Got it!
Well, the early September date was wrong. We actually got the TDI on August 6th, as they initially estimated. It's a fun little car, even more so now that we "customized" the exterior a bit.
I appreciate the comments on the leatherette seats. We do get a little sweaty on long drives, but as you say that would probably happen with leather, too. And I had forgotten how addicting that "new car smell" can be.
As for the car itself, it did have one minor flaw when we picked it up: the turn signal piece didn't fit together tightly. Just got that replaced (under warranty, of course) yesterday. The only other possible flaw is that the trunk is hard to close fully. We may get that looked at when we do our new car service in a couple months. We also got a clear-coat bra installed.
On the second day of ownership, the check engine light came on. I took it into the dealer, and they eventually discovered that it was a flaw in the firmware that meant the turbo control wasn't adjusted for the altitude. (We're a mile high here, possibly the first TDI Beetle up here.) It took service a while to figure it out, and they were on the phone to VW on both coasts. But it has been fine ever since they reflashed the control computer.
Mileage for our first tank was about 36 mpg, which is acceptable, especially considering how much we were playing with the turbo in the first couple of weeks. Seeing what it can do.
It's got a lot of pep, and can accelerate when you need it. No, it can't keep pace with a Corvette (we gave it a go on Saturday, just for fun), but I know I got better gas mileage than he did during the effort. (I only raced him up to the speed limit, but I guess he had something to prove because he kept going beyond that.)
It did come with the gauge package (oil temp, stop watch, turbo psi) in the center of the dash, which I gather only the release edition of the 2012 Beetles came with. Not sure if all the 2013s will have this again, or just the TDI and maybe the gas turbo.
We managed to fit 2 adult friends in the back seat over the weekend--something I hadn't thought possible just looking at it. But for short trips it wasn't any worse than my old car.
The suspension seems a bit tight to me on some roads, but I need to check the tire pressure to see if we might be a little high. Aside from that the ride is nice and quiet. The bluetooth works well. The stereo is great. It has an SD card slot, so you can just load up a card with mp3s and go. The sunroof works well, and isn't too noisy even at higher speeds. The DSG is not as smooth as I expected it to be, but more than adequate for an automatic transmission. Braking takes a little getting used to. The diesel engine is heavy, making the car heavier, so plan ahead when you want to stop. Plus when slowing to a stop, the engine goes from slowing you down (let your foot off the brake a little to compensate) to trying to move you forward when you get under about 5mph (so you have to push harder on the brake to come to a full stop). Maybe that's just an automatic transmission thing--most of my cars have been manual.
Ever since I was a kid growing up in the 70's, The Love Bug was my ideal car. My 5-year-old self used to say that when I grew up, I was going to have a white Beetle with stripes and a big number 53 on it, and it was going to have a powerful engine, and be remote controlled. (OK, so this one won't actually drive itself. Yet.)
I drove a yellow 1973 Super Beetle through high school and college. I test drove the old New Beetle back when it first came out, but the design just didn't do it for me. Then when the new redesign appeared, my inner child awoke. So this car is quite literally the car I've wanted almost all my life.
And, yes, we do get looks. People either get it, or they don't care. The smiles and nods and pointing make it a little more fun to drive. Not so much because I like attention, but because I know that, if I wasn't driving it, I would be the guy at the side of the road smiling and giving a thumbs-up as it drove by.