It was weeks before my college graduation, and I had accepted a yearlong internship that required me to travel across the country. And I was going to take him with me.
He was silver, shiny and round — a 2001 VW New Beetle. And he smelled like a box of new crayons. I drove him home that day, and for the past 10 years, Fitch and I have been in love.
We have more than 95,000 miles of memories. Sure, I’ve been tempted by the flash and fancy of the Toyota Prius and the Mini Cooper.
I never test-drove either. I realized every relationship was going to hit a rocky road or two. And I’m a Volkswagen girl.
At least I thought I was.
Last week, Volkswagen unveiled the new New Beetle. And this 2012 version is so new it looks more like a Porsche than a Beetle.
It used to greet you with a smile; now it smirks. It’s all sexy. They even ditched the flower vase.
“More power, less flower,” is what Klaus Bischoff, head of design for the Volkswagen brand, said at a New York unveiling event.
“We wanted to give it a whole new character,” he said. “We wanted to make a dynamic, sportier, more masculine car.”
I couldn’t help but feel offended. It’s as if they felt the car was too feminine, and they didn’t like that.
Apparently, 61 percent of 2010 New Beetle purchasers were women. Even Oprah named it one of her favorite things last year in her big, favorite giveaway episode. The audience members from that day, mostly women, will receive this more masculine Beetle.
But VW wants the split between its male and female buyers to be even, 50-50. I honestly didn’t realize it was a girl car. Instead, I always looked at it as a car that dared to be different.
The new Beetle is the descendent of the old VW Bug. You know the car that inspired Herbie the Love Bug and Bumblebee of Transformers? Both are guys. My car is a guy.
But he’s a nice guy — the kind who brings me flowers and smells like crayons. He’s part of the cute, fun collection of VWs that instigates games of “slug bug” and “punch buggy.”
This new New Beetle, he’s more like a Mini Cooper, a Porsche, something you’d see Austin Powers driving.
He doesn’t open your door for you. He has keyless entry. He’s all about status with his Bluetooth and navigation systems.
I like the amenities, I do. Who wouldn’t want a sunroof that reflects UV radiation? Not to mention the new model is expected to get up to 44 miles per gallon on the highway. It’s sure to sell.
But I can’t shake the “more power, less flower,” sentiment. It feels very exclusive and a little sexist for a car that’s known as a pop culture icon.
On its road to make over the New Beetle, the company forgot the magic. Or maybe I’ve just fallen off the Volkswagen.
Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/04/24/2822994_ive-been-jilted-by-vws-new-beetle.html?storylink=omni_popular#ixzz1KXaY1i3U