On 8 March it was sixty years ago Volkswagen started the production of the legendary 'Bulli' in Hanover, as the Transporter T1 was affectionately called at the time. To turn this historic milestone on, the Historical Museum in Hanover is organizing a special exhibition on the production of the Transporter from 9 in March to 26 in June 2016, of which many millions have left the production line in Hanover.
Six decades ago, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles selected the city of Hanover from more than 230 candidate cities as a production location for the Volkswagen Transporter. That decision was the start of an absolute success story. On March 8 1956 rolled the first Volkswagen T1 'Bulli' off the production line at the Hanover plant, followed to this day by another 9,5 million T-series.
Start in Wolfsburg
Originally the production of the Transporter T1 started in Wolfsburg. When the hundred thousandth Bulli rolled out the gates there in 1954, it became clear that the Transporter needed its own factory. Demand far exceeded production capacity.
Made in Hanover
The production facility in Hanover started 1956 in March with 4.000 employees and a daily production of 230 Transporters. However, that production number increased rapidly, as a result of which the one millionth Volkswagen Transporter 'Made in Hanover' was already being produced in 1962. Production of the T1967 started in 2, followed by the T1979 in 3, the T4 in 1990 and the T2003 in 5. Since last year, the sixth generation of the successful delivery van and people-mover has been built in Hanover, in a factory with 14.500 employees who, with 750 internships, is the largest training location in the German city.