History of the formation of Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automaker headquartered in Wolfsburg that produces cars, trucks and vans. Like many other German automakers, Volkswagen is owned by the VW Group. The company's annual production volume has exceeded 5,000,000 vehicles since 2007, while an ambitious goal of passing the 10,000,000 mark has been set for 2014.
Background for the founding of the ‘people's brand’
Volkswagen is a relatively young car manufacturer whose history was predetermined by a meeting in 1933 between Adolf Hitler, Jakob Werlin (Daimler-Benz representative) and Ferdinand Porsche (founder of Porsche) at the Kaiserhof Hotel in Berlin.
At the meeting, Hitler set an ultimatum for the two men: to create a strong and reliable people's car that could be afforded by a middle-income German citizen. The price of the car was not to exceed 1,000 Reichsmarks. Hitler insisted that the young engineers build a new factory in Germany that could epitomise the prosperity of the Third Reich.
This push for innovation and accessibility in the automobile industry mirrors the way modern online casinos provide players with exciting opportunities without heavy investment. For example richard casino no deposit free spins giving players the chance to explore games without any upfront financial commitment. Just as Volkswagen was designed to be accessible to all, these free spins allow players to enjoy the thrill of online gaming, with a user-friendly experience that’s both entertaining and risk-free.
Hitler even sketched out a sketch on a piece of paper and outlined on it the main points that the new car had to fulfil. The Führer then turned to Jakob Werlin to propose him a candidate designer capable of fulfilling this government order. Jakob did not hesitate to name Ferdinand Porsche. The future car was called simply - Volks-Wagen, which in German means ‘people's car’.
Designing Volkswagen Beetle
Ferdinand Porsche immediately took to work, and by 17 January 1934 he already had a set of drawings for the creation of a prototype of the ‘people's car’, which was based on the previously developed Porsche Typ 60. The drawings are sent to the German Reich Chancellery for review.
The drawings are reviewed until June, when a government contract is signed with the Reichsverband der Automobilindustrie and Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche GmbH to build three prototypes of the car. The companies were given 10 months for all development with a monthly budget of 20,000 Reichsmarks. The car also had additional requirements: 5 seats, track width of 1,200 mm, wheelbase of 2,500 mm, engine power of 26 hp, maximum revolutions of 3,500 rpm, unladen weight of 650 kg and retail price of 1,550 Reichsmarks. The car had to reach a maximum speed of 100 km/h, have a power reserve for climbing an incline of 30% and consume no more than 8 litres of fuel per 100 km.
Despite the availability of Ferdinand Porsche's already completed design and his enormous experience, he was never able to meet the deadline: Ferdinand fulfils the government order in only two years. The first prototypes of the Volkswagen Beetle saw the light of day in September 1936: the firstborn was a two-door Beetle V1, the second was a convertible based on it V2 (Adolf's personal order) and the third was a four-seater V3.
The prototypes are subjected to endurance tests in which they are driven 50,000 kilometres. During the tests, the cars are not found to have any serious faults and Ferdinand Porsche receives an order to build a further 30 prototypes, which are subsequently produced at the Daimler-Benz factory. The new prototypes are tested by the Nazi trade union organisation DAF, and the control of the testing process is entrusted to SS employees (they also make the final decision on the future of the car).
Founding of the Volkswagen brand
The official countdown of its history, the company Volkswagen leads from 28 May 1937, when the ‘Limited Liability Company for the preparation of the German People's Car’ was established, since 16 September 1938, referred to as Volkswagenwerk GmbH.
On 26 May of the same year, the foundation stone for the construction of the Volkswagen car factory is laid near the German town of Fallersleben. The official ceremony is attended by Hitler himself. The Fuhrer announces the name of the future ‘people's car’ - KdF-Wagen. This name is chosen in honour of the Nazi public organisation Kraft durch Freude (abbreviated KdF). The reason for Hitler's favour is that this public organisation invested 50 million Reichsmarks in the construction of the plant. At the same time, a large-scale construction of an entire city for the employees of the Volkswagen plant begins. Due to the ‘unsoundness’ of the first name Stadt des KdF-Wagens, the town is later renamed Wolfsburg, which is more in line with the preferences of the ruling regime.
Already in 1939 the factory demonstrates its production capabilities by producing a trial model V38s and a demonstration model V39s. Both cars have a modified design: two rear windows in the interior, enlarged door handles, improved door hinges. But the KdF-Wagen was not destined to become a mass-produced car due to the fact that since the beginning of the Second World War, the Volkswagen plant mainly works on large military orders.
History of Volkswagen during the Second World War
In 1938, the young car company produces a four-wheel drive car VW Typ 62, which after some modifications and improvements goes into mass production under the name VW Typ 82. The body of the military vehicle is made of thin tin sheets, longitudinally reinforced. Typ 82 is equipped with four doors, a folding windscreen and a canvas folding roof. The Volkswagen factory produced more than 50,000 of these vehicles, which were sent to all German troops until the end of WWII. VW Typ 82 was used for transporting personnel, evacuation of wounded, fuel and ammunition. Also on the basis of this vehicle mobile workshops were organised. During the Second World War more than 30 modifications of this car for different purposes were created.
In 1940, Volkswagen produces on the basis of Typ 82 amphibious vehicle VW Typ 128 Schwimmwagen. The following year, the Wolfsburg plant produces 30 of these amphibians, which are sent to the army engineering units, where they are well received. The same year brings another government order for Ferdinand Porsche to develop other versions of the Typ 128. Subsequently, he built VW Typ 166 Schwimmwagen, which received a shorter wheelbase, lower curb weight and better manoeuvrability than its predecessor. Production of the vehicle was established in Stuttgart at the Daimler-Benz plant. Between 1941 and 1945, about 15,000 of these amphibians are produced.
History of Volkswagen in the postwar period
The collapse of the Third Reich resulted in total changes for the whole country, including Volkswagen: the company is under the control of the British, in whose zone of occupation falls Wolfsburg. In the autumn of 45, the British give Wolfsburg an order for the production of 20,000 different versions of military vehicles.
Two years later, Volkswagen presents its representative at the export fair in Hanover, where the company attracts a lot of attention. The plant takes the first foreign orders: first produced 1,000 cars for Holland, and in 1948, several orders from Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden and other European countries.
In early 1948, there is a change of management Volkswagen: the post of General Director goes to Heinrich Nordhoff. The backbone of the renewed management formed by graduate engineers with international experience at plants at different levels. With their arrival, Volkswagen returns to work on the Beetle, improving it and modernising it.
The appearance of the second key model for Volkswagen - the Transporter
In the late ‘40s, the Dutch Volkswagen importer Ben Pon of Pon's Automobielhandel designs a prototype of another key Volkswagen vehicle, the Transporter. Read more about this minivan in the article ‘Birth of a Legend’. The world's first minivan saw the light of day in November 1949 under the name Bulli (‘Bull’). The minivan was based on a very simple design, which predetermined the demand for it among buyers. Volkswagen Transporter really appeared in time, and due to its high reliability its global sales begin to grow rapidly.
In the first months after the start of series production, Volkswagen produced 60 examples of the Bulli every day. Between 1947 and 1967, the Transporter is produced in different modifications: closed-top truck, minibus, combi, pickup and ambulatory. Since the fourth generation, there is a radical change in the design of Volkswagen Transporter: the engine ‘moves’ under the bonnet in the front part, and the drive becomes front. This allowed designers to create a flat floor in the loading compartment and get more space for installing various devices.
In 1974, the German carmaker produces the last Beetle in Wolfsburg, while in Mexico this model is produced until 2003 without significant changes in design.
