The Beetle! – it is the successor to an automotive icon. The new car is considered the sportiest Beetle ever. Now Volkswagen is showing, in an Asian premiere at Auto China in Beijing, how this sportiness can also be transferred to a Beetle with pure electric drive. The E-Bugster was specially designed for this mission: a two-seat Beetle speedster, 85 kW in power, 0 to 100 km/h in 10.8 seconds, with zero emissions yet the sharpest of proportions.

Blue-e-Motion for a clean future

The central electric module of the E-Bugster has an innovative design; it weighs just 80 kg. The energy for powering the electric motor is stored in a lithium-ion battery whose modules are housed in a space-saving location behind the front seats. The battery’s energy capacity of 28.3 kWh enables a range of at least 180 km in the urban world. And even in an enormous country like China, for the majority of commuters this is sufficient to drive to their workplaces and return home. Since the Volkswagen has a quick charging function, the battery can be ‘refueled’ within 35 minutes at suitable charging stations. At home, the battery of the E-Bugster can also be charged from a conventional electric outlet. The interface for the charge cable is located behind the normal ‘fuel door’ near the C-pillar.

Thanks to a new Combined Charging System, the E-Bugster can be ‘filled up’ flexibly via one interface using any available charging modalities. Possible are:

• Single-phase charging with AC current
• Ultra-fast DC charging at charging stations (quick charge)

This will be based on a new, uniform industry standard for the connectors of future electric vehicles that will be available to all manufacturers. And this standardization goes beyond the plug itself: in the Combined Charging System, the charge controller and the electrical architecture must be able to handle all charging types. This will reduce costs and simplify widespread global implementation of electric mobility.

Charging the battery while braking

Just how much energy the driver of the E-Bugster is requesting with the ‘electric pedal’ at any moment is shown in a power display. Instruments also include a driving range indicator and a display showing the battery’s charge state. Also new in the Beetle is an instrument that shows the driver the intensity of battery regeneration. Regeneration refers to the recovery of braking energy: as soon as the driver’s foot leaves the accelerator pedal and/or brakes, kinetic energy is converted into electricity, which is stored in the battery. This increases the driving range of the E-Bugster. By the way, Volkswagen calls the complete electric drive unit Blue-e-Motion.

Visions become versions

Bugster? That sounds familiar. Of course: Ragster! That was in January 2005 in Detroit, where Volkswagen presented a New Beetle as a speedster with a swept-back ragtop (folding roof) – the Ragster. A design vision for the Beetle of tomorrow – wider, lower, sportier. In 2005, the slogan for the concept’s feasibility was expressed as: “Everything is conceivable!” In 2012, it had advanced to: “Everything is feasible!” Because the idea of the Ragster – wider, lower, sportier – became a reality (with the exception of the ragtop) in October 2011 in the current production Beetle. So, what does the name E-Bugster actually signify? That is easy to explain: a combination of the ‘E’ for electric models, the American nickname for the Beetle, ‘Bug’ and the vehicle type ‘speedster’ that describes a low, open-top two-seater.

Proportions of a sports car

The E-Bugster is a Beetle that could hardly be made to look more dynamic. Actually, it is a sports car. It has a height of less than 1,400 mm, which is about 90 mm less than that of the hard top Beetle. And the production model already looks really powerful with its sharply sculpted proportions. The E-Bugster’s width (1,838 mm) grew by 30 mm, while its length (4,278) remained the same as that of the production car. The E-Bugster displays unique dynamic styling from every viewing angle. Design details of the production version were supplemented by new styling elements. In its stance on the road, the concept car looks as though it were cast as a single piece. There is a very simple reason for this: in developing the production model introduced in October 2011, the Beetle design team had already considered all potential derivatives for future models on its radar screen of possibilities. And that is in part how a speedster with an E-motor evolved, the E-Bugster.

Bugster front and rear

In front, it is the swept-back and wide windscreen that catches the eye; its glass extends laterally to a point above the A-pillars. The E-Bugster, which is equipped with LED headlights, is also distinguished by the highly customized bumpers of the production Beetle: designers integrated the daytime running lights to the left and right of the central air intake as bands of LED lights in a C-shape (naturally mirrored on the right side). Ever since the e-up! concept car was presented in Europe, this form of daytime running light has been a feature on Volkswagen electric vehicle studies. These styling elements also appear in modified form as reflectors in the rear bumper, which was also redesigned. The rear windscreen of the E-Bugster proves that the rear windows of a speedster do not need to restrict visibility like the arrow slits in castle walls: it is extremely wide.

Speedster side profile

A speedster needs swept-back windows and a low roof, and the E-Bugster has them. First, let us survey the car’s profile. The wheels beneath the flared wheel housings are 20-inch versions of the 18-inch Beetle ‘Twister’ wheels, equipped with 235/35 R 20 tires. From the side sill, the viewer’s gaze moves upwards over the large, smooth continuous surface of the door and the contour line above the door handle that looks as though it were carved with a knife. Just a few centimeters above this point, the Beetle becomes a speedster: designers lengthened the chrome strip of the lower window border towards the rear; it now runs (as it did on the New Beetle Cabriolet) once around the car, from A-pillar to A-pillar. The hard top of the ‘Bug’ extends in a low arc above this chrome line. Following the roof radius – in classic speedster style – is the upper border of the side windows. The height between the chrome lower window border and the uppermost roof line is a low 400 mm. And that is how it should be for a speedster!

Progressive interior

The combination of high-tech equipment and dynamic performance is also reflected in the interior. Sport seats and a continuous centre tunnel in body color underscore the sportiness of the E-Bugster. The use of aluminum as the material for the door handles and belt guides, and the lightweight construction styling of the steering wheel also produce a direct connection between the exterior and interior. Starting the E-Bugster is a unique experience: the Start button not only activates the drive system; it also puts a light show into motion: first, the interior is immersed in a white light, then a blue light. It begins as a light pulse in the instrument cluster; from there the light emanates as a thin line of light, just one millimeter wide, coursing into the door window sills and around the air nozzles – a kind of visual awakening of the E-Bugster.

Notes:
All features, data and prices apply to models offered in China. They may differ in other countries. Subject to changes are errors.

TDI, TSI, DSG and Twincharger are registered trademarks of Volkswagen AG or other companies of the Volkswagen Group in Germany and other countries.

- Volkswagen AG

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Guitar and amplifier specialist Fender has long been a respected name among musicians. By the time of the Volkswagen Beetle’s world premiere in April 2011, the US audio brand had also made a name for itself in the automotive field: Fender sound engineers developed sound systems exclusively for Volkswagen, which – with the market launch of the Beetle – will now be offered worldwide. CNET.com, an American consumer web portal, named the Beetle’s high-quality Fender audio system the “Best-sounding car stereo” of the year 2011.

“The system’s excellent sound and its unbeatable price made the premium product this year’s winner,” explained the editors of CNET at their website. The award-winning Fender sound system is available in the Beetle at a price of 650 euros.

Lying at the heart of the Beetle Fender system is a 10-channel amplifier with 400 Watts of output power. Delivering full and detailed audio sound are four tweeters with neodymium magnets and high-end fabric domes, two woofers with dual voice coils, and two with a single voice coil. And as the icing on the cake, there is a subwoofer with a dual voice coil in an enclosed bass box that is located in a space-saving place in the boot.

Customers choosing the premium sounds of the Fender system in the Beetle also get interior ambience lighting with three-color adjustment. Additional chrome accents around the loudspeaker grilles are attractive as are the distinctive Fender logos on the mirror triangles and on the bass box.

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Still in a “design study” phase, Volkswagen offers up a look at the Beetle R on U.S. soil. Will it make it to production? Would it sell at a price tag similar to the Golf R’s $34K? One could easily reach these performance levels with APR software and a few add-ons. Do we like it? Yes, and the interior is superb.

At Volkswagen, the letter ‘R’ as an added identifier promises top-notch performance. Currently, this claim is being validated with turbo pressure by the Golf R with 199 kW / 270 PS of power and the Scirocco R (currently only in Europe) with 195 kW / 265 PS. In a USA premiere in Los Angeles, Volkswagen is now showing a third variation of this sporty theme: the Beetle R Concept. It is based on the 21st Century Beetle. Like its two larger siblings, the Golf R and Scirocco R, the R version of the Beetle was also created in the halls of Volkswagen subsidiary Volkswagen R GmbH. The Beetle R Concept is still a design study. Those who are familiar with the Beetle 2.0 TSI (147 kW / 200 PS) know the dynamic potential of this new car. As an ‘R’, the Beetle could demonstrate a performance potential similar to that of the Golf R and Scirocco R.

Exterior with 20-inch wheels

Visually, the Beetle R Concept, painted in ‘Serious Grey’, offers a glimpse of what a production version might look like. Outside, the concept is equipped with 20-inch ‘Talladega’ alloy wheels – whose styling is like that of the Golf R and Scirocco R. However, 18- and 19-inch wheels are mounted on those cars. Easy to spot on the Beetle’s wheels, which feature 5 triple spokes, are the blue brake calipers in R design.

Newly sculpted bumpers are wider

Designers completely redesigned the front and rear bumpers that were widened by 30 mm. In front, the bumper module practically consists of 3 air intakes, which are styled in contrasting ‘Black High Gloss’. The middle air intake supplies the engine with oxygen, while the outer two contribute to cooling the brakes. The front spoiler, also painted in ‘Black High Gloss’, is designed as a flat splitter (with a chrome strip); splitters of this kind are typically used in motorsport. To regulate engine temperature within an optimal range, even under extreme conditions, ventilation slots are found on the right and left sides of the engine bonnet.

The rear bumper also has air exhaust slots that are integrated in the aerodynamic concept of the Beetle R Concept. There is also a diffuser that is integrated in the lower bumper area. Together with the rear spoiler – which is significantly larger than the one on Beetle production models with up to 200 PS in power – and its black trailing edge, ideal downforce values are generated at the rear axle. A visual and acoustic highlight is the exhaust system with its 2 sets of dual chrome tailpipes.

On each side, the bumpers transition into the free-standing wings; they were also widened 15 mm per side. The side sills are styled in ‘Black High Gloss’; a high-end chrome trim strip is incorporated here. Also painted in ‘Black High Gloss’ are the roof, the upper part of the bootlid connecting to it, the door mirror housings and door handles.

Interior with Nappa leather sport seat system

As is usual on R models, the interior also makes a customized and sporty impression. In the front, the driver and passenger sit in motorsport shell seats with what are referred to as Ergopads made of gray nubuck leather. The seats are upholstered in black Nappa leather. Embossed on the seats is the R logo. The seat seams and piping are in the color ‘Space Blue’.

The contrast color ‘Black High Gloss’ that was already used on the exterior is used in the interior as well, such as for dashboard accents and decorative elements around the gear shift grip. Interior designers also styled the instruments to be R-specific. Modified here are the central instrument cluster (with tachometer in the middle, in the style of a sports car) and the auxiliary instruments laid out above the centre console. The door sill plates are upgraded with the R logo. Meanwhile, brushed aluminum is used for all pedal caps. Matching the seats with their blue piping are the fabric floor mats with their blue-black double borders.

Notes:
TDI, TSI, DSG and Twincharger are registered trademarks of Volkswagen AG or other companies of the Volkswagen Group in Germany and other countries.

- Volkswagen AG

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The completely newly developed Beetle from Volkswagen is the star of the Beetle Sunshine Tour, for which thousands of visitors are expected to come to the Baltic Sea shores at Travemunde on 13 August. On the show stages along the boardwalk, the 200 PS powerful Beetle of the 21st century is to be seen ten weeks before its market launch in October. It will be supported by live music by the Volkswagen Sound Foundation: Jenix, Feinkost and Wilhelm Tell Me will be playing in the Brugmanngarten.

Ten weeks before the market launch: Presentation of the new generation at the biggest Beetle get-together in the world in Travemunde

The automotive reunion of Volkswagen fans on the Baltic Sea has been taking place once a year since 2004. Many hundreds of Bug and Beetle drivers from all over Europe will get together there just to swap ideas about the “round Volkswagen,” as organizer Gaby Kraft points out. She refers to all models from the Beetle era and the era of the New Beetle and, for the first time this year, the new edition of the brand icon, the Beetle of the 21st century. Before the get-together takes place, the fan community will gather at the Volkswagen Center in Lubeck (Berliner Strasse) for a joint drive through the Hanseatic city at 1:00 p.m.

At the destination in Travemunde, there will be a feast for the ears starting at 4:00 p.m.: The Volkswagen Sound Foundation is bringing Jenix (pop), Feinkost (rock and club music) as well as Wilhelm Tell Me (electro pop) to the beaches of the Baltic Sea. More than 240 Beetles and New Beetles have registered for the Sunshine Tour so far; more drivers who are interested may register on the Internet at: www.beetle-sunshinetour.de.

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Here we go… Again a lot to late. Rumor has it that the VW Beetle R will pump out 270hp from the same TFSI engine that will go in to the Golf R.

The Beetle R version has been mentioned from the debut but a price point of roughly $27,100 Euro for the 200hp TFSI model where will the R fit in?

The Beetle R’s output of 270hp/258tq vs the Beetle Turbo’s 200hp gets you a bit more but lets (theoretically) upload APR’s software in and you’ll hit 254hp/303tq (2.0 TSI).

The price point will make it or break it. Will it be a limited production? We have yet to see the Golf R on U.S shores, so how long will it take to get here?

Special thanks to Luis Baston of Kane Design for the renderings.

- World Car Fans

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