By the end of the 1960s, the venerable Beetle was struggling to keep up with the competition, it’s cute looks and quirky ways not enough to keep up with the competition from Europe and Japan.

VW’s answer was the Super Beetle of 1971 with a host of safety and comfort mods. With a longer wheelbase to give a more stable ride, it also got disc brakes, improved steering and Macpherson strut suspension that improved the handling and doubled the luggage capacity. Crash safety was improved while both front and rear screens were enlarged for better visibility. Outside, it had a lengthened bonnet, fatter wings, a redesigned engine lid and bigger ‘Elephant feet’ rear lights.

Power came from a new 1300cc engine or, for the more sporting driver, a 1600cc flat-four of ‘twin port’ induction design with a higher final drive ratio. It was the last of the Beetles to be manufactured in Wolfsburg, Germany, before production moved to Yugoslavia in 1974.
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