2007 Volkswagen Triple White New Beetle Convertible

2007 Volkswagen Triple White New Beetle Convertible - But we bet even reigning World’s Strongest Man Phil Pfister would be a little uncomfortable in a Triple White New Beetle Convertible; he’d likely prefer to dead-lift the car (another popular WSM event) a dozen or so times instead of actually driving it. As for describing the bug, we’re thinking of two words rhyming with “hick czar,” which, by the way, would be an apt title for Jeff Foxworthy’s autobiography.

Volkswagen’s New Beetle convertible has been garnering adoration and unnerving otherwise confident men since 2003. We have tested convertible Beetles before (in 2003 and 2004) and, despite its awesome sluggishness, the bug has managed to endear itself to us from the start. Since its last visit, though, the New Beetle has found a new engine. And this color scheme.

The three elements whose purity contributes to the “Triple White” moniker are the exterior paint, the leather interior, and the soft leather tonneau. Despite its inherent and flamboyant femininity—even above and beyond a base New Beetle convertible—we like the appearance of the Triple White package. Once the initial shock of seeing white leather seats matched with black carpeting has passed, the combination is simple and attractive, when clean.

We did not, however, seek out this bug just to see what it felt like to drive around in a white Beetle with white leather and a white tonneau. We could have guessed. We wanted to drive a Beetle with the 2.5-liter inline-five, which was introduced in 2006 and is now the only engine available in a Bug.

First surprise with the five-cylinder: torque steer. We had thought there was a minimum pound-feet requirement before a tromp on the gas peddle would jerk a car toward the weeds. Apparently that minimum requirement is 168, because that’s what the 2.5-liter inline-five has and torque steer is what it does when you poke the gas hard.

For your troubles, the VW returns an 8.8-second huff to 60 mph and a 16.7-second quarter-mile at 84 mph, meaning you’d better stop at the bleach box before trying to merge with metropolitan freeway traffic from a rest. If you really want to go 100 mph, then set aside an additional 10 seconds or so, 26.3 total. It won’t make for an exciting episode of Pinks, but it at least bested the first New Beetle convertible we tested. That car took 12.4 seconds to get to 60.

On rough roads or the winding sort, you’ll want to leave enough time to avoid hurries, as, like other entry-priced convertibles, this is not a corner bomber. Hanging onto the skidpad for 0.83 g is competent, but the car’s structural jitters when rushed over bumps suggest that this is a task best left to GTIs. The cowl shakes, the doors rattle in their openings, and we decided we could instead deal with arriving a few minutes late.

But who buys a Beetle for back-road bombing? That’s like buying one for hauling. With just five cubic feet in the trunk, a good compactor would be a wise tow-behind.

No, sir, the New Beetle is a cruiser, and very competent as a budget convertible. The high arc of the roofline means interior space is plenty big, and access to the back seat is easy. The front passenger seat requires all the force of a mouse sneeze to flip way forward, scrunching against the dashboard and leaving a cavernous passage to the rear seat. Although the back seat does suffer compared to tintop Beetles in both shoulder- and legroom, space inside for four is fair.

Of course, our Triple White model clocks in toward the higher side of “budget.” Whereas the coupe starts under $18,000 and the base price of a convertible nudges close to $23,000, the sticker on our loaded test car checked in at $26,630. That includes leather and everything else one might want on a New Beetle. Option a non-Triple White car to match and you’ll surpass that price.

With the 2008 model, the New Beetle coupe enters its tenth year on the market, putting it in the rare company of automotive old-timers to meet the decade mark. Introduced in 2003, the convertible is less aged, but it, too, is losing its head-turning ability. Once that goes, all the New Beetle is left with is decent interior space and a worn—but stylish—look for a reasonable price. It won’t help you dead-lift 700 pounds of kegs, but the New (getting Old) Beetle convertible is still pretty strong.