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are beetles safe?

7K views 42 replies 24 participants last post by  mentalVdub 
#1 ·
I am suppose to pick up my new beetle today (2001 gls). I am still a little worried about buying one. Can someone please tell me if you think they are safe cars to drive?
thanks guys:
 
#2 ·
Driver/passenger front and side airbags? That's pretty safe. Also i think the Beetle placed very near the top in some kind of collision safety thing a year or two ago. It was one of the selling points for me aside from my Beetle fever. You'll be fine. Just mind the blind spot and learn to look around it and you'll have no worries.
 
#3 ·
I own a 2000 1.8T -- I hit a big deer with mine head on going 65mph, and the only thing that needed replacing was my hood and headlight, with no injuries to me. I'd say they're pretty safe!

I also remember when I was car shopping, one of the dealers told me that the Beetle is one of the easiest car to fix if in an accident. Now I don't know if he said that so I would buy one, but so far it seems to be true :)
 
#4 ·
Depends on your definition of safe... but here is my definition.

Is it a better than average handeling car?

Yes it most assuradly is.

Is the braking system not only very powerful but easily controlled?

Yes.. In most comparison tests the New Beetle and most VWs come out in first place for braking distance and controllability.

How stable is it in emegancy manuevers?

There is a very low likely hood of rolling a VW over and they are great at transitional manuevers.

How does the New Beetle perform in Goverment crash tests?

Safety and performance in crash tests is a major priority of VW and they perform extremly well. At one time they ruled the catagory now there are a couple that score slightly higher but the truth is that the New Beetle performs exceptionally well.

How much fun is it to drive... after all a boring car will put me to sleep.

EXTREMLY WOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO :D
 
#5 ·
Tom's said it all. I've heard stories of being bumped by Semis with no damage ~30MPH, I've seen photos of several other posters here being creamed in the driver side tire and have to turn the engine off by hand. I've not seen one flip (except the convertible's crash test -- it ranked very high). They are safe and sturdy cars.
 
#7 ·
I've read all the reports, seen pictures that would make my hair turn white(r), and the people walked away.......I feel very safe in my New Beetle. :)
 
#9 ·
Wasn't there an accident soon after the NB's came out, where some guy lost control of his NB and rolled it end over end a number of times, and despite the air bags not deploying he walked away with just a few bruises?

It was on the news I think. Needless to say, that was good enough for me.
 
#10 ·
haven't felt safer in any thing else...


im more comfortable driving my 98 or her 02 than i am my moms 04 solara


the nb's scored very high on all the government safety ratings and i would definitelly trust the car with children in it:cool:


and plus the handling on these cars stock is nuts...i push it into a corner and it will let me know when i am pushing to far but most of the time it is like it just wants more :D couldn't be happier
 
#11 ·
My parents were set on buying this car for me even more when they saw a NBC at one of the dealerships that had been rolled several times and totalled in the process...4 teenage girls in the car. They all walked away with only some bumps and bruises, no real injuries. VWs in general are really safe cars. I was in the car with my boyfriend in his 95 Passat and he was backing out of a parking space at our school and hit a Dodge Neon. This was like a 5 mph collision...Neon had the whole passanger side door dented pretty bad but his bumper just had some paint scratches that he fixed with touch-up paint and the plastic piece that holds the bumper around the side popped off so he had to relplace that. $100 fix for his car, $1500 for the Neon. I love VWs...
 
#12 ·
Smileybug said:
My parents were set on buying this car for me even more when they saw a NBC at one of the dealerships that had been rolled several times and totalled in the process...4 teenage girls in the car. They all walked away with only some bumps and bruises, no real injuries. VWs in general are really safe cars. I was in the car with my boyfriend in his 95 Passat and he was backing out of a parking space at our school and hit a Dodge Neon. This was like a 5 mph collision...Neon had the whole passanger side door dented pretty bad but his bumper just had some paint scratches that he fixed with touch-up paint and the plastic piece that holds the bumper around the side popped off so he had to relplace that. $100 fix for his car, $1500 for the Neon. I love VWs...
Smiley -- what dealer did you see the rolled NBC at? VWs are safe cars. My uncle took out a pillar at a gas pump in his 96 Jetta. The bumper had some scuffs, and he was impressed that it actually broke the concrete pillar free ...
 
#13 ·
I had to turn my engine off with the key after this little piece of work by a ford Crown Victoria Taxicab and 18" diameter steel pole...



no bags deployed, and I walked away.
 
#14 ·
That looks more like a corner hit so it would not had set the air bags off.

I had found a bridge with the front end of mine and walked out with only a small red spot on my hand. I bought another one 2 weeks later. Still one of the safest in is class.
 

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#15 ·
The best safety feature about the beetle is its shape. Because of its roundness, if you were to roll it, God forbid, there would be a very small chance that the roof would cave in. And due to the shape of the hood, when in a front end collision it causes the engine to be pushed down instead of into the car where you're sitting!
 
#16 ·
kcfoxie said:
Smiley -- what dealer did you see the rolled NBC at? VWs are safe cars. My uncle took out a pillar at a gas pump in his 96 Jetta. The bumper had some scuffs, and he was impressed that it actually broke the concrete pillar free ...
I think it was Fitzgerald VW in Annapolis, MD. I'm not sure though. My parents looked around at a few dealerships before buying from the one they did
 
#19 ·
Like everyone else has said, they are small but safe. Most of the pictures I've seen with crashed NBs, the only way you could tell they were in an accident is the airbag. Other than that, the cabin is not touched. Especially in a front end crash, the car takes the beating and not the driver!! Poor little car, it does its best to protect you!
 
#20 ·
My ex has had 2 NBs, both of which were totalled. The Vapor Blue was hit by a Dodge Neon head-on, she walked away...the Neon occupants died. The Blue Lagoon CC (which, btw, was the 2nd one sold in the US) was rolled 4 times at 100+ MPH...she walked away with just a broken ankle/foot (and that was because of a shoddy prior repair by a body shop on the rocker panel...apparently, they jacked up the main weld unbeknownest to us).

My ex is bad luck, but she now has a Tornado Red 2005 1.8T...we'll see how this one gets crashed. :rolleyes:

maybe this time the b***h will smack a tree and it'll fall on her (did I type that out loud...I'm so bad, but if you knew her, you'd think the same)
 
#21 ·
The Cheat said:
maybe this time the b***h will smack a tree and it'll fall on her (did I type that out loud...I'm so bad, but if you knew her, you'd think the same)
You're just jealous of her Tornado Red 1.8T.

I hope she doesn't wreck it. A Vapor Blue, and a BLCC? Both wrecked? She needs to learn how to drive. :mad:
 
#22 ·
dnyed said:
You're just jealous of her Tornado Red 1.8T.

I hope she doesn't wreck it. A Vapor Blue, and a BLCC? Both wrecked? She needs to learn how to drive. :mad:

I'm not jealous in the least. She cheated on me, racked up $20k in debt, and oh yeah, temporarily put me in a credit strangehold. I just hope maybe she'll wisen up and start taking care of her daughter at least half as I good as I used to.

That being said, I do think she does need to learn how to drive...the Vapor wasn't her fault at all, but the BLCC was 110% on her.
 
#23 ·
To get back on Topic... Yes, new beetels are safe. I feel safe driving it, I feel like i'm in contrl of the car at all times, even in snow, and i've already had an accident with my car, and had to get the front end totally redone, but the drives perfect with no electrical gremlins, and i got out without any scratches or bruises.
 
#24 ·
Jenna's saved me a couple times as well. Couple weeks ago I whacked a dead deer on the highway. Most other cars would have probably gone all over the place...not Jenna. She stayed true, and only suffered minimal damage.

I've also slid a couple times in the snow with her as well when i first got her...she kept on the right path. These little cars sure can make up for the drivers. :O)
 
#25 ·
I was just reminded of a story I read in "Driver Gear" Magazine. That is a VW distributed magazine availabe thru the dealership or directly from VW.

They had a story in there of a woman that had a home invasion. They stole the keys for her New Beetle and took off. The thieves apparantly stuffed it into a tree around 100mph and managed to walk away with out any major injuries. They were not even able to retrieve any useable DNA from the AirBags. Ya the thieves got away which is bad news but the good news is that the New Beetle is one tough little bastard. :D
 
#26 ·
The Cheat said:
Jenna's saved me a couple times as well. Couple weeks ago I whacked a dead deer on the highway. Most other cars would have probably gone all over the place...not Jenna. She stayed true, and only suffered minimal damage.

I've also slid a couple times in the snow with her as well when i first got her...she kept on the right path. These little cars sure can make up for the drivers. :O)
haha I think Pepper and Jenna need to get together and tell stories about hitting deer and sliding on snow and ice.

I tell ya though, I was driving through a storm yesterday and rushed through a yellow light to turn left, and my little bug gripped that road like glue.
 
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