The brand story of Volkswagen

When cars first appeared, they mainly served the upper class. Gottlieb daimler and karl benz, two German inventors, are recognized as the most skilled automobile technical experts, but in the early days of the automobile, only the rich could afford this new and complicated product, and drivers were needed to drive and maintain it. At that time, no one realized that this exquisite mechanical miracle would fundamentally change the world, and no one gave it new meaning for its unique mobility.

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As we know, the Germans can claim that they invented the car, while the French added a national color to the mixture (and occasionally invented the racing car). However, it is Americans who have confirmed the status of cars in society as a whole. Henry Ford produced a car that anyone can drive at any time and anywhere (and come and go freely).

Soon, the concept of "civilian car" began to spread, and politicians and business people could accept it. As for the Germans, until the 1920s, they still believed that the American practice was for industrial and political interests. Even in the 1920s, many German industrialists still believed that buses would be real "civilian cars" in the future. In any case, the destruction after World War I and the ensuing world economic crisis shattered any hope that ordinary people could afford cars.

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1932, the german government led by VonPapen took some measures to reduce the tax on driving cars, with the aim of reducing the cost of owning cars and stimulating the sales of cars. Then came193365438+1October 30th, when Hitler came to power and established a government with the supremacy of the country. He wants to take the concept of "civilian car" as his argument. This is an excellent opportunity for ferdinand porsche to enter this field.

1930, Porsche resigned from Daimler-Benz AG. After leaving the company under the trademark of Triangle Star, Porsche became the director of Steyr -Werke, and he didn't give up this position until the company merged into Austria-Daimler.

1930 12 1, Porsche took a bold step and opened its own "design room for engines, land vehicles, aviation and naval vehicles". As he has been looking for new projects, he obviously showed interest in the "civilian cars" ordered by Hitler, because it is profitable in the long run.

193 1 year, the sports car factory in Stuttgart was founded by ferdinand porsche, the former designer of Volkswagen. The first Porsche sports car was "Porsche 924" of 1948. This car uses many technologies of Volkswagen, including turbine engine, toolbox and suspension system. Later, we also jointly launched "Volkswagen-Porsche 9 14" (Volkswagen Porsche 9 14) and "Porsche 924" (1976), including1970 (this model has adopted many.

1934 17 10/7, Porsche proposed to design a German civil car within 12 months, and passed the evaluation of "official and private expert committees". For Porsche, it was like making a big bet in a poker game, but he did it and won.

At the beginning of 1937, the study of site selection was also started. According to the requirements, the site should be located in the middle of Germany, with good traffic lines and enough space. This is not only for the factory itself, but also for the planning and development of a brand-new city. Both Hitler and Porsche thought it was very important for this project to attract workers. ( 1)

1937 summer, a very accidental opportunity found a suitable site. Porsche is under great pressure when choosing a site. Although many candidates have excellent basic conditions, the final decision is still inclined to FallersLeben. This means giving up the original promise to the Fuehrer that the factory will be completed and put into operation that summer. The foundation stone of the factory was laid on May 26th, 1938, and the words "KraftdurchFreude" (translated from power to steering wheel) were officially marked on a huge stone step resembling a car model. At the ceremony, the audience can see Ferdinand's son Frye Porsche driving a convertible that is about to be mass-produced, Hitler sitting in the front row and old Porsche sitting in the back row.

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The problem of organizing sales and the gradual expiration of the savings plan did not have a negative impact on the surprisingly rapid development of the factory. Within a few months, the defense line of the war was established, and the public was quite surprised to find that their interests in the whole project had been lost. Due to the noise of the war, about 3000 construction workers were sent from Wolfsburg to the western defense line. This also shows a signal by the way that the government has neither cared about the new factory nor considered the military importance of its future products. If Volkswagen and its branch factories were really included in this category at that time, they might face greater pressure to build their production facilities as soon as possible.

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How can a car factory continue to live if it doesn't build cars? The management method is to accept almost any kind of task. /kloc-at the end of 0/939, the factory began to make bombs, and then went on to make lathe transmission parts such as aircraft fuel tanks, fuel tanks and shell casings. Starting from 194 1, a production line for producing wings of Ju88 aircraft was built in the factory in Wolfsburg. These contracts not only made the company some profits, but also made the factory in a much better situation after solving the raw materials. In this way, the factory was gradually built.

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In the first summer after the Second World War, the occupying forces were still considering the most effective policy to rebuild this severely damaged country. Americans are playing a radical Morgenthau plan, which has turned Germany into an agricultural country since then. On the other hand, British people are seldom interested in such plans. Allies of all countries are convinced that the country will be rebuilt soon and the refugee problem will be solved, but the British realize that it will be difficult to establish a political institution needed to contain Russia in the area they occupy, which extends to Wolfsburg and its factories within a few kilometers. Therefore, they are committed to restoring local industrial activities, under strict control, of course, and handing over administrative responsibilities to the civilian occupation authorities.

Obviously, this is because the military can't manage this industry. Secondly, after six years of war, a large number of soldiers have no enthusiasm for it. Therefore, if other tasks bind them in a foreign country for too long, it conflicts with their desire to be demobilized as soon as possible, so we must find some people who can manage the Volkswagen factory according to the intention of the British government. As a result, I found a person, that is, retired army colonel LvanHirst. Under the clear instructions of the German Control Committee, he was sent to Wolfsburg to resume production of reconnaissance vehicles or buses. At that time, there was no intention to sell the first batch of cars to ordinary people. Their sales targets are mainly "occupation troops, local government officials, doctors, police, post offices and other public institutions". Hearst and his colleague Radcliffe started their work from two aspects, counting production facilities and looking for potential users. An officer's car was specially repaired for the British army, painted with khaki paint of the British army, and then displayed at the headquarters of the 27th Army. This car is four-wheel drive, and the military authorities like it very much. They ordered it immediately. The storage equipment in the factory is not ideal. The hydraulic press used to make the dashboard of reconnaissance vehicle has been incomplete and damaged in many places since it was transferred from Ambi-Budd company in Berlin. On the other hand, the hydraulic press and deep drawing tools used for bus bodies are basically in good condition, although there are some damages. The hydraulic press workshop was not attacked by air several years ago, but it still has an open roof. All parties concerned are fully aware that if the vehicle reappears in Wolfsburg, the start-up can only start from the bus model.

At this critical juncture, another problem has emerged before the authorities: how to deal with the 336,000 citizens who defeated Germany, who honestly bought many savings certificates in order to buy "civilian cars" from the "German Workers' Front" after the war? They once donated a large sum of money, 267 million marks, to the organization's vault, which was paid into his own bank account, and almost all of it was lost when he tried to find it after the war. There is nothing but a savings card with many savings stamps on it. When the public found that the car they had worked so hard to buy was really produced, they showed anger and anxiety and began to think about how to get a car in exchange for this conclusive evidence. Nordhoff, an engineer who graduated from university, accepted the invitation of the authorities and took a leading position in Wolfsburg on June 1948 65438+ 10/day. The reservation lasts until April 1968 12. After two years as general manager of Wolfsburg, Nordhoff can proudly announce that the net profit has reached DM 5606026.47, which is by no means a bad start for a company that has never planned to sell its products in the free market.

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In addition to the impeccable product quality of cars, convertibles and transport vehicles, the company has also taken the usual price reduction measures to stimulate sales. Nordhoff knows very well how to maintain the purchasing power of potential users in difficult times. At that time, the company was really difficult, because the steel supply was tight, and because Wolfsburg was still a simple manufacturing base, it was almost impossible to mobilize more workers to supplement its labor force. At that time, there were already 20 thousand employees there, and there was hardly a skilled mechanic in the whole area. In this case, the average daily production of 673 cars has reached the absolute limit of the existing production facilities, so the supervision Committee agreed to build a new transport vehicle factory. 195565438+1When this decision was made on October 24th, it was supposed that the factory in Hanover-Stoke would open at the end of the year, but it was actually officially completed on March 8th. 1956. ( 1)

For many years, people have been speculating that Volkswagen will make a second model as a second leg at the same time as the Beetle. Heinrich Nordhoff's answer to these questions is equally stubborn: "The secret of large-scale success is not to find a series of new designs, no matter how dramatic and attractive they are, but to make reasonable improvements to achieve maturity and perfection, even in the smallest details." Does anyone really think that we will abandon a model that has brought us many years of success and reached the peak of the European automobile industry? "This is not to say that Volkswagen has not been studying all kinds of replacement models, but in the past fifteen years, the Beetle has sold so well that its production capacity has been fully exerted, and there is no requirement to manufacture new models at all.

On a summer Monday, the German federal government passed a law called "Provisions on Managing the Legal Status of Volkswagen Limited Liability Company". The purpose of this clause is to allow the government to turn the company into a listed company under government control. Volkswagen's stock was the first "Volkswagen stock" issued in the history of the then young Federal Republic of Germany. German investors compete for these shares at the price of 350 marks per share, which shows the successful reputation of the Beatles in the market.

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In 1957, Car Collection declared in the same tone: "Volkswagen sells well mainly because it is an honest car. Not in disguise. It makes buyers proud of owning such an honest car. No matter where you look, you can see honest design and solid craftsmanship. " In the process of occupying the huge American market, the Beatles undoubtedly performed exceptionally well. However, although transportation vehicles have been successful in Europe, they have not sold so well in the United States and have never achieved their goals.

1957 65438+1October 18, the court proceedings between the former "mass depositors" and the company ended in the form of reconciliation between all parties. This may be because the federal government is the successor of two original Kdf companies in Berlin, and has assumed the responsibility of settling the outstanding cases. The government of Ruhr Saxony, the former leader, has no responsibility, because it is only responsible for the temporary supervision of public assets according to the instructions issued by the British authorities. The persistence of about 80,000 depositors finally paid off. To their delight, the company agreed to send them a check of 65,438+000 marks, or if they want to order a new Beetle, they can deduct 3,600 marks from the order.

In the past few years, Volkswagen has become the company with the highest output value in Germany, and its export business is booming. More importantly, it makes new improvements to the Beetle car that is being perfected and finalized almost every year.

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As time goes by, year after year, it is obvious that a car that can guarantee employment and create profits to such an alarming extent will be replaced sooner or later. Volkswagen's models need to be updated, although some diehards in Wolfsburg refuse to admit it. It was almost impossible for the company to find a successor to a model that sold a lot at that time, but the public realized that it could not stay in the past for a long time and really needed a new model. The first model unveiled in the new product offensive is Passat, and its technical data is largely derived from Audi 80. Passat proved for the first time that the modular design theory advocated by Ding Lei and Klaus has achieved results. In order to ensure that future users can see the obvious difference between the two variants of a main model, GiorgettoGiugiaro, a famous Italian designer, was specially entrusted to design a tilting body for Passat. As expected, Passat quickly got the highest position in the new car registration list. Golf was first introduced in 1974, with engine 1.5L and power of 5 1kW(70 HP). The public finally saw the long-awaited successor to the Beatles. Ferdinand porsche's way of designing Beetle is out of date, and "Golf" is a typical modern collective creation. "Golf" caused a real sensation as soon as it appeared. By1October 27th, 1976 and100000 vehicles had been produced. In a word, "golf" shows a mixture of "general appearance" and "high quality", which seems contradictory. There are many different options for power plants, which are supported by the largest sales organization in the world. Volkswagen did not leave its sacred principle to the Beetle, that is, steadily improve every detail in the design, and gradually, slowly and steadily let "golf" take over the role of "civilian car" in Germany. The Beatles will only exist in the collections of their fans in the near future. They still love it wholeheartedly, but they have to admit that it is just like a lovely old fossil in today's car landscape. 1March, 1975, Polo derivative products were launched as standard, and the engine power was 29kW(40 HP). The subsequent trade measures were surprising. Volkswagen is unconventional and constantly improves Polo until July when it successfully forced the more luxurious Audi 50 to leave the market. 1978. It was not until 1996 launched the successful new Audi "A3" that Audi's neglect in the small car market was restored.

In the following year, Volkswagen's sales decreased by 12%, mainly due to many problems brought by the oil crisis. However, these serious losses have been compensated to a great extent because of the excellent sales of golf and Passat, which further proves that the public's dependence on the Beatles has decreased. 1975 first gave the agent a chance to sell Polo, which is a special low-standard sister model different from Audi 50. In the next few years, Polo also adopted a more powerful engine like Audi 50.

In Germany, "Beetle" still has its potential users, but Volkswagen urgently needs to use its production line to produce other models, so in June 1978 19 10/9, the last "Beetle" opened the assembly line in Enton. 1979, "Jetta" appeared. On the basis of "golf", it is changed to a sloping back body, and there are also two variants of two doors and four doors.

1In August, 983, Jetta changed its model for the second time, and produced about 700,000 vehicles, which is not a big number compared with the millions of the first generation of "Golf". However, Jetta has played a role in the market, maintaining users' trust in the public, because users require a very suitable luggage compartment, otherwise they will look for other models.

1July, 1999, the listing of Lupo3LTDI marked the appearance of the first production car with a fuel consumption of only 3 liters/100 km, and Volkswagen once again made great contributions in the development history of the automobile industry.

June 5438+February 2002, "Auto5000GmbH" (operating a group factory in Wolfsburg) began to produce Touran minivans. FAW-Volkswagen1991February, FAW-Volkswagen Automobile Co., Ltd. was formally established.

19911On February 5th, the first Jetta A2 car was assembled and rolled off the assembly line at FAW Car Factory.

199265438+1October 2 1 day, the company started the first domestic Jetta car parts test. As the first model of FAW-Volkswagen in the first year of its birth, Jetta quickly spread all over the country with its durable product characteristics, sold well in China with 19, and the cumulative sales exceeded10.97 million, which was known as "the evergreen tree in the car world".

1On February 7th, 993, the company held the off-line ceremony for the10000th Jetta car in the assembly workshop. In June, the company was rated as one of the 500 largest industrial enterprises in China.

1In May, 1997, FAW-Volkswagen Sales Co., Ltd., a joint venture between FAW Group and FAW-Volkswagen, was formally established.

In August, 20001year, the company held the anniversary celebration of 10 and the off-line ceremony of Bora, which is known as the "driver's car".

On July 15, 2003, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the birth of FAW Group, four generations of modified golf cars were officially listed in China.

In 2006 and 2007, with the continuous maturity of the China market, FAW-Volkswagen successively put into production sagitar and Magotan from the world-leading PQ35 and PQ46 platforms.

In July 2007 1 1, Magotan equipped with TSI turbocharged in-cylinder direct injection technology came out.

In 2008, FAW-Volkswagen's three-year efforts came to an end, and a new Bora independently developed came out. This Sportline model is not only more sporty in appearance and interior, but also equipped with the world-leading TSI+DSG powertrain technology that Volkswagen is proud of.

On June 65438+1October 65438+1October 9, 2009, the sixth generation golf was listed. The 6th Generation Golf is a benchmark hatchback, by going up one flight of stairs. TSI+DSG powertrain technology is far ahead of competitors at the same level.

July 20 10, a brand-new model CC, is the product of four years' painstaking research and development by the German Volkswagen designer team. It not only shows the ultimate performance in handling and power, but also has a perfect appearance and interior.

On July 20 1 1, the brand-new magotan went on the market.

On March 20 12, golf blue drive went on the market, and FAW-Volkswagen took the lead in adopting blue drive technology, inviting you to care for the environment together! Shanghai Volkswagen 1984 10 10 In October, China and Germany held a grand joint venture contract signing ceremony in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, and Shanghai Volkswagen came into being in the tide of reform and opening up.

1984, Shanghai Volkswagen launched Santana, and the sales momentum has been good so far.

1985, Shanghai Volkswagen automobile co., ltd was established.

In 2000, Passat was introduced to China, and was praised as "the most beautiful mid-to high-end car".

On April 8, 2002, Shanghai Volkswagen POLO went public. As the first compact car launched in China at the same time as the world, it is not only widely welcomed by users, but also quickly becomes a symbol of fashion boutique cars.

In 2004, Santana 3000, the first self-developed product of Shanghai Volkswagen, was successfully launched.

In June 2006, POLO Power and POLO Power, which were developed simultaneously with Audi ag, went on the market, fully demonstrating the overall strength of Shanghai Volkswagen from modeling to power system development.

65438+In February, 2007, the new crossover model Cross Polo was launched.

June 5438 +2008 10, as an innovative work of Santana brand, Santana Vista Zhijun went public.

In June 2008, LaVida went public. As the first product independently developed by Shanghai Volkswagen, LaVida has quickly become a new generation of benchmark products in the A-class auto market.

In May, 2009, Polo Sporty, a sports model specially designed for urban fashion newcomers, went on the market.

March 20 10, Tiguan Tiguan went public.

20 10 12, listed in Newland.

In February, 2065 438+00 10, a brand-new Polo with cool appearance went on the market.

On April 20 1 1, the brand-new Passat was proudly launched.

The listing of Polo in 2065438+01June injected a new element of realism into the brand concept of "young, dynamic and fashionable" of Shanghai Volkswagen Polo family.