Yahoo Autos Squashed: The VW Beetle is not getting another revival
Mothballed for the third time at the end of 2019, the Volkswagen Beetle is dead for good. Vague rumors claimed that the nameplate would return on an electric four-door model with a retro-inspired design, but the company's top executive confirmed that it's not coming back.
"I don't think so, because there are certain vehicles that have had their day. It wouldn't make sense to bring [the Beetle] back," company CEO Thomas Schäfer told Autocar. "I wouldn't say with 100% [certainty]. But, from where I stand right now, I wouldn't consider it."
As it stands, the ID. Buzz is set to remain the only torchbearer of Volkswagen's visual heritage in the 2020s lineup. It's on sale in Europe, where it's offered in passenger- and cargo-carrying configurations, and a long-wheelbase model is due out in the United States for 2025.
Schäfer suggested that, broadly speaking, dusting off historic nameplates isn't part of Volkswagen's product plan. "It's the same as Scirocco: it had its day, then there was a new model based on a reinterpretation. To do that again? I don't think so. And going forward with balancing all of these technologies and the cost that is associated with it, you've got to invest money in the best possible place."
