From driving around from Orange to the coast a fair bit, I reckon there are more buses on the road then beetles. I'd even go so far as to say that there are more bay window buses on the road then beetles.

What do you think?

yep me 2

i could be wrong but i thought that beetles were the seccond highest selling model car in the world? seccond only to the toyota corolla (if i remember correctly). i see way more beetles in adelaide. i think with recent jump in the popularity of kombis means more are coming out of the woodwork but i think there are still more beetles. my 2c

There are probably more beetles than buses in Canberra. But I have seen some sweet lookin' busses around town. One matt black job in particular.

I see more beetles up here at Newcastle.

I never see kombis in Wagga. Have only ever seen 1 split. See beetles all the time though.
Simon

I should point out that New Beetles don't count. They are in the same basket as Episodes I, II and III

the beetle is the most popular car in the world, not the corola,
i recon there are more busses in everyday use (transperth have heaps of em!)

hehehe, only kidding, i still recon busses are in more regular use and more popular than bugs.

There's a difference between the 'biggest selling car' and the 'biggest selling car nameplate' - they aren't the same thing, and that is what is causing all the arguments.

The Corolla is the biggest selling nameplate, with over 32 million 'Corollas' sold since 1966. However, it isn't the same car, as it has been redesigned many times over the years (such as changing from rear to front drive). It is currently on its tenth generation. The next best selling nameplate is the Ford F-series pickup truck, which has sold over 30 million since 1948. Of course it has also been redesigned many times. The F-series is on its eleventh generation, with the twelfth generation to debut next year.

The VW Golf is third, having passed 26 million earlier this year since its debut in 1974. Of course, the current generation is the fifth, and the Golf 6 has recently been released in Europe (and we'll get it next year). I don't know if sales of the Jetta are counted as Golfs - they are the basically the same car. Let alone other VW models built on the Golf platform, such as the Golf Plus, Eos, New Beetle, Scirocco, Audi A3 and A4, various Seats and Skodas, etc etc. It starts to get a bit hazy.

The Beetle is still fourth, with just over 21 million, and is still the 'biggest selling car' as it remained basically the same all the way through. You could argue that the Superbug was a considerable redesign - maybe a 'Beetle Mk 2'? In any case, every single part of the car was redesigned over the years. In Australia, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries did not count one model as the 'Beetle'. They recognised a model called the 'VW 1200' which appeared in 1954 and was sold until 1966, when it was replaced by the 'VW 1300'. Two different models!

I believe the Guinness Book of Records used to list the Beetle as the best selling car, but due to the difficulties in deciding when a model was 'redesigned', they have since dropped it and now just report on the biggest selling 'nameplate' - the Corolla. That seems unfair to me, but then I want to group all the Golfs together as one model, so it works both ways.

Yes there does seem to be more Mk2 Kombis on the road now than Beetles. Don't forget that the Beetle's best-selling year in Australia was 1964 and the Kombi's was 1975, so there's a decade difference. Beetles also sold in tiny amounts after 1974 and ended in 1976, while for Kombis, 1973-76 were their best-selling years here.

In any case, now there are many more Golfs and Polos on the road than either of them.

i see beetle more then kombis on the rd here in western syd.


Thanks for sheding some light on this phil, this has been a constant query of mine "who sold more beetles or Corollas"?

heaps more beetles than kombis in darwin

ditto here in brissy, i think ive seen like 2 busses up here all year and like 20 beetles!

i guess theres a few back packers that think twice about taking a kombi to the territory nowadays

Agreed, the FCAI's model classifications were a bit weird for many many years. They classified 'VW 1200' and 'VW 1300' as different models, yet they counted both Superbugs, '76 Beetles and Type 3s as a 'VW 1600'. Thus it's impossible now to break down sales data into just Superbugs, or just Type 3s. They did the same with the 'VW 1500' - that included both Beetles and Type 3s.

Also the FCAI used to count station wagons as a separate model. So they listed 'VW 1600' cars (Superbugs and Type 3s), AND 'VW 1600' station wagons in the 'Commercial' category. Thus, that would have included Type 3 squarebacks, Kombis, and even Passat wagons for a couple of years. Again, impossible now to separate.

Then later they split Golfs into 'VW Golf' and 'VW VR6', but didn't split sedans and cabriolets. Also, Kombi microbuses were orginally listed as commercial vehicles (and not separated from the overall Kombi total), but in the early 1990s VW Caravelles were then listed as passenger cars. Today, the Caddy Life, T5 Multivan and T5 Caravelle are Passenger Cars, but the bare base models are Commercial Vehicles.

Up to 1973 they listed model sales by year. Then they went to financial year - 1973/74 etc - up to 1977/78, when they changed back again.

Sadly most days, just driving to and from work, I don't see any Beetles at all, and sometimes no Kombis either. At least they seem to come out on weekends, hopefully on club runs.

definatley alot more busses than bugs on the road around here