Volkswagen

Volkswagen (VW) is an automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Germany. It forms the core of Volkswagen AG (VAG), one of the world's four biggest car producers.

1974: From Beetle to Golf

VW was in serious trouble by the end of the 1960s. The Type 3 and Type 4 models had been a comparative flop, and the NSU-based K70 also failed to woo buyers. The company knew that Beetle production had to end one day, but the conundrum of replacing it had been a never ending nightmare. The key to the problem was the 1964 acquisition of Audi/Auto-Union. The Ingolstadt based firm had the necessary expertise in front wheel drive and watercooled engines that VW so desperately needed to produce a credible Beetle successor. Audi influence paved the way for this new generation of Volkswagens, known as the Polo, Golf and Passat.

Related Topics:
NSU - 1964 - Audi/Auto-Union

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Production of the Beetle at the Wolfsburg factory switched to the VW Golf in 1974, marketed in the United States as the VW Rabbit in the 1970s and 1980s. This was a car unlike its predecessor in most significant ways, both mechanically as well as visually (its angular styling was designed by the Italian Giorgetto Giugiaro). Its design followed trends for small family cars set by the 1959 Mini and 1972 Renault 5—the Golf had a transversely mounted, water-cooled engine in the front, driving the front wheels, and had a hatchback, a format that has dominated the market segment ever since. Beetle production continued in smaller numbers at other German factories until 1978, but mainstream production shifted to Brazil and Mexico.

Related Topics:
VW Golf - Giorgetto Giugiaro - Mini - Renault 5 - Hatchback - Brazil - Mexico

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