VW New Beetle: Gets more-macho tweaks

The VW New Beetle gets more horsepower and another cylinder.

Bumpers now flow into the fenders. Turn signals in the front bumper are slimmer, headlamps more oval and tail lamps larger, with turn signals inside. There's also more pronounced wheel arches and an oval fuel filler door in place of the rectangular one.

Still, from 100 yards you can tell it's a Beetle and would have to park alongside a 2005 to detect the differences.

The styling changes were to give the car a stronger, more masculine appearance. Beetle has gotten to be known as a woman's car favored by those who'd take cute over quick. About 70 percent of the buyers are women.

VW went more macho by dropping the anemic 2.0-liter, 115-horsepower four-cylinder in favor of the 2.5-liter, 150-horsepower five-cylinder in Jetta now and coming in the new Rabbit this fall.

The five-cylinder is teamed with a five-speed manual as standard, a six-speed automatic with Tiptronic manual mode shifting as a $1,075 option. The test car had the short-throw manual.

With the 2.0-liter four you'd look out the side windows every once in a while to ensure someone on a Schwinn wasn't about to pass.

Related news: GermanCarBlog, P4MR, VW New Beetle

Source: Mercury News, picture by VW

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