JBugs Tips & Tricks - Super or Standard Beetle:

Video Overview:

We've heard pretty much every misconception you can think of when it comes to VWs but here are some common ones: "1971 and newer Beetles, are all Super Beetles" FALSE - VW made Super AND Standard Beetles from 1971 though 1977. "All Beetles with "flat" windshields are Standard Beetles" FALSE - 1971 and 1972 Super Beetles had the same windshield as the 1965 through 1977 Standard Beetle. The list goes on, but either way, to the untrained or unfamiliar eye, telling the difference between a Standard and a Super Beetle might be hard. We've had customers that had owned their car for years that didn't know it was a Super Beetle, or had thought it was a Super Beetle only to find out it was a Standard Beetle. VW of Germany first offered the "Super Beetle" starting in 1971 and made it (although only as a convertible, starting in 1976) all the way through 1980 (the 1980 models were listed and sold as 1979 models). Starting in 1971, VW only offered the Convertible Beetle as a Super Beetle model. No Standard Beetle Convertibles we're made past the 1970 model year. No other VW factories offered the Super Beetle. VW of Germany offered the Standard Beetle through 1977. After this, VW of Germany no longer made the Standard Beetle, but production in other countries did continue and VW of Mexico continued making their version of the Standard Beetle all the way up until July 30th, 2003.

You can identify a Super Beetle by looking at the spare tire; the Super Beetle's spare tire always lies flat in a recess in the floor while the Standard Beetle's spare tire sits upright. Another distinction is that the Super Beetle has a large vertical spring behind the wheel.