Taking a Look Back at the VW Beetle

Across the globe, since we decided to put an engine in a thing with wheels, few automobiles have been as iconic as the Volkswagen Beetle. Though the famous punch-buggy-no-punch-backs was initially thought of by a genocidal psychopath, the Beetle has ousted every car in history when it comes to popularity.

Today, we would also recognize the VW Bus, the Porsche 911, and the Chevy Corvette as unmistakable cars that everybody and their mother admires. However, the car that began that trend is the Beetle.

Perhaps due to its weirdness, or maybe its efficiency and style, the bug has been enjoyed by world leaders and flower children alike. Unfortunately, its reign has come to an end. In 2020, we say goodbye to the seventy-year-old car. This means there is no more fitting time than now to take a look back at the journey the little bug has taken. Though it won’t be manufactured any longer, there is no doubt that vintage Beetles will rule the road for a long time to come.

As odd as the design of the Beetle is, its origins seem to fit that mold. Of all places, the source of the VW Beetle lies in the mind of one of the most evil men to ever walk the earth. A homicidal maniac who slaughtered nearly an entire race of people. Adolf Hitler. So far, the Beetle is off to a hot start in this story.

In the early 1930s, Germany was suffering from an enormous unemployment problem. Hitler, Germany’s leader at the time, produced an idea. He would build autobahns and mass-produce a car that the average man or woman could buy. You know, if he didn’t orchestrate the killing of 75 million people, this idea would’ve probably been a more celebrated occasion. However, Henry Ford had already done this in the United States, so he kind of just stole the idea. Anyway, in 1934, Hitler called upon the number one automotive engineer in the world – Ferdinand Porsche. He tasked him with creating “the people’s car”, or volks wagen in German.

Old Ferdinand did not disappoint. He designed a vehicle that could go 62 mph, just fast enough for the autobahns. It was stylishly curvy, reliable, and efficient. It was dubbed the “Kraft durch Freude-Wagen”(KdF), or the Strength Through Joy Car. A low-cost transportation for the masses that provided a huge jump in employment rates. That name is a terribly inconvenient mouthful, so thank god it was changed.

Once World War II broke out in 1939, the KdF ceased production. When the war was over though, Germany needed rebuilding. The economy needed help and jobs were at a minimum. So, the Wolfsburg factory reopened its doors and Volkswagen went back into production. Initially, the KdF was being produced for the Allies who had occupied post-war Germany.

After a few years of minding its own business, VW began to have success overseas. Countries like Ireland and England were enjoying the VW’s style and cost. Finally, the biggest step in the KdFs journey was about to transpire. The first vehicle was transported to the United States, and the Beetle was born in 1950.

Five years later, VW opened its doors in America. Quickly, a revolution began that is now known as beetle-mania. Everybody from John Lennon to President Dwight D. Eisenhower wanted their hands on the oddly shaped little bug.

In that same year, 1955, the VW Beetle sold a million vehicles. Over the course of 50 years, the VW Beetle went from an unemployment rescue attempt, to the most popular vehicle ever. On February 17, 1972, the 15,007,034th Beetle was sold by the Wolfsburg company. That number surpassed the Ford Model T for the record number of units sold by one vehicle.

The popularity of the beetle can be traced back to its odd styling, its sustainability, and its affordability, but the number one reason for its success, was the role the Beetle played as a symbol. Unfortunately, one of the car’s many pop culture references is to the infamous serial killer Ted Bundy. He drove a Beetle on his numerous murdering sprees, but we’ll forget that one for now.

In 1968, the hit TV show The Love Bug debuted in the United States. The show featured a VW Beetle fit with racing stripes that drove itself, won rally car races, and engaged in hilarious shenanigans. The show boosted the Beetle into the limelight, and as if it needed help being sold, even more people began purchasing the bug.

Perhaps the most influential time in American history, the hippie movement was a period of struggles in race, war, and equality. During the Vietnam War, people in the United States sought peace, love and compassion. While an unneeded war was shipping home countless dead bodies, an entire generation of people was fighting a different injustice at home. African Americans were being beaten in the streets, women were treated unequally, and millions of people had no idea why we were fighting a war. As the walkouts, sit-ins, and riots continued to occur, a glimmer of hope still surfaced.

An entire culture emerged of people with long hair, denim clothes, laid-back music, and a want to fight for peace. Somehow, the VW Beetle and the VW Bus became synonymous with this culture of people. Surfboards sat atop the roofs, flowers protruded out of the windows, and peace signs littered the bumpers. The VW Beetle became a globally recognized symbol of love.

As all things do, the Beetle began to disappear. Other car manufacturers began producing small cars with better fuel efficiency that didn’t look like a bug. If you are a bug enthusiast, try to Buy used cars online and you may find the beatle of your dreams at an extremely cheap rate. By 1974, VW moved the production of the Beetle from its flagship factory in Wolfsburg to a new factory in Mexico. In 1992, the Volkswagen Beetle was named the Car of the Century. The bug continued to be produced until this year.

Recently, VW released a saddening commercial in which a Beetle is part of a boy’s life from beginning to end. As the Beetle rides off into the sunset, we recollect all of the good times. The terrible name it began with, the T.V. shows it starred in, and the movements it took part in. Most of all, we will always remember the Beetle as a symbol of love in a time when hate fueled the masses. In 2020, we say goodbye to the most popular vehicle in history, but I can bet we will still all see the bug flying through the streets for decades to come.

Author bio – Edward is blogger and founder of https://euro-to-usd.com/.