Great little car -- has fully met my expectations

I bought my VW Beetle last March. I chose it because it was relatively inexpensive, I no longer needed a "family car" (we have another one for that), and I wanted something amusing and distinctive, but at the same time reliable and safe, and the Beetle's safety rating, for a car its size, was impressive. Finally, I often drive into New York City, where having a car that has a short wheelbase is definitely helpful as one looks for a place to park on the street.

Since I wanted the car is bright blue I had to wait two weeks for it to arrive from Mexico. Otherwise, however, I bought the standard 2.0 liter gasoline-powered model with no extras (I open the windows with a crank, if you can imagine that). Transmission is manual, since the engine is much more zippy that way. Avoiding a lot of extras kept the price way down so soon I will have it all paid off. When I drove it out of the lot I was delighted with it, and now that 9 months have passed I can tell you that it has been a pleasure to have this car. Nothing has gone wrong, and since the car comes with 2 years (or 20,000 miles) of free service, I have not had to spend a penny on it other than for gas. The dealer (Barry in Newington CT) has been superb, in that they have have been solicitous even AFTER selling the car, and helpful at every turn.

Then again, every car has drawbacks, I suppose. My major complaint with the Beetle 2000 is that VW won't supply a radio with built-in compact disk player. The best that I could get was a player in the trunk, which is nowhere as convenient. I hope they fix that in future models. Other things they should fix in future models: there is no way to leave the car with an attendant at a public garage and give him the key while keeping the trunk and the glove compartment secure. One key opens all, and once in the car an inner latch opens the trunk. Also, in the winter when there is snow and ice on the windshield, the windshield wiper tends to lift in the center, leaving an area poorly swept. In addition, this car is not meant for someone who wanders off the main road: ground clearance is extremely low so any obstacle hits the bottom. Finally, I am glad that I got a car with good gas mileage considering the price rise over the past six months -- however I should point out that the mileage I have been getting is 27 miles per gallon, -- pretty good but not the same as what the sticker said (31 miles). I didn't get the diesel (which has a lot better mileage) because I drive in many places where there are few or no stations that carry diesel, especially at night.


This may not be the right car if you have to drive around with a big family, but for occasional back seat occupancy, it is remarkably comfortable in the back, and the way the seat moves forward makes it easy to get in.