Thoughts on the New Beetle 2012+

[Shenandoah]

Folks,

Been here awhile and have many mkIV VWs, as you can see from my signature. I've also got my 2000 Audi TT that I converted to diesel (ALH).

I have always liked the Beetles and my daily driver is my 2005 NB with a six speed manual. I have been thinking of getting a New Beetle 2012 diesel/manual, if I can find one. I like the looks of the shortened roof line and it would be nice to have a "newer" car. Nothing wrong with my 2005 NB other than it's showing it's age some. The plastic is getting "sticky" and the vinyl drivers seat is starting to crack. I'm at 270k and it runs great.

For those of you that have owned one or worked on one, what are your thoughts on the New Beetle 2012+? Likes, dislikes, problems, quirks? Do the "Newer" Beetles have HID headlight? I do all my maintenance, so I'll have to read up on how to do the timing belt on the 2.0l TDI. Thanks in advance for the information!

Eric

 

[balticblue]

welcome Shenandoah, bought my wife a 2013 TDI Highline and no it has halogen headlights however this is a Canadian version unlike what you get in the USA . Fabric interior and it doesn't have the instrument binacle that sits up on the dash. it had 66000 miles on it when we bought it and we have put about 5000 miles on it so far. No complaints touch wood. We had a back up camera installed and upgraded the screen to a panasonic . Also had the apmplifier upgraded ( it was rusted and didn't work ) to a new marine unit. The fender stereo does sound very nice. My wife who is the primary driver ( I get to drive it to wash it lol ) really likes it, so it's all good . Good luck but they are scarce at least here in Canada. It was the only one for sale in my province and there were something like 15 in all of Canada. I guess you could look at that one of two ways lol. So far so good. Good luck !

 

[Shenandoah]

Balticblue,

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, I've done a couple craigslist/autotempest searches and the diesel VW New Beetles are few and far between. I'm in no hurry and still need to do some research on maintaining the newer TDI. Thanks!

Eric

 

[Lightflyer1]

I have a 2015 and like it very much. Nice car for one or two people. I have a bare bones model (S? version) but it came with the gauge cluster on the dash top and paddle shifters on the steering wheel. I was surprised it had these. I have upgraded RNS315 with nav and bu camera that is a direct install. Also bought some aftermarket bi-xenon projector headlights. Finding a manual will be next to impossible. Seems these Beetles are few and far between (tdi's).

 

[06bluebeetletdi]

I have a 13 tdi with dsg, mine is a base tdi. It has halogen lights and keyless start. I have upgraded the radio to the RNS315 with navigation and added fog lights. Best of luck finding one, TDIs are not easy to find (vw has finished selling them to dealers), bugs were not very common.

 

[Baumeister]

Hey Eric (I am also Erick),
We recently purchased a 2015 Beetle TDI Convertible DSG at the end of May, found one that only had 32,500 miles on it. We've owned a 5 speed ALH '03 Beetle hardtop since new in December 2002,now with 206k.

The '03 is a blast to drive but it's getting tough to keep up on fixing what breaks, especially the plastics. No sooner did I buy and have painted new mirrors and the top of the interior door panel then the other sides painted panel cracked. Also have a driver's seat frame to replace(broken mount).
We're keeping it and now that its not driven daily I'm more motivated to take things apart if they don't have to be fixed the same day. Our 14yo daughter is looking forward to driving it.

I also have a '94 Audi Cabriolet project car and a Franz-sourced AFN swap kit for it. Hoping my 12yo son gets interested in wrenching to finally complete that long-delayed project as I spent a lot of time/money buying new rubber bits for it. It has a new Haartz top and lots of other new parts, just needs the V6/auto combo yanked, that's way too heavy a combo for that frame. Told the son if he puts enough work in completing the swap and doesn't like it, we'd sell it and let him buy what he wants with the proceeds.

So haven driven both the modded '03 and a stock '15 Beetle back-to-back for a few months now, I'd say you won't be disappointed with a '15. I'm really liking the EA288, but admittedly haven't driven a '13 or '14 with the EA189. There's also the fact that the EA288 as delivered was a lot closer to meeting(or actually met) the EPA emissions requirements without reprogramming.

There are a few manuals out there, but they seem to have higher mileage than the automatics. That seems to follow a trend where the ALH's were like that, it was easier to find a low mileage autobox and swap in a manual. Be prepared to travel/ship to find a '15 manual with low miles.

The DSG isn't bad, especially in the '15 in sport mode. You could always swap it out. Reported fuel economy appears to be about the same as the manuals.
Living in the Sierra Foothills, I am appreciating the 'hill hold' feature of the DSG. Some don't and it can be tuned via VCDS. Ours has paddle shifters on the steering wheel. I've only used those a few times, but I'm starting to 'play' with them a bit more and realizing there are situations calling for their use. I have a Malone tune on the '03, and am considering one on the '15 for both engine/DSG once the 2 year CPO warranty is up.

I also have always liked doing all my own work. I can count on one hand the number of dealer visits that didn't require a follow-up to correct something they missed(usually not put back together right). The closest dealership is now about an hour away.

Still haven't figured out the service documentation situation. I prefer paper books and forum post write-ups, this increasing trend towards YouTube videos just isn't my cup of tea. I just absorb the written word much more easily than talking heads. Plus with a family of 4 in the house, reading is a something that can be done in the same room while still socializing, whereas having to listen to a video without transcription is a more solitary effort.

 

[Baumeister]

Here's a nice write-up on the 6 speed (convertible though) from 2012...https://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/03/2013-volkswagen-beetle-tdi-convertible-first-drive-review/