I found a higher-res picture of this car on another site. The plate number comes back as a 2000 New Beetle, so I assume this Beetle is more or less road-legal. It was last smogged [with this plate] in 2006, though.
I saw this car profiled in Hot Rod magazine a couple of years ago, in an article about freaky, "dare to be different" builds. The front engine is still stock. The rear one, obviously, isn't.