Volkswagen Bug in longer lived Nazi Germany.

[pieman97405]

Suppose for whatever reason, Nazi Germany survives longer (be it Poland is thrown under the bus, Hitler dies in 1939, a negotiated peace, etc.). My question is, what becomes of the Volkswagen Bug? Will it become a common sight in Germany, or just something the government keeps promising to deliver but never dose?

 

[The Uchronian]

Suppose for whatever reason, Nazi Germany survives longer (be it Poland is thrown under the bus, Hitler dies in 1939, a negotiated peace, etc.). My question is, what becomes of the Volkswagen Bug? Will it become a common sight in Germany, or just something the government keeps promising to deliver but never dose?

Well.....firstly, given the fact that one of the Beetle's inventors(one Josef Ganz) had already left Germany fearing persecution, one must imagine how wary Herr Porsche must've been not to get Hitler pissed off at him. Porsche stayed home IOTL, not because of any real love for the Nazi Party but likely because he was either truly afraid to defect to the Allies or felt that he had nowhere to go.
If Porsche ITTL gets worried enough that he may find soon himself purged by the very man who claimed he'd help him become famous(which isn't at all unlikely), and if he happens to be close enough to England somehow, it's almost certain he'd want to leave, therefore making sure that the Beetle gets built outside Germany. As to where he'd go, I'd suggest somewhere like Mexico or Brazil; he could also seek out his old one-time colleague Josef Ganz, wherever he might be(perhaps Switzerland, like OTL?) if he hasn't been killed by the Nazis already.

If Porsche were to stay, however, I still don't see the Beetle ever entering mass production. The Nazis had never intended the Bug to enter mass production, and given that it's roots(even the body design) were in the late Weimar period, somebody could always convince Hitler to jettison ol' Ferry for that reason alone(remember, the Nazis had always hated the Weimar regime for its attempt to be an egalitarian democracy and they wouldn't have wanted to build a car that reminded them of happier times)and hire someone else....who, though, could be debated.

 

[Shaby]

Wasn't the giant factory at Wolfsburg intended to go online in 1940 and capable of producing 300.000 cars intended for production of Beetles. The factory itself was considered largest and most modern factoru in the world. Granted it was never used to its full capacity and it was eventually destroyed by bombing, but intention was certainly there. Had there not been war it would probably come to fruitition.

 

[Deleted member 1487]

Wasn't the giant factory at Wolfsburg intended to go online in 1940 and capable of producing 300.000 cars intended for production of Beetles. The factory itself was considered largest and most modern factoru in the world. Granted it was never used to its full capacity and it was eventually destroyed by bombing, but intention was certainly there. Had there not been war it would probably come to fruitition.

Estimates for production were even higher, supposedly hitting the 1.5 million units a year mark by 1942, but who knows if that really was likely. Given the ridiculous inefficiency of the Nazi state, its much more likely that Germany goes bankrupt and the entire venture never ends up producing much beyond a few thousand models.

 

[Shaby]

Given the ridiculous inefficiency of the Nazi state, its much more likely that Germany goes bankrupt and the entire venture never ends up producing much beyond a few thousand models.

well, yeah this is how it would likely play out. However, my intention was to show that there were plans for mass production. If Nazi Germany went bankrupt, they would have far bigger problems than Wolfsburg factory, anyway.