2002 Vw Jetta Station Wagon Clean And Serviced on 2040-cars

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Meet ZelectricBug, the amazing '63 VW Bug converted to EV power

No word a lie, we here at AutoblogGreen are fans of classic cars. What we are not fond of, however, is the pollution that their inefficient engines create, and so it's great to see our old favorites lovingly up-cycled with electric drivetrains. The ZelectricBug is a beautiful example of how new, cleaner life can be breathed into an old Volkswagen Beetle. Now, we first came across this particular automobile during the Refuel event last summer and we were struck by its cleanly done conversion then. Aside from a few snaps in our gallery, though, we didn't give it the kind of attention it deserves. Fortunately, the good folks over at Roads and Rides have rectified this by turning their pro video camera skills onto the 1963 V-Dub and producing a nice little segment to accompany their write up. Scroll below to see the finished footage and head over to their website for some stills. If all this gives you a hankering for your own Zelectric, the company does have plans to sell to the public starting this summer. If you don't want to wait, EV West, the guys who did the drivetrain work on this car, have conversion kits available for Beetles, as well as a number of other vehicles. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Volkswagen NMC production guise caught in China

Chinese car site Autohome has what are said to be the first pictures of the Volkswagen New Midsize Coupe concept in production form. VW's NMC was just introduced at the Beijing Motor Show, while background chatter indicated it would go on sale in China, Autohome says that production version will be built at the Shanghai-Volkswagen plant in Ningbo, and the retail guise could be introduced at the Guangzhou Motor Show in November and go on sale that same month.
Assuming this is the production car, its main lines have made the jump from the concept but with less fine detailing, a silver hue and with conventional VW wheels it's lost a little bit of oomph. Still, a few checkmarks on the option sheet can fix most of that, the shape remains handsome and the 2.0-liter turbo underhood keeps performance peppy and mileage frugal enough. You can head to Autohome for a couple more photos of a sedan we'd be happy to make room for over here.

NA auto output to reach 11-year peak

According to Automotive News, automakers are expected to manufacture 16 million light vehicles in North America in 2013. That's up 500,000 units from last year and marks the largest number since 2002. The prediction comes courtesy of LMC Automotive and IHS Automotive, which point to the improving US economy as a bellwether for total production. LMC Automotive says North America will produce 16 million vehicles while IHS has a slightly more optimistic forecast of 16.1 million units. A total of seven automakers are slated to increase production on the continent this year. Nissan is set to see the largest jump at 20 percent over last year.
Volkswagen, meanwhile, is one of the only manufacturers predicted to scale back production. Analysts expect the German company's output to fall by 23 percent to 170,000 units, thanks in part to slow demand for the Volkswagen Passat and Jetta.