Retros Back In Metros

Everything old is new again as all things old are making a comeback — in fashion, furniture, architecture and even automobiles.

The iconic Volkswagen Beetle made its comeback in 1998 while retaining the retro styling. People with fat wallets in India have welcomed the car with much vigour and enthusiasm.

Volkswagen India has received 160 advance bookings for its iconic car, the Beetle, which was launched on December 4, 2009. Buoyed by the positive response to the car, the company is expecting to sell at least 500 units of it next year. This is in spite of the fact that the New Beetle is four times costlier than the soon-to-be-launched Volkswagen Polo, because of the high import duty on it. The Polo will be manufactured in India, while the Beetle will come to the country as a CBU from Mexico.

In comparison to the enthusiastic reception of the Beetle, another iconic car the Fiat 500, priced at Rs 15 Lakh, has sold only 62 units since its launch 17 months back. But Fiat is not losing hope. It is planning to relaunch the 500 once again in the Indian car market.

The Fiat 500 made its world debut in 1957. The little Italian four-wheeler redefined the concept of a ‘small urban car’ when it came into being. The new version, though beautifully styled, is much bigger than the original.

The Indian market will also be graced by the coming of the BMW MINI. The new MINI, just like the New Beetle, has maintained the overall proportions and styling of the original, but being a modern car built to modern and stringent standards, it has become much larger in size.

One might be led to believe that these cars are more of style statements than anything else — retro fashion accessories for those with deep pockets. And this is true to a certain extent.

But that does not mean the new takes on old favourites will fade away as soon as they are launched. These are not non-performing lookers meant for people to buy for the sake of nostalgia.

The comeback versions of these old car models are a pleasure to drive, just like the originals. The original MINI and the Fiat 500, despite their humble origins are great to drive and their modern interpretations promise to carry this legacy forward.

In fact, these historic cars are more ‘fun’ to drive than cars costing four to five times as much and recapture the real essence of driving that others seem to have lost somewhere along the way.

Labels: BMW-MINI, Fiat500, New-Beetle, Volkswagen-Beetle, Volkswagen-Polo