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Chassisnr: 6130871
The Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle must be one of the most iconic cars in existence. Adolf Hitler wanted to build a car for his people, and that car for the people was called the ‘Volkswagen’, as we have know it for decades now. During its production decades from 1938 to 2003 - which makes it the car with the longest production run ever - the official VW’s reference for the Beetle is ‘Type 1’. Even a sequel to the original Beetle was built until 2019, called ‘New Beetle’. Its starring role in movies and its cute design have created a heroic cult status around this unique, and historic car.
Ferdinand Porsche was the man responsible for the Beetle's design, which would be the car for the people, the ‘Volkswagen’ in German. He had designed other cars for German brands before, though the Beetle had to be his masterpiece. ‘Air cannot freeze, neither can it ever boil’, thus an air-cooled flat-four was designed for the Type 1, which would be installed in the back in order to efficiently drive the rear wheels.
The design had to remain very simple as Hitler wanted his Volkswagen to be affordable for everyone. The government even offered an easy payment system which made it possible for everyone to buy a Beetle. In addition to the centricity of affordability, Ferdinand Porsche had to base the design on that of a beetle, because according to Hitler, ‘nature is the reflection of perfect design’, and a beetle was aerodynamic, according to Hitler.
Europe and the US quickly fell in love with the Beetle, in the US it even became a symbol of hippie culture, alongside its counterpart, the Type 2 ‘hippie bus’. Quickly, the Volkswagen was sold all around the globe. Over the decades, sales had their ups and downs, the Beetle was modernised every now and then, yet the original design continued to meet market demand in the best possible way. Production just got discontinued in 2003, 22 million Beetles rolled off the line in Brazil and Germany factories.
Volkswagen Beetle 1200
From the get-go, the Beetle had been equipped with a 1131 cc four-cylinder boxer engine. In 1954 , the engine capacity was upgraded to 1192 cc, which made the flat-four able of producing some extra horsepower. The larger engine also brought a new camshaft. In 1956, the Beetle received a dual exhaust pipe, two years later, a new dashboard was designed. In 1966, the 1200 was replaced by the 1300, which, as the name suggests, was again provided with some extra engine capacity.
At first glance, the Beetle seems ‘innocent’, though it is a car that has broken records and it has shaped automotive history: during its long production run, the Beetle underwent more than 2,000 modifications, and in almost every language, it has a fitting nickname, making it hard to find a more nicknameable car in its category. Each Beetle is unique, each Beetle has its own story.
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