The Volkswagen Beetle

The Volkswagen Beetle, known as "Käfer" (beetle) in its home country, was produced from 1938 to 2003, with a final sales figure exceeding 21,500,000 units. Since it was a car designed from the outset for the common person, the universal Volkswagen (known as the Beetle in English-speaking countries) experienced a true "Beetlemania," peaking in 1971 when production reached 1,300,000 "beetles."

However, before it became one of the favorite cars in the West and a hippie counterculture symbol, it had to undergo many tests during its trial period in the Third Reich. It was then, when Hitler came to power in Germany, that the Volkswagen Beetle was designed by Ferdinand Porsche as a standard car for the German citizen – so that everyone could afford it, that it could seat two adults with three children, and that it could reach a speed of 100 km/h. Hitler, a great fan of motoring, was apparently pleased with the Beetle, as the "beetle" also saw a "wartime" version, for times when gasoline was scarce – the car was then powered by wood gas. The elites of the Third Reich traveled in this version of the Beetle in the 1940s.

Production of the "beetle" ceased in 2003, due to declining sales figures after 1971. Nevertheless, it remains a symbol of freedom – for millions of people, it was a universal means of transport, a worthy companion on the daily commute to work, or during summer trips to the farthest corners of Europe.

The drawing is by Wrocław artist Paweł Grabowski.