The 'New' VW Beetle

My sister has lent me her car to use while I am here in Dollar. It is a VW Beetle, one of the new Beetles which, having been launched in 1999 and revamped in 1995, are hardly 'new' any more. I could never understand, back in the 1970s, how the original Beetle earned such a cult following. Sluggish, noisy, fuel inefficent and quite a handful to drive when sidewinds prevailed, the rear-engined Beetles seemed to me to have little to commend them. The beetle I have been driving for the past month is something very different; it is a delight to drive and, apart from something vagely familiar about its lines, has no obvious relationship to its ancestor. It is amazingly well balanced and light to drive and, for a car of its size and purpose, has more than adequate performance. It is also a very comfortable car with exellent all round vision. I shall miss this car when I leave here.