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Volkswagen Beetle Cabrio

Catch the summer bug

Style or substance - which side of the fence are you on? Anyone buying a new VW Beetle Cabrio is likely to have both of their designer shoe-clad feet in the first camp. But just because it's got the look, does that mean the topless Bug is no good on the road?

By Martin Sharp

April 2003

Style or substance - which side of the fence are you on? Anyone buying a new VW Beetle Cabrio is likely to have both of their designer shoe-clad feet in the first camp. But just because it's got the look, does that mean the topless Bug is no good on the road? We got behind the wheel of the first right-hand-drive model in the UK to find out...

It's worth pointing out that VW is well aware of what style-conscious Beetle Cabrio buyers are after. This might help to explain why only 1.6-litre and 2.0 petrol engines are initially available. Priced ΂£17,515, our top-of-the-range car was powered by VW's ageing 2.0 8v engine, which is coarse at high revs and not especially economical. But it proves responsive, with good acceleration through the gears.

Sadly, the suspension is too soft and the steering too vague to offer any real driver satisfaction. Yet this is no surprise, as the car's primary target market is America, where cars are designed to cruise along wide open highways with the minimum of fuss.

VW is still playing the driver's card, though, and has made a lot of noise about the body's torsional rigidity. These claims are backed up by the Beetle's refinement. The ride is excellent for a convertible, with little scuttle shake and impressive motorway manners. It's quite breezy in open-top mode, but the driver can remain reasonably well insulated with the windows and rear wind deflector up. The power hood operation is swift, and the tonneau is very easy to fit.

With the roof up you get some wind noise, but it's not overly intrusive. And don't be fooled by the small boot opening - for an open-top motor there's actually a lot of stowage room, in part because VW has kept the hood on the outside of the car, in homage to the original drop-top Bug. However, the tonneau and optional wind deflector both eat into that load space when not being used. And as with many cabrios, rear passengers tend to lose out, due to a distinct lack of legroom.

Stylish touches include the CD changer, which is hidden in a lockable compartment in the armrest, and a clever button which raises and lowers all four windows at once.

That the Beetle Cabrio will reach its modest sales target of 3,000 is a safe bet. Ultimately, buyers have already decided to part with their money for its looks alone, as the driving experience is secondary to the panache of ownership. If you like to stand out from the crowd, the new VW won't let you down.

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FIRST OPINION

    To say the Cabrio will be popular is a huge understatement. Driving it is fun if hardly exhilarating, but buyers aren't interested in performance; this is a car that screams 'look at me'. It will nicely fill the cabrio hole in VW's range since the death of the topless Golf.
 

AT A GLANCE

    On sale now
    1.4-litre and 1.9 TDI to come
    Electric hood standard on all models except base 1.4
     
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