1978 Volkswagen Beetle Jubilee with Only 40 Miles on the Odo up for Auction

If there’s one car that has withstood the test of time, that’s the original Volkswagen Beetle. And even though more than 21 million Bugs were built between 1938 and 2003, it’s not often that you stumble upon a pristine example with only delivery mileage on the odometer.

The one you see pictured above is a 1978 Beetle Jubilee with a mere 40 miles on the clock that has never been registered. It’s up for sale by UK-based CVA Auctions.

"It is a 1200cc silver Jubilee model with a silver plaque stating it's car number 214 of the last 300,” CVA Auctions boss Jim Ronan told uk.Autoblog. “It is in great condition as you would expect and we have all the relevant documentation should someone wish to put it on the road."

The auction house’s boss said that buyers from all over the world were interested in the car.

"I think it will go to a serious collector or maybe even a museum. In my opinion, registering it would devalue it. I'm really not sure what it will go for," he added.

Source: CVA Auctions via uk.Autoblog

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Volkswagen’s Brazilian SP Coupe Turns 40 This Year [with Videos]

Volkswagen celebrates this year the 40th anniversary of the SP coupe, a car relatively unknown outside Brazil, its country of origin. Built by the company's Brazilian subsidiary in the '70s, the attractive coupe has an interesting story. In 1968 Rudolf Leiding, former CEO of Audi NSU, was appointed director of VW do Brasil, a job he accepted under one condition: to have the permission of building models adapted for the Brazilian market.

In the 1970's auto imports were blocked in South America's largest market, so Leiding thought about building a two-seat sports coupe that he believed would be successful.

Together with ‘Karmann-Ghia do Brasil’, which at the time was building the already dated Karmann Ghia coupe, Volkswagen Brazil started developing a new coupe, which had to use as many parts as possible from VW's local model range in order to keep costs low.

The team used the platform of the VW 1600, the Brazilian version of the Type 3 (forefather of the Passat). Engineers took the chassis, axles and the engine, while the steel body was developed from scratch. The SP also used the twin headlights of the 1600. The 54HP 1.6-liter engine that equipped the test prototype car proved itself inappropriate for a sports car so VW decided to offer this unit in a basic version called SP-1.

There were jokes that the SP name stood for "Sem Potência" (Portuguese for "without power"), but it actually came from São Paulo, Brazil's largest city. For the SP-2 version, however, engineers enlarged the displacement of the air-cooled flat-four engine to 1.7 liters. The unit thus developed 65 horsepower at 4,600 rpm and offered the SP-2 a top speed of 156 km/h (97 mph).

While the SP-1 sold in limited numbers, the SP-2 reached 10,000 units from June 1972 to February 1976, with the vast majority of them being sold in Brazil. The car was never officially sold in Europe, but one model found its way to Germany in 1971, when Rudolf Leiding was called back to VW headquarters to be installed as the company's CEO. He brought along an SP-2 as a gift to his wife. Today, European collectors own several SP-2 coupes and one can be seen in VW's museum. A few years ago, there was an attempt to revive the SP-2, but nothing has materialized so far.

By Dan Mihalascu

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Lamborghini Confirms that it has Sold More Than 12 Months’ Production of Aventador LP700-4

Last week, we told you that the first year of production of both the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 and Ferrari FF have reportedly been spoken for. Today, Lamborghini made it officially-official confirming that it has already sold more than 12 months’ production of its new flagship V12 model, deliveries of which will start in the second half of 2011.

The VW Group-owned Italian automaker also released final sales figures for last year that showed a 14 per cent drop from 2009. In particular, Lamborghini delivered a total of 1,302 units to customers worldwide in 2010, compared to 1,515 cars the previous year.

However, the Italians were quick to note that the difference versus 2009 was due to the run out of the Murciélago in May 2010 adding that they sold 4,099 Murciélagos over a ten-year production period, making the Aventador’s predecessor the company’s best-selling V12 model ever. Sales for the remaining seven months of the year were based on the production of just one model, the Gallardo.

The final year turnover was at €271 million in 2010, compared to €281 million in 2009. Lamborghini said that the pre-tax result improved over 2009, “while still remaining below profitability.”

Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini said that the introduction of the Aventador combined with a gradually improving economy should help the company’s financial results in the future.

“We confirmed our long term strategy, which calls for stable and significant investments in new products even in difficult times,” said Winkelmann. “We see a slow but steady recovery of the market, and we will benefit from this. The extraordinary response to the new Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 is the best proof that our vision is right.”

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VW CEO Piech Says Germans Could Quadruple Alfa Romeos Sales

In yet another episode of the ongoing verbal battle between the Fiat and VW Groups over Alfa Romeo, the German automaker's CEO Ferdinand Piech said that Volkswagen could nearly quadruple the annual sales of the Milanese brand if the Italians would agree to sell the company.

Speaking to journalists at the Geneva Motor Show, the CEO went on to say that within five years Volkswagen could increase the sales of the money-losing Italian brand to 400,000 cars every year. Alfa Romeo ended 2010 with 112,000 units sold.

As we previously reported, Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne isn't keen on dropping Alfa Romeo, and hopes to revive the historic brand and make it a major player in the European premium segment. The Fiat boss repeatedly refused admitting to even consider selling the brand: "As long as I am CEO of Chrysler and Fiat, Mr. Piech will never have Alfa Romeo,” Marchionne stated at a JD Power automotive conference in the US.

The Italian firm's CEO even suggested Piech should try and fix the SEAT brand before thinking of Alfa Romeo. But apparently, the Germans can't take no for an answer. "Volkswagen has time," said Piech in Geneva, a sentence that could be interpreted as a hint at the poor financial status of Alfa Romeo that could make the Fiat Group's shareholders lose patience.

In a recent interview with Forbes, Marchionne admitted that the brand was losing money during each of the seven years he has been at the helm of the group. “I'm not sure if it ever really made any money,” were his exact words. Could this mean he is finally open to negotiations? Only time will tell.

By Dan Mihalascu

Source: Reuters

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VIDEO: What if Toyota Made a Cute Darth Vader Commercial?

Everyone seemed to love Volkswagen's Darth Vader Super Bowl commercial. In fact, some people out there liked it so much that they wanted to see what it would be like had Toyota made the ad. Well now we know (which is half the battle). Needless to say, the Toyota version isn't as heartwarming. It is quite entertaining, though. Check out the clip below for 1:08 of dark-sided hilarity.

By Phil Alex

Source: Youtube via Autoblog.com

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Skoda's Winged Arrow Logo Celebrates its 85th Anniversary

Skoda is renowned for being one of the oldest car manufacturers in the world, having been established in 1895. The Czech brand, which now belongs to the Volkswagen Group, also has one of the oldest logos. Today, the maker’s winged arrow emblem turned 85. On May 10, 1926, the first Skoda car to wear the logo was produced in the Mlada Boleslav plant and delivered to the president of Czechoslovakia, Tomas Masaryk.

The car in question was a Skoda Hispano Suiza, as the industrial manufacturer had bought the license to produce luxurious vehicles from the Spanish company Hispano-Suiza in 1924, a year ahead of the merger with the automobile factory of Laurin & Klement.

During the three years it remained in production, only 100 units of the Skoda Hispano-Suiza were ever built. Production of the first model began in the spring of 1925 and was completed a little after a year, in May 1926. The reason for the long production time was that every car was custom-built to individual requirements, with each one being unique. The Skoda Hispano Suiza 25/100 PS weighed up to 2,700 kilograms (5,950 lbs), depending on equipment, and was able to reach a top speed of 86 mph (138 km/h).

Prices were considerably higher than other vehicles available on the market. The car's base price was 190,000 crowns but it could easily reach a quarter of a million crowns, depending on the features. For example, the office of the president paid 280,000 crowns for the first Skoda Hispano Suiza, at a time when the small Skoda 422 cost 38,000 crowns.

The car's accompanying marketing booklet at the time read: “The Škoda Hispano Suiza is a luxury car designed by a brilliant engineer who put his stamp on the smallest details and manufactured with the utmost care and with finest materials.”

By Dan Mihalascu

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Geneva 2011: Volkswagen's Bulli Microbus Concept in the Flesh

It has been ten long years since the last modern adaptation of the iconic Volkswagen T1. The Microbus concept captivated audiences in 2001 with its modern and evolved design that brought the famed hippie-cruiser into the 21st century. The new Bulli concept aims to bring back the sense of freedom and "free-love" in a more compact and environmentally conscious form.

Images of the Bulli have already been released yet there was still much anticipation for the official reveal from show-goers and Microbus fans alike. The new study is an pure electric vehicle that focuses on practicality and simplicity.

The interior is a delightful blend of VW's bauhaus, modern simplistic design and practicality. The 3x3 seating allows for a few of the drivers most personal friends to join in on a theoretical 300 km (185 mile) road trip before having to recharge. The Bulli's practicality doesn't stop there, the seats can retract to form a bed turning the mircobus into a little camper.

The Bulli is actually a concept that makes a lot of sense while also being highly practical. An electric vehicle harking back to the days of the start of the environmental movement; it's a genius idea.

No matter how futuristic the design is, there are many details and elements that pay homage to the original model and its following. A modern day Hippie mobile. Whether it be the two tone paint, classic hub caps and the improved audio system that ensures "the music sounds as though it were being performed live. At Woodstock in 1969. We now seem to know its target audience.

The cars small 40 kWh electric motor allows for a 0-100km/h (62mph) sprint time of 11.0 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 140 km/h (87 mph). So if you have the time to relax and watch the world go by, then this is the small EV for you. The modern take on a classic design is a unique step from Volkswagen and it is nice they let the Vision of the last model mature like a fine wine.

By Rory Farrell

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