History of Volkswagen and its Splendid Success

 

History of Volkswagen and its Splendid Success

A brief history of Volkswagen and its journey to becoming one of the world's most successful automakers.

 

Volkswagen has long been known as one of the world's most successful carmakers, and the history behind that success story is quite interesting. The company was founded in 1937 by the German Labor Front, and its first ever car was called the Type 1 (more commonly known as the Beetle). By 1945, it had produced nearly 20,000 of these vehicles, and its reputation as an automaker was growing by the day.

 

The Beginning - Ferdinand Porsche

Ferdinand Porsche was born on September 3rd, 1875, in Austria-Hungary. Ferdinand was a brilliant engineer and inventor with many patents throughout his lifetime, including that of a motorized tricycle (1892) and an electric vehicle (1898). He is often called the father of the automobile. After World War I, Ferdinand founded an engineering company called Dr. Ing. h.c. F.Porsche, known as Audi after World War II, still operates under the same name today. In 1932, he teamed up with Adolf Hitler to create a people's car for Germany known as the KdF Wagen or VW Beetle. The success of this project resulted in over 21 million Beetles being sold worldwide by 2003, when production finally ended. Ferdinand faced persecution for years after the war due to his involvement with Hitler but eventually returned to designing automobiles. He died from natural causes at age 76 on January 30th, 1951.

 

The Beetle - Hitler, Strength Through Joy, War Production

Volkswagen was founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under Adolf Hitler as part of his Strength Through Joy program, which gave workers a vehicle at affordable prices as an incentive for high production.

After World War II, Volkswagen manufactured cars exclusively for West Germany but had not yet attempted to manufacture Beetles after World War II because it was thought that there would be demand only in Western Europe. However, American soldiers stationed in Germany saw how popular the Beetle was with Europeans and brought their knowledge back to America. They convinced executives to make the Beetle available on this side of the Atlantic Ocean - where consumers took a liking to it. It has been in continuous production ever since.

Volkswagen started manufacturing the Rabbit, or Golf, in 1982 when gasoline shortages forced them to produce a car with better fuel mileage than the Beetle. By 1985 they were selling 1 million Rabbits each year, which became Volkswagen's best-selling car from 1985-1991 when sales dropped substantially due to import competition from Japanese companies.

 

Postwar Success - From Berlin to Wolfsburg

Volkswagen was founded in 1937, not long after Adolf Hitler came into power. The company was first called Gesellschaft Zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH (German People's Car Company). In 1938, with funding from the German government, they built a factory in Berlin-Zehlendorf. But World War II soon broke out, halting production of that car. In 1948, what was left of VW moved to West Germany and restarted production at a new plant in Wolfsburg. By 1950 it had become one of the biggest West European producers of cars, thanks largely to its popular Beetle model. But by 1968, when it started making Karmann Ghia coupes and Beetles, demand for the Beetle began dropping off quickly—and so did sales. VW then turned its attention to other projects, such as smaller cars like Golfs and Passats.

 

The 1960s - From Strength to Vorsprung durch Technik

Volkswagen began in 1937 with just 17 employees as a supplier for the German military. By 1945, they had grown to employ over 100,000 people. Most notably, they produced what is said to be Germany's first modern car, the Type 1 'Beetle'. After World War II, Ferdinand Porsche continued his work at Volkswagen until he retired in 1953. He was succeeded by Heinz Nordhoff, who served as director general from 1948-1968. Nordhoff managed to expand the company into an international auto giant on the strength of VW's rugged Beetle, which became an enduring symbol of postwar reconstruction across Europe.

In 1967, Nordhoff resigned from his post, citing health reasons, and was succeeded by Kurt Lotz, who served from 1968-1973. Under Lotz's leadership, VW introduced many new models, including one of their first luxury cars: The Phaeton.

 

The 1970s & 1980s – Golf GTI & Passat Wagon

In 1975, Volkswagen introduced the Golf GTI, the first car in Europe with a turbocharged engine. In 1977, they introduced the Passat Wagon, which became one of their best-selling models in North America. VW started building factories in Mexico, Brazil, Poland, and East Germany just two years after these models were introduced into production to keep up with the demand for these vehicles. By 1985, it had become the largest foreign car maker in France. One year later, it also became number one in Spain. Due to high demand and popularity, they continued to expand by opening new plants in Thailand and Malaysia. The 1990s – Phaeton: A few years later, at the turn of the 1990s, Volkswagen unveiled its flagship model called the Phaeton, which had been developed from scratch as a luxury sedan. However, it was discontinued after just six years on sale due to low sales (only 1710 units sold).

 

The 1990s & 21st Century – Becoming an International Brand

Volkswagen has transformed from a small German car company into an international powerhouse, with more than 8 million cars sold in 2016 alone the, got the best-selling award in 2016 and 2017. In 1998, after an agreement with General Motors, VW became the world's third-largest automaker--a position it still holds today. By 2008, VW had become Europe's largest automaker; by 2018, it had surpassed Toyota to become the world's second-largest automaker. It was also the top seller of new vehicles in Europe for nine consecutive years (2008-2017). By 2022, they hope to have a 10% market share globally. They do this through other brands, such as Audi and Porsche. They are using these brands to get more revenue. The United States is not as big of a focus as it used to be since demand has decreased since 2006. Germany will continue being their main headquarters because that is where their factories are located and where they started.

 

Conclusion

Volkswagen had come a long way from the days when it was created by Adolf Hitler to be an affordable car for German citizens. We hope this article helped shed some light on this incredible company's history and what makes it such a success today. If you have any queries about our article, feel free to contact us!

Also Read About This

https://autoheads46.blogspot.com/2022/10/history-of-mercedes-and-its-success-all.html