page_title: Volkswagen Beetle in Mexico
section_title: Export to Europe
hierarchical_section_title: Volkswagen Beetle in Mexico / Export to Europe
caption_attribution_description: English: VW Beetle from Madrid. Italiano: Volkswagen "Maggiolone" del 1974.Volkswagen Beetle 2.
context_page_description: The Volkswagen Beetle was introduced to Mexico in March 1954, inside the exhibition "Alemania y su Industria". Four different Volkswagen vehicles were brought to Mexico through Veracruz City for the first time. Those vehicles were: two Sedans 113 in "Export" trim, a convertible, and a VW Bus in luxury trim. Officially, the Bug/Beetle was named "Type I sedan" and the Bus was named "Type II station wagon", though variants included single and double cab pickups.
  At that time, the Mexican car market was mostly characterized by American makes and models with large sizes and large engines, which made a huge contrast with the new German entrant. An exhibition was held in the Ciudad Universitaria in Mexico City; during this event, the vehicles were widely admired by the public. The Volkswagen Beetles displayed there were the model with the "oval window". Former Mexican president Lázaro Cárdenas made a trip from Michoacán, just to see this peculiar vehicle. The local press immediately published the news into eight columns under the title "The People's Man" with the "People's Car".
context_section_description: Beginning in 1978 the Volkswagen Beetle introduced air vents on the front trunk cover to bring fresh air to the interior. The air exited through a couple of rear vents behind the rear side windows. Hub caps disappeared from the equipment list in all models. With the cancellation of production in Germany, the Mexican Volkswagen Beetle started exporting to European markets, including West Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, and other countries. This exportation model was different from the Mexican market Beetle. Its engine was a 1200cc 34CV (33 hp). From the 1982 model on, the engine cover had no exterior vents. The different engine cover made it similar to German-produced VW 1200, as well as Mexican market Beetles sold before 1970. Also introduced were optional metallic paint colors: Silver Metallic, Copper Red Metallic, Cadmium Blue Metallic and Viper Green Metallic.  These colors were also available on the Caribe and the new European market Volkswagen Scirocco, as a reminder of the late 1970s models.
  In September 1980 the company produced the one millionth Mexican-made Volkswagen.
  In 1981, the Volkswagen (the manufacturer's model name from this point forward) came equipped with front seats that integrated headrests as a required safety feature and new cloth upholsteries.  The new seats had the same design as the Volkswagen Type 3 and bus vehicles previously seen in Europe and the United States in the late 60s.  On May 15, 1981 the 20 millionth worldwide produced Volkswagen Beetle was manufactured by Volkswagen de México. A commemorative limited edition was sold with Silver metallic paint and the same lower side stripes seen on the Jetta. Around this time, the nickname Vocho came into popular usage in Mexico.
  For the 1983 model year, the Volkswagen received new front seats with adjustable headrests, already seen in cars such the Caribe and the Atlantic. A newly added item was the control light for the brake circuits on the dashboard. 1983 also introduced a limited edition Aubergine Metallic paint scheme. This also featured its wheels painted to match the body color and seats upholstered in tweed Grey and Aubergine.
  In 1984 was the marque's 30th anniversary in Mexico, for this reason, three commemorative limited editions were launched. The first one was a Volkswagen painted in Alpine White with the side lower stripes already seen in the 20 millionth edition, its upholstery was red velour with sides and door panels in black vinyl.
   
  Another limited edition available only in West-Germany was painted in velvet-red (German: Samtrot) with stripes and flower-decor on the sides. This model also sported the same red velour upholstery like the Mexican special edition. The third one, a yellow painted Volkswagen, with yellow velour upholstery. The sides and door panels were white; however, elements such as the dashboard, the armrests, the rear ashtray and the interior rubber mat keep its typical black color.
  In 1985, exportations to Europe ended, and a grey metallic special edition called the Jubilée Käfer (50 Jahre Käfer = 50 years Beetle in German) was launched. It had newly designed steel wheels (as seen in some convertible models in the late 70s), and its engine was the 1200cc 34CV (33 hp) DIN. This edition was only available in the European markets where the Mexican Beetle was sold. At this time (model year 1986), the Mexican Volkswagen receives the larger rear window from 1972 and later German Beetles, and the bulged rear apron of the 1975 and later German Beetles.
  In mid-1986, a new Limited Edition was launched in Mexico: The Volkswagen Europa Edition 1. This was the first Volkswagen available in Mexico in many years painted in black; besides this special painting, this new Limited Edition had chrome hub caps (the norm in the 80's were matt finished hub caps), inside it had seats upholstered in a honeycomb black and white design with Recaro headrests, plus an AM/FM stereo cassette player radio (usually the only audio equipment available on Mexican Beetles were the eternal Sapphire XI AM monoaural r
caption: 1980 Volkswagen 1200L. Produced in Mexico for Europe. Front view.
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