Although not long for this world, the Beetle is being allowed to fight for one more year. The Beetle will be making its triumphant return to Americas Rallycross (ARX) this year.

The 2019 season will only be the series’ second, but the Beetle has been competing in American rallycross racing in one form or another since 2014. They’ve also been a dominant force in rallycross, winning the Red Bull Global Rallycross championship for three years straight, before again winning the American Rallycross series which replaced it last year.

As in previous years, the cars are based on Volkswagen Motorsports’ rallycross chassis (which underpins a Polo in Europe) and are prepared by Andretti Rallycross. The two cars will have 2.0-liter 560 hp turbocharged engines that get them up to 60 mph in just 2 seconds.

“It is great that the Beetles will be back on the ARX circuits this year—it will be a fitting send-off for the iconic Beetle now that production is coming to an end,” said Jost Capito, managing director of Volkswagen R. “Affordable performance is a pillar of our brand, which is why Volkswagen R is proudly supporting Andretti Rallycross this season.”

The Beetles and indeed the ARX series will by racing in four events this summer:

July 13-14: Madison, IL — Gateway Motorsports Park

August 3-4: Circuit Trois-Rivières — Quebec, Canada

September 28: Circuit of the Americas — Austin, TX

October 5: Lexington, Ohio — Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Unfortunately, reigning champion Scott Speed will not return to his seat in the Beetle, having taken a seat with Subaru’s rallycross team. The driver lineup for Volkswagen remains uncertain, but
Foust’s Instagram feed does at least suggest[/URL] that the possibility of him returning to his Rockstar-liveried Beetle exists. After all, VW chose it as the lead image for the press release announcing the Beetle's return to competition.