VW Beetle and WWII

Written by: Jimmy Sesto

Here is a little fact about the VW Beetle you might not know. The Beetle started production in 1938 and after the war was over Ford was offered the VW company for free. Under advisement of his staff Henry Ford II declined due to the fact the factory had been bombed and Americans feelings about Germany were to a point that if Ford would have said yes it could have ruined Ford back home. In fact some British companies turned the offer down as well. Anyway the Beetle resumed production and kept the car relatively unchanged until 2003 when the last Beetle was made in Mexico. Although the Beetle was no longer sold in the U.S. it still was sold in many other countries. As time went on and safety and emission laws became stiffer, less and less countries sold the vehicle until it didn't even pass Mexican laws. VW kept the car the same not due to lack of technology but due to the fact that people wanted the car that way and it was very inexpensive. So while the New Beetle was introduced to us in 1999, little did most of us know that the old Beetle was still in production for another 4 years.