Volkswagen enthusiasts are some of the most loyal, committed, and interesting out there. In addition to having some really fun nicknames, Volkswagens also have a long and interesting history which goes all the way back to Nazi Germany. But there is quite a lot about this popular brand that most people don't know. Here are ten amazing Volkswagen facts.
1) What does Volkswagen's name mean? - Translated literally, Volkswagen means "people's car" in German. This name was chosen because of the desire of the German government at the time for the everyday person to be able to own a car, rather than just the wealthy.
2) The Volkswagen originated in Hitler's Nazi Germany - The Nazi government organization The German Labor Front was responsible for creating Volkswagen in 1937. Since all of Germany's cars at the time were luxury vehicles, only 1 out of 50 Germans could afford a car. Adolf Hitler wanted his country to compete with Western Democracies, and ordered a car be manufactured that every German could afford.
3) Germans were promised a Volkswagen on layaway - Once the Volkswagen program was officially started, German workers were encouraged to pay 5 Reichmarks a week into the program, for a total of 990 Reichmarks to buy the car. The official slogan was "Five marks a week you must put aside, if you want to drive your own car." 336,000 Germans paid into the program, but it was all for naught, as World War II broke out across Europe, and the savings plan of these would-be car owners was seized by the Russians in 1945.
4) Ford turned down an offer to take over Volkswagen for FREE - In 1948, with the bombed-out Volkswagen plant still in disrepair, the British offered an opportunity for Ford to take over the company for free. Henry Ford's son Edsel traveled to Germany along with Ernest Breech, Chairman of the Ford Motor Company to investigate the company. When Henry Ford asked Breech for his opinion on the offer, Breech replied "Mr.Ford, I don't believe that what we're being offered here is worth a damn!" Ford declined the offer.
5) Volkswagen values its employees down-time - In 2011, Volkswagen instituted a new policy that limited the e-mail capability of the company's smart-phones between the hours of 6:30 pm and 7:30 am on the urging of the company's work-council. This was aimed at improving work-life balance for the employees after many of them were unhappy with the high-stress levels and the expectations that they would immediately answer e-mails during after-work hours.
6) Volkswagen and Porsche have a long history - When the Volkswagen project was first launched, Adolf Hitler hired Ferdinand Porsche, the famous sports-car founder as the original Volkswagen designer and co-founder of the company. Over the years, the two companies have worked on various projects and had significant shareholder interest in each other, until in 2012, Volkswagen purchased the remaining shares of Porsche, effectively becoming its parent company.
7) The Volkswagen Beetle is the longest-produced vehicle in history - Forget the Toyota Camry, the Volkswagen Beetle was manufactured for 65 years. 65 YEARS! In that time, there were a total of 21,529,464 made. While most of them are found in Europe and Asia, a good percentage were probably bought up during the height of the Hippie-era.
8) The Volkswagen Jetta makes diesel more popular - Despite the United States never adopting diesel as a mainstream fuel, Volkswagen does play a major role in the market. The Volkswagen Jetta TDI is the by far the best-selling diesel compact car on the market.
9) The 1960's were a great time for Volkswagen in America - Perhaps it was because of the rise of hippie culture and their affinity for the Beetle and the Microbus, but Volkswagen made a splash into the American market in the counter-cultural decade of the 1960's. In January 1962, Volkswagens accounted for 60 percent of all import car registrations in the USA.
10) Volkswagen is aiming for world domination - In 2010, Volkswagen's worldwide market share was 11.4%, after becoming the world's third largest automaker in 2008. In 2012, Volkswagen was considered the world's second largest automaker. Volkswagen's next ambitious goal seems within reach, to become the world's largest car maker by 2018.
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