Unfortunately there is no escaping the icon that is the Beetle. Whether your dad had one, or your grandad, or his grandad, or whether your kids just use them as an excuse to punch their mates, everybody has a Beetle story.

After a fairly weak effort at reviving the brand in the ’90s, VW has got stuck in and have come up with what it hopes will be a fitting modern tribute to the car that essentially helped mobilise an entire continent after WW2.

You know a company has spent a tonne of money when a) very few details whatsoever have leaked to the public, nevermind pictures of the thing and b) they’re launching a car simultaneously on three continents.

VW has partnered with MTV for the launch, and you can follow everything as well as stream the launch live right here: worldstage.mtv.tv. The launch is also trending on Twitter – follow #VWBeetle for the latest.

In the meantime, here’s the awesome little Superbowl ad for the new bug.

We’ll be following the launch closely at OverdriveTV.