Bert
Visitor
(5/12/01 6:12:17 pm)
Reply "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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I came across the following that puzzles me a bit.
I't is claimed that Hitler himself "designed" the rough model of that car and named it "Volkswagen".
It must have been accured on 1932, sitting in a restaurant in Munich. That design was given to a Mr. Jacob Werlin, head of Daimler/Bens company with the order: "Take it with you and speak with people who understand more about it than I do. But don't forget it. I want to hear from you soon, about the technical details". The little car renamed in 1938 in "der KDF-wagen".
I always thought that Dr. Ferdinand Porsche had the idea, made the design and that the name "Volkswagen" was given to it after the war.
I picture of that "Hitler-design" i mail to Marcus, maybe he can put it to this topic.
pdhinkle
Veteran Member
Posts: 377
(5/12/01 7:40:35 pm)
Reply "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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The VW was a big seller in the US for more than 30 years.Now they have another one that looks alike.
Daniel Feltmate
Member
Posts: 36
(5/12/01 8:13:10 pm)
Reply Re: "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Wouldn't it be strange if Hitler didn't call it the "Volkswagen" but instead called it the "Hitlerswagen."
I wonder if it would still be as popular as today's model, hahaha!
Marcus Wendel
Webmaster
Posts: 1299
(5/12/01 9:35:15 pm)
Reply
ezSupporter
Re: "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Here is the image:
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=1 ... 0&res=high
/Marcus
LEVE
Member
Posts: 26
(5/13/01 3:26:30 am)
Reply Re: "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Daniel, you're not far from the truth! The VW had an uphill battle for market share in the us. It was introduced in the early 50's. Lots of WWII Vets refused to buy one because they deemed it "Hitler's Car." It was a well known fact that the vehicle had been a joint effort between Hitler and Dr. Porsche. I remember often passing an accident sceen where a VW was involved and my father saying under his breath: "Hitler's revenge, it'll kill more Americans than his war ever did." Of course this attitude lessened with the passage of time.
Daniel Feltmate
Member
Posts: 40
(5/13/01 8:40:25 am)
Reply Re: "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Yikes. That's all I got to say.
tovarich1
Visitor
(5/16/01 11:40:55 pm)
Reply LEVE says...
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Expanding on the topic of American exceptance of the Hitlermobile here is an anecdote. A friend of mine related this story to me that when he bought a bug his father took one look and said, "I never thought I'd see the day when the son of a Steelworker would buy a Nazi car."
Landser
Visitor
(5/16/01 11:58:24 pm)
Reply VW
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Is'nt it tronic everybobody likes to bash this guy to the fullest,
then the same hyppos make his visional accomplishment the most wanted car in the world.
IN Israel it's been Bestseller for years.Former commies would kill to get their hands on one of them.
He must have done something right or...go figure.
By the way it was first called KdF=Wagen.
tovarich1
Visitor
(5/17/01 12:15:18 am)
Reply Little Red Wagon
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Landsr - What would current commies do? Just bruise you a little?
pdhinkle
Veteran Member
Posts: 389
(5/17/01 11:10:35 am)
Reply "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Look very close at the sketch that Marcus posted!It is a sketch and nothing more!Yes there have been court battles over who came up with the first idea.
Ask the automotive engineers what a sketch does for their work! Most of the work comes after that, and a lot of it to build a car.A few civilian units were made before the war started, then the chassis became the basis for the Kuegelwagon? right. German industry needed some thing to market after the war, and they used the plans for this vehicle. A great economy car. OK the front looks like a VW
LEVE
Member
Posts: 27
(5/17/01 9:16:23 pm)
Reply Re: "Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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Anyone remember the Messerschmidt? http://www.motorcarshow.com/Messerschmi ... _small.jpg It was originally marketed using old Messerschmidt parts... canopies, etc.
Then there was the DKW which stood for Dampf Kraft Wagen, part of AutoUnion. AutoUnion was a NS conglormation of 5 former independent car makers.... hence the 5 rings in the Logo. However in the States we used to call the the DKW the Deutsch Kline Wagen... Loved the name...
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/rudolf/ntl.image/dkw02.jpg
And who could forget the early Post War BMW 501's? Not me...
http://www.bmw.ca/enterprise/images/bild1948_3.jpg
You've got to hand it to the Germans... they really did their best under trying conditions to re-vitalize thier postwar industry.
Landser
Visitor
(5/17/01 10:53:19 pm)
Reply Leve
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Hate to be a pest-but you got one too many rings in the Auto Union
logo. Besides it was NO NS company
ever, it was formed by Horch,Wanderer,Audi and DKW(named Das Kleine Wunder)
Prof.F.Porsche was working there at the time.The factories where all in Saxony(Zwickau,Chemnitz, Dresden etc)
Horch= only big Lux.limos
Wand.= Touring cars
Audi= stricktly FWD intermediats
DKW= cheapos,2cyl.FWD,plywood body
LEVE
Member
Posts: 28
(5/19/01 2:23:03 pm)
Reply Re: Leve
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Landser...What was I thinking? Heck, you're no pest! I deserve to be corrected when I'm wrong! I must have been over come by "Olympic Fever." Thanks for the correction, the DKW picture show's it all!
However a little clarification please! The idea that the company was taken over by the NS goverenment would be false, with this I agree.
However it was my undrstanding that the merging of the four companies into Autounion was a response to corportate goals and future profit maximization under impending National Socialist corporate laws.
Comments?
Some of you may enjoy looking where older German vehicles are sold that were removed from Germany during the war and occupation, the site's URL is:
http://www.autogallery.org.ru/sale.htm
Landser
Visitor
(5/19/01 3:39:01 pm)
Reply Leve
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I think the merger in question had some to do with the economic depression at the time.Thats when GM snatched OPEL for a bag of peanuts.
Looked at your listed site,even all them looted cars in USSR did'n help Em getting of the ground.Is this going to be the new E-BAY?
Look at this a picture a Brit offers:
http://www.autogallery.org.ru/k/ma/37mb ... _inbox.jpg
Kain
Visitor
(5/19/01 8:10:41 pm)
Reply BMW
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Whath about the Baader Meinhof Wagen ?? : )))
"Volkswagen", Hitlers own design?
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