Beetle's dimensions prove it is no small car. It's longer, wider, and taller than a Mini Cooper. The Beetle body is 161.1 inches in length and 67.9 inches wide, on a wheelbase of 98.7 inches, with a height of 59.0 inches. The Beetle is also nearly an inch wider than the PT Cruiser, although it is shorter and not as tall as Chrysler's little cruiser.
Quality in the New Beetle is excellent. Gaps between doors, fenders and other body panels are some of the tightest we've seen. Fenders and bumpers are made from a special dent-resistant plastic. Outside door handles are easy to grab, feel good, and don't require inverting your hand to operate them. Turn indicators on the outside mirrors warn drivers alongside when changing lanes. Color-keyed mirror housings and door handles add to the Beetle's clean appearance. At night from a distance, a black convertible we drove looked like something from Porsche, with its sleek dome shape and round headlamps.
Convertibles are distinguished by an exterior chrome strip that surrounds the greenhouse and by a different trunk design with an integrated third brake light. Color is an important part of the New Beetle convertible experience, and new combinations for 2004 include Uni-Red with cream interior; Platinum Gray with black and gray interior; Cyber Green with black and cream interior; Aquarius Blue with gray interior and Sundown Orange with cream interior. All of the above come with a black top, but for 2004 VW now offers gray and cream tops as well.
Turbo S looks similar to the other New Beetles, but with hunkered-down aerodynamic enhancements that suggest a more expensive German performance car. Smoothed-out wheel wells and revised bumpers give it a sleek and seamless appearance. Double exhaust pipes hint of compressed aspiration under the hood, while special 17-inch alloy wheels and tires suggest a sports suspension. A subtle Turbo S badge, styled after Porsche badging, adorns the back hatch on which sits a rear valance. On all turbocharged Beetle coupes, a rear spoiler pops up at speed to maintain stability in corners; unfortunately, it tends to retract with an annoying "thunk." VW has promised to replace it with a fixed spoiler during the 2004 model year (although it appears as though the GLS 1.8T will keep the telescoping spoiler). Next Page