The Volkswagen Beetle is one of the most popular and
instantly recognizable cars in the world. The VW Beetle has been a
historic and revolutionary car in several ways. The Beetle can be
credited to the creation of the German car giant Volkswagen which today has
grown to become the second-largest car manufacturer after Toyota from Japan. The
Beetle took German car manufacturing prowess from Germany to the world! Earlier
this month the last Beetle to be manufactured rolled off the assembly
line at VW’s Puebla plant in Mexico. This marked an end to 81 illustrious years
of the car in production. We pay a tribute to the VW Beetle and
take you on a journey to find out the impact this little car had on the world!
It may be hard to
believe but the idea for the Beetle was envisioned in 1935 by Adolf Hitler
…yes, the infamous German dictator! Hitler wanted a simple and affordable
family car which was easy to drive and could move swiftly across Germany’s
newly built network of roads, highways – the Autobahn. There was a need for a ‘Volkswagen’
(means people’s car in German) which was designed and manufactured in Germany. The
legendary automobile engineer Ferdinand Porsche was given the task of conceptualizing
and bringing the car to reality in its production form. In 1938, Porsche
delivered a 2-door rear-engine economy car which could seat 5 passengers.
The original Beetle, known as the “Type 1” at the time could reach a top
speed of 100 km/hr. and produced a max power output of 24 bhp. The newly
designed car was put into production at VW’s newly commissioned Wolfsburg factory.
However, due to the onset of World War 2 production came to a screeching halt
and only about 200 Beetles were produced. The Wolfsburg factory was made
to manufacture military vehicles and equipment as part of the German war
effort. VW’s Wolfsburg factory was a victim to the extensive damage caused by
the Allied bombing during World War 2. After the war, the Allies turned their
focus towards rebuilding a devasted Germany. VW’s factory was an important
source of employment and a critical element of the economy in the Wolfsburg region.
The Allies found plans and blueprints of the Beetle but did not seem to
be interested in taking on the task of producing it. The Allies tried multiple ways of
getting rid of the factory by offering it for sale to potential bidders. US car
giant Ford was also offered the Beetle and the factory for free…but Ford
refused as they could not see any value in the car for the American market. The
Wolfsburg factory was soon handed over to the German government who against all
odds managed to bring the factory back to full production capacity. Come 1946, VW’s
Wolfsburg factory was producing over 10000 Beetles!
The first Beetles
began arriving in the USA in 1949. During its first year in the US market, VW sold
only 2 units of the Beetle. The car was inferior with respect to the value
on offer and underpowered for the American car buyer. However, the sales
numbers gradually began increasing in the years hence. The 1950s saw sales of
the Beetle boom as export orders began to pick up in countries
worldwide. Suddenly an undesired car was becoming the darling of the world! The
Beetle soon became a sensation in the US market. Housewives, college
students buying their first car, families wanting a second car and hippies…all
became beloved customers of the VW Beetle. In 1955, Volkswagen manufactured
its 1 millionth car, this was an amazing feat for a relatively young car brand.
The Beetle - An affordable, reliable and easy to drive car backed by a
smart and creative advertising campaign ensured VW became a household name
across the globe. The success of the Beetle paved the way for an entire
range of rear-engine cars such as the popular VW ‘Type 2’ Bus, and other family
cars through the 1960s. Many of other VW favorites such as the Golf, Passat
also take inspiration from the VW Beetle. In 1967, VW gave the Beetle
a much-needed mid-cycle facelift. The facelift gave the Beetle new headlights,
revised bumpers, redesigned taillights, a redesigned dashboard for the
interior. VW also added 2 wind-shield wipers, a 12V electric system, and upgraded
brakes. Adolf Hitler was inspired by the impact Henry Ford had on the
automobile industry with the Ford Model T. He wanted the VW Beetle
to recreate this impact. Hitler’s wish came true in February of 1972 – Volkswagen
built the 1,50,07,034th Beetle to surpass the Ford Model T
as the best-selling car in history.
The VW Beetle
received its first major upgrade in 1998, after 60 years of its introduction.
The New Beetle as it was called, brought along with it a 2.0 L petrol
engine which produced 115 bhp of max power output. The New Beetle
had a new design based on the VW Golf platform while maintaining the DNA
of the original Beetle. The new car became popular amongst millennials and
young professionals alike. The Beetle continued to sell through the 2000s albeit not with the same popularity as what it once had. 2013 saw a
significant dip in sales of the Beetle as the car found it difficult to
cope with the competition. In 2018, VW announced that it would seize production
of the Beetle in 2019 ending a production run of 81 years! We can very
well attribute the rise and existence of the VW group to the success of the VW Beetle.
There have been very few rare cars that have defined and helped build companies
to stand the test of times – Porsche’s 911, VW’s Beetle, Toyota’s
Corolla are stalwarts and brilliant examples of such legendary cars. Cars
such as the VW Beetle do not come around quite regularly…whether we have
another car which can sell over 21 million units on a single platform remains
to be seen…until then the VW Beetle will remain in our hearts until
eternity!
