Javillac
In the late 40s, Volkswagen was in a delicate situation. The heavy bombardments during World War II had left a factory in a dilapidated state, and in which production had to be stopped when the weather was adverse.
The factory had been left under the control of the British forces after the conflict, which from the end of 1945 ordered the Volkswagen Type 1, popularly known as "Beetle", be manufactured again, thus taking the first steps towards the reindustrialization of the country.
The English were leaving the company at the end of the decade, appointing Heinrich Nordhoff, a former Opel manager, as the new CEO of Volkswagen. Finally, in 1949, the British ceded the company to the German state.
BEN PON: FIRST VOLKSWAGEN DEALER OUTSIDE GERMANY
In 1947, a Dutch businessman named Benjamin Marinus Pon, known as Ben Pon, establishes the first Volkswagen dealership abroad. Pon already had experience in the sector, since in the 30s he had already sold Opel and Ford cars in his country.
Initially, only five cars were exported to the Netherlands in October of that year, and by the end of 1947 they had already sold 56 cars. By 1948, the figures would improve with more than 4.500 Volkswagens destined for export, and that same year, Ben Pon would obtain the license to sell Porsche in the Netherlands.
PLATTENWAGEN, THE VEHICLE THAT INSPIRED BEN PON
Ben Pon's first visit to the Wolfsburg factory was in 1946, before exports began. During that visit to the businessman some curious trucks used to transport parts around the factory drew attention.
These vehicles used the chassis and mechanics of the Volkswagen Type 1, with engine and rear-wheel drive, but with a peculiarity, the driving position was located at the rear, giving a very particular shape. The car did not have an official name, but over the years it was designated as the Volkswagen Plattenwagen.
After seeing the curious Plattenwagen in operation, Ben Pon thought that a better idea was possible and saw the potential of a van manufactured by Volkswagen, so he made a quick sketch of a hypothetical commercial vehicle based on the Beetle.
The drawing, dated April 1947, laid the foundations for what would become the iconic Volkswagen van, positioning the driver in the most frontal part of the vehicle and proposed a payload of 690 kilos.
PREPARING A PROTOTYPE
Volkswagen executives liked the idea, but at first production was focused almost entirely on the Beetle. When the manufacture of the Type 1 allowed, it was produced a prototype of the van in just three months, which became known internally as the Type 29.
The prototype proved that the Beetle's chassis was too flimsy to mount a van, so it was developed a ladder chassis and opted for a monocoque construction. Interestingly, the wheelbase was identical to the Type 1.
Mechanically, I would use a 4-cylinder air-cooled boxer engine that developed 25 HP of power. The van would equip the reducing gear of the Volkswagen Type 81, a curious van based on the Beetle.
Initially, the aerodynamics of the prototype left much to be desired, but after being tested in a wind tunnel, improvements were implemented, such as the characteristic split windshield, which allowed an aerodynamic result better than that of the Beetle itself, with a Cx coefficient of 0,44 compared to 0,48 for the Type 1.
1949: BIRTH OF THE TYPE 2
On May 19, 1949, the director of Volkswagen, Heinz Nordhoff, gave the green light to the new van, whose production began on November 12 of that same year. The model would receive the name of Volkswagen Type 2, being the second model aimed at the civilian public of the brand, since the Type 1 was the Beetle.
Initially it was offered in two versions: Kombi and Commercial. In its first year, 9.541 vans were soldSo the range grew, with the Microbus and Microbus Deluxe appearing in 1950 and 1951 respectively. Also in 1951, the Type 2 began to be offered as an ambulance, and in 1952 the pick-up variant appeared.
The first generation of the van, known as the T1, would be a worldwide success, being an icon of pop culture, and would remain in production until 1967. selling more than 1,8 million units, although in Brazil its production lasted until 1975. The success of Ben Pon's idea would be maintained in the following generations, since the Volkswagen T3 was the last generation of the popular van to make use of the rear-wheel drive and engine configuration and air-cooled mechanics.
VW photographs.
