived. It didn’t have to be the same exact car, because the Beetle was being resurrected, dammit! The friendly face would be returning to driveways everywhere.
At the intersection of personal experience and pop culture came the trinket you see before you. Mine was red, but otherwise it looked exactly the same. These were given out at the ’98 show after waiting in a very long line. We didn’t realize why it would take so long to receive one until we noticed that they were making them right on the spot – a plastics molding machine would press them right before your eyes! I still vividly remember holding the still-warm pen holder in my hands wondering how they were able to craft such an item in so short a time.
Although our automotive loyalties have shifted, I’m going still going to consider this post a love letter to Volkswagen. It’s also a shout out to NY and the Auto show. More importantly, the trip also reflects the multi-cultural aspect of our environment (these are German products being consumed by Americans, after all) and the influence they produce in our lives. It’s a wonderful thing to be able to trace your passion from one instance, and I hope all of you can do the same for you interests as well, even if it didn’t involve a New Beetle pen holder.
I have a picture of my very young daughter sitting in one of these at the Omaha auto show around 2000 when she was three. Kids seemed naturally drawn to them even without a sense of VW history. This always seemed like a “girls” car. I like the way they butched up the latest version.
Sitting side by side the original version does not look that much like the original. But the two modern generations still look iconic standing alone.
I remeber when all the hype started over this car. I was about 5 years old when I first saw a picture of one in a newpaper my grandfather showed me. Naturally the old Beetle was one of the first cars I knew and got excited seeing. I knew it was an “oldie” that had been around for some time, so news of a new one got me really excited.
For my 5th or 6th birthday, I received a yellow 1/18 scale model and a relative surprised me with a borrowed red company Beetle for the day. That was the first one I experienced in person if I recall.
My hip middle-aged neighbors, the Greens, bought a black New Beetle when they first came out as well. I remember it was the buzz of the neighborhood for that year.
I was about 6 or 7 when the New Beetle was released, and I remember the “engine is in the front…but the heart is in the same place” commercial. Like you, the old Beetle was one of the first cars (at least classic cars) that I could recognize, so it was exciting to me!
I also remember the New Beetle dressed up as Pikachu and the Beetles in “Midtown Madness”.
I used to love Midtown Madness. One of my favorite computer games of all time! That and the Eldorado were my favorite cars to drive/crash/outrun cops that didnt do anything but crash into you.
Midtown Madness! I remember that game very fondly. Not sure where I put the disk though.
I always wanted to get that game, due to the Eldorado Touring Coupe alone! But never did 🙁
That must be the reason I like the last Eldorado so much!
I could easily put up with one,I like old cars but I’ve had enough of skinned knuckles and spare parts made from Unobtanium!
Nailed it. EVERYBODY lusted after these when they came out, and for years after, at least until the early one’s warranties ran out. Thats when the sparkle started to tarnish, I think. My aunt bought a low milage off-lease 2003 Bug in 2007 and it’s currently running its third transmission and second engine. My other Bug experience was a blue TDi that a former housemate’s girlfriend had. It seemed to be kaput as often as it wasn’t, mostly due to electrical problems.
Edward, great story about a watershed event for Volkswagen. In the mid to late 90’s, VW in America was a non-factor in the minds of most American car buyers. The quirky Rabbit had given way to the Golf and with it I believe most people here just got tired of the boring box on wheels concept. The Concept 1 showcar took care of that.
The Concept 1 made all of the car magazines of the day and the enthusiasm whipped up for the idea of a modern Beetle must have convinced Herr Piech and company that the car must be built.
I bought my NB TDI based on my enthusiasm for the design by Freeman Thomas and J Mays and a very favorable review in Car and Driver by the great Brock Yates, who loved the car. I knew the older VW diesels were stout and returned great fuel mileage; little did I know how refined the TDI engine was. 55 mpg up to this day after 13 years of ownership convinced me it was the smartest purchase I have ever made.
In my opinion, the New Beetle saved Volkswagen in America and helped make them the worldwide powerhouse they later became. It also helped snap them out of their own lethargy in both design and concept. That it survives in a second generation is proof that we still love the idea of a modern day Beetle for sale in today’s showroom. It still remains an icon, from the Classic Beetle up to the 2nd Gen Modern Beetle.
The New Beetle Concept 1 and the Dodge Viper show car started the entire Retro Craze that carries on to this day with the Camaro, Challenger, Mustang, Fiat 500, Mini Cooper along with the return of hallowed names like Charger and Corvette Stingray. Not bad for a concept car that a large group of Volkswagen suits at the time wanted nothing to do with!
Unfortunately the new Beetle did not capture the spirit of the original one, the new Beetle should have been designed around a rear trans-axle air cooled engine , just like the original , The project is still open ,
I am sure that some day a car company will bring out a twin cam , four valve turbo, fuel injected variable timing air cooled flat four, all aluminium 1300 cc engine .
This engine then should be matched to a 6 speed trans-axle , and the authentic new beetle should be the same size as the original one , even a new generation torsion bar suspension should be designed to give the feel of the original Beetle.
The first time I saw the new Beetle , I was disgusted, VW took young people as idiots , disguising a Golf as a Beetle , the young buyers who got in the trap will never experience the feel of the real one with this incompetent pretender,
That was not enough for VW , and then they created the monstrosity which is that huge Gen III Beetle, this one is a Passat disguised as a Beetle. Not any other a car company has ridiculed its heritage like this.
Ferdinand Porsche could never have imagined such a deviation of his creation. Shame, shame on you VW.
Gee, how do you really feel….? I guess with a car as polarizing as the NB, the thoughts can run both ways…Years ago I had a ’67 Bug, and wifeys ’08 NB is nothing like it, so I get what you mean, but I do smile everytime I drive it, as it is just that kind of car….everyone thinks its cool, and I can therefore understand the cultish following the NB has…
Ouch! I actually find it amazing that the NB has developed it’s own set of followers. Personally I was very excited when it came out, but disappointed with that dash top distance to the windshield.
The Gen II Beetle is far better in many ways. The convertible, in black, shows for me a very distinct but distant relationship line to the first Porsches.
I don’t think an air-cooled engine will fly in the modern day with the emissions regs and different expectations of noise suppression. I’m also of the opinion that a rear-engine layout ‘works’ nowadays either, and I own rear-engine cars.
In any case it would be cost-prohibitive due to the low volume of the unique engine and body shell required.
People mistakenly think the New Beetle is the car that saved VW in North America when really it was the Jetta III. The high beltline and tall roof made anyone who sat in it look ridiculously short from the outside. Aside from the retro styling the car didn’t have much going for it. It lacked the functionality of the Plymouth PT Cruiser, fun to drive characteristics of the new Mini and performance of the Mustang and Camaro.
The popularity of cars like like the Beetle don’t last long. The Audi TT was of the same ilk. Have no idea why they bothered replacing either one, the second gens have been huge failures.
I liked the article though Edward.
Nice piece, Edward. You bring to mind my first NB experience. The Mrs. and I were visiting some friends, and one of them had a brother who had won one in a contest. He drove it over and let everyone who was interested take a short turn behind the wheel. I, of course, was interested.
The looks of these never did much for me (thought the convertible from a rear 3/4 angle was an alluring car) and the vantage point behind the wheel was certainly unique. I sort of liked the car after that short drive.
It did certainly take on a “chick car” image thereafter, maybe it was the built-in flower vase with the plastic daisy in it. However, a friend (a male) owned one with a turbo and reported that it was a hoot to drive.
I used to think the same thing about NBs–cars for ladies. Then my Uncle Dave bought an ’07 convertible in ’08, and I finally drove one. What a fun car! Great handling and plenty of pep. I can see why folks like these things so much.
And whatever bugs (pun intended) the early ones had, they seemed to be OK towards the end of the run, as theirs has been quite trouble-free.
I liked these cars. Just so different than the corollas, sentras and civics around. Also, it seemed that a nicer, more enlightened folk drove these things. Cannot believe how many I see still with that flower in the dash. Also heard that if you were really tall that this was the car for you. Major headroom. I just think it is cute. Totally benevolent even the few murdered out renditions I’ve seen. I still like these. I still get that urge to wave when I see a yellow one.
My boys, who are 4 and 6, always call out every Bug they see, new or old, and invariably discuss with each other whether it was an “Old-fashioned” one or a “New-fashioned” one. Very funny, especially since we’ve never had one nor do we know anyone with one currently. They just kind of picked it up on their own somehow…
Well, you already know where I stand on the NB… I still have my copy of Auto magazine with the Concept 1 on the cover; I decided right then and there that car would be my next…