Volkswagen says goodbye to the iconic Beetle hatchback

MANILA: One of the most iconic hatchbacks of all-time has finally reached to its last innings. Yes, the Volkswagen Beetle will be phased out by the end of this year and will be replaced by the recently introduced ID Buzz electric as a new heritage model. The news was confirmed by the R&D boss, Frank Welsch who further added that the decision was taken by looking at consistently falling sales figures of the hatchback.

The VW ID Buzz electric concept, which takes cues from the Type 2 Transporter will be officially introduced as a retro-inspired model in the company’s lineup. According to Welsch, “Two or three generations is enough for the Beetle. The hatchback was designed by keeping history in mind but, you cannot just repeat it several times to offer an entirely new Beetle.”

It is still unknown who suggested the idea of Beetle, speculations suggest that it was Joseph Ganz while some hint towards Ferdinand Porsche who received orders from Adolf Hitler. The car was used as a propaganda in the Second World War and soon after it, the hatchback started gaining a lot of appreciation. It was in 1988 that the manufacturer decided to give a major update to the Beetle and in 2003, it was introduced as convertible and coupe options too. The manufacturer took a very long time to introduce the second-generation model and in 2011, it was first introduced in the European market.

The recently confirmed T-Roc convertible will be a replacement for the Beetle Cabriolet while the Golf and Eos convertible models’ future is still not decided. In future, the role of a ‘heritage’ model will be served by the all-new VW Microbus which is expected to land in the global markets by 2022. The Microbus will be based on the all-new MEB (electric car platform of the company).

Let’s see how the upcoming Microbus will be able to carry the rich heritage of the outgoing Volkswagen Beetle.