The Volkswagen Beetle is a car that everyone is familiar with. However, did you know that this imported slice of Americana has its roots in the Nazi party? This tidbit is only a part of the fascinating back-story of this timeless vehicle. The 1930s Nazi Germany's leader, Adolf Hitler, wanted to design a vehicle that could sustain speed for use on Germany's new Autobahn roadway. He approached auto-designer Ferdinand Porsche to create what he referred to as a "People's Car," or "Volkswagen" in German. He provided Porsche with specific details, stating that the vehicle should be able to travel at a top speed of 100 km/h while utilizing no more than seven liters of fuel. He also stated that it should be capable of seating two adults and three children. Hitler's Volkswagen was meant to be a simple and inexpensive car that could easily be mass-produced. The first two prototypes, made in October 1935, contained a 4-cylinder, 22.5 horsepower, air-cooled engine. One of the first rear-engine cars, it also featured a rear-wheel drive configuration. These vehicles were dubbed V1 and V2 (for Versuchswagen, or "test car"). Over the next couple of years, three additional prototypes were tested. Because of the cars' distinctive round shape, they were nicknamed Käfer, which is German for "beetle." The factory was only capable of producing a few cars before World War II broke out in 1939. Because of this, the first versions of the Volkswagen chassis were built for military vehicles such as the Kübelwagen and the amphibious Schwimmwagen. The 1940s Before 1945, there were only a handful of Beetles produced for the general public. Instead they produced a premier German military vehicle called the Kommandeurwagen, which was nothing more than a Kübelwagen chassis with a Beetle body mounted on top. These were manufactured until 1945, when heavy damage caused by Allied air raids destroyed the factory. Fortunately, the essential car-building equipment was moved underground and into bunkers, setting the stage for production to resume once the war ended. Once the Americans occupied Germany in 1945, they decided to pass control of the Volkswagen factory to the British. The British felt that Beetles did not meet fundamental motorcar requirements and passed on building the cars to sell commercially. Instead, they used the plant to manufacture vehicles for the British Army. British Army officer Major Ivan Hirst is credited with rebuilding the factory after the Americans captured it. He even removed an unexploded bomb lodged between a few pieces of crucial equipment. If the explosive went off, Volkswagen would have been out of business. In 1949, a former detractor of the company, Heinz Nordoff, was appointed as director of the factory and dramatically increased production. The Beetle was now aimed at the general public as a reliable car with superior performance in its category with a top speed of 115 km/h. That same year, the car was introduced to both Ireland and the United States. The 1950s Volkswagen began producing Beetle convertibles in 1950, and the line was so successful, that it continued for 30 years. The company's success was evident as Beetles were introduced to the UK market in 1952 and to Japan in 1953. In mid-1955, the one-millionth car rolled off the assembly line. Americans that were frustrated with American automakers in Detroit were inspired by the Beetle's simplicity and flocked to their local VW dealers. The average American car in the early 1950s cost approximately $2,900 (up from $2,200 in the previous decade). Consumers were paying for 150 horsepower, eight-cylinder engines in vehicles with lavish tail fins, air conditioning, and automatic transmissions. Drivers that would rather keep their cars mechanically simple chose Volkswagen in protest. Many customers in the later part of the decade rejected the blatant commercialism of the larger American automakers and chose Volkswagen to make a statement about their independence. This typically younger crowd found satisfaction in rejecting the status quo. VW dealers also found a niche with women due to the diminutive size and unique shape of the car. The 1960s Due to an advertising campaign organized by Doyle Dane Bernach (DDB), a Manhattan-based advertising agency, the Volkswagen Beetle became a cultural symbol of the 1960s. Unlike other campaigns of the era, DDB presented the Beetle as a fun and lovable vehicle owned by reasonable consumers juxtaposed against the backdrop of a materialistic society. One memorable mid-60s ad did not feature the vehicle at all, and simply declared that the coming year's model was "nothing new." In the early 1960s, the surf culture was made mainstream by musical acts such as Jan and Dean and The Beach Boys, and it cemented the Beetle as a status symbol. Around that time, American owners purchased engineering kits used to craft Beetles into cheap racing cars for competing in "Formula Vee" contests. Suburbanites that yearned for simplicity continued to drive Beetles, but hippies also felt an attraction to the car. Psychedelic tie-dyed patterns and bright Day-Glo flowers made an already odd-looking car now appear downright mind-boggling. Prior to the popularity of vans and buses among the counterculture, owning a Beetle sealed one's reputation as a person who bucked tradition. By 1968, the Beetle reached the apex of its popularity when it became a movie star. Disney's "Herbie the Love Bug" was a motion picture about a Beetle named Herbie who could drive on his own and had various emotions. He was a lovable outsider that could beat superior cars while racing, yet still had enough time to play cupid with his friends. The movie was successful at the box office and catapulted the car to fame. The 1970s, 1980s, and the Decline of the Beetle In late 1970, the first Super Beetles were built. They were produced as sedans until 1975 and as convertibles until 1980. A Super Beetle has some mechanical and cosmetic differences from the original. Super Beetles are two inches longer, and they also employ McPherson struts and coil springs rather than the traditional Beetle's torsion bars. The switch improved ride quality and increased accuracy in steering. The Super Beetle's storage capacity also dramatically increased over the original. The limited storage was thought to have prevented parents from investing in the Beetle as a family car. The spare tire takes up less room in the Super Beetle since it is tucked away leaving more room for groceries and sports equipment. The Super Beetle sold well among VW dealers, and as a result the 15,007,034th Volkswagen Beetle rolled off the production line on February 17, 1972 and shattered the Ford Model T's record for the most vehicles manufactured. Production went on to exceed 16 million by 1973. Unfortunately, the Beetle's popularity declined throughout the 1970s as it faced tough competition from newer cars with modern designs. Water-cooled, front-engine vehicles were perfected by the Ford Pinto, Chevy Vega, and AMC Gremlin. As a result, sales started to drop. Even in its heyday in the 1960s, Volkswagen attempted to supplement the Beetle with other product lines. Unfortunately, the Type 3, Type 4, and the K70 were much less successful. The company misfired by trying to capture the luxury market. By 1974, the company was in crisis mode. Volkswagen's answer was to supplement production with the water-cooled, front-engine, front wheel drive Golf (known as the "Rabbit" in North America) that same year. The Golf was immediately successful, and within a model year, it outsold the Beetle. Even so, the Golf was redesigned many times over its lifetime, unlike the Beetle that experienced only minor refining. Beetles ceased to be manufactured in Germany on January 19, 1978. At that time, mainstream production was moved to Mexico and Brazil due to their lower operating costs. Beetle sedans were sold in the United States until August 1977, while the Beetle convertible/Cabriolet continued until January 10, 1980, as it had in Europe. However, Beetle sedans were sold in the European market until 1985. However, this was not the end of the road for the Beetle. 1990s And The New Millennium Volkswagen subsequently made an attempt for the nostalgia-seeking market in 1994 with the "Concept One," a concept car that resembled the Beetle. It was a moderate success, so in 1998 they re-introduced the Bug as the "New Beetle" for the next generation. The Boomer-inspired retro-car was built on a Golf platform. Despite the fanfare, Volkswagen decided to discontinue production of the Beetle in 2003 due to decreased demand. In July of that year, after a record-breaking 65 years, the last Beetle rolled off the Mexican assembly line. The final 3,000 Beetles were called the Última Edición, and were sold among VW dealers as 2004 models. They featured the formerly discontinued chrome trim and whitewall tires. The Beetle will go down in history as the car that outlasted almost every other car that copied its unique air-cooled engine design. The Volkswagen Beetle also still holds the record as both the most-manufactured and the longest-running car with a single design throughout its history. However, the Beetle's claim to fame may always be that it is a quintessential symbol of a bygone era, shrouded in nostalgia for aging Baby-boomers. When considering VW dealers, NJ residents visit Audi VW of Newton. Learn more about this dealer at http://www.newtonaudivw.com/.
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