From his first test at Nazi Germany in 1938, Volkswagen Beetle finally rose to become an icon of pop culture throughout the world. The car was contained by Adolf Hitler who assigned Austrian engineers Ferdinand Porsche to design cars that could be purchased by ordinary people. Hitler wants the car to be a “folk car,” that can be mass produced and has the same appeal to consumers such as the F Ford model in the United States (through AP News). The Porsche design will later be a blueprint for the current beetle.
The beginning of World War II stopped the production of volkswagen from this vehicle for civilians, and vice versa, manufacturing facilities focused on making military vehicles. Only after the war ended that the company – then under British supervision – began to make cars for people everyday and not for the army. Volkswagen changed the name of the car as type 1 and, then, as a beetle to keep away from its Nazi roots. In 1955, Volkswagen had produced 1 million models of type 1.
There are several reasons why beetles produce so many rumors. The car has a different round shape and an intelligent marketing strategy that uses attractive slogans such as “living under your abilities” and “it’s ugly, but makes you there” to position it as a different type of car for the driver. During the 1960s, it became a popular symbol of the Hippie era which was common in the United States at that time, as recorded by VW.
The beginning of the end
It did not take long before Volkswagen Beetle became one of the best -selling cars of all time. More than 22 million units were sold and in 1972 and car sales eventually exceeded the famous Ford T. model which all changed in the 1970s when enthusiasm for the car declined. CNBC reports that consumers then prefer the front wheel drive model that offers more interior and stem spaces. In addition, the revaluation of the German currency causes beetles to be more expensive for Americans to buy. Sales fell from the highest 565,838 cars sold in 1970 to 230,137 in 1976. In response to unsteady sales, Volkswagen created three new models: Passat, Polo, and Golf, which is the focus of car makers for the next few decades.
In 1998, the German car maker brought a beetle again with an updated design, AD he launched a car retro-commercial, as well. It found success and was able to sell 80,000 cars in 1999. Volkswagen released another version of the hit car in 2012 but did not do it well in terms of sales, because it competed with new American obsessions with SUVs. The last beetle model was produced in 2019 at the VW factory in Puebla, Mexico. Scott Keogh, CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, quoted by NPR has said, “It is impossible to imagine where Volkswagen will be without beetles. While the time has come, the role that has been played in our brand evolution will be forever respected.”
