Incredibly Gorgeous Rendering Turns Classic Volkswagen Brasília Into A Modern Beauty.
Back in the ’70s, The president of Volkswagen of Brazil – Rudolf Leiding, came up with the idea to create a more modernized version of the Beetle hatchback, inspired by and intended for Brazilian consumers. The intent was to fabricate a hatchback that was practical as well as economical, suitable to hold its own against the fiercest competitors in the Brazilian car industry.
After a 3-month prototype development period, the all-new Volkswagen Brasília was finally announced, and sales began in 1973. Over 1 million units were eventually produced until 1982, and they were sold mostly in Brazil and other countries of South America, as well as in Mexico and Nigeria – where it was marketed as the VW Igala.
30 years have gone by since the last unit of the Volkswagen Brasília was produced, yet it still remains in the memory of many cultured car enthusiasts. In 2020, John Rendering published his very own rendering of a slightly modernized and modded VW Brasília, and it turned out amazing. Here’s a closer look at this gorgeous design.
A Modern Classic Modded To Perfection
Many rendering artists tend to go over the top when they reimagine classic cars by implementing way too many mods and bodywork upgrades, to the point where the final product is virtually unrecognizable from the original. In this case, however, John Rendering hit the sweet spot, as he managed to give the VW Brasília plenty of modern touches, yet anyone who knows the original car could easily associate this rendering with it.
Starting up front, the rendering mixes up the original Brasília with a slightly longer hood that also features a subtle yet gorgeous bodyline straight down the middle that feeds into the pointed body-colored grill – which has no intakes, just like the authentic model. The rendering also features larger and more modern chrome dual headlights, as well as a thinner chrome bumper that wraps around the entire front end.
Down the side, the rendering displays elongated fenders that are connected by another sleek bodyline, and the designer chose to delete the chrome strip from the original model that VW placed above and across the fenders. The rendered Brasília also presents an extremely low stance, as it hovers just about an inch over the ground on a large set of deep-dished chrome wheels fitted to a thick set of rubbers, which tuck neatly beneath the car’s fenders. Finally, as far as the vehicle’s flank is concerned, the render maintains the original grilled intake above the rear fender from the original model which was intended to cool the rear-mounted engine, though the strips are slightly longer.
In the rear, the Brasília rendering looks pretty much identical to the classic from 1973, and the only difference comes in the form of the taillights, which maintain the same shape and design but are completely red, and a slightly thinner rear bumper that hovers above a custom quad-tip exhaust setup. The dark beige paint job suits the car perfectly, especially in combination with its red and black interior, and the body gaps have been reduced to the point where they’re barely noticeable, giving the whole car a seamless and classy finish.
Specs Of The Original VW Brasília
The Brasília from 1973 came with a 1.6-liter flat-four boxer engine with 54 horsepower and a 4-speed manual transmission. The single-carburetor air-cooled engine allowed the Brasília to run from 0-60 in 23 seconds on its way to a top speed of 80 mph. The car was quite the slouch no matter how you looked at it, though performance was never its primary intent.
This rendering of the classic Volkswagen Brasília shows that even the most unimpressive cars – both classic and modern, can be transformed into beautiful works of art with a bit of imagination and understanding. We hope to see more like it in the future, and some might even become a reality if there’s any body shop out there that’s brave enough to take on the challenge.
