{"id":19883,"date":"2019-07-13T16:39:54","date_gmt":"2019-07-14T00:39:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/associatednews.info\/content\/a-bugs-life-remembering-the-classic-volkswagen-beetle\/"},"modified":"2019-07-13T16:39:54","modified_gmt":"2019-07-14T00:39:54","slug":"a-bugs-life-remembering-the-classic-volkswagen-beetle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/associatednews.info\/content\/a-bugs-life-remembering-the-classic-volkswagen-beetle\/","title":{"rendered":"A Bug’s Life: Remembering The Classic Volkswagen Beetle"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Emma Bowman<\/a><\/span> <\/p>\n

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\n Jessica Bray and her husband, Anthony Bray, pose with their 1970 Volkswagen Beetle. Anthony converted his Beetle to an electric car. “As a special touch, we added bubble machines to the back to blow bubbles at car shows and as we drive,” Jessica said.<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of Jessica Bray<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of Jessica Bray<\/p>\n

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At one time, the Volkswagen Beetle was so ubiquitous that its sighting is often punctuated by a swift punch in the arm and a shout of “Punch Buggy!” (Or “Slug Bug!” depending on your regional take on the road trip game). <\/p>\n

But this week, the Beetle set off down the road to extinction. On Wednesday, Volkswagen ended production<\/a> of the Beetle, saying it wants to set its sights on manufacturing electric vehicles.<\/p>\n

Over the decades, Volkswagen managed to revamp the beloved car’s image by distancing itself from an uncomfortable history. <\/p>\n

The original Beetle was formulated by Adolph Hitler, who wanted a “people’s car,” or “volkswagen.” But the car wasn’t actually produced for civilians until the late 1940s, when the victorious Allies wanted to refuel Germany’s economy.<\/p>\n

Many rebranding campaigns later, a hipster favorite was born.<\/p>\n

For many Beetle owners, bidding adieu to the automotive icon summons nostalgia. <\/p>\n

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NPR asked its audience to share their favorite Volkswagen Beetle memories. More than 900 of you wrote in. We’ve excerpted just a handful of your stories \u2014 both fond and unpleasant \u2014 below.<\/p>\n

Hippie’s best friend<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kristine Smith’s parents gifted her a 2005 robin egg blue convertible Beetle for her 16th birthday.<\/p>\n

Although the car better withstood her college move to Los Angeles than her Chicago winter back home, the car accessorized her patched-up denim and her long and flowy tie-dye skirts that she procured from eBay.<\/p>\n

“I was obsessed with all things hippie\/bohemian in high school, and my Beetle was core to my identity,” she said in an interview with NPR’s Michel Martin. <\/p>\n

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\n Kristine Smith, pictured in 2005, when she first got her robin egg blue convertible Beetle for her 16th birthday.<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of Kristine Smith<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of Kristine Smith<\/p>\n

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Regrettably, she said, she sold it in 2013 to use the money for graduate school in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n