Volkswagen [literally: "people's car"] (VW) is an automobile manufacturer based around Wolfsburg, Germany. It forms a core of Volkswagen AG (VAG), one of the world's four large car producers.

Origins in 1930s Germany
Though a origins of the company date back to 1930s, a project for the car that would be called the Beetle / "Käfer" date back even further, as a pet project by car designer Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951). Hitler's desire that near anybody should exist as suspire to afford the car coincided by having this project—although great deal of this project was inspired per advanced Tatra cars of Hans Ledwinka.

Hitler's changes to the original design involved additional fuel efficiency (to produce it supplementary economic for the working human), dependability, ease of utilise, & economically effective repairs & area. the intention was that average Germans would acquire a car by means of a cost savings scheme, which as much as 336,000 humans one of these days paid into. VW honored its cost per diaper change agreements when World War II; Ford, which had the similar "coupon" household budget technique, reportedly did does'nt. Image of a car known as the KdF-Wagen (German: Kraft durch Freude = "strength through joy"), appeared from either 1936 ahead (a number one cars got been produced inside Stuttgart). A car already experienced its distinctive spherical shape & air-cooled, flat-4, tail-mounted engine, features similar to the Tatra.

Erwin Komenda, a longstanding Porsche principal designer, developed a car body of a epitome, which was recognizably the Beetle i understand now.

the fresh manufacturing plant within the recently town of KdF-Stadt, today known as Wolfsburg, purpose-purpose-made for the mill-hand, experienced sole produced a handful of cars per period war began in 1939. Consequently a 1st volume-produced versions of a car were war machine vehicles, the jeep-like Kübelwagen and the amphibious Schwimmwagen.

Volkswagen literally translates when "people's car" around English.

1945: British Army and Ivan Hirst, unclear future

A company owes its postwar being largely to of these human, British army officer Major Ivan Hirst (1916–2000). Inside April 1945 KdF-Stadt & its heavy bombed mill were captured per Americans, & handed to the British to administer. A manufacturing plant was located under a control of Hirst. Initially a project was to let it run for military vehicle maintenance. Since it got been utilized for military production, & got been the "political animal" (Hirst's words) like than a commercial enterprise, the devices wwhen eventually meant to become salvaged as war reparations. Hirst painted one of a manufactory's cars green & demonstrated it to British army headquarters. Short of lightly conveyance, within September 1945 the British army was persuaded to place a vital the correct sequence for 20,000. A foremost couple of centred cars attend personnel from either a occupying forces, & to the German Post Professional. By 1946 a manumanufacturing plant was producing 1,000 cars a year, a remarkable deed shopping for a factory was however inside disrepair: a damaged roof & windows intended rain stopped production; the steel to produce the cars got to become bartered for by using fresh vehicles.

A car & its town changed their 2nd Globe War-era list to Volkwagen & Wolfsburg severally, & production was increasing. It was however indecipherable what was to get of the manufactory. It was offered to representatives from either a British, U.s. & French drive industries. Famously, 100% rejected it. Fallowing an review of the plant Sir William Rootes, head of the British Rootes Group, told Hirst a design would fail in deuce years, & that the car "is quite unattractive to the average motorcar buyer, is too ugly and too noisy ... If you think you're going to build cars in this place, you're a bloody fool, young man." (Within the freakish twist of fate, Volkswagen would manufacture the locally built version of Rootes' Hillman Avenger in Argentina in the 1980s, long fallowing Rootes went bust at a mitts of Chrysler in 1978—the Beetle outliving the Coventry-depending concern by complete Thirty years!)

Ford representatives were equally critical: a car was "not worth a damn". Around France Citroën started the 2CV on a similar marketing conception. Around Italy it was the Fiat 500.

1948–1974: Icon for German regeneration

1972 Volkswagen Beetle 1600L (extensively customized, with a well dressed stock (unmodified) engine.)

From either 1948, Volkswagen became the crucial element, symbolically & economically, of West German regeneration. Heinrich Nordhoff (1899–1968), a previous senior manager at Opel who had overseen civilian & military vehicle production around a Thirties & Forties, was recruited to begin the mill in 1948. Inside 1949 Hirst left a company, nowadays re-formed as a trust restricted per West German government. Apart from either a introduction of the "Type 2" commercial vehicle (van, pickup & camper) and a Karmann Ghia sports car, Nordhoff pursued the 1-model policy until shortly prior to his demise inside 1968. Production of the "Type 1" VW Beetle (German: 'Käfer', US: 'Bug', Mexican: 'Vochito', French: 'Coccinelle', Portuguese: 'Carocha', Brazilian: 'Fusca') increased dramatically on top a years, a amount reaching of these million inside 1954.

When you took a 1960s and early 1970s, although the car was becoming out-superannuated, U.s. exportation, innovative advertising and a growing reputation for reliableness helped production numbers to surpass a levels of a former record holder, the Ford Model T. By 1973 aggregate production was all over 16 million.

VW expanded their business line within 1967 by owning a introduction of many "Type 3" models, which were essentially system style variations (Fastback, Notchback, Squareback) according to "Type 1" mechanical underpinnings, & over againside in 1969 using a comparatively unpopular "Type 4" (also referred to as "411" & "412") system, which differed substantially from either last system by using the notable introduction of Unibody construction, a fully automatic transmission & fuel injection system. Within 1973 it introduced a military-themed Thing (Type 181) around Usa.

1974: From Beetle to Golf

VW was around good pain per prevent of the Sixties. a Nature & severity Three & Nature and severity Four system got been a comparative flop, and the NSU-based K70 likewise failed to woo emptor. the company knew that Beetling production got to prevent 1 day, however a riddle of replacing it got been a never ending nightmare. A key to a condition was the 1964 acquisition of Audi/Auto-Union. the Ingolstadt depending business firm got a necessary expertness ahead wheel cause & watercooled engines that VW then desperately required to create a believable Beetling successor. Audi influence paved a way for this recently generation of Volkswagens, called a Polo, Golf game & Passat.

Production of a Beetle at the Wolfsburg mill switched to the VW Golf in 1974, marketed in a United States as the VW Rabbit in the Seventies & Eighties. This wwhen the car unlike its predecessor within virtually all important ways, each mechanically besides as visually (its angular styling was intentional per Italian Giorgetto Giugiaro). Its project followed trends for little personal cars placed per 1959 Mini and 1972 Renault 5—the Golf experienced the transversally mounted, h2o-cooled engine in the front, camping the front wheels, & got a hatchback, a format that has dominated a market section ever since. Beetle production continued within smaller counts at more German mill until 1978, however mainstream production shifted to Brazil and Mexico.

From 1970s to present

When VW's range of cars before long be similar to it of more big European car-makers, a Golf game has been a mainstay of a VW line-higher since its introduction, & the mechanical basis for many more cars of the company. There own been 5 generations of a Volkswagen Golf, a number one of which was produced from either a summertime of 1974 until the prevent of 1983. Its chassis as well spawned a Scirocco coupe and Jetta sedan. A 2nd generation Golf game hatchback/Jetta sedan ran from either late 1983 to late 1991. Within 1991, Volkswagen launched a third generation Golf game & it was third period lucky once a Volkswagen Golf was voted European Car of the Month for 1992. A last 2 versions got wasted bent on the Citroën CX in 1975 and a Fiat Uno in 1984. This period a sedan version of the Golf game was badged Vento within Europe (however Jetta in the United states). a quaternary incarnation of a Golf game arrived inside late 1997, its chassis spawned a hikers of more cars in the Volkswagen class action—the Volkswagen Bora (the sedan, however known as Jetta in the United states), Volkswagen Just released Beetle, Seat Toledo, Seat Leon, Audi A3, Audi TT & Skoda Octavia. All the same, it was beaten into third place for the 1998 European Car of the Season award per winning Alfa Romeo 156 and runner-up Audi A6. A previous generation Volkswagen Golf was launched around late 2003, come runner-second best to a Fiat Panda in a 2004 European Car of a Year, & has & then far spawned the freshly generation Seat Toledo, Skoda Octavia and Audi A3 hatchback ranges besides as a newly mini-MPV, the Seat Altea. the fifth generation golf game is currently available around Europe, & a GTI boasts a Deuce.0L Turbocharged direct injection engine. A fifth generation Jetta is presently available in a united states, & the next GLI should become available late 2005, by having equivalent Ii.0L turbocharged motor of the European GTI.

A more independent system use been a Polo, a little car than a Golf game, & a big Passat saloon car for a segment above the Golf game. When of 2005 there st& been quaternary incarnations of a Polo: Mark One (1976), Mark Two (1981, facelifted 1990), Mark Three (199Four, facelifted 1999) and the todays Mark 4 (2002). A Scirocco and Corrado were both Golf-depending coupés.

Around 1998 VW launched a J Mays-designed New Beetle, a "retro"-themed car sustaining a resemblance to the original Beetling however according to the Golf game—this has been popular inside the America however less thus in Europe. Inside 2002 VW announced deuce system ingesting it into market segments fresh to a company: the Phaeton luxury saloon, and a Touareg sports-utility vehicle.

Volkswagen presently offers a total of its vehicles by owning an advanced, lightly duty diesel called the TDI. Piece pleasantly popular in a European market, lightly duty diesels don't however enjoy the equivalent wide acceptance in the U.S. marketplace, despite increased fuel economy & performance like to gasoline engines imputable turbocharging. Based on data from a U.S. Environmental Protection Professional, Tetrad of the X virtually all fuel effective vehicles available purchasable in the U.S. around 2004 come powered by VW Diesel Engines. It is: a tierce way tie for Eighth (TDI Beetle, TDI Golf, TDI Jetta) & Ninth, the TDI Jetta Wagon. Gross sales of lightly duty diesel engine technology come increasing when gas price levels rise. Products like a Toyota Prius can use highlighted a economy of non-gasoline engines, however actually a VW TDI engine is typically uncovered to become extra effective than the interbred Toyota Prius on the main road (although non thus after camping in the city).

Cult status of Beetle
Beetles used as restaurant taxis

Such as its contender, a Mini and the Citroën 2CV, the original-shape Beetle hanker outlasted predictions of its lifetime. Extrthe then than people cars, it maintains the super hard resulting worldwide, existence look on something of a "cult" car since its 1960s association with a hippie movement. Presently there is a wide array of clubs that come caring by using a beetle. A fans come quite diverse. Looks include a resto-look, Callook, German-look, resto-Callook, buggies, Baja bug's, old school, ratlook, etc. A share of their cult status is attributed to existence one of two or three cars using an air-cooled engine project & a sequent ease of repair & modification when opposed to the further conventional & technically complex watercooled engine design.

By 2002 there experienced been ended 21 million produced.

In July 21, 2003, the previous old-style Volkswagen Beetle rolled off its production line inside Puebla, Puebla, Mexico. It was car total 21,529,464 of the model, & was immediately shipped dispatch to the company's museum within Wolfsburg, Germany. Within admittedly Mexican fashion, the mariachi band serenaded the survive car in the 68-month-old history. A go car was nicknamed El Rey, which is Spanish for "The King".

In the United States, most notably inside California, Volkswagen enthusiasts frequent large V.W. themed car shows, especially in the summertime months. Numbers of one shows feature tenting, the car indicate known as the "show 'n' shine", drag racing, area barter meet, raffles, & more cases. Die-rock-ribbed & fast "VW-heads" attend these shows regularly, typically travelling Five hundred miles or even sir thomas more to attend their favored event.

In the winter, a class action of drivers of the "split bus" model (1951-1967 micro-busses, trucks, backpackers, & panel vans) cause from either Guernville CA, to Mt.Shasta CA, entirely on unpaved jeep roads. This event is known as a "Mt. Shasta Snow Trip Challenge" & occurs as adept lesson of VW enthusiasts' trust in the strength of their typically 40-season-old cars.

Relationship with Porsche

the company has experienced a close relationship by using Porsche, the Stuttgart-based sportscar manufacturer founded around 1947 by Ferry Porsche, son of the original Volkswagen designer Ferdinand Porsche. A number one Porsche cars, a 1948 Porsche 356, used numerous Volkswagen components including the tuned engine, gearbox and suspension. Late collaborations include a 1969/1970 VW-Porsche 914, the 1976 Porsche 924 (which used several Audi components & was built at an Audi mill), and a 2002 Porsche Cayenne (which shares engineering with a VW Touareg). Inside September 2005, Porsche announced it was buying a 20% stake inside Volkswagen at a dollars & cents of €3bn, by having a intention that the united stakes of Porsche, Volkswagen and the food and drug administration of Lower Saxony ensure that any hostile takeover by foreign investors would be impossible [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4281864.stm].

Corporate structure
Volkswagen is a share of the Volkswagen group (VAG), along with: Audi (the previous post-WWII Auto Union/DKW)—bought from Daimler-Benz in 1964. NSU—bought in 1969 by Volkswagen's Audi section, the brand non utilized since 1977 SEAT—majority owned since 1987 Škoda—bought in 1991 Bentley—bought in 1998 from either Vickers along with Rolls-Royce Bugatti—name bought in 1998 Lamborghini —bought in 1998

From either July 1998 until December 2002 VW's Bentley section likewise sold cars under a Rolls-Royce title under an agreement by owning BMW, which got bought a rights to that title. From either 2003, lone BMW will produce cars known as Rolls-Royce.