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.

Origins in 1930s Germany

Though the origins of the company date back to 1930s, the design for the car that would become known as the Beetle / "Käfer" date back even further, as a pet project by car designer Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951). Hitler's desire that almost anybody should be able to afford a car coincided with this design—although much of this design was inspired by the advanced Tatra cars of Hans Ledwinka.

Related Topics:
1930s - Beetle / "Käfer" - Ferdinand Porsche - Hitler - Tatra - Hans Ledwinka

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Hitler's changes to the original design included more fuel efficiency (to make it more economical for the working man), reliability, ease of use, and economically efficient repairs and parts. The intention was that ordinary Germans would buy the car by means of a savings scheme, which around 336,000 people eventually paid into. VW honored its savings agreements after World War II; Ford, which had a similar "coupon" savings system, reportedly did not. Prototypes of the car called the KdF-Wagen (German: Kraft durch Freude = "strength through joy"), appeared from 1936 onwards (the first cars had been produced in Stuttgart). The car already had its distinctive round shape and air-cooled, flat-four, rear-mounted engine, features similar to the Tatra.

Related Topics:
Hitler - World War II - Ford - Kraft durch Freude - Stuttgart

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Erwin Komenda, the longstanding Porsche chief designer, developed the car body of the prototype, which was recognizably the Beetle we know today.

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The new factory in the new town of KdF-Stadt, now called Wolfsburg, purpose-built for the factory workers, had only produced a handful of cars by the time war started in 1939. Consequently the first volume-produced versions of the car were military vehicles, the jeep-like Kübelwagen and the amphibious Schwimmwagen.

Related Topics:
1939 - Jeep - Kübelwagen - Amphibious - Schwimmwagen

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Volkswagen literally translates as "people's car" in English.

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