Subtle changes took place in the 1964 Volkswagen Beetle when the new models were introduced in August 1963. Really big visible changes were still a year away. Beetle sales worldwide climbed over the one million units, to 1,216,390 according to some reports and U.S. figures continued to climb with 259,412 buyers choosing 251,806 Sedans and 7,606 Cabriolets.

More than six of every 10 imported cars sold in the country were now Volkswagens and the number of dealerships climbed from 750 to 845. VW estimated 1.6 million of their Beetles, Transporters and Karmann-Ghia models were running on U.S. highways. Prices were unchanged at $1,565 for the Deluxe or export Sedan, $1,685 for the Sunroof Sedan and $2,095 for the Karmann-built Cabriolet.

Beetle changes this year included replacing the canvas sunroof with a smaller steel unit, painted the same color as the car. Dual thumb-push buttons replaced the chrome-plated horn ring. The controls and buttons on the dash were now Silver Beige Color instead of black and the black painted letters on the hubcap were now unpainted and harder to read.