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| Major Ivan Hirst |
The second world war eventually came to an end and Hitler committed suicide in
1945, the task was then to rebuild Germany. The Country was devided into
quarters, and as the KdF factory was located in the British section it fell
under control of the British, and Major Ivan Hirst was brought in to assess the
possibility of starting up production of the Beetle as transport for the
occupying forces. The KdF-stadt was renamed Wolfsburg - taking its name from a
nearby castle and the KdF plant was known as the 'Wolfsburg Motor Works'.
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| Split window in
production |
Much of the machinery had survived the bombing having been stored in various out
buildings. Cars were put together with old-stock and whatever could be found,
many using parts from the Kubelwagen until 1946 when the factory was producing
about 1000 cars a month. Two of the most significant 'special' cars developed
while under the control of the British where the 'Radclyffe Roadster' and a
four seater convertible, both custom built by Rudolph Ringel. The Radclyffe was
a two seater roadster that was the transport of Colonel Charles Radclyffe over
the summer months of 1946. The four seater convertible was Ivan Hirst's
personal transport.
In 1948, after the appointment of Heinz Nordhoff as the VW factory General
Director, it was decided that the Volkswagen range needed to be expanded, and
the go-ahead was given to two factories to produce prototype convertible
versions of the Beetle. Karmann were asked to build a four seater, and
Hebmüller were asked to make a two seater roadster. The design of the roadster
was not unlike the 'Radclyffe Roadster', with similar hood and side windows,
the rear engine cover however was a hand formed panel and not a converted front
bonnet as was the Radclyffe version.
Strength problems were soon apparent and were solved with sill strengtheners,
cross braces, extra panels, and a flattened off windscreen top, but whereas
Karmann relocated the semaphores to the rear quarter, the Hebmüller's remained
in the front quarter. The prototypes were thoroughly tested and given final
approval by Volkswagen, and the Karosseries were given an order for 2000 cars,
with the official designation of the Hebmuller as Type 14A, and the Karmann the
Type 15A.
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| Karmann Cabrio |
By the end of 1949, 358 two seater convertibles had been made - comparable to
the 364 four seater convertibles made by Karmann. However, the Hebmüller
factory was to hit a major setback on Saturday, 23rd July 1949. Fire broke out
in the paint shop, and quickly spread throughout the factory. The damage was
extensive but with the help of the employees, the factory was again in
production only four weeks later.
The fire had put a tremendous strain on the finances of the karosserie and
production of the Hebmüller convertible slowed, with 319 cars made in 1950
(Karmann made 2679). The coachbuilder finally went out of business in 1952 and
production of the Type 14A was transferred to the Karmann Factory to use up the
remaining Hebmüller parts, the last car built in February 1953.
Volkswagen claims 696 Hebmüllers were sold, although Hebmüller claim that a
figure closer to 750 cars were built. There are surviving cars with body
numbers over 700, with the highest known being 710, but an exact figure of how
many cars were built will probably never be known.
The Wolfsburg factory continued to build saloons until it was eventually
discontinued in 1978, the biggest change being in 1971 with the introduction of
the 'Super Beetle'. These beetles came equipped with the IRS previously only
available on US models, and an all new MacPherson strut front suspension to
replace Porsches preferred torsion bars. This new front suspension allowed a
repositioning of the fuel tank and spare tire thus giving an increased luggage
capacity. The 1302S super beetle had a slightly redesigned 1600cc engine that
developed 50bhp. These changes were accompanied with a revised external body
and a new floorpan.
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| Model T & '72
Beetle
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On the 17th February, 1972, the beetle finally overtook Fords model 'T' as the
most popular car ever made, later disputed by Ford who found new production
figures, the beetle went on to make sure there was absolutely no doubt. The
last beetle to be made in Germany left the production line in January 1978,
bringing the end of an era. This was not the end of the beetle though,
production continued in Puebla, Mexico in a factory that was built in 1954. The
20,000,000th beetle rolled off the Mexican production line in May 1981 and with
demand in Europe for the beetle still high, Volkswagen of Germany was importing
beetles from Mexico up to 1985.
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