Volkswagen Company is a premium and luxury motor vehicle manufacturer. Volkswagen headquarters located at in Wolfsburg city, Lower Saxony State in the country of Germany.
Volkswagen Company was founded in Berlin in 1937 by the German Labor Front. In the early 1930s, cars were considered a luxury item. Most of the Germans are cannot afford to purchase luxurious than a motorcycle. Only one in 50 Germans owned a car during that time.
Some car manufacturers launched independent “people’s car” projects like Mercedes 170h, BMW 3/15, Adler Autobahn, Steyr 55 and Hanomag 1.3L.
Famous iconic Beetle model, Volkswagen is known for its iconic model. It serves as the main brand of the Volkswagen Group. Volkswagen Group is the world’s largest automotive manufacturer in 2016 and 2017 according t global sales.
China is the company’s most significant market, representing 40% of its revenue and profits. The name “Volkswagen” comes from German language, “Volks” means “people” and “Wagen” means “car”.
In 1934, many of the above projects were still in development or early production. Adolf Hitler ordered the production of two adults and three children at a speed of 100 km/h (62 mph).
Erwin Komenda, who was the chief designer at Auto Union for a long time, was part of a hand-picked team by Ferdinand Porsche. They developed the car body of a prototype known today as the Beetle.
One of the first cars built using the wind tunnel was a method used to build German aircraft. This method was used from the early 1920s. The car’s designs were having been done through rigorous tests. It achieved a million miles record of testing before deemed complete.
Construction of the new factory began in May 1938 in the new town “Stade des KDF-Wagens” (renamed Wolfsburg after the war) for factory workers. By the start of the war in 1939, the factory had produced only a few cars.
In April 1945, KDF-Stadt and its massive bomb factory were captured by the United States Armed Forces. It was subsequently handed over to the British. The town and factory were under their occupation.
The factory was placed under the control of a British army officer, Major Ivan Hirst. It was a civil military governor with rem and occupation forces. At first, a plan was to use it for military vehicle maintenance and after that dismantles it for the Britain.
Volkswagen Company was first introduced and sold in the United States in 1949.
But only two units were sold in the US that first year. When entering the US market, the VW was briefly sold as the Victory Wagon. Volkswagen of America was created to streamline sales and service in the United States. The production of the Type 1 Volkswagen Beetle soared, reaching a milestone of one million units in 1955.
On August 22, 1960, Volkswagenwerk GMBH was renamed Volkswagenwerk AG. Company sales increased in the 1960s.
The 1961 Type 1 Beetle featured a 36 HP 1200cc four-cylinder air-cooled flat-fur OHV engine with an aluminum alloy block and head. By 1966, the Type one had a 1300cc engine. By 1967 the Type 1 had a 1500cc engine and in 1970 a 1600cc.
In 1961, VW expanded its product line with the introduction of four Type 3 models (Karman Ghia, Notchback, Fastback and Variant). These models were based on new Type 3 mechanical underpinnings. In the United States, a variant is used for the name ‘Squareback’.
In 1964, Volkswagen Auto Union and NSU Motorenwarke bought AG (NSU) in 1969. The former company owns the historic Audi brand, which disappeared after World War II.
Some models were introduced in 1969 in the larger Type 4 (411 and 412). The newer models differ significantly from the previous vehicles. They featured a monocoque/unibody construction, fully automatic transmission option. It was an electronic fuel injection and a stronger power plant. VW was eventually merged Auto Union and NSU to create the modern Audi Company. They did this to develop its luxury vehicle marquee.
In 1975, Volkswagen followed with the Polo and it was rebadged into the Audi 50. It was promptly discontinued in 1978. It was introduced in 1977; Polo became the base for the derby.
Volkswagen Derby was started for all intents and purposes the Polo’s three-box design. The Derby design was discontinued in 1985, although due to the body style continued until 1991 in Polo Classic/Polo Saloon form.
In 1983 the MK2 Golf was launched. In early 1988, the third generation of the Passat’s next flagship car was launched. But, Volkswagen did not produce a hatchback version of the Passat. The hatchback car body style became popular throughout Europe.
Following the launch of the B3 Passat, Volkswagen released the Corrado, similar to the Scirocco. The Scirocco remained in production until 1992. The 3rd generation of SCIROCCO was in production from 2008-17.
In 1991, Volkswagen launched the third generation VW Golf. It won the 1992 European Car of the Year. The Golf MK3 and Jetta MK3 started into the North America in 1993. The sedan version of the Golf was scrapped in Europe. But it was remains in the Volkswagen Jetta in United States.
In 2002, Bernd Pischetsrieder, then CEO of the Volkswagen Group (responsible for all Group brands), began introducing a series of new models.
Production of the large crossover SUV, the Volkswagen Atlas, began in late 2016 year.
On 14 September 2016, Volkswagen announced its partnership with 3 Israeli cyber security experts. This partnership was to create Simotive, a company dedicated to automotive security marquee.
In 2017, Volkswagen aimed to launch at least 30 EV models by the year of 2025. They expected these models to account for 20 to 25 percent of their total annual sales. Volkswagen was focusing significantly on electric vehicles (EVs).
In September 2017, Volkswagen CEO Matthias Müller said that by 2030, all vehicles will have electric versions. He also stated that Volkswagen aims to spend between 20 billion Euros and 50 billion Euros on battery purchases.
In September 2018, Volkswagen announced that the Beetle (A5) will end in 2019. In September 2018, Volkswagen announced a $100 million investment in Silicon Valley-based solid-state battery startup QuantumScape get representation on its board.
In November 2020, Volkswagen announced that it would increase its investment in electric and self-driving cars to billion over the next five years. Volkswagen Company is the world’s largest carmaker in a green era. In January 2021, Volkswagen recorded a decline of 9.9% in China, 23.4% in Western Europe and 17.1% in North America by 2020.
In March 2022, the Volkswagen ID Buzz Electric Minivan was released.
Volkswagen confirmed on May 11, 2022 that it would be re-launching its Scout off-road vehicle brand. It was an electric vehicle production will begin in 2026 and it will be available in the USA. This was the first time VW has created a new brand in the market.
In July 2022, Volkswagen marked the first development of its own GigFactories. The site in Salzgitter, Germany is called Mission SalzGiga.
The new business unit will focus on all of Volkswagen’s battery operations. It was includes from raw materials and recycling to sale. It is part of a €20 billion investment.
Volkswagen will introduce the ID in September 2022. The Xtreme1 Off-Road Electric Concept Car is an off-road electric SUV.
Volkswagen is a founding and renowned member of the Volkswagen Group. It is a large international conglomerate responsible for multiple car and truck brands. These brands include Audi, Seat, Porsche, Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti, Scania, MAN and Skoda. The Volkswagen Group’s global headquarters is located in Wolfsburg, Germany. This was the historic home of Volkswagen.
In 2010, Volkswagen recorded record sales of 6.29 million vehicles with a global market share of 11.4%. In 2008, Volkswagen became the third largest car manufacturer in the world. In 2016, Volkswagen became the second largest manufacturer globally.
The company, Volkswagen, derived benefits from trade tariffs and newly implemented emission standards. With this advantage, the company achieved a record 10.8 million vehicle deliveries in 2018.
The Volkswagen Group’s main markets include Germany and China. In July 2019, Volkswagen invested $2.6 billion in Argo AI, a start-up that focused on developing self-driving vehicles.
