The Beetle Dune should be reasonably inexpensive to run in terms of fuel economy and car tax bills – with all models returning more than 50mpg – but this is more than outweighed by very high finance costs.

Costs through Volkswagen’s PCP finance scheme are much higher than rivals, due to the car losing value quickly as it gets older. With monthly costs weighing in at potentially 50% more than competitors this is a very expensive car to run for the class.

High list prices are somewhat offset by £3,000 discounts, however, which makes things much better for cash buyers and those planning to take advantage of the best value loans. Servicing and maintenance costs, on the other hand, should be reasonable, with many parts being shared across many of Volkswagen’s other models.

With just a low-power petrol engine and a diesel, claimed CO2 emissions are low. Most economical is the 62.8mpg 150hp diesel manual, which emits 118g/km – putting it into the £30 car tax band. Opt for the automatic gearbox, however, and this figure rises to 58.9mpg and 125g/km – warranting £110 car tax.

It’s the opposite story with the petrol, with the automatic gearbox cutting emissions from 126g/km (and 51.4mpg) to 122g/km (and 54.3mpg) – both of which fall into the £110 annual VED car tax band.

Volkswagen reliability is normally pretty sound and the Beetle shares engines and many other parts with numerous other VW, Audi, SEAT and Skoda models. As a result, the engines and surrounding tech are proven and shouldn’t provide any unexpected headaches.