Car Throttle

So my big question is this: what do we call it?  The original VW (in the '30's) was eventually called the Beetle.  The one that came out in 1998 based on the MkIV Golf was the New Beetle.  So wouldn't this be the New (New) Beetle?  And here you get to a simplified version of the problem VW faced with the really new Beetle: how do you update a car that's retro in the first place? While Ford's answer with the Mustang is basically "new grille and tail lights," Volkswagen has reimagined the entire Beetle - so even though it's remarkably similar looking on the outside (you won't mistake it for anything else), it takes about 10 feet behind the wheel of a 2012 to tell

We here at CarThrottle, like any other automotive site, are guilty of the "new" fetish.  Even though that new version of the Gallardo is just like the last 32 "special editions" before it, only with a crazy paint scheme, we'll still report on it.  It's typical, and I'm not saying it's a bad thing - news is new stuff, everyone loves new stuff. But it's important to retain perspective on the historical aspect of the industry.  Giving credit where credit is due.  At this point in the auto industry, there aren't a whole lot of new, original ideas - they're just recycled ideas, perhaps with a new twist on them.  But in the formative years of the automobile, there were pioneers, people who came up with

There are so many potentially funny headlines for this article, but I went for the low-hanging fruit.  VW has been teasing us with the Up! concept and derivatives for a while now, but the real coming-soon-to-a-showroom-near-you version is debuting at Frankfurt this fall, and VW has finally given up! some details and pictures of their smallest offering. The up! (the capital U has been dropped) fits below the Polo in VW's European lineup, as a small city car.  And it's small indeed: overall length (3.54m) it a total of 4cm longer than the original VW Polo from the 70's, and it's tiny compared to the current Polo, which comes in at 3.94m overall length for a hatchback.  The up! has a pretty good wheelbase-to-length ratio as

With plans for the Volkswagen Group to become the world's largest automaker, the VW division has been repositioned lately. New models like the Jetta and Passat are positioned at the thick of the automotive market. That means mainstream in every respect, avoiding any pretense of a premium product that was VW's previous focus. Some say this makes sense and is a return to roots of sorts - VW is the people's car after all, right? It seems to be working too, as VW sales are up significantly thanks to the new Jetta. They should get an even further boost once the new Passat arrives in full force at dealers in the United States. In Europe, VW isn't quite abandoning its premium positioning altogether - cars there have

Last month, I started up a night-time car show with the help of some local friends. The first few meetings were in an outdoor parking lot, but another location became available, so we jumped on it: a well-lit underground parking deck.  This has some benefits, and some downsides.  On the upside, you can hold a carshow underground whether it's raining or snowing or whatever.  The downside: it gets hot in there. For a fledgling car show, a turnout of 50+ cars on short notice is (especially in Raleigh!) is nothing short of astounding.  Without any specific brand associations, the variety of stuff that turns up for a show is pretty satisfying as well. This Lexus IS350 is well known in the NC area; it was

Every so often here at Car Throttle we like to focus on the marketing and advertising side of the car world to detail the tactics manufacturers use to get their brands and models out in front of the eyes of millions of potential customers. One of our most popular posts focused on the advertising real estate war between Audi and BMW. These two luxury brand behemoths are not the only manufacturers who want to have eye-popping adverts. Indeed Superbowl car adverts can run into the $millions just in terms of creative costs - we featured 16 car adverts from the Superbowl and those even feature A-list celebrities who wanted to make some extra coin to help promote cars for the world's leading brands. The latest

The longer I hang around Raleigh, the more I realize we've got a vibrant car culture. There are groups and enthusiasts everywhere; it's just a matter of knowing where to look.  A friend of mine (with one of the most sleeper Civics ever) let me know about a car meet that occurs every Friday night at the Sonic Drive-In in Cary, near NC State.  I'd never even heard there was a meet there, but figured I'd give it a shot.  According to regulars, it was a pretty small turn-out.  I wasn't disappointed; the meet filled up the entire Sonic parking lot and overflowed into the grocery store lot next to it; and this was at 10:30 at night!  Check out some of the stuff that

Dank: it's a noun, an urban-ism, with a lot of meanings. It can refer to food ("that burrito was dank!"), music ("this house DJ is dank!") or a number of other things.  In the car world, Dank is usually used to describe stanced/hellaflush cars.  So Dank-Fest seems like a proper title for a show devoted to the Stance & Offset crowd.  The show - which was the first - was organized and put together by StancedLyfe, Wilkseboro Crew, and Hoodstatus, and was supported or sponsored by ISO, TeamRPM, NOS Energy, Firestone (locally), GoGirl Entertainment, and SOHO Motorsports. So... what the hell is Stance & Offset?  In mechanical terms, it's a car that's slammed to the ground, cambered out, stretched tires and rolled fenders with the wheels

The previous generation New Beetle was never a car known to attract guys. Why? It was simply too cutesy in a way the original wasn't. Most guys won't be seen in a New Beetle. With that in mind, VW out to attract a new set of buyers for the next-generation Beetle; ones across the spectrum. We didn't think it was possible but the effort definitely worked. The 2012 Beetle is very good looking, and a car we could see ourselves driving, especially in sports form. The 2012 Beetle exudes coolness inside and out; especially this new Black Turbo Launch Edition. We're thankful VW's relentless quest for volume that has given us the uninspired 2011 Jetta and 2012 Passat leaves room for enthusiast-minded vehicles.

The Volkswagen GTI turns 35 this year. 35!  They've really been selling a hopped-up version of their shopping cart for 35 years now!  And it's really not that much of a surprise.  Sure, people were skeptical that the GTI would be popular when it first came out - who wants a fast Golf?  Why wouldn't I just get a Mustang? - but the combination of fun-to-drive and practicality sparked an entire market segment that still persists today, having gone through more troughs and waves than the stock market.  (OK, maybe that's a stretch.) Also celebrating a milestone anniversary this year is the Wörthersee festival held in Reifnitz, Austria, which is officially putting 30 candles in it's cake.  This GTI-centric 3-day show attracts thousands of rabid fans