Oettinger Cabriolet Beetle

Friday, 7 December 2007

Jon Gilbert

Retro chic may be hot right now, but this Cabriolet is the real deal, and those discreet decals tell us it's something out of the ordinary

When Volkswagen introduced its new 'Super Beetle' in 1971, the world went mad. Or, at least, the people who had just bought a new Beetle in 1970 went mad, for the new model was, quite literally, a completely new car even if, to the untrained eye, it looked little different from the outside. Totally revised suspension had road testers of the day whooping with joy, describing in floral language how they stuck one into a bend and came through the
other end unscathed and surprised: 'Ever since the car received the MacPherson strut front suspension and the semi-trailing arm rear end, the Bug has been a real Q-ship amongst small cars,' raved Wheels magazine. 'With astonishing regularity owners of supposedly fine-handling cars have been astonished to find the Bug can leave them behind in the twisty bits and at least keep up on the less windy areas. It is only on very steep hills or long straights that it has no chance...' Ah, there it is again - that perennial bugbear of the stock VW pilot (except our man James Peene, that is) - a distinct lack of out-and-out grunt.

For the full story on Bob's Oettinger Cabriolet check out the January 2008 issue of VolksWorld magazine. On sale on 30th November to 28th December and then available through back issues.