VW Beetle

“Mexicans Still Love Their Bugs” (Column One, March 16) is very interesting, but not fully informative, at least for American readers.

The article fails to state if a Mexican-made old Beetle can be imported into the U.S., even if the new owner pays a “hefty price to bring the old Beetle into acceptable emission and safety standards”; how much that hefty price can be; if the work must be done in Mexico before its import into the U.S., and if parts are available here.

ROBERT D. WESTGATE

Washington

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It was fascinating to hear that the old Bug is still manufactured in Mexico. I am a car aficionado. A couple of days ago, I went down to Santa Ana to see the new VW Beetle. It looks very attractive and is quite comfortable, roomy and well-designed inside (and I’m a big guy). My only problem is that I found the prices to be shocking. The new Beetles have sticker prices around $16,000.

The original purpose of the VW Beetle was to be a “people’s car” (what Volkswagen means) and therefore affordable for most people, such as college students, office workers and others in the lower economic strata.

The car is built in Puebla, Mexico. Auto workers there are paid considerably less than their counterparts in car factories in most other nations. I feel strongly that if VW were to make an economy version of the new Bug, selling for about $9,000 or $10,000, it might become one of the top-selling cars in the world, and they would still earn a nice profit on the new Beetle.

STEVE LOPEZ

Anaheim