Happy Birthday Beetle!

Saturday, 26 December 2020

From the original Type 1 to the retro-modern New Beetle - it's the end of the road for Volkswagen's iconic car.

Series production of the civilian Volkswagen, referred to internally as the “Type 1” officially began on December 27, 1945 under the trusteeship over Volkswagenwerk GmbH which had been assumed by the British Military Government in June 1945.

The British intended to use the Volkswagen Type 1 to perform urgently needed transport tasks within their occupation zone, but little did they know that it would go on to become one of the most beloved and characterful cars of all time, albeit more commonly known by its quickly acquired nickname – the Beetle.

Despite the Beetle’s lovable reputation and association with all things hippie, it was pure British pragmatism that protected the plant the Type 1 was eventually built in from impending demolition.

The civilian version of the Volkswagen Type 1 officially entered production 75 years ago tomorrow!

Senior Resident Officer Major Ivan Hirst played a key role in the Type 1’s “rebirth”, with Volkswagen crediting his “farsightedness and talent for improvisation” making it possible to start automobile production in the years of rationing under conditions dominated by shortages.

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Production of the Type 1 was started because of the British government desperately needed transportation in occupied Germany.

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A sequel was made, but like most sequels it didn’t do as well.

Hirst’s enthusiasm for technology and cars, and his purposefulness and distinct attitude saw him succeed in transforming a former armaments plant into a civilian industrial company in an impressively short space of time.

The British Military Government had already issued an order for 20,000 vehicles in August 1945 and the start of production was seen as a visible sign of a new beginning and hope at the factory which had been largely destroyed by the end of World War II.

This solution was in keeping with later British policy for Germany, which saw financial security and future prospects for the population as key elements in the development of democratic structures. In fact, Volkswagenwerk saw one of the earliest examples of the re-emergence of democracy in Germany when, on November 27, 1945, the “Works Council” elected in a democratic ballot held its first meeting.

There were, however, still considerable problems in supplying the workforce with food and living space, and production was hampered by raw material and energy supply bottlenecks. Despite these difficult conditions, the first Volkswagen Type 1 left the production line shortly after Christmas.

Wolfsburg and Volkswagenwerk GmbH had received a belated Christmas present only eight months after the end of the war and by the end of 1945, 55 vehicles had been produced.

A modest start, maybe, but from 1946 up to the currency reform in June 1948, roughly 1000 vehicles were produced per month.

It was not possible to produce more vehicles in view of material shortages and rationing as well as a lack of personnel, but the trustees responsible laid the foundations for further growth of the company by autumn 1949, when they established a sales and after-sales service system.

The decision to develop a civilian factory and to start series production of the Volkswagen Type 1 was the starting point of a fairly unique success story, and thanks to the early restart, the Volkswagenwerk GmbH found itself in an excellent initial position for the economic upswing after the introduction of the Deutsche mark.

The Beetle would go on to become one of the most popular cars in the world and was a record breaker in terms of production duration and volume – Volkswagen only discontinued production of the Beetle in Mexico in 2003, after 21,529,464 vehicles had been manufactured, including about 15.8 million in Germany.

A Golf-based sequel was launched in 1997 while the original was still in production and, while popular, never reached the original’s level of love or sales. A second generation of the car was introduced in 2011 and was actually the only version to officially be called the Beetle (the original was always the Type 1 and the sequel was the New Beetle). Production was quietly discontinued in 2019 after slow sales.