History of Volkswagen - VW Tuareg, Passat, B3, B5, Polo, Golf, Jetta, Beetle

Volkswagen history goes back to the first half of the 20th century when the idea to build a car affordable for people was introduced in Germany. The world "Volkswagen" means "people's car". Before the 1930 there were a lot of efforts applied to production of cheap cars. But none of the efforts met with a success. Each time the Germans try to introduce a low cost car they end up in huge expenses per car that exceeded the average worker's yearly salary.

But two persons were more determined than others and were obsessed with an idea to build a car for an average person. They were Ferdinand Porsche and Adolf Hitler. Adolf Hitler came up with the idea when he was imprisoned in 1923 and had a lot of time to examine the achievements of Henry Fords.

When Hitler became chancellor in 1933 he announced about the development of a "peoples car". He dreamed about the car that could carry 5 people and go at the speed of 60 mph. The new car was named Type 60. Before Porsche had designed Type 32 prototype NSU of 1934 and now a lot of features of NSU were included into the new car.

Soon construction of the car began at the factory (it was in 1938). A few cars were produced to show that the factory actually operates. The final model of car was different from the original one. This edition of the car was the basis for the Beetle that was produced after the war.

But Hitler abruptly decided to change the name of the car. Now it was KdF Wagen that stood for "Kraft durch Freude" ("Strength through Joy"). However Porsche did not want to advertise the Nazi party and did not support Hitler's political views.

When the War began the KdF Wagen was changed and was meant to serve the needs of military forces. At that time the factory was known as the "Wolfsburg Motor Works".

During the war the factory was partially destroyed and the British gained the control over the factory.

In 1948 it was decided that Volkswagen needed something more to achieve the popularity in the world. It was then when the Beetle prototype was introduced. Much was taken from the previous models but the overall design and technical characteristics were improved.

In 1949 when 358 two seater convertibles had already been made the fire damaged the factory greatly. It was in production again after four weeks but financial burden caused by fire was heavy.

In 1971 the Super Beetle was introduced with the main changes ever maid to the model.

The main rival of the Beetle was Ford's model "T" but it was in 1972 when the Beetle finally overtook it.

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History of Volkswagen - VW Tuareg, Passat, B3, B5, Polo, Golf, Jetta, Beetle Volkswagen history goes back to the first half of the 20th century when the idea to build a car affordable for people was introduced in Germany. The world "Volkswagen" means "people's car". Before the 1930 there were a lot of efforts applied to production of cheap cars. But none of the efforts met with a success. Each time the Germans try to introduce a low cost car they end up in huge expenses per car that exceeded the average worker's yearly salary. But two persons were more determined than others and were obsessed with an idea to build a car for an average person. They were Ferdinand Porsche and Adolf Hitler. Adolf Hitler came up with the idea when he was imprisoned in 1923 and had a lot of time to examine the achievements of Henry Fords. When Hitler became chancellor in 1933 he announced about the development of a "peoples car". He dreamed about the car that could carry 5 people and go at the speed of 60 mph. The new car was named Type 60. Before Porsche had designed Type 32 prototype NSU of 1934 and now a lot of features of NSU were included into the new car. Soon construction of the car began at the factory (it was in 1938). A few cars were produced to show that the factory actually operates. The final model of car was different from the original one. This edition of the car was the basis for the Beetle that was produced after the war. But Hitler abruptly decided to change the name of the car. Now it was KdF Wagen that stood for "Kraft durch Freude" ("Strength through Joy"). However Porsche did not want to advertise the Nazi party and did not support Hitler's political views. When the War began the KdF Wagen was changed and was meant to serve the needs of military forces. At that time the factory was known as the "Wolfsburg Motor Works". During the war the factory was partially destroyed and the British gained the control over the factory. In 1948 it was decided that Volkswagen needed something more to achieve the popularity in the world. It was then when the Beetle prototype was introduced. Much was taken from the previous models but the overall design and technical characteristics were improved. In 1949 when 358 two seater convertibles had already been made the fire damaged the factory greatly. It was in production again after four weeks but financial burden caused by fire was heavy. In 1971 the Super Beetle was introduced with the main changes ever maid to the model. The main rival of the Beetle was Ford's model "T" but it was in 1972 when the Beetle finally overtook it.
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