The+Volkswagen+Beetle

The original Volkswagen Beetle first rolled off the production line in 1935 and has continued to production until this day. Adolf hitler met with designer Ferdinand Porsche in 1933 and gave him a simple brief, to design a car capable of transporting 2 adults and three children at a speed of 100km/h (62mph). Ferdinand Porsche set to work and in just two years cars were being produced for military use. By 1951 over one million cars had rolled off the production line. The success of the beetle lies in its simplicity. The traditional watercooled engine of most other vehicles was dicarded in favour of an aircooled system. The idea being that there is far less parts that could break and no chance of losing water and overheating. the engine was also relatively lightweight and quite compact with its flat four design. The engine, mounted in the rear was very easy to work and could be totally removed from the car by removing just 4 bolts. The beetle has become an iconic design and the original styling Ferdinand Porsche applied to the car can be seen in the Porsche 911 and the new VW beetle. Take a close look at all three cars and you notice the similarities in headlamp/wing profiles and the two lines the rise from the front, over the roof and down the rear section of the cars.