Volkswagen

German automotive brand; manufacturing subsidiary of Volkswagen Group From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Volkswagen
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"VW" redirects here. For other uses, see VW (disambiguation).
This article is about Volkswagen passenger cars. For the parent company, see Volkswagen Group. For Volkswagen vans, trucks and buses, see Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.

Volkswagen (VW; German pronunciation: [ˈfɔlksˌvaːɡn̩] (audio speaker iconlisten))[Note 1] is a car company from Germany. The word volkswagen means "People's car" in German. Its headquarters are in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. It was started in the 1930s, at the request of the country's leader, Adolf Hitler, to produce a car designed by Ferdinand Porsche.

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History

In the 1930s Adolf Hitler was looking for someone who could make a cheap car that the common German worker could afford. At the same time, Ferdinand Porsche had been working for years on a cheap car that could hold a family and would drive like a real car, not a micro car. He had already designed and built small cars with rear engines and shaped like a beetle (for better aerodynamics). At this time, owning a car in Germany was something only for the rich people, and most car companies were not interested in making a low-cost car. Porsche's company, also called Porsche, only made designs for others at that time. So Porsche could not find anyone to make the small car that he wanted.[1]

Though Hitler never learned to drive, he was very interested in cars (he also created the autobahn, which led to the U.S. interstate highways). Hitler wanted the car to hold four people. It was to be cooled by air instead of water. The car needed to be able to travel at least 100 km/h, or about 60 mph, and use no more than 7 liters of gasoline for 100 kilometers (about 34 mpg). The car companies in Germany at the time didn't want to make this new low-cost car, so Hitler formed a new company, run by the government. The first name given to the car was "KdF-Wagen." "KdF" stood for Kraft durch Freude, or "Strength through Joy." Some were made, but by the time the factory was finished in 1938, World War II started. The factory then built jeep-like cars for the German military instead.

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1949 Volkswagen Beetle

After the war, people from the United Kingdom and the United States reopened the factory and started making cars again. The factory was in ruins from the war and could only make a few cars at a time. The British military were in charge of this section of Germany. At first they tried to find another car company to rebuild the factory. Henry Ford was offered the company for free. After looking it over, his adviser said "Mr. Ford, what we are being offered here is not worth a damn!"[1] So the Volkswagen company went ahead by itself to make the car. The man who led the Volkswagen company during this time was Heinz Nordhoff.

At first they only made one type of car, the Volkswagen Beetle. (It was simply called the Type 1 Sedan by the company, it also had the nickname "Bug" in the U.S. and other nicknames elsewhere). In 1950, the Type 2 (the bus) was introduced, also built with an engine in the back of the vehicle. The cars became popular and well-known all over the world. The Beetle later became one of the best selling cars in history. It was built for many years afterward in factories in Germany, Brazil and Mexico.

The last original Volkswagen Beetle to be built was built in Mexico. It was built in July 2003. Volkswagen has a new car called the "New Beetle." which began selling in 1997, It looks like the old car, but is built quite differently. It is faster, safer, and has an engine in the front, not the back, and is water-cooled (using a radiator). It is much more suited to today's modern world in terms of design and security.

In 2015 Volkswagen was caught cheating in an emissions test scandal on their diesel powered cars.[2] This scandal was called dieselgate. The cars were designed to operate in a clean mode while being tested, but run dirty (make too much pollution) in normal driving. Volkswagen was fined, their CEO left, and they have changed their car design and have since added electric vehicles.[3]

In November 2024 workers at Volkswagen's Osnabrück plant in Germany threatened strike action as part of ongoing regional protests over wage disputes. The strikes were organized by the IG Metall union.[4] The plant, reportedly a potential target for closure under Volkswagen's restructuring and cost-cutting plans, operates under unique labor contract terms allowing strikes before December, unlike other Volkswagen plants in western Germany. IG Metall has called for a 7% wage increase, contrasting with an offer of a 3.6% raise over 27 months from employers' associations, who have described the union's demands as unrealistic. [4]

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Recent vehicles

Some of Volkswagen's popular cars are the Golf, Jetta, Polo,Beetle and the Passat. VW's as they are commonly known, have also entered the off-road segment with cars like the Touarag, and the commercial segment with the Touran. This year sees VW's 21st anniversary since the Golf 1 went on sale in the 1980s. Since its birth VW has sold over 315,000 units of the Golf 1 alone. 2006 saw the entry of the fifth generation of the Golf. The flagbearer - the GTI - is powered by a 147Kw 2.0l 4 cylinder turbo charged engine,with VW DSG and FSI technology. The Golf GTI has evolved a long way since the 80's but the fifth generation GTI is criticised by some as it does not live up to the expectations and standards set by the legendary Mk1 GTI, which was fitted with an 1600, 8 valve motor.

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Passenger vehicles

     Vehicles only sold in Latin America        Vehicles only sold in China        Other vehicles not sold in the core European market

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Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles

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Former models

Aircooled models

  • Volkswagen 181 (1961–1983, also sold as Kurierwagen, Trekker, Thing, Safari)
  • Volkswagen 411/412 (Type 4) (1967–1973)
  • Volkswagen 1500/1600 (Type 3) (1961–1973)
  • Volkswagen Beetle (Type 1) (1938–2003)
  • Volkswagen Brasília (1973–1982)
  • Volkswagen Country Buggy (1967–1969)
  • Volkswagen Gacel (1983–1991)
  • Volkswagen Hebmüller Cabriolet (1949–1953)
  • Volkswagen Karmann Ghia (1955–1974, also sold as Type 34 Karmann Ghia, 1500 Karmann Ghia Coupe)
  • Volkswagen Kommandeurswagen (1941–1944) staff car for Wehrmacht
  • Volkswagen Kübelwagen (1940–1945) light military vehicle
  • Volkswagen Schwimmwagen (1942–1944)
  • Volkswagen Senda (1991–1994)
  • Volkswagen SP1/SP2 (1973–1976)
  • Volkswagen Type 18A (1949–?)
  • Volkswagen Type 147 Kleinlieferwagen (1964–1974)
  • Volkswagen-Porsche 914 (1969–1976, also sold as Porsche 914)

Watercooled models

  • Volkswagen Ameo (2016–2020)
  • Volkswagen Apollo (1990–1992)
  • Volkswagen Atlantic (1981–1984)
  • Volkswagen Beetle (2011–2019)
  • Volkswagen C-Trek (2016–2018)
  • Volkswagen Cabrio (1979–2002)
  • Volkswagen Cabriolet (1979–2002)
  • Volkswagen Carat (1987–1991)
  • Volkswagen Caribe (1977–1987)
  • Volkswagen Citi Golf (1984–2009)
  • Volkswagen Clásico (2010–2014)
  • Volkswagen Corrado (1988–1995)
  • Volkswagen Corsar (1984–1988)
  • Volkswagen Dasher (1974–1982)
  • Volkswagen Derby (1977–1985), (1995–2009, also sold as Polo Classic)
  • Volkswagen Eos (2006–2016)
  • Volkswagen Fox (2003–2021)
  • Volkswagen Gol (1980–2023)
  • Volkswagen Golf Plus (2004–2014)
  • Volkswagen Golf Sportsvan (2014–2020)
  • Volkswagen Iltis (1978–1988)
  • Volkswagen Jetta King (1997–2010)
  • Volkswagen Jetta Pioneer (2010–2013)
  • Volkswagen K70 (1968–1972)
  • Volkswagen Logus (1993–1997)
  • Volkswagen Lupo (1998–2005)
  • Volkswagen New Beetle (1997–2011)
  • Volkswagen New Jetta (2013–2020)
  • Volkswagen Parati (1982–2013)
  • Volkswagen Passat NMS (2011–2022)
  • Volkswagen Passat Lingyu (2005–2011)
  • Volkswagen Phaeton (2002–2016)
  • Volkswagen Phideon (2016–2023)
  • Volkswagen Pointer (1994–1996)
  • Volkswagen Polo Playa (1996–2006)
  • Volkswagen Polo (Russia) (2020–2022)
  • Volkswagen Quantum (1982–1988)
  • Volkswagen Rabbit (1975–1984)
  • Volkswagen Routan (2008–2014)
  • Volkswagen Scirocco (1974–2017)
  • Volkswagen Sharan (1995–2022)
  • Volkswagen SpaceCross (2014–2019)
  • Volkswagen Santana (1981–2022)
  • Volkswagen Suran/SpaceFox (2006–2019)
  • Volkswagen Taro (1989–1997)
  • Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace (2018–2024)
  • Volkswagen Vento/Polo Sedan (2010–2022)
  • Volkswagen Voyage (1983–2023)
  • Volkswagen Up (2011–2023)
  • Volkswagen XL1 (2015–2016)


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Car platforms

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MQB platform

The MQB platform, a car platform, was first introduced in 2012, in the Golf Mk7. That car platform is still shared by some (car) models, as of 2025.

MQB Evo (a version of MQB platform), has been made since 2019. Cars that have been using it are

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References

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