July 30, 2003 – The last production Type 1 VW Beetle

On this day in 2003 the last production Type 1 VW Beetle rolled off the assembly line. The need for this kind of car, and its functional objectives, was formulated by the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler, who wanted a cheap, simple car to be mass-produced for his country’s new road network. Hitler contracted Ferdinand Porsche in 1934 to design and build it. Porsche and his team took until 1938 to finalize the design. The result was one of the first rear-engined cars since the Brass Era. With 21,529,464 produced the Beetle is the longest-running and most-manufactured car of a single platform ever made. Learn more about the VW Type 1 Beetle here