The VW Beetle is one of the worlds classic cars. It has been in production, with some gaps, for around 70 years and has a history and automobile pedigree like no other car. So if you're a classic car enthusiast you can do much worse than finding a classic VW Beetle, and either driving it or restoring it. An old VW Beetle can become a thing of automobile beauty without too much effort.
The VW Beetle began production in the late 1930s. It was originally the idea of Adolf Hitler who wanted to produce a "peoples car" that was cheap enough to be affordable by almost everyone, and would carry the average German family. He also wanted to tackle the unemployment that was rife in post WW1 Germany, and thought car production might do that. Volkswagen is actually the German word for "peoples car".
So the classic VW Beetle was born. It has had many different model changes over the years but the basic Beetle shape has changed little. The shape itself was also Hitlers idea, he wanted a body shape "like a beetle" so that it was aerodynamic, and that's where the VW Beetle got it's name.
It was never a fast car. It was designed for other things than speed, particularly reliability and cheap motoring, and both of those it achieved admirably. It is known for it's simple air cooled rear mounted motor which is one of the most reliable motors ever built, and the same basic configuration of that motor was used from the first VW Beetle for an amazing 40 years with little modification. And as any classic VW Beetle owner will tell you, it will go forever.
The basics of the car and chassis were very simple. Instrumentation, for example, was adequate, consisting of a speedo and a fuel gauge! It was a 4 speed manual and did 0 - 50 in somewhere around 13 - 15 seconds, but it was never built to be fast. It had good fuel consumption of 32 mpg, something that would be the envy of many drivers of more modern cars, and a simple 4 stroke 4 cylinder motor. It did have some refinements but not many, and came as a 2 door. True to Hitlers original requirements it would carry 2 adults and 3 children, but just barely!
So the VW Beetle was born. It has now become a classic car. Hundreds of thousands were built and it has achieved cult status as one of the most important cars of the 20th century.
And it is now very popular with classic car enthusiasts. There are many people looking to grab themselves a classic VW Beetle to restore, and there are also many still available as second hand and used cars. It isn't that hard to find a classic Beetle to buy, though at times there can be some competition for them, but anyone who wants to grab a classic car at a price that is very affordable can find themselves a classic Beetle with a little effort.
