{"id":23076,"date":"2011-10-13T11:07:52","date_gmt":"2011-10-13T10:07:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.influx.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=23076"},"modified":"2022-06-22T12:22:37","modified_gmt":"2022-06-22T11:22:37","slug":"vw_-big-up-the-buggy-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.adrianflux.co.uk\/influx\/features\/vw_-big-up-the-buggy-up\/","title":{"rendered":"VW_ Big Up the Buggy Up!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Of all the manifestations of VW audacity, the Buggy represents something particularly deep-lying and playful in the minds of VW enthusiasts.<\/p>\n

They originate from the simple workability of the Beetle platform and a creative impulse that is common to folk who like to tweak ‘the people’s ride’.<\/p>\n

So when an updated version of the idea of a stripped down beach-oriented vehicle that is solely about fun fun fun appeared at this year’s Frankfurt show, it was always going to turn heads<\/p>\n

The buggy up! is of course, inspired by the Californian beach buggies of the 1960s – but this one is based on the forthcoming small car star the Up!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

The original buggies were custom jobs pioneered by the likes of Californian Bruce Meyers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Custom shops like the one run by Meyers replaced steel bodies with hand moulded fibreglass jobs.<\/p>\n

The result were agile, fun vehicles that perfectly reflected the ethos of California in the sixties.<\/p>\n

The Buggy up, meanwhile, doesn’t utilise composites – these bodies are made of lightweight steel and keeps its city sibling\u2019s reinforced underbody, running gear and drive technology.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

The roofless, doorless exterior is completely redesigned and the ride height is lowered by 20 mm. C-pillars are banished and the storage compartment is constructed of two pieces: the main part of the lid lifts upward like a saloon\u2019s bootlid, but the section above the bumper folds down, like the tailgate on a pick-up, making it easy to stash all that fun beach gear.<\/p>\n

There are also trad-style tie-down straps for luggage on top of the bootlid itself.<\/p>\n

Inside there are specially designed neoprene-covered seats (that’s wetsuit material) which are slung low, and so engineers have reduced the basic angle of the height-adjustable steering wheel by four degrees. This creates a real go-kart like driving position, and there’s a useful handle on the dash panel for when you assault the dunes properly.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n

Unlike most of the original Buggie the interior is completely waterproof with a basic cloth cover – and seats, sills and floors have drains in them that will allow any pesky brine to drain away easily.<\/p>\n

Even the controls for the iPod-compatible infotainment system are waterproof, and you can remove the entire module \u2013 including the integrated loudspeakers \u2013 so that you\u2019ve got a sound system for your beach party.<\/p>\n

By resurrecting a vehicle that is purely for fun, VW seem to be pushing the versatility of their brand – and engineering their ongoing status as a the daddy of manufacturers. Wether or not the Buggy Up! will ever be produced en masse remains to be seen.<\/p>\n

If they do so, we recommend they lose the exclaimation mark.<\/p>\n\n\t\t