Everything You Need To Know About The VW Beetle - HotCars

The Beetle Love Bug has a long and storied history, from Nazi propaganda symbol to 1960s counter culture icon. Its production was one of the longest in the history of the automotive industry, running from 1938 through to 2019. In that time, it has been immortalized in film and art. The Beetle was about as iconic as any car could ever hope to be.

And along with the Mini Cooper, it was one of the few small European cars that proved to actually be popular on the American market. It is one of the few small European cars that has truly become a real classic and loved around the world. Today, it is one of the most recognized classic cars out there. One strange thing about this car is that it was not designed to be loved, it was designed to be cheap and affordable. Here is everything you need to know about the Volkswagen Beetle.

10 The Most Produced Car In History

Via Wikimedia Commons

The Volkswagen Beetle is the most produced car in history. When the last of the Beetles rolled off the assembly line, 21,529,464 vehicles had been produced. That is an incredible amount.

Via Wikimedia Commons

It is also claimed to be the longest-running production as well as the most manufactured car on a single platform. That 21 million car figure is the same as the two largest automakers in the world (Volkswagen and Toyota) total annual car production combined.

9 Nazi Roots

Via Wikimedia Commons

Its roots can be traced back to Nazi Germany, when Adolf Hitler wanted a car for the German masses. Back then, most Germans could not afford a car, unlike their American counterparts in the United States.

Via Wikimedia Commons

The Beetle was a design submitted by Ferdinand Porsche (yes, that Porsche). It was selected by the Nazi leadership — partly because of Porsche's reputation for well-performing racing cars. It's well-known that Hitler loved sports vehicles, and he owned some himself.

Related: 20 Of The Sickest Modified VW Beetles

8 Volkswagen Type 1 And Nicknames

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The iconic Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle (aka the Bug or Love Bug) production ended in 2003 and some take this as the end of the Beetle. However, the New Beetle and the Beetle A5 continued in production until 2019.

Via Wikimedia Commons

The Type 1 Beetle has scores of nicknames — "Beetle" in German, "tortoise" in Libya, "Coccinelle" (Ladybug) in French, "little cockroach" in Central America, "little toad" in Peru, and oddly "Banju Maqlub: (literally, a bathtub turned upside down) in Malta

7 Herbie, The Love Bug Movie

Via Herbie The Love Bug

In the 1968 Walt Disney movie Herbie, The Love Bug, the Beetle is the main protagonist of the movie being a fictional sentient anthropomorphic (as in alive and humanlike) 1963 Volkswagen Beetle.

Via Herbie The Love Bug

Herbie, The Love Bug spawned a whole line of movies and series. The movie also both captured the Beetle's much-loved status in America at the time and helped to continue to propel it to fame. The lovable racing Herbie was central to all of these movies.

6 Engine

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The engine in the Beetle changed over time, but they came with 1100, 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500, and 1600 cc gasoline engines. At first, they were underpowered (maybe not for the day, but now looking back). The first models' top speed was only 62 mph.

Via Wikimedia Commons

The engine was also famously mounted in the rear of the vehicle, meaning the storage trunk was actually in the front. These days, rear-mounted engines are only found in Porsches.

Related: Bye Bye Beetle: 25 Facts About Volkswagen’s Most Iconic Car

5 Rear-Wheel Drive And Air cooled

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The Beetle was famously a rear-wheel-drive vehicle, which makes sense, seeing as the engine was mounted in the rear.

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Also, the Beetle was air-cooled and not water-cooled. Accordingly, the Beetle did not have a radiator. At least Beetle drivers didn't have to carry around emergency bottles of water just in case the radiator lost all its water!

4 1970s Redesign

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In the 1970s, the Beetle was redesigned, upgraded, and modernized. It was fitted with larger engines as well as a whole range of incremental changes like receiving dual rear ashtrays, full carpeting, better bumpers, and more.

Via: Mecum

Additionally, the Beetles were enlarged, with some offering 43% more luggage capacity. Sometimes redesigning a classic car feels like sacrilege, but also sometimes it is the only way to keep them relevant and even street legal as regulations change and tighten.

3 Original Beetle Continued In Production

Via Wikimedia Commons

While the redesigned Beetle was sold in key markets like America and Europe, the original continued in production in other parts of the world like Latin America. For a while, Volkswagen was selling two models of the same car in the world.

Via Wikimedia Commons

Production went on in the plant in Puebla, Mexico until 2019 when Volkswagen finally shut down production once and for all. It's strange that in the end, it was Latin America that was keeping it alive.

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Related: The Real Story Behind Mini Cooper

2 Volkswagen Beetle (A5) Epilogue

Via : Popular Mechanics

The last Beetle to be designed was the Beetle A5. The Beetle A5 was the successor to the New Beetle that was launched in 1997. Volkswagen was hoping to create a Beetle model more aggressive in appearance, while re-stylizing it to be more reminiscent of the Type 1 Beetle.

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However, despite Volkswagen's best efforts, it could do little to reverse and revive the Beetle's declining fortunes. The Beetle A5 was launched in 2013 and final production ceased in 2019.

1 Volkswagen Continues The Market Segment

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Volkswagen may have ended production of the Beetle, but with its Golf and Polo models, it continues to cater toward the market interested in purchasing small, affordable, and fuel-efficient vehicles. These small cars are very popular in Europe and much more practical there.

Via Wikimedia Commons

These are, however, much more conventional vehicles with forward-mounted engines and front-wheel drive. They have also enjoyed market success, with the Golf having been introduced in 1974 and is now in its eighth generation.

In summary, it is sad to see the Beetle go. But it did have a good run and deserves a good retirement.