2013 Volkswagen Beetle 2.5L inline 5 cylinder from North America

Summary:

Great styling, comfortable

Faults:

Some sort of engine part broke into pieces and got stuck in the timing chain, throwing the timing off, causing quite a problem. Thankfully it happened about a mile from the VW dealer and was covered under the powertrain warranty. Glad I wasn't on a road trip in the middle of nowhere.

General Comments:

The best thing about it is the styling. It is rather polarizing; some people might hate it, and others love it. People talk to me almost every time I go to the gas station and sometimes the store. Everyone seems to have an old Beetle story. I really do love the styling.

And it's amazingly comfortable, in the front seats. Not so much the backseats, I can't imagine anyone actually fitting in there, but it is possible. Even though I am tall, it's really easy to get in and out of, and has a really spacious feeling interior. Recently I drove a 2017 Golf Sportwagen for a week while my Beetle was getting fixed and the interior felt so much more cramped than my Beetle, much more difficult to get in and out of, and seating area was so narrow. The seats in the Beetle are very comfortable; I can drive all day and not feel fatigued. The interior is good looking and functional. Ambient lighting at night and you can even change the color, red, blue, white. A fun little gimmick. Love the panorama roof, though I am surprised it doesn't open as far as you would expect.

It's fun to drive, maybe a little softer than some other VWs I have owned. Suspension is a little floaty and soft. Power with the 2.5 is adequate, not bad if you really wind it up. Probably the easiest manual transmission car I have ever driven. Clutch pedal travel is a little long, but the shifter is excellent and smooth.

I'm conflicted about whether I want to keep it. It's not a bad car, but given the mechanical problem recently, and the fact I had another VW recently that was almost new and in the shop for 6 weeks at only 20k miles, I am questioning VW dependability. I have had 3 VWs in the past 3 years; the 2 made in Mexico were very unreliable. The one that was made in Germany was absolutely flawless and completely trouble-free however. Maybe that's just a coincidence.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th October, 2017

15th Oct 2017, 03:38

Nicely written review.

Generally speaking, VW quality is spotty.

My cousin has been a loyal VW owner for 20+ years, and she admits, it gets expensive at times. Keeps coming back, though ;)

It boils down to charm vs. appliance-like reliability (e.g. Honda/Toyota).

Make your move :)

In reply to 15th Oct 2017, 03:38

16th Oct 2017, 18:24

Might be speculation, but I wonder how the air cooled early models would have fared vs current water cooled models with emission standards today. I owned air cooled early and have praise. Anyone care to comment?

In reply to 16th Oct 2017, 18:24

22nd Oct 2017, 03:32

My father owned a 1958 Type 1 (Beetle).

Other than the peeling metallic Glacier Blue paint, a solid vehicle

In reply to 22nd Oct 2017, 03:32

27th Mar 2018, 21:27

A ‘58 Beetle was a good car back in ‘58.

In reply to 16th Oct 2017, 18:24

3rd Oct 2019, 21:19

Emissions was the reason VW stopped production of the air-cooled engines, as did Porsche. Even motorcycles gave moved away from air-cooled. Given the wide temperature range an air-cooled engine runs at, it requires much greater, or looser tolerances than a liquid cooled engines, which means more blow by or siphoning of oil past the piston rings or cylinder walls to start with, which permits oil to be burned in the combustion chamber, raising the emissions tremendously. This also leads to shorter engine life. On a plus side, they're easy and cheap to build with average MPG, but air-cooling limits the the RPM, power output, and general quality and longevity.

2013 Volkswagen Beetle 2.5 from North America

Summary:

Comfortable, zippy, fun

Faults:

None so far.

General Comments:

Makes me smile every time I drive it. It's not super powerful, it has a 2.5 liter 5 cylinder, but I got the 5-speed manual, and I'm actually glad it's the way it is, because it makes it more fun for every day driving. You can really rev it up, work through the gears. Makes a trip to the grocery store a blast. You can drive it like an economy car and it goes along fine, or you can really put your foot down, rev the engine, and drive it hard, the car doesn't mind, it loves to be driven.

It is amazingly comfortable for its size. I'm 6 ft 2in, and I can put the seat back far enough I can barely reach the pedals if I wanted. I think pretty much anyone can be comfortable driving this car. Not so sure about the back seats. They're OK once you're in them, but getting in and out is not easy. But for 1 or 2 people it's no problem.

The cabin feels very open and roomy. Tons of headroom, even with the sunroof. Lots of amenities, and the VW-Tex vinyl fake leather looks great but is so easy to clean; perfect if you have a dog like I do.

Awesome sounding stereo, and you can even change the color that the speakers and interior light up, from red, white, or blue.

Great road trip car. I have driven it for 20 hours at a time, and the seats are typical German, nice and firm and comfortable.

It gets lots of looks constantly. And people will talk to you at random. It has the looks of the old Beetle with the modern comforts and convenience of a new VW. This is not my first VW, but probably one of the most fun VWs I have owned. Comfortable, fun to drive, roomy for a car of its size, and it gets great gas mileage. What's not to love.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 8th October, 2016

11th Oct 2016, 09:53

I have had 6. Both Beetle and Super Beetle. The newer ones are not as reliable. I have a relative that has had many issues with more than one. I doubt she will buy another. The best years to own in my opinion are the 74 Super or 73 Beetle. Even 1 year apart they were different handling, but the same great motor. They had more power than earlier models and just ran and ran. We had a 75 and it changed and was far less reliable. So if you can find a decent 73-74, grab it. Parked side by side they were both beige, but one was darker.

The thing you have to watch is rust. The front end components struts cost more to service than a plain Beetle or Bug; your choice in its name. My earliest was a 63 Karmann Ghia; a really cool little car. Even with only 30 HP vs our later 60 HP. Bodywork is difficult with its integral fenders. I know this is a newer review. I still feel going back 42 years you would find an exceptional daily driver. In winters the rear engine never got stuck. I drove mine in extreme heat and air cooled was great. The cars had pretty good ventilation with large windows with wing windows. Even without air conditioning in mine.

Good luck.

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