Its birth stems from the obstruction of competitors. It is Hitler's dream of motorization promised to the people through mass production. It carries many people's memories of the first car. It is a beetle.
Speaking of it, the birth of The Beatles can be traced back to the American automobile tycoon Henry Ford. After the First World War, Henry Ford was in the limelight with Model T Ford, and his autobiography "My Work and Life" also came to Germany across the ocean and became Weimar's best seller.
As the biggest fan of Henry Ford in Germany, Adolf Hitler wants to copy a Model T Ford in Germany as another landmark promotion of the KdF movement, so as to unite all walks of life. The people's car plan was born.
The so-called "car for people" plan is to "build a car that everyone can afford". At that time, Germany's industrial base was not as developed as that of the United States, and there were still a few people who could drive buses.
Hitler gave a dead order to German industry, asking them to build a car that can carry 4-5 passengers, with a top speed of more than 50 miles per hour, a fuel consumption of less than 4.5 liters per 100 km and a price of less than 1000 mark.
This plan was opposed by German industry, including Nordhoff, the elite of the automobile industry. RDA (German Automobile Industry Federation) didn't want to risk angering the dictator, so it invested 550,000 marks in a consulting company and asked them to find engineers to persuade Hitler to give up the plan. Unfortunately, the consulting company found Ferdinand Porsche.
Ferdinand porsche was the engineering director of Daimler, who was responsible for supervising the development of super-powered SSK Mercedes-Benz, which once caused a good response in Europe. Later, he was forced to leave Daimler because of rising costs and technical failures in small car testing.
The consulting company found him, hoping that he could persuade Hitler to give up the plan. But ferdinand porsche found the possibility of cooperating with this dictator: the opportunity that private enterprises can't get, the possibility of becoming the second Henry Ford. Engineers at Hitler's Bavarian villa Obergsalzberg painted an ideal blueprint for Hitler to build a car.
Ferdinand led the team of engineers to overcome the technical problems. Although RDA was reluctant, it was forced by Hitler to fund the new automobile factory. Although the prototype is completely different from the original sketch on the Bavarian villa, the Nazi propaganda department is still trying its best to attract customers for the upcoming people's car. The government has launched a savings plan, and car buyers only need to pay 5 marks a week.
Within 18 months, 250,000 users opened a KdF savings account. New cars have become a hot topic in society, and even social Democrats have denounced Germany as a "KdF car mental hospital".
But an order of 250,000 is not enough. 1938, the secret report of German social sentiment compiled by the SS Security Bureau mentioned: "KdF car orders have not reached expectations so far."
There is no hope of reducing costs through mass production. The cost of KdF's new car has risen to 1080 mark, which is lower than the selling price of 990 mark. Coupled with the financial crisis, currency shortage, equipment import difficulties, and war expectations, raw material prices have risen. Even the KdF Motor City built for the large-scale production of KdF has been ruined.
In the end, people's cars have become a small number of upper-middle class projects, and most of these people already have cars. The dream of motorization promised by the Nazis to the people eventually became a dead letter.
However, this paper plan has left some legacies to the public: a tried-and-tested prototype, a batch of debt-free and light equipment, a perfect highway system and transportation policy, and a dream of popularizing motorization to the public, all of which will help the public create miracles in the next era.
After World War II, the Volkswagen factory also faced the risk of being sanctioned or even shut down. However, the British just renamed KdF Wolfsburg and didn't really want to close it. On the one hand, the German economy declined after the war, and the public was a potential social stabilizer.
If the factory closes, it will make the already bad German economy worse. The decline of Germany will leave a power vacuum in Central Europe, which runs counter to the policy of balance of power on the mainland that Britain has been pursuing.
On the other hand, poverty and social discontent will lead to the recovery of the radical right wing. The instability of Weimar Republic partly comes from the severe economic sanctions at the beginning of the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, and Germany has become the forefront of the two-level confrontation under the background of the Cold War.
Under the influence of various factors, Britain decided to stick to "constructive pragmatism". Not only did it not shut down the Volkswagen factory, but it also revitalized the Volkswagen factory.
After the war, the Volkswagen factory was in crisis, so the British called Heinrich Nordhoff and asked him to manage the Volkswagen factory.
Heinrich Nordhoff was a member of RDA's anti-mass activities, and later he went to work for General Motors. After the war, he was fired by General Motors for participating in Nazi extermination activities, and later hired by the British to manage the increasingly difficult Volkswagen Company.
After Nordhoff took office, he reformed the management system, established a hierarchical management structure and strengthened the control of the company. At the same time, with his experience in Opel, he expanded the dealer network and reached export agreements with Switzerland, Sweden and Belgium, which eased the company's financial situation.
In addition, due to the low productivity and high cost of Volkswagen's factory, Nordhoff will increase personal productivity by 30% and improve product quality. At this time, the external economic environment began to improve, and German Economy Minister Ludwig Eilhard carried out monetary reform, abolished the rationing system and forced the black market to close.
After these factors that once affected the market transactions were eliminated, the management of Nordhoff showed results. Volkswagen's output and productivity are improving, and the market share of Beetle is increasing. Volkswagen is also called "the darling of the German miracle" by Der Spiegel.
With its excellent quality, affordable price and sleek appearance, Beetle not only conquered the German domestic market, but also successfully went abroad. At that time, the British automobile industry was expanding, and the Nazi memory in China had not faded. There is great pressure to buy German cars, and the close relationship between the Beatles and the Nazis will undoubtedly prevent people from buying them.
Britain and Germany are traditional competitors. Britain has promulgated a law stipulating that German products exported to Britain must be labeled as "Made in Germany" to humiliate competitors. However, with the development of German manufacturing, German manufacturing has become synonymous with excellent quality in Britain.
Seeing that Wolfsburg was once thriving, the British couldn't sit still, and the people even said that the Volkswagen factory should have stopped working at the beginning. Although they talked about resisting the Nazis, the British people interpreted the "law of true fragrance" with practical actions.
It's not easy for British beetle owners. When driving, they want to explain to everyone: "The quality is really good, don't think about politics." Despite all this trouble, the British are still willing to empty their wallets and buy them at buy buy. The Beatles is really charming.
In the American market at that time, small cars were still a neglected market. After all, there was a baby boom in the United States after the war, and automakers were busy designing bigger cars for the middle class. Beetle, a small car with slow speed, has a lot to do with the Nazis. How to open the American market is a challenge.
Fortunately, Volkswagen found DDB as an advertising agency to promote products. As the top 4A company in America, DDB naturally lives up to expectations. With its aggressive advertising style, DDB has successfully turned The Beatles into a part of popular culture.
Advertising guru william bernbach used a simple but powerful slogan "Thinking? Small ",let many people have a deep impression on the Beatles. This advertising campaign lasted for three or four years, and the sales volume of Beetle also exceeded 6.5438+0.5 million from 6.5438+0.5 million.
This car is a new product in the eyes of Americans. A group of users who were disappointed with Detroit turned to Beetle, and Beetle rewarded the owners with its excellent quality.
This small and unconventional car quickly entered the public eye and became the memory of a generation.
In the 1960s, it was sought after by American hippies because of its low price and simple transformation. As Fortune magazine said, "1949 has been a cool symbol of freedom, fun and counterculture since it first appeared on the American coast."
Many people have unique memories of The Beatles. Even after 1978, the Beetle factory stopped production, there were still many Beetle enthusiasts driving this car, repainting the car and modifying the seats. For them, the Beetle is not only a car, but also a member of the family, always with them when needed.
In 20 19, the Beetle factory stopped production in Mexico. This car model, which was born in 1938, finally ended in Ran Ran, and Volkswagen shot a series of advertisements for it. In the advertisement, the little boy drove the Beatles all the way, leaving behind pedestrians who left footprints in the history of the Beatles.
Then the car disappeared into the night, and the stars in the night sky became new headlights. Although The Beatles has passed away, a new legend has begun.
Author Zhou Zhirui
Editor Sun Chen
Picture network
This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.