Volkswagen

Founded in 1937 in Germany, Volkswagen actually translates to “people’s car”. The company aimed to produce affordable cars for the masses and developed the Beetle. After the war, the Beetle gained global quick popularity and became synonymous with Volkswagen.

Today in Australia the Volkswagen showroom features popular models like the Golf and Polo, as well as SUVs like the T-Cross, T-Roc, and Tiguan. The company also has a strong presence in commercial vehicles, including the Caddy and Amarok ute. There’s also an expanding electric car range in Australia including the ID.3 and ID.4.

About Volkswagen

Volkswagen was the world’s second-biggest carmaker in 2021. The German brand has been around since the 1930s when its ‘People’s Car’ engineering project was led by Ferdinand Porsche under Adolf Hitler’s direction.

Early Volkswagen is defined by the resulting Type 1 – affectionately known as the ‘Beetle’ – which ended up as a symbol of alternative hippy culture in the ’60s. Beetles were assembled in Australia between 1954-1976.

It wasn’t until 1974 that VW struck gold again with the Golf. The people’s car philosophy lived on in the Golf, a car broadly credited with starting the hot hatch craze.

Eight generations later, VW’s Golf still exists, next to the Polo city car, Passat and Arteon passenger cars, and T-Cross, T-Roc, Tiguan, and Touareg SUVs in its Australian showroom line-up.

The Wolfsburg-based brand also has a strong commercial vehicle presence with Caddy and T6.1 vans, as well as the important Amarok ute.

Electrification is next on the cards for Volkswagen after confirming the ID4 and ID5 EVs for local launch in 2023, with the ID3 hatch set to follow.