Bye Bye Beetle (and Scirocco)

Volkswagen recently confirmed that the current iteration of the modern, watercooled Beetle (below) will be the last.  The company has decided that Beetle nostalgia has played itself out.  Volkswagen plans instead to let the I.D. Buzz, its electric retrograde Microbus (more about that later), pick up the nostalgia market.  It's probably for the best; twice I had the opportunity to buy a modern Beetle, but in each case I found the a Golf to be a more practical, more up-to-date car.  But it's still a shock.   

Meanwhile, in the Old Country,  VW has also decided to discontinue the third-generation Scirocco, a car that, unlike the watercooled Beetles, never made it to the United States or Canada. 

Well, cross this car off the list of potential additions to VW's North American lineup.

The truth of the matter is that Volkswagen is discontinuing the Scirocco in Europe for the same reasons that it wouldn't sell it in North America - SUVs are growing ever more popular at the expense of coupes, and the Volkswagen Golf GTI offers real rear-seat room with the same performance at a cheaper price.  A fourth-generation Scirocco is possible, though, as part of VW's upcoming electric-car model lineup.  It should be noted that Chevrolet still offers its 2 + 2 sports model, the Camaro, while Ford and Chrysler's Dodge brand continue to offer the Mustang and the Challenger, respectively, even as both marques otherwise flee the traditional-car market, like vampires fleeing from a cross, to make and sell more SUVs.  So we might see an electric Scirocco on both sides of the Atlantic just yet.

But probably not a Golf convertible.  As if the cancellation of the Beetle weren't enough, a planned convertible version of the eighth-generation Golf has, at least for now, been put off, the victim of, all things, Brexit.  Great Britain has been, believe it or not, a big market for VW's convertibles, but the decline of the British car market in the aftermath of the country's decision to leave the European Union made it not worth VW's while to go ahead with a Mark 8 Golf convertible . . . and the previous droptop Golf has since been discontinued.

Does this mean there'll be no Volkswagen convertible left when the Beetle is gone?  Maybe the Beetle convertible will continue after the elimination of the Beetle hardtop until a proper Golf convertible replacement is readied.  I hope so.  A Volkswagen lineup without a convertible model?  That's like cake without frosting. :-(

It's safe to say, though, that unless there is a Golf convertible in the future, two-door VW cars of any sort are kaput.  I have a feeling that the Mark 8 Golf will come without a two-door hardtop model, as the dwindling number of people who want a traditional sedan or hatchback on both sides of the Atlantic opt for rear passenger doors.  Already dropped from the U.S., the two-door Golf should disappear elsewhere in a matter of time.  Bearing all that in mind, maybe VW's upcoming models - gasoline-powered or electric - will be more advanced and more in keeping with the times, but they likely won't be as fun. :-(