Are you a high school teenage girl? Yes? Quick, go get your dad, because here's the new Beetle Convertible!
For around $5,000, VW will peel off the metal roof from your Beetle and give you a fabric top instead. That's pretty much the whole difference. The Cabrio feels the same as the Hardtop on the road, and both look pretty much the same with the top up.
(Full Disclosure: VW invited me to drive the Beetle Convertible in Santa Monica yesterday, put me in a nice hotel, offered me a free pair of Chuck Taylors, and let me drunkenly chat with Klaus Bischoff, VW's head of design. I don't think I embarrassed myself too badly.)
Remember that, because it will impress your dad who's going to buy you this car. The top can go up and down at 30 miles an hour, which will also be a fun thing to show off to your high school gal pals on a sunny day.
It's $24,995 for the base Convertible vs. $19,795 for the Hardtop, and that price stays fairly constant up the range. The Turbo Cab is $27,795 vs. $23,395 and the TDI Cab is $27,895 vs. $23,295.
There are also three special nostalgic trim levels: 50s, 60s, and 70s. The 60s car gets badges and "denim Blue" paint, the 70s car gets some badass toffee brown, and the 50s car comes in black with sweet heritage wheels. The 60s and 70s trims are $100 and the 50s kit is $1,200, thanks to it getting more stuff. You can beg papa to spring for the R-Line super sporty trim if you're an insane human being.
VW claims that 40% of the new Beetle Convertible buyers are male, and that percentage goes up to 50% for the Turbo. Compare that to the old New Beetle Convertible's rate of 28% male buyers, it seems like this newly conservative, upright car is a big success.
We're not convinced. We expect to see these soft-tops filling up high school, sorority house, and small-town real estate company parking lots.
Photo Credit: Raphael Orlove/Jalopnik