Promotional models appear when car manufacturers' marketing people want to boost sales of outgoing car models. Most are forgotten, but not Volkswagen Jeans. It was quite special.
A trio of campaign models
We go all the way back to the autumn of 1973. Volkswagen was then in the process of making the move to water-cooled engines. The new Passat was a very popular family car, but the compact class was still dominated by the water-cooled Beetle. A successor was in the cards, but the new model (the Golf) would not be ready for production until May of the following year. I imagine a voice in the boardroom declaring: “We need a campaign model!”
There were not just one, but three campaign models. Two were based on the 1303 S – “Big” and “City”. The third was called “Jeans” and was based on the budget 1200. Campaign models are not really about actual models, just equipment packages.
-Riding around in denim
I remember Volkswagen well. 1303 big og 1200 Jeans, but not 1303 City. After browsing and searching Norwegian newspapers from this era, I only find advertisements where the dealers advertise “Big” and “Jeans”. The marketers chose to focus on the textiles in the seat covers with slogans like “Riding around in denim” – or – “Cordless or denim?” Big had corduroy seat covers while Jeans used denim. Both were popular fabrics used in jackets and trousers of the time.
What was actually hidden under the equipment packages was the following:
Big
- Corduroy seat cover
- High seat backs
- Wide wheels with radial tires
- Padded leather-covered steering wheel
- GT gear lever
- Instrument panel covered with wood foil
- Wall-to-wall carpet
- Heating wires in the rear window
- Engine with 60 hp (SAE)
Jeans
- Denim seat covers with pockets and shiny rivets on the back of the seatbacks (like jeans pockets)
- High seat backs
- Radio
- GT gear lever
- Backlight
- Sports rims
- Jeans decals
- Matte black decor
- Engine with 41 hp (SAE)
For the 1974 model year, the only color available was Tunis Yellow. From 1975, the following 3 colors were available: Marino Yellow, Phoenix Red and Brilliant Yellow. From the 1975 model year, the front turn signals were recessed into the bumpers.
Of the two campaign models, it was Jeans that caught my interest. Not because it was the better of the two, but I think the yellow color with the matte black trim was great. Remember that in 1973 the fashion colors consisted of a brown-yellow color palette. Modern furniture, wallpaper and floor coverings carried such colors. Also, denim jackets and pants were in fashion with the young people. Let me also highlight the matte black decorative elements on the car. The matte black engine hood and decorative strips were cheap effects that pimped up an old youth car.
In 1973, the pressure The Demands of the Time a post criticizing Volkswagen's new campaign models. The journalist began by praising the new line of cars for their improved suspension, larger trunk space, and larger windows. He then continued:
In several places, Volkswagen dealers collaborated with trouser sellers to sell their products. In one place in Romerike, jeans from Domus and Volkswagen could be found in the same place. It is also reported that several dealers in Europe lured car buyers with the offer of a pair of jeans with the purchase.
The Volkswagen 1200 was the company's entry-level model. Even in the Jeans version, it cost only 21.950 kroner at the end of 1973 and 22.950 kroner at the end of 1974. Seen through my teenage eyes, the Volkswagen Jeans appeared to be a lot of car for the money compared to, for example, the Skoda of the time – not in size but in status. It became a car you could dream of buying with your own money. But when I was finally able to buy my first car a couple of years later, the money wasn't even enough for a used Volkswagen Jeans.
Volkswagen was not a youth car. Quite the opposite. A lot of car for the money, proven technology and modern colors meant that the cars were a hit among adults and price-conscious people.
In 1974, Norwegian newspapers reported on a sociological study in Austria that had investigated how Volkswagen's campaign models attracted different groups of people. Neither workers nor salaried employees were enticed by the campaign packages. On the other hand, self-employed people were attracted to the Volkswagen Big, while people connected to agriculture liked the Volkswagen Jeans.
Useful science?
The first time I saw a Volkswagen Jeans up close was in 1974 at my uncle and aunt's house, who always drove Volkswagens. They lived far east in the forest where they ran a farm with animals, forests, hunting and fishing. I remember how great the yellow Jeans station wagon was, and how well it matched my father's sienna-brown Saab 96. Good memories from the 1970s.
A faded pair of jeans?
There are few models that are as well preserved as the Volkswagen Beetle. So why don't we see any Volkswagen Jeans? There are many Volkswagen 1200s in the vehicle register, and a good proportion of these probably started their existence as Jeans. I think many cars lost their yellow color at the first or second repaint. Eventually, perhaps door handles, bumpers, headlight rings, etc. were replaced? It is a well-known fact that everything that is hypermodern can suddenly become completely out of date. The yellow-brown color palette has disappeared from our homes. Few young, dynamic gentlemen strut around in corduroy suits, and according to the “fashion police,” “double denim” (denim both on top and bottom) is completely out.
But as you know, fashions can change. Today, Volkswagen Jeans are pretty cool cars, but you may have trouble getting one. If the Jeans character has been removed, it can be recreated with new paint in the original color. New Jeans decals can be purchased in several places. But a denim interior is unlikely to have survived the test of time. Corduroy has probably suffered the same fate. The cotton-based textiles are well suited for clothing, but not as seat covers in cars. The fabric fades, stretches and wears to pieces just like the pants.
Who has taken care of their denim pants from the 1970s?
About the pictures
The main picture is of a 1974 Volkswagen Jeans in Tunis Yellow color with Lemmerz Champions rims. The car was photographed during a Volkswagen car show in Rimini, Italy 2017. Copyright belongs to FilippoPH/Shutterstock. One detail that reveals the car's Italian origin is the design of the turn signals with an additional glass opening on the sides to throw the light sideways.
The second car was pictured during Veteran Car Day in Skien 2026. The car is a 1975 model in Marino Gelb color with Lemmerz GT rims. From the 1975 model year, the turn signals were moved from the front fenders to the bumpers.
The image of the three campaign models together probably comes from brochure material. The French page is a clipping from an advertising page. The message is: "When you're an idol, you don't dress like everyone else."
Source: jeansbeetles.com
