Volkswagen gives price points for 2012 Beetle, targets Mini

[Haltech]

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Coupe, Budget, Volkswagen

2012 Volkswagen Beetle reveal in NYC - Click above for high-res image gallery

Elaborating on our previous details from the New York unveiling of the 2012 much-altered Beetle, Volkswagen North America CEO Jonathan Browning has told Autoblog, "We're aiming to essentially go after the Mini so far as market positioning and price offerings."

That means a price range from $20,000 to $24,000 when the coupe launches worldwide in late September, and between $25,000 and $29,000 for the 2013 convertible. These price ranges take into account the three engines on offer at the start of deliveries: the 2.5-liter five-cylinder, 2.0-liter TDI diesel, and 200-hp 2.0-liter TFSI. There's no telling what the price will be on the hot Beetle R foreseen for mid-2013 with the newest 261-hp "W28" turbocharged inline-five from the Scirocco R.

Wheels available at launch will range from a standard 17-inch set to optional 18-inch and 19-inch, the latter set being the size shown on all of the Beetles that you'll see in our photos from the 2011 New York Auto Show.

VW global branding boss Luca De Meo tells us, "We want to avoid the almost total lack of rollout planning that the former New Beetle suffered. That car had a couple of pretty good years and then it fell dramatically. We want to keep offering new things that are significant this time around so as to keep the car fresh."

Though Volkswagen could rely on its vast worldwide manufacturing network to build the Beetle for Western Europe, China, and North America, bosses in New York say that all Beetle manufacturing will remain exclusively at the Juarez, Mexico plant.


Gallery: 2012 Volkswagen Beetle: New York 2011



Live Photos copyright (C)2010 Drew Phillips / AOLVolkswagen gives price points for 2012 Beetle, targets Mini originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Apr 2011 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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