Whatever I write about the new Beetle will not affect what you think about the car. If you love it you will continue to love it. If you hate it you will continue to hate it.

I love the Beetle. I love the shape, I love all that glass, I even love the little flower vase on the dashboard. In fact, I prefer it to the new Mini: it has a nicer driving position and the 1.8T is a better engine.

Would I rush out and buy a new one? No. And I would strongly advise others not to do so: far better to wait a couple of years and save yourself some money.

Two days ago my local dealer offered me an 18-month-old Beetle 1.6 with 20,000 miles on the clock. I was quite interested until I heard the price. It was up for retail at £10,995 — that’s £3,000 over the book price and only £1,500 less than it cost new.

Surely the dealer was on some kind of medication? What could be the reason for such a ridiculous price? Perhaps new cars are impossible to find, making used ones extremely desirable? No. You can walk into a Volkswagen showroom today and, if you aren’t too fussy about colour, pick up your new car next weekend.

Perhaps some buyers believe that Beetles possess unique and exotic technology? No. Everybody knows that under its skin lies a VW Golf.

Perhaps customers are unaware that this very German car is made in Mexico? Who cares; your 3-series BMW is built in South Africa.

So why are used Beetles fetching such silly prices? Simple: there are just a few more customers who want second-hand Beetles than there are second-hand Beetles. And because people who buy Beetles really love them they are prepared to pay over the odds.

But if you are thinking of taking the plunge, wait. As more second-hand cars begin to appear values will drop like a stone. You can already pick up a left-hand-drive example for just £5,000. Although I wouldn’t bother: do you really want to get out and walk round to fetch your ticket every time you stop at an automatic car park barrier? You’re much better off waiting until next summer to pick up a right-hand-drive car when prices have settled down.

The new V5 variant has a nice engine, but is thirsty and not very quick. The word is that dealers are struggling with the 2.0 litre petrol model; it and the 1.6 look like becoming the ugly ducklings of the range. Which makes the 1.8T and the 100bhp 1.9 litre TDI diesel the smart choices, and they have alloy wheels and air conditioning as standard.

By next autumn you should be able to find a three-year-old 1.8T with metallic paint for about £9,000. At that money you have a cute-looking car that drives as well as a Golf for the price of a nearly new Ford Fiesta.

But then nothing I say will alter what you think about the new Beetle. If you love it you will still go out and buy one tomorrow.


Vital statistics

Engine type 2 litre, four-cylinder
Transmission Five-speed manual
Max power 115bhp @ 5200rpm
Acceleration 0 to 60mph: 10.9sec
Top speed 115mph
Fuel 32.5mpg (combined)