BEETLE

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — The Grand Rapids Children’s Museum’s iconic Volkswagen bug is finally getting a facelift through a collaboration with the Grand Rapids Auto Gallery. The organizations are partnering to restore the Beetle alongside the 9th Annual Summer Car Show on Saturday, June 19. Sam Herwaldt, marketing director at Grand Rapids Auto Gallery, said he remembers going to the museum as a kid and seeing the striking 1977 Beetle on display. The other half of the partnership aims to make these types of shows – which for Grand Rapids Auto Gallery usually include more vintage cars – accessible and welcoming to younger audiences. Between a bounce house, surprise cars from children’s movies, and the familiar Beetle, Herwaldt said there will be a little something for everyone.

(AP Photo/Jens Meyer, FILE)DETROIT – Volkswagen is recalling over 105,000 Beetles with faulty Takata front driver’s air bags that can explode and hurl shrapnel. Dealers will replace the front driver's air bags at no cost to owners starting on Feb. 12. But it's recalling them at the behest of the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is concerned that the air bags could explode over time. Exploding Takata inflators caused the largest series of auto recalls in U.S. history, with at least 63 million inflators recalled. About 100 million inflators have been recalled worldwide.

The Puebla factory, which already produces VW's Tiguan SUV, will make the Tarek SUV in place of the Beetle starting in late 2020, Volkswagen de Mexico Chief Executive Steffen Reiche said. The bigger vehicles are more popular in the United States, the main export market for the Mexico factory. The current design was the third version of the Beetle after two earlier cancellations and revivals of the marque. The 1968 movie "The Love Bug," which featured a zany anthropomorphic vehicle, stoked Beetle fever. Despite its place in popular culture, sales of the Beetle have been lackluster in recent years.

After roughly seven decades of production and three generations of designs, Volkswagen is retiring its iconic Beetle. (CNN) - After roughly seven decades of production and three generations of designs, Volkswagen is retiring its iconic Beetle. Volkswagen created new Beetle generations in 1998 and 2012. "It's impossible to imagine where Volkswagen would be without the Beetle," Volkswagen of America president and CEO Scott Keogh said in a statement. The final Beetle to roll off the assembly line will be displayed at a Volkswagen museum in Puebla, the company said.