2012 VW Beetle to debut in 2011

Spokesman of America Volkswagen also confirmed on Monday that the 2012 Beetle will go on sale here later this year. Pricing has not been announced. The splashy debut of the 2012 Beetle will kick off in Shanghai, China, with an MTV Sound System “celebration” hosted by MTV VJs, followed by MTV World Stage events in […]

Spokesman of America Volkswagen also confirmed on Monday that the 2012 Beetle will go on sale here later this year. Pricing has not been announced.

The splashy debut of the 2012 Beetle will kick off in Shanghai, China, with an MTV Sound System “celebration” hosted by MTV VJs, followed by MTV World Stage events in Berlin and New York City, the automaker said. The New York debut will be streamed live on WorldStage.MTV.com, except in the U.K. Volkswagen has recruited The Black Eyed Peas to help with the New York unveiling.

No details about the car were released, with Volkswagen saying only that “the new Beetle’s exterior reinterprets the silhouette of the famous Volkswagen Beetle and combines stylistic elements borrowed from the original with the latest technology.” The smart money is on a cutesy styling theme with a slightly more aggressive look.

It is not certain what the name for the latest iteration of the Beetle will be. In its media materials on Monday, the German automaker referred to the car as “The 21st Century Beetle.” The Beetle has its roots in Germany and the Great Depression of the 1930s, when it was championed by Ferdinand Porsche, the legendary auto designer, and Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, who envisioned a volkswagen or “people’s car.”

But the Beetle eventually became so popular here that it even had its own Hollywood movie, The Love Bug. That movie, which featured a Beetle named Herbie, debuted in 1968 and became one of the largest grossing films of the year, as well as spawning sequels.

The New Beetle rolled out in 1998 to much fanfare and in December 2009, Volkswagen told Inside Line that “revised naming would be a possibility” on the second-generation model.

Already the PR support provided to VW over the unveiling of the New Beetle has left much to be expected. But the profile icon of the New Beetle looks more aggressive, perhaps will.