The beetle. He lives happily ever after

This week Volkswagen was thinking about an event that actually took place sixteen years ago. In Mexico this week the last Beetle, actually a retroversion of VW's Typ 1, ran from the band. That event was announced as the end of an era.

The NOS news reported in the week of July 8 2019-14 July 2019 about this event, and a Mexican taxi driver came into the picture, who in fact explained in great detail that VW had long said goodbye to the old Beetle. “With the old beetle you effortlessly traveled into the mountains and hills, the latter models were less suitable for that. He indirectly referred to the Typ 1, which, as Ultima Edicion, ended the air-cooled era of Volkswagens' passenger car division around 2003. Because the Mexican said "old beetle", and barely talked about the Beetle that had just been taken out of production. He just didn't say, "Actually, I never found anything."

New Beetle and Beetle sold reasonably

The New Beetle and the Beetle were never seen as real Beetles, they were variations on the theme that were equipped with modern VW technology, nothing wrong with that. And both variants did not even go bad, because a total of one and a half million copies of the New Beetle and the Beetle were sold (from 1999). Certainly not bad, not at all, but they could not match the magic of the old Beetle.

The beetle got Germany and the world back on its feet

Anyway. The Beetle end is "end of an era" according to VW. And the era that Volkswagen is referring to actually began - after a dark history in 1938. In December 1945, the Beetle Age finally ignited, after Major Ivan Hirst on behalf of the victorious allies a wonder of the world by having the totally destroyed VW factories resurrected from the ashes, and getting Germany mobile on its feet. His rescue work heralded the start of an incredibly well-cultivated and well-considered success. Initially, the Allied parties in Germany and the newly-fired government agencies in Germany were provided with the Beetle, and private individuals and scrambling companies followed.

The Netherlands was the first export country

The Beetle was initially not so good at all, but with astonishing efficiency, the Volkswagen was made ready for a long and glorious future. Ben Pon was the first outside of Germany to see the potential, and ensured that the Netherlands became the first export country for the Typ 1. Pon also helped Volkswagen into America, and when the Beetle hit it, the gate was down. Numerous export countries were added, Volkswagen's organization was set up at lightning speed, parts were available everywhere and the cars were easy to maintain everywhere. The service network was impressive, and things like VW Diagnosis indicated progressiveness. And whoever wanted to tinker with the Beetle: two left hands were enough. Licked advertising campaigns did the rest, the image of Volkswagen was established.

Always adjusted and improved

De Kever, oh well, he was there in so many variants, adjusted annually, down to the smallest detail. The Spectacle Beetle, the Oval Beetle, the Dickholmer, the 1200 / 1300 / 1500 series, the Super Beetles, the Convertibles, the many special versions, the Mexicans and last but not least: all types that were derived from the Beetle, or which had it as its basis . They got better and better, more and more thoughtfully. Whether it was a nipple, the introduction of a larger engine, or the use of schräglenkers to make the Sport-o-matic possible: VW always tackled things thoroughly. Without the reliability and the almost unbreakable image having anything to do with it. All Typ 1 generations had something in common: they were solidly constructed, certainly the European variants. And everything could be served as a matter of course, the Beetle was and still is an easy customer to travel with.

Smile at millions of people

Millions and millions of people remember the time they rode the Beetle with a smile. Millions of people want another one someday. And countless people around the world still drive it. For daily use, or as a classic. To the delight of many, who fall for the round forms, for that powerful and at the same time sympathetic boxer sound, for the simplicity cast in solid principles. In all shapes and sizes, the Beetle shows why Volkswagen announced the last Beetle with the title "The end of an era".

Still no end of the era

Well-meant. But wrong. No more Beetles are made, and no longer any Typ 1 models. But the beetle lives on. There are still so many of them driving around that the term "collectors item" used by the newsreader deserves serious nuance. De Kever, he will live on for years, at least a few more decades. The father and mother of the post-war car industry, that is the kindly designed, solid and easy-going Volkswagen, which appeals to so many people for so many reasons. And has an immortal image. There is one important reason for this. A beetle gives you the confidence-inspiring feeling that you always come home. And you also get home in a beetle. And by that Beetle we of course mean the Type 1, the car in which every true motorist must have driven. Because it is still a frame of reference, and lets you look at the world differently.