Research your Volkswagen with our VIN decoder

Volkswagen (‘The People’s Car’) is the largest European car manufacturer as well as one of the best selling vehicle brands globally. It was founded in Germany in 1937 and is headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. It is perhaps most notable for the Beetle, its earliest model which remained in production until 2019. Production of a ‘people’s car’ was instigated by the then leader, Adolf Hitler, and Ferdinand Porsche (founder of Porsche) undertook the task. The purpose of the project was to introduce an everyday car that Germans could afford. Finally, around the year 1938, the car later to be known as the Beetle would be produced. This would help pave the way for Volkswagen to become a major automobiles manufacturer on the global level.

Following the war, Volkswagen focused its efforts on increasing production of the Beetle car, which was known as Volkswagen at the time. The name Beetle would be assumed later in the 1950s in an effort to popularize the car in the US. The marketing campaign proved to be hugely successful and helped the German marque penetrate the US automobile market. Soon after, in an effort to produce a sportier car, Volkswagen would unveil the Golf in 1974. The Golf essentially acted as the successor to the Beetle, eventually becoming the company’s number one selling car.

Shortly after, Volkswagen went public and gradually expanded its operations throughout the world. In addition, it acquired several car brands, including Porsche, Audi, Bentley, and Bugatti. Today, it continues to produce several notable models, the most popular of which is the Golf. Much of its success is credited to the Chinese market, which accounts for 40% of its sales, and Volkswagen produces separate models to serve the area. In 2018, Volkwagen sold about 3.7 million vehicles worldwide, with its most popular models being the Tiguan, Polo, and Golf, respectively.