Video: Sleeper 1978 VW Beetle Packs a 5.7-liter V8 Super Punch

A 'sleeper' car is defined as a super-fast vehicle with deceptive, run-of-the-mill looks. They can come in many forms and shapes, but the basic idea remains the same.

One of the more popular options for those looking to build a sleeper is the original Volkswagen Beetle, which is factory form is a total buzz killer. The owner of this modified Bug tried to keep the looks of the car as close to stock as possible, but underneath, it's a completely different story.

Read more »

Company Launches CD with Original Volkswagen Beetle Sounds

It may be too late for Father’s Day, but there’s nothing stopping you from picking up The Beetles: Greatest Sounds of the ‘60s and ‘70s for dad as a very early Christmas present.

Not to be confused with The Beatles, a little known British band that has all but faded into obscurity, The Beetles is a CD of car sounds dating from 1960 to 1978. And not just any car sounds: Volkswagen Beetle car sounds…

Yes, you can now rock out to such timeless classics as “Gears 1 - 2”, “Long Idle” and “Turn-Off, Handbrake”. With 30 tracks (well, 10 tracks spread across 3 different engines), your dad will be over the moon will this mass produced one-of-a-kind CD.

Read more »

IAA 2011: Volkswagen Pays Tribute to Fender with New Beetle Concept

The high-performance Beetle R Concept was joined at VW's Frankfurt Motor Show stage by a second conceptual study that pays tribute to famed U.S.-based music instrument manufacturer, Fender.

Mimicking the styling used on an electric guitar customized by Volkswagen Design, the Fender Telecaster, the bespoke Beetle study is painted in a high-gloss "Black" finish with a fine red line framing the side windows.

Read more »

IAA 2011: Volkswagen Beetle R Concept Hints at 260HP+ Production Model

Ever since it became known that Volkswagen was developing the new generation of the Beetle, there were rumors about a high-performance variant wearing the 'R' badge. Earlier this year, the German company introduced the production model but the most powerful version was fitted with a 2.0-liter TSI producing 200-horses. Fast but not fast enough.

However, this may soon change as Volkswagen is giving us the clearest indication of its future plans yet with the unveiling of the new Beetle R Concept at this week's Frankfurt Motor Show.

Beginning with the exterior, the Beetle R Concept sports a subtly aggressive design with newly sculpted bumpers that were widened by 30 mm, and blistered wheel arches widened by 15mm per side that house massive 20-inch wheels in the same “Talladega” design found on the Golf R and Scirocco R models.

Read more »

Britons Vote Ford Mustang as the World’s Manliest Car

Bluebeards Revenge is a UK brand of shaving cream and post-shave balm scientifically proven by Science™ [sic…] to reduce beard growth- or so it says on their webpage. The brand recently conducted an email poll of 1,835 Britons, asking them to rate the world’s “manliest” and “least manly” cars.

The results are in, and –drumbeat please- the winner is the Ford Mustang that was found to be the “manliest car on the planet” with a net total of 21% of the vote.

Runners up were the Aston Martin DB7 (15%), Range Rover (13%), Dodge Viper (11%) and Hummer H1 (10%). On the opposite end of the spectrum – the world’s “least manly” cars – were the Volkswagen Beetle (31%), Mazda Miata / MX-5 (20%), Ford Ka (11%), Toyota Prius (9%) and Nissan Cube (8%).

Read more »

VW Accessories Commercial Welcomes the New Beetle to the 21st Century

Volkswagen's new/old approach to the second generation of the New Beetle (not counting the original Bug), continues with this latest commercial that promotes the available customization options from its Accessories division.

The setup is fairly futuristic with the owner of the 21st century Beetle fiddling around with a virtual configurator that features a laser-like interface to build the car of his dreams.

Read more »