SuperBeetles.com | History

It's 1968 and the Volkswagen Beetle is selling over one million units per year in the USA. Sadly chairman of Volkswagen AG Heinz Nordhoff is seriously ill but even then he knew that the future of the company could not rely on the mighty Beetle forever. The Type 3 Notchback, Fastback and Squareback were not the saving grace that they were thought to be and something would have to be done soon. Nordhoff passed away April 12, 1968 before the new Type 4s (also known as the 411 and 412) could come to market; a series that unfortunately missed the mark for Volkswagen. After Nordhoff's passing Kurt Lotz took over the helm of Volkswagen which at that time was like a ship without a rudder.

There was a lot of uncertainty at Volkswagen as they watched orders for the Beetle start to dwindle. U.S. auto makers had learned a few lessons from Volkswagen which they had applied to their latest offerings in the competitive compact car market. The new Chevrolet Vega and Ford Pinto gave U.S. car buyers the price, room and fuel economy that was needed at a time when gas prices were rising steadily. Japanese car makers like Honda and Toyota had also become major competition for Volkswagen. With all the attention that had been given the Japanese imports, Road and Track magazine did a head to head comparison between the VW Beetle and the Toyota Corolla. Unfortunately for Volkswagen the Corolla did it all better and for less money too. This was embarrassing for Volkswagen as the Beetle lost in every category except perhaps for its charming personality.

Until the new water-cooled, front wheel drive Golf (Rabbit is the USA) was in production, VW decided to rework the Beetle and bring it up to the standards being set by other car manufacturers. The plan was to reduce the price of the standard Beetle and introduce a new updated model... the Super Beetle. The principal reasons for the development of the Super Beetle was to increase the utility of the vehicle by providing the customer with a larger luggage compartment and greater comfort. These factors were just as important some 50 years ago as they are today. By providing more luggage space, greater overall utility and comfort, the Super Beetle gave Volkswagen customers more choice in the model range and greater choice in the market segment.

The decision to produce the Super Beetle was going to be a costly one. Never before had Volkswagen spent so much time or money on the Beetle. The new suspension design required a new chassis and every panel in the front end had to be redesigned as well. This meant new rounder fenders, a larger wider hood, redesigned front valance, a new spare tire well, changes to other areas of the body and new inner fenders to accommodate the mounting of the new struts. This would be the most costly and extensive revision of the Beetle since it was first launched. It was said that if Heinz Nordhoff was alive the Super Beetle might have never been built.

The newly designed Beetle was to be called the 1302 Super Beetle. The 1302 designation was chosen due to the fact that car manufacturer Simca already had a model that was called the 1301. The Super Beetle was to be sold in North America with a carbureted 60hp 1600cc engine along with a 1600cc and a 1300cc version in Europe. To define the 1600cc model from the 1300cc in Europe an "S" was added, making the Beetle with the larger engine the 1302S. Planned for release in August 1970 the all-new sales brochure stated, "And now the new VW 1302S. The 1600cc Super Beetle. The most powerful, most exciting and most comfortable Beetle ever."

For the first time in the history of the Beetle the spare tire was stored horizontally (instead of on a vertical angle) in a recessed wheel well under the cargo area in the front trunk floor. The jack was moved to under the rear seat and the air pressure powered windshield washer bottle was relocated to the right inner fender. These changes resulted in 9 cubic feet of storage in the trunk, an increase of 86%! When this new space was added to the storage area behind the rear seat, the Beetle finally had the carrying capacity that people wanted. The new 1600cc and 1300cc engines featured dual port cylinder heads for better performance. To help overcome the problem of keeping the number three cylinder cool, an external oil cooler was added and the tin-work was redesigned to allow more fresh air in.

The rear deck lid was increased in size to accommodate the new larger engine and had two banks of five louvers to help keep the new power plant cool. Crescent-shaped air vents trimmed with a silver metal edge were added behind the rear windows. These vents were part of the new flow through ventilation system that was added to ensure adequate fresh air to the interior. Another nice touch was the addition of a passenger side vanity mirror to the sun visor. These small touches were part of what Volkswagen hoped the public was looking for.

Part of Volkswagen's master plan was to bring the handling and ride of the Beetle up to North American standards with improved front suspension and updated rear trailing arms. MacPherson strut-coil springs were coupled with transverse control arms and a better turning radius was one of the results. This strut front suspension also offered precise steering and a comfortable ride. This type of independent front suspension was used by a number of manufacturers at the time and continues to be used widely to this day. The new suspension was lighter than the traditional torsion-beam design, the inner fenders were now heavier and the anti-roll bar was made much larger. The chassis frame head had to be substantially modified and made flatter to accommodate the new suspension changes.

This suspension setup was similar to that used on the Type 4 Volkswagen. In the rear, double-jointed half shafts were introduced. These were formerly only available on the Beetle with the semi automatic transmission. The 1302 would now handle more like a Ford than a Beetle. The first Super Beetle sedan rolled off the assembly line on August 11, 1970 for the 1971 model year, during which some 700,000 were manufactured at Volkswagen plants in Wolfsburg and Emden. The 1302 sold surprisingly well despite Volkswagen enthusiasts giving it mixed reviews with comments like ugly, swollen, bulging and pregnant. With optional air conditioning for only $267.00 and a semi automatic transmission for only an additional $139.00, the Beetle was now offering creature comforts that would help boost sales. Having Volkswagen's excellent reputation for quality and value dating back to the 1950s didn't hurt sales either.

The 1970s were also the beginning of Special Edition Beetles. With models such as the Sports Bug, Sun Bug, Love Bug, Fun Bug, Winter Bug, La Grande Bug, Champagne Bug and overseas versions like the Jeans Bug, Big and City models. One special edition for 1971 was the Jubilee Beetle, celebrating over twenty million total Volkswagen sales worldwide. This was one of the first special editions that were based on the standard Beetle as well as the 1302 Super Beetle. More than 35 different special edition Beetles were to follow with even more being produced in Mexico. 1971 also meant the end of the standard Beetle convertible. Until production ended in early 1980 all convertibles produced would be of the Super Beetle variety.

1972, Volkswagen was busy pushing the Super Beetle with a 14-page full color sales brochure with a cover that read, "The Super Beetle. The older it gets, the better it gets". The 1302 was available in seven colors while the standard Beetle came in only four colors and had a simple 4 page black and white sales brochure. The second year of the Super Beetle brought with it some changes to the already new design. To increase visibility the rear glass was enlarged by 4 cm or 11%. This was to be the last time that the rear glass was enlarged and now compared to a Split or Oval window Beetle the glass massive. The wiper switch was moved to the right side of the steering column for convenience and the vents in the rear engine lid were increased in number. Volkswagens' obsession with keeping the engine cool now required 26 louvers. These were grouped in four unequal banks at the top of the rear engine lid.

Continuing Volkswagen's strategy of offering people more luxury, there was now a shelf installed behind the rear seat. This cover could be hidden or extended over the rear storage area in an effort to keep valuables away from prying eyes. A new flat design 4 spoke plastic steering wheel was added to the interior. This was to help prevent injury in case of an accident and came complete with the Wolfsburg emblem in the center. To help keep the flow through ventilation working a pair of vents where added to the dash complete with tiny directional regulators. Back in the engine compartment a electronic diagnosis plug was installed. This would encourage the customer to bring their Beetle back to their local VW dealer for service. The dealer could then hook the Beetle up to a special VW only computer analyzer to automatically check a number of areas and print out a report.

On February 17th 1972 the 15,007,034th Beetle was sold. Volkswagen had now claimed the world production record for the most produced single make of car in history. It was a 1302 Super Beetle that took the honors beating the 60-year-old record set by the Ford model T. This was an important mark in automotive history and that very car was donated by Volkswagen to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC for permanent display in the industrial section. In recognition of this special occasion Volkswagen equipped six thousand Super Beetles with a blue metallic paint scheme, special 10 spoke pressed steel wheels and gave it the title of Marathon Beetle. This "European only" Beetle was the World Champion or Der Weltmeister as it was called in Germany. The Super Beetle was now the global winner and was also being manufactured in South Africa though none of these vehicles were ever exported.

In the U.S. Volkswagen released 1,000 units called the Baja Champion SE. This model was to commemorate the Baja off-road race successes from 1967 to 1971. The Baja title came from the desert races that are held each year in the Baja California region of Mexico. The fact that the Baja Champion Edition was a 1302 was ironic because any Beetle that would have competed in this race would have been a Standard Beetle using the torsion bar front end that had been in service since 1935. For any would-be Volkswagen purchaser that wasn't lucky enough to get one of these limited production Baja's you could buy the dealer-installed option package for $129.95.

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