Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. usually shortened to Nissan  is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama. The company sells its cars under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun brands with in-house performance tuning products labelled Nismo. The company traces its name to the Nissan zaibatsu, now called Nissan Group.

Since 1999, Nissan has been part of the Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance, a partnership between Nissan of Japan, Mitsubishi Motors of Japan and Renault of France. As of 2013, Renault holds a 43.4% voting stake in Nissan, while Nissan holds a 15% non-voting stake in Renault. From 2009 to 2017 Carlos Ghosn served as CEO of both companies. In February 2017 Ghosn announced he would step down as CEO of Nissan on 1 April 2017, while remaining chairman of the company. On 19 November 2018, Ghosn was fired as chairman following his arrest for the alleged underreporting of his income to Japanese financial authorities.[8] After 108 days in detention, Ghosn was released on bail, but after 29 days he was again detained on new charges (4 April 2019). He'd been due to hold a news conference, but instead his lawyers released a video of Ghosn alleging this 2018-2019 Nissan scandal is itself evidence of value destruction and Nissan corporate mismanagement.

In 2013, Nissan was the sixth largest automaker in the world, after Toyota, General Motors, Volkswagen Group, Hyundai Motor Group, and Ford. Taken together, the Renault–Nissan Alliance would be the world's fourth largest automaker.[citation needed] Nissan is the leading Japanese brand in China, Russia and Mexico.

In 2014 Nissan was the largest car manufacturer in North America.

Nissan is the world's largest electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, with global sales of more than 320,000 all-electric vehicles as of April 2018.[13] The top-selling vehicle of the car-maker's fully electric lineup is the Nissan LEAF, an all-electric car and the world's top-selling highway-capable plug-in electric car in history.

In January 2018, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa announced that all Infiniti vehicles launched from 2021 will be hybrid vehicles or all-electric vehicles.

Beginnings of Datsun brand name from 1914

Datsun Type 11

Masujiro Hashimoto founded the Kaishinsha Motor Car Works (Kaishinsha jidōsha kōjō A Good Company Automobile Manufacturer) 1 July 1911; 108 years ago in Tokyo's Azabu-Hiroo district, Japan's first automobile manufacturer. In 1914, the company produced its first car, called DAT.

The new car's model name was an acronym of the company's investors' surnames:

    Kenjiro Den (Den Kenjirō)

    Rokuro Aoyama (Aoyama Rokurō)

    Meitaro Takeuchi (Takeuchi Meitarō)

It was renamed to Kaishinsha Motorcar Co., Ltd. in 1918, and again to DAT Jidosha & Co., Ltd. (DAT Motorcar Co.) in 1925. DAT Motors built trucks in addition to the DAT and Datsun passenger cars. The vast majority of its output were trucks, due to an almost non- existent consumer market for passenger cars at the time, and disaster recovery efforts as a result of the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake. Beginning in 1918, the first DAT trucks were produced for the military market. At the same time, Jitsuyo Jidosha Co., Ltd. (jitsuyo means practical use or utility) produced small trucks using parts, and materials imported from the United States.[15][better source needed]

Commercial operations were placed on hold during Japan's participation in World War I, and the company contributed to the war effort.

In 1926 the Tokyo-based DAT Motors merged with the Osaka-based Jitsuyo Jidosha Co., Ltd (Jitsuyō Jidōsha Seizō Kabushiki-Gaisha) a.k.a. Jitsuyo Jidosha Seizo (established 1919 as a Kubota subsidiary) to become DAT Jidosha Seizo Co., Ltd Automobile Manufacturing Co., Ltd. DAT Jidōsha Seizō Kabushiki-Gaisha) in Osaka until 1932. From 1923 to 1925, the company produced light cars and trucks under the name of Lila.

In 1931, DAT came out with a new smaller car, called the Datsun Type 11, the first "Datson", meaning "Son of DAT". Later in 1933 after Nissan Group zaibatsu took control of DAT Motors, the last syllable of Datson was changed to "sun", because "son" also means "loss" ) in Japanese, hence the name "Datsun"  Dattosan).

In 1933, the company name was Nipponized to Jidosha-Seizo Co., Ltd. (Jidōsha Seizō Kabushiki-Gaisha, "Automobile Manufacturing Co., Ltd.") and was moved to Yokohama.

Nissan name first used in 1930s

In 1928, Yoshisuke Aikawa (nickname: Gisuke/Guisuke Ayukawa) founded the holding company Nihon Sangyo (Japan Industries or Nihon Industries). The name 'Nissan' originated during the 1930s as an abbreviation[18] used on the Tokyo Stock Exchange for Nihon Sangyo. This company was Nissan "Zaibatsu" which included Tobata Casting and Hitachi. At this time Nissan controlled foundries and auto parts businesses, but Aikawa did not enter automobile manufacturing until 1933.

The zaibatsu eventually grew to include 74 firms, and became the fourth-largest in Japan during World War II.

In 1931, DAT Jidosha Seizo became affiliated with Tobata Casting, and was merged into Tobata Casting in 1933. As Tobata Casting was a Nissan company, this was the beginning of Nissan's automobile manufacturing.[21]

Nissan Motor organized in 1934

In 1934, Aikawa separated the expanded automobile parts division of Tobata Casting and incorporated it as a new subsidiary, which he named Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (Nissan Jidōsha).[22] The shareholders of the new company however were not enthusiastic about the prospects of the automobile in Japan, so Aikawa bought out all the Tobata Casting shareholders (using capital from Nihon Industries) in June 1934. At this time, Nissan Motor effectively became owned by Nihon Sangyo and Hitachi.

In 1935, construction of its Yokohama plant was completed. 44 Datsuns were shipped to Asia, Central and South America. In 1935, the first car manufactured by an integrated assembly system rolled off the line at the Yokohama plant.[15] Nissan built trucks, airplanes, and engines for the Imperial Japanese Army. In November 1937 Nissan's headquarter was moved to Hsinking, the capital of Manchukuo. In December the company changed name to Manchuria Heavy Industries Developing Co (MHID).

In 1940, first knockdown kits were shipped to Dowa Jidosha Kogyo (Dowa Automobile), one of MHID's companies, for assembly. In 1944, the head office was moved to Nihonbashi, Tokyo, and the company name was changed to Nissan Heavy Industries, Ltd., which the company kept through 1949.

Nissan's early American connection

The Graham-Paige based Nissan Model 70 sedan

DAT had inherited Kubota's chief designer, American engineer William R. Gorham. This, along with Aikawa's 1908 visit to Detroit, was to greatly affect Nissan's future.[15][26] Although it had always been Aikawa's intention to use cutting-edge auto making technology from America, it was Gorham that carried out the plan. Most of the machinery and processes originally came from the United States. When Nissan started to assemble larger vehicles under the "Nissan" brand in 1937, much of the design plans and plant facilities were supplied by the Graham-Paige Company.[22] Nissan also had a Graham license under which passenger cars, buses and trucks were made.

In David Halberstam's 1986 book The Reckoning, Halberstam states "In terms of technology, Gorham was the founder of the Nissan Motor Company" and that "young Nissan engineers who had never met him spoke of him as a god and could describe in detail his years at the company and his many inventions."

Austin Motor Company relations (1937–1960s)

1937 Datsun model 16

Austin Seven Ruby

From 1934 Datsun began to build Austin 7s under licence. This operation became the greatest success of Austin's overseas licensing of its Seven and marked the beginning of Datsun's international success.[citation needed]

In 1952, Nissan entered into a legal agreement with Austin,[28][29] for Nissan to assemble 2,000 Austins from imported partially assembled sets and sell them in Japan under the Austin trademark. The agreement called for Nissan to make all Austin parts locally within three years, a goal Nissan met. Nissan produced and marketed Austins for seven years. The agreement also gave Nissan rights to use Austin patents, which Nissan used in developing its own engines for its Datsun line of cars. In 1953, British-built Austins were assembled and sold, but by 1955, the Austin A50 – completely built by Nissan and featuring a new 1489 cc engine—was on the market in Japan. Nissan produced 20,855 Austins from 1953 to 1959.

Nissan leveraged the Austin patents to further develop their own modern engine designs past what the Austin's A- and B-family designs offered. The apex of the Austin-derived engines was the new design A series engine in 1966. In 1967, Nissan introduced its new highly advanced four cylinder overhead cam (OHC) Nissan L engine, which while similar to Mercedes-Benz OHC designs was a totally new engine designed by Nissan. This engine powered the new Datsun 510, which gained Nissan respect in the worldwide sedan market. Then, in 1969 Nissan introduced the Datsun 240Z sports car which used a six-cylinder variation of the L series engine, developed under Nissan Machinery (Nissan Koki Co., Ltd.) in 1964, a former remnant of another auto manufacturer Kurogane. The 240Z was an immediate sensation and lifted Nissan to world-class status in the automobile market.[31]

100 Day Strike of 1953

1953 Nissan labor dispute

During the Korean War, Nissan was a major vehicle producer for the U.S. Army.[32] After the Korean War ended, significant levels of anti-communist sentiment existed in Japan. The union that organized Nissan's workforce was strong and militant.[32][33] Nissan was in financial difficulties, and when wage negotiations came, the company took a hard line. Workers were locked out, and several hundred were fired. The Japanese government and the U.S. occupation forces arrested several union leaders.[32] The union ran out of strike funds, and was defeated. A new labor union was formed,[34] with Shioji Ichiro one of its leaders. Ichiro had studied at Harvard University on a U.S. government scholarship. He advanced an idea to trade wage cuts against saving 2,000 jobs.[35] Ichiro's idea was made part of a new union contract [35] that prioritized productivity. Between 1955 and 1973, Nissan "expanded rapidly on the basis of technical advances supported – and often suggested – by the union." Ichiro became president of the Confederation of Japan Automobile Workers Unions and "the most influential figure in the right wing of the Japanese labor movement.”

Merger with Prince Motor Company

1966 Prince R380 racecar

In 1966, Nissan merged with the Prince Motor Company, bringing more upmarket cars, including the Skyline and Gloria, into its selection. The Prince name was eventually abandoned, and successive Skylines and Glorias bore the Nissan name. "Prince," was used at the Japanese Nissan dealership "Nissan Prince Shop" until 1999, when "Nissan Red Stage" replaced it. Nissan Red Stage itself has been replaced as of 2007. The Skyline lives on as the G Series of Infiniti.

Miss Fairlady

To capitalize the renewed investment during 1964 Summer Olympics, Nissan established the gallery on the second and third floors of the San-ai building, located in Ginza, Tokyo. To attract visitors, Nissan started using beautiful female showroom attendants where Nissan held a competition to choose five candidates as the first class of Nissan Miss Fairladys, modeled after "Datsun Demonstrators" from the 1930s who introduced cars. The Fairlady name was used as a link to the popular Broadway play My Fair Lady of the era. Miss Fairladys became the marketers of the Datsun Fairlady 1500.[36][37][38]

In April 2008, 14 more Miss Fairlady candidates were added, for a total of 45 Nissan Miss Fairlady pageants (22 in Ginza, 8 in Sapporo, 7 in Nagoya, 7 in Fukuoka).[39]

In April 2012, 7 more Miss Fairlady candidates were added, for a total of 48 Nissan Miss Fairlady pageants (26 in Ginza, 8 in Sapporo, 7 in Nagoya, 7 in Fukuoka).[40]

In April 2013, 6 more Miss Fairlady candidates were added to Ginza showroom, for a total of 27 48th Ginza Nissan Miss Fairlady pageants.[41]

Foreign expansion

1971 Datsun 240Z (U.S. model) in green metallic

In the 1950s, Nissan decided to expand into worldwide markets. Nissan management realized their Datsun small car line would fill an unmet need in markets such as Australia and the world's largest car market, the United States. They first showed the Datsun Bluebird at the 1958 Los Angeles Auto Show.[15][42] The company formed a U.S. subsidiary, Nissan Motor Corporation U.S.A., in Gardena, California[43] in 1960, headed by Yutaka Katayama.[15] Nissan continued to improve their sedans with the latest technological advancements and chic Italianate styling in sporty cars such as the Datsun Fairlady roadsters, the race-winning 411 series, the Datsun 510 and the world-class Datsun 240Z. By 1970, Nissan had become one of the world's largest exporters of automobiles.

2010 Nissan Maxima SV Sport

In the wake of the 1973 oil crisis, consumers worldwide (especially in the lucrative U.S. market) began turning to high-quality small economy cars. To meet the growing demand for its new Nissan Sunny, the company built new factories in Mexico (Nissan Mexicana was established in the early 1960s and commenced manufacturing since 1966 at their Cuernavaca assembly facility, making it their first North American assembly plant), Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, United States (Nissan Motor Manufacturing Corporation USA was established in 1980) and South Africa. The "Chicken Tax" of 1964 placed a 25% tax on commercial vans imported to the United States.[44] In response, Nissan, Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. began building plants in the U.S. in the early 1980s.[44] Nissan's initial assembly plant Smyrna assembly plant (which broke ground in 1980) at first built only trucks such as the 720 and Hardbody, but has since expanded to produce several car and SUV lines, including the Altima, Maxima, Rogue, Pathfinder, Infiniti QX60 and LEAF all-electric car. The addition of mass-market automobiles was in response to the 1981 Voluntary Export Restraints imposed by the U.S. Government. An engine plant in Decherd, Tennessee followed, most recently a second assembly plant was established in Canton, Mississippi. In 1970, Teocar was created, which was a Greek assembly plant created in cooperation with Theoharakis.[45] It was situated in Volos, Greece and its geographical location was perfect as the city had a major port. The plant started production in 1980, assembling Datsun pick-up trucks and continuing with the Nissan Cherry and Sunny automobiles. Until May 1995 170,000 vehicles were made, mainly for Greece.

By the early 1980s, Nissan (Datsun) had long been the best selling Japanese brand in Europe.[46] In order to overcome export tariffs and delivery costs to its European customers, Nissan contemplated establishing a plant in Europe. Nissan tried to convert the Greek plant into one manufacturing cars for all European countries. However, due to issues with the Greek government not only did that not happen but the plant itself was closed. A joint venture with Italy's then state-owned Alfa Romeo was also entered in 1980, leading to Italian production of the Nissan Cherry and an Alfa-badged version, the Alfa Romeo Arna.[47] After an extensive review, Nissan decided to go it alone instead. The City of Sunderland in the north east of England was chosen for its skilled workforce and its location near major ports. The plant was completed in 1986 as the subsidiary Nissan Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd. By 2007, it was producing 400,000 vehicles per year, landing it the title of the most productive plant in Europe.

2013 Nissan GT-R

In 2001, Nissan established a manufacturing plant in Brazil. In 2005, Nissan added operations in India, through its subsidiary Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd. With its global alliance partner, Renault, Nissan invested $990 million to set up a manufacturing facility in Chennai, catering to the Indian market as well as a base for exports of small cars to Europe. Nissan entered the Middle East market in 1957 when it sold its first car in Saudi Arabia. Nissan sold nearly 520,000 new vehicles in China in 2009 in a joint venture with Dongfeng Motor. To meet increased production targets, Dongfeng-Nissan expanded its production base in Guangzhou, which would become Nissan's largest factory around the globe in terms of production capacity. Nissan also has moved and expanded its Nissan Americas Inc. headquarters, moving from Los Angeles to Franklin, Tennessee in the Nashville area.

In the U.S., Nissan has been increasing its reliance on sales to daily-rental companies like Enterprise Rent-A-Car or Hertz. In 2016, Nissan's rental sales jumped 37% and in 2017 Nissan became the only major automaker to boost rental sales when the Detroit Three cut back less profitable deliveries to daily-rental companies, which traditionally are the biggest customers of domestic automakers.

In late July 2019, Nissan announced it would lay off 12,500 employees over the next 3 years, citing a 95% year on year net income fall. Hiroto Saikawa, CEO at the time, confirmed the majority of those cuts would be plant workers.[55]

Alliance with Renault

Former CEO Carlos Ghosn has been credited with reviving Nissan

In 1999, facing severe financial difficulties, Nissan entered an alliance with Renault S.A. of France.

Signed on 27 March 1999, the Renault-Nissan Alliance was the first of its kind involving a Japanese and French car manufacturer, each with its own distinct corporate culture and brand identity. In the spring of 2000, Yanase, Japan's premier seller of imported automobiles, cancelled its licensing contract with Renault, and Nissan took over as the sole licensee. In June 2001, Carlos Ghosn was named chief executive officer of Nissan. In May 2005, Ghosn was named president of Renault. He was appointed president and CEO of Renault on 6 May 2009.[66] Nissan's management is a trans-cultural, diverse team.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has evolved over years to Renault holding 43.4% of Nissan shares, while Nissan holds 15% of Renault shares. The alliance itself is incorporated as the Renault-Nissan B.V., founded on 28 March 2002 under Dutch law. Renault-Nissan B.V. is equally owned by Renault and Nissan.

Under CEO Ghosn's "Nissan Revival Plan" (NRP), the company has rebounded in what many leading economists consider to be one of the most spectacular corporate turnarounds in history,[69] catapulting Nissan to record profits and a dramatic revitalization of both its Nissan and Infiniti model line-ups. Ghosn has been recognized in Japan for the company's turnaround in the midst of an ailing Japanese economy. Ghosn and the Nissan turnaround were featured in Japanese manga and popular culture. His achievements in revitalizing Nissan were noted by the Japanese Government, which awarded him the Japan Medal with Blue Ribbon in 2004.

On 7 April 2010, Daimler AG exchanged a 3.9% share of its holdings for 3.9% from both Nissan and Renault. This triple alliance allows for the increased sharing of technology and development costs, encouraging global cooperation and mutual development.

On 12 December 2012, the Renault–Nissan Alliance formed a joint venture with Russian Technologies (Alliance Rostec Auto BV) with the aim of becoming the long-term controlling shareholder of AvtoVAZ, Russia's largest car company and owner of the country's biggest selling brand, Lada.[72] The takeover was completed in June 2014, and the two companies of the Renault-Nissan Alliance took a combined 67.1% stake of Alliance Rostec, which in turn acquired a 74.5% of AvtoVAZ, thereby giving Renault and Nissan indirect control over the Russian manufacturer.[73] Ghosn was appointed chairman of the board of AvtoVAZ on 27 June 2013.[74]

Alliance 2013 sales

Renault      2,628,208

Nissan       5,102,979

Avtovaz     534,911

Total 8,266,098

Taken together, the Renault–Nissan Alliance sells one in ten cars worldwide, and would be the world's fourth largest automaker with 2013 sales of 8,266,098 units.

Other alliances and joint ventures

    In 2003, Nissan and Dongfeng Motor Group formed a 50:50 joint venture with the name Dongfeng Motor Co., Ltd. (DFL). The company calls itself "China's first automotive joint venture enterprise with a complete series of trucks, buses, light commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles," and "the largest joint-venture project of its scale."

    On 7 April 2010, Daimler AG exchanged a 3.1% share of its holdings for 3.1% from both Nissan and Renault. This triple alliance allows for the increased sharing of technology and development costs, encouraging global cooperation and mutual development.

    On 12 December 2012, the Renault–Nissan Alliance formed a joint venture with Russian Technologies (Alliance Rostec Auto BV) with the aim of becoming the long-term controlling shareholder of AvtoVAZ, Russia's largest car company and owner of the country's biggest selling brand, Lada. Carlos Ghosn was appointed chairman of the board of AvtoVAZ on 27 June 2013.[79] Nissan exited the AvtoVAZ venture in September 2017.

    Nissan is in an alliance with Ashok Leyland in India, producing light commercial vehicles.

    Together with Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan develops mini cars which are produced at Mitsubishi's Mizushima plant in Kurashiki, Okayama, Japan.[11][81] In May 2016 Nissan bought a controlling stake in Mitsubishi Motors for an estimated US$2.3 billion.

Branding and corporate identity

Nissan: Nissan's volume models are sold worldwide under the Nissan brand.

Datsun: Until 1983, Nissan automobiles in most export markets were sold under the Datsun brand. In 1984 the Datsun brand was phased out and the Nissan brand was phased in. All cars in 1984 had both the Datsun and Nissan branding on them and in 1985 the Datsun name was completely dropped. In July 2013, Nissan announced the relaunch of Datsun as a brand targeted at emerging markets.[84][85]

Infiniti: Since 1989, Nissan has sold its luxury models under the Infiniti brand. In 2012, Infiniti changed its headquarters to Hong Kong, where it is incorporated as Infiniti Global Limited. Its president is former BMW executive Roland Krueger. From 2014, Infiniti cars are sold in Japan.[86]

Nismo: Nissan's in-house tuning shop is Nismo, short for "Nissan Motorsport International Limited." Nismo is being re-positioned as Nissan's performance brand.[87][88]

Corporate identity

For many years, Nissan used a red wordmark for the company, and car "badges" for the "Nissan" and "Infiniti" brands.

At Nissan's 2013 earnings press conference in Yokohama, Nissan unveiled "a new steel-blue logo that spells out—literally—the distinction between Nissan the company and Nissan the brand."[90] Using a blue-gray color scheme, the new corporate logo did read NISSAN MOTOR COMPANY. Underneath were the "badge" logos for the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands.

Later in 2013, the Nissan "Company" logo changed to the Nissan "Corporation" logo. The latter is the currently used logo of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.

Products

At the NISMO shop, in Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, Japan

Automotive products

Main articles: List of Nissan vehicles and List of Nissan engines

Nissan has produced an extensive range of mainstream cars and trucks, initially for domestic consumption but exported around the world since the 1950s.

It also produced several memorable sports cars, including the Datsun Fairlady 1500, 1600 and 2000 Roadsters, the Z-car, an affordable sports car originally introduced in 1969; and the GT-R, a powerful all-wheel-drive sports coupe.

2019 Nissan Altima Platinum

In 1985, Nissan created a tuning division, Nismo, for competition and performance development of such cars. One of Nismo's latest models is the 370Z Nismo.

Nissan also sells a range of kei cars, mainly as a joint venture with other Japanese manufacturers like Suzuki or Mitsubishi. Until 2013, Nissan rebadged kei cars built by other manufacturers. Beginning in 2013, Nissan and Mitsubishi shared the development of the Nissan DAYZ / Mitsubishi eK Wagon series.[81] Nissan also has shared model development of Japanese domestic cars with other manufacturers, particularly Mazda, Subaru, Suzuki and Isuzu.

In China, Nissan produces cars in association with the Dongfeng Motor Group including the 2006 Nissan Livina Geniss, the first in a range of a new worldwide family of medium-sized car.

In 2010, Nissan created another tuning division, IPL, this time for their premium/luxury brand Infiniti.

In 2011, after Nissan released the Nissan NV-Series in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, Nissan created a commercial sub brand called Nissan Commercial Vehicles which focuses on commercial vans, pickup trucks, and fleet vehicles for the US, Canadian, and Mexican Markets.[92]

In 2013, Nissan launched the Qashqai SUV in South Africa, along with their new motorsport Qashqai Car Games.[when?] It is the same year when the Datsun brand was relaunched by Nissan after a 27-year hiatus.[93]

Nissan launched their Nissan Intelligent Mobility vision in 2016 by revealing the IDS Concept at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show.[94] Most Nissan vehicles like the Dayz, Rogue and Leaf are equipped with Nissan Intelligent Mobility technology.

In 2018, Nissan launched the sixth-generation Altima at the 2018 New York Auto Show

We are one of the biggest producers of premium cars and the world's biggest manufacturer of commercial vehicles with a global reach. We provide financing, leasing, fleet management, insurance and innovative mobility services.

Milestones:

The names of the founding fathers of Daimler AG, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, are inextricably linked with the creation of the automobile. The history of the automobile began in 1886 with Daimler’s first motor carriage and Carl Benz’s three-wheeled vehicle. From the very beginning, Daimler’s automobiles have been positioned as the leading vehicles for quality, safety and comfort.

Few inventions have had as enduring an influence on the world's development as the invention of the automobile. The pioneers of automobile manufacture towards the end of the 19th century were Gottlieb Daimler (1834-1900) and Carl Benz (1844-1929).

They set up the predecessor companies which merged to form Daimler-Benz AG in 1926 – Daimler with his Daimler Motorengesellschaft (DMG) and Benz with his Rheinische Gasmotorenfabrik.

After working at other companies, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, who never met personally, simultaneously developed the world's first automobiles in Mannheim (Benz) and Stuttgart (Daimler) in the year 1886. However, several years lay between the invention of the automobile and its economic exploitation.

Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach, who knew each other from their work at the engineering works of the Reutlingen Brotherhood, took the first step to mobile application by fitting a gas engine or one powered by kerosene/paraffin to a two-wheeler. The engine - far smaller, lighter and more powerful than all engines that had gone before - was dubbed the "grandfather clock" because of its characteristic shape.

This two-wheeled vehicle, also called "riding car", completed a successful test run in November 1885.

Benz, too, recognized the significance of the lightweight engine and set himself the goal of designing a "dwarf in terms of weight, but a titan in terms of power".

As Benz was unable to fall back on existing groundwork, and no solution for the steering of a four-wheeled vehicle had been found up until then, for the time being he concentrated on building a three-wheeled vehicle.

The "Velocipede" which originated in 1886 can be regarded as the world's first automobile, despite being limited to three wheels.

In the same year, just 100 kilometers away Daimler presented his motor carriage, considered the world's first four-wheeled automobile. Essentially, this automobile is a light coach in which a modified and more powerful version of the "grandfather clock" was installed. Having recognized other areas of application for his engines at an early stage, in 1886 Daimler already was giving thought to motorizing boats, rail vehicles and aircraft.

From the beginning, Gottlieb Daimler wanted his engines to be as universal as possible.

From the beginning, Gottlieb Daimler wanted his engines to be as universal as possible.

Early on, both Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz endeavored to market their inventions internationally.

Unlike Carl Benz, who initially only had an agent representing him in France, Gottlieb Daimler was able to make use of several foreign contacts.

He succeeded in concluding licence agreements especially in France and Britain.

At the 1876 World Exposition in Philadelphia, Wilhelm Maybach had made the acquaintance of William Steinway and introduced him to Gottlieb Daimler at the end of the 1880s. Following his visit to Cannstatt, Steinway secured himself the contractual right of exclusive representation for the entire Daimler product range in the USA and Canada.

Carl Benz did not manage to forge closer foreign contacts until the end of the 19th century. In addition to Britain, he celebrated surprising successes in the USA and South Africa.

Apart from their efforts to gain a foothold in foreign markets, both pioneers pressed ahead with the continuous technical improvement of their products. For instance, Wilhelm Maybach, working as an engineer at DMG, developed the spray-nozzle carburettor, a milestone in the success story of the automobile.

The Benz patent motor car Victoria is the first vehicle with the double-pivot steering for which Carl Benz filed a patent in 1893.

The Benz patent motor car Victoria is the first vehicle with the double-pivot steering for which Carl Benz filed a patent in 1893.

This innovation represented a major breakthrough in engine design and the principle behind it is still applied to this day. The first major long-distance tours in France and Britain demonstrated the superiority of the petrol engine over its steam counterpart. The outstanding performance of the Daimler engines marked the technical breakthrough for the automobile.

Carl Benz achieved another crucial technical breakthrough in 1893 by inventing double-pivot steering, which solved the problem of steering four-wheeled vehicles.

The Benz Velo put on the market in 1894 became a big commercial success. It was followed by an engine-powered bus and a truck.

From the beginning, motorsport was a most important means of popularising the innovations and served mainly to demonstrate the performance capabilities of the automobiles.

Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft laid the foundations for many more successes by constructing a racing car that was commissioned by Emil Jellinek and named after Jellinek's daughter Mercedes. In late March 1901 the new model, the Mercedes 35 hp, passed the acid test by scoring a sensational success during Nice racing week.

The sporting achievement would also pay off financially for DMG.

In the period thereafter, workaday versions of racing cars and high-performance vehicles provided the basis of the business.

The company had already had the brand name "Mercedes" patented in 1902. To satisfy the rising demand that accompanied the motor-racing successes and to ensure the necessary expansion of production, DMG decided to enlarge its factory and transferred production from Cannstatt to Untertürkheim in December 1903.

From the very outset, both company founders were committed to the highest quality standards ("the best of the good", "the best or nothing"), a characteristic of the company to this day. In the period preceding the First World War, despite increasing competition the enterprises founded by the pioneers developed into world-leading manufacturers of passenger cars and commercial vehicles.

After 1908 both DMG and Benz & Cie. increasingly built commercial vehicles, though the growth rates in commercial-vehicle manufacture lagged well behind those for car production prior to the war. But as a result, the commercial-vehicle sector developed into an important second mainstay of the companies.

From 1888 onwards the internal combustion engine was also used in aviation, initially in airships and then also in airplanes. Although the manufacture of aircraft engines only made a minor contribution to sales before the First World War, it appeared to be a promising business segment. The Mercedes star introduced as company logo in 1909 also indicates this. The three pointed star still stands today for "mobility on land, on water, and in the air".

However, the outbreak and course of the First World War changed the structure of the two companies' order intake. Private demand was supplanted by state – usually military – orders, which were one of the factors leading to the establishment of the Sindelfingen facility.

Production at the two predecessor companies was almost totally geared to the needs of a war economy and the troops at the front. As a result, he product range changed fundamentally and had little in common with the peacetime range. The two companies developed into the biggest aero engine manufacturers in Germany during this period.

For the truck, the First World War spelled the breakthrough as a means of transport, both for military use and in private enterprise. The great importance of the truck notwithstanding, the market share of the two German motor-vehicle manufacturers gradually decreased. The reason for this was the huge number of start-ups in this segment during the war.

Toyota Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota, Aichi, Japan. In 2017, Toyota's corporate structure consisted of 364,445 employees worldwide and, as of September 2018, was the sixth-largest company in the world by revenue. As of 2017, Toyota is the largest automotive manufacturer. Toyota was the world's first automobile manufacturer to produce more than 10 million vehicles per year which it has done since 2012, when it also reported the production of its 200-millionth vehicle.[5] As of July 2014, Toyota was the largest listed company in Japan by market capitalization (worth more than twice as much as number 2-ranked SoftBank)[6] and by revenue.

Toyota is the world's market leader in sales of hybrid electric vehicles, and one of the largest companies to encourage the mass-market adoption of hybrid vehicles across the globe. Toyota is also a market leader in hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. Cumulative global sales of Toyota and Lexus hybrid passenger car models achieved the 10 million milestone in January 2017. Its Prius family is the world's top selling hybrid nameplate with over 6 million units sold worldwide as of January 2017.

The company was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda in 1937, as a spinoff from his father's company Toyota Industries to create automobiles. Three years earlier, in 1934, while still a department of Toyota Industries, it created its first product, the Type A engine, and its first passenger car in 1936, the Toyota AA. Toyota Motor Corporation produces vehicles under five brands, including the Toyota brand, Hino, Lexus, Ranz, and Daihatsu. It also holds a 16.66% stake in Subaru Corporation, a 5.9% stake in Isuzu, a 5.5% stake in Mazda, as well as joint-ventures with two in China (GAC Toyota and Sichuan FAW Toyota Motor), one in India (Toyota Kirloskar), one in the Czech Republic (TPCA), along with several "nonautomotive" companies. TMC is part of the Toyota Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Japan.

1920s–1930s

The mass-produced Toyoda automated loom, displayed at Toyota Museum in Aichi-gun, Japan

In 1924, Sakichi Toyoda invented the Toyoda Model G Automatic Loom. The principle of jidoka, which means the machine stops itself when a problem occurs, became later a part of the Toyota Production System. Looms were built on a small production line. In 1929, the patent for the automatic loom was sold to the British company Platt Brothers, generating the starting capital for automobile development.

Toyoda Standard Sedan AA 1936

The production of Toyota automobiles was started in 1933 as a division of Toyoda Automatic Loom Works devoted to the production of automobiles under the direction of the founder's son, Kiichiro Toyoda. Its first vehicles were the A1 passenger car and the G1 truck in 1935. The Toyota Motor Company was established as an independent company in 1937 Vehicles were originally sold under the name "Toyoda", from the family name of the company's founder, Kiichirō Toyoda. In April 1936, Toyoda's first passenger car, the Model AA, was completed. The sales price was 3,350 yen, 400 yen cheaper than Ford or GM cars.

In September 1936, the company ran a public competition to design a new logo. Of 27,000 entries, the winning entry was the three Japanese katakana letters for "Toyoda" in a circle. However, Rizaburo Toyoda, who had married into the family and was not born with that name, preferred "Toyota" because it took eight brush strokes (a lucky number) to write in Japanese, was visually simpler (leaving off the diacritic at the end), and with a voiceless consonant instead of a voiced one (voiced consonants are considered to have a "murky" or "muddy" sound compared to voiceless consonants, which are "clear").

Since toyoda literally means "fertile rice paddies", changing the name also prevented the company from being associated with old-fashioned farming. The newly formed word was trademarked and the company was registered in August 1937 as the Toyota Motor Company.

1940s–1950s

First-generation Toyopet Crown Model RSD (1955/1 – 1958/10)

From September 1947, Toyota's small-sized vehicles were sold under the name "Toyopet" The first vehicle sold under this name was the Toyopet SA,[26] but it also included vehicles such as the Toyopet SB light truck, Toyopet Stout light truck,[27] Toyopet Crown, Toyopet Master, and the Toyopet Corona. The word "Toyopet" (Japanese article) was a nickname given to the Toyota SA due to its small size, as the result of a naming contest the Toyota Company organized in 1947. However, when Toyota eventually entered the American market in 1957 with the Crown, the name was not well received due to connotations of toys and pets. The name was soon dropped for the American market, but continued in other markets until the mid-1960s.

1960s–1970s

By the early 1960s, the US had begun placing stiff import tariffs on certain vehicles. The so-called "chicken tax" of 1964 placed a 25% tax on imported light trucks.[29] In response to the tariff, Toyota, Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. began building plants in the US by the early 1980s.[29]

1980s

By the 1980s Toyota Corolla was one of the most popular and best selling cars in the world

Toyota received its first Japanese Quality Control Award at the start of the 1980s and began participating in a wide variety of motorsports. Due to the 1973 oil crisis, consumers in the lucrative US market began turning to making small cars with better fuel economy. American car manufacturers had considered small economy cars to be an entry-level product, and their small vehicles employed a low level of quality to keep the price low. Conservative Toyota held on to rear-wheel-drive designs for longer than most; while a clear first in overall production they were only third in production of front-wheel-drive cars in 1983, behind Nissan and Honda. In part due to this, Nissan's Sunny managed to squeeze by the Corolla in numbers built that year.

In 1982, the Toyota Motor Company and Toyota Motor Sales merged into one company, the Toyota Motor Corporation. Two years later, Toyota entered into a joint venture with General Motors called the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc, NUMMI, operating an automobile-manufacturing plant in Fremont, California. The factory was an old General Motors plant that had been closed for two years. It is currently the site of Tesla, Inc.'s assembly plant. Toyota then started to establish new brands at the end of the 1980s, with the launch of their luxury division Lexus in 1989.

1990s

Toyota Supra (JZA80) is one of the most recognized Japanese sports cars

In the 1990s, Toyota began to branch out from producing mostly compact cars by adding many larger and more luxurious vehicles to its lineup, including a full-sized pickup, the T100 (and later the Tundra), several lines of SUVs, a sport version of the Camry, known as the Camry Solara. They would also launch newer iterations of their sports cars, namely the MR2, Celica, and Supra during this era.

With a major presence in Europe, due to the success of Toyota Team Europe, the corporation decided to set up Toyota Motor Europe Marketing and Engineering, TMME, to help market vehicles in the continent. Two years later, Toyota set up a base in the United Kingdom, TMUK, as the company's cars had become very popular among British drivers. Bases in Indiana, Virginia, and Tianjin were also set up. In 1999, the company decided to list itself on the New York and London Stock Exchanges.

2000s

In 2001, Toyota's Toyo Trust and Banking merged with two other banks to form UFJ Bank, which was accused of corruption by Japan's government for making bad loans to alleged Yakuza crime syndicates with executives accused of blocking Financial Service Agency inspections. The UFJ was listed among Fortune Magazine's largest money-losing corporations in the world, with Toyota's chairman serving as a director.[32] At the time, the UFJ was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota. As a result of Japan's banking crisis, UFJ merged with the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi to become the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.

In 2002, Toyota managed to enter a Formula One works team and establish joint ventures with French motoring companies Citroën and Peugeot a year after Toyota started producing cars in France.

A youth-oriented marque for North America, Scion, was introduced in 2003.

Toyota ranked eighth on Forbes 2000 list of the world's leading companies for the year 2005[33] but slid to 55th for 2011.[34] The company was number one in global automobile sales for the first quarter of 2008.

In 2007, Toyota released an update of its full-sized truck, the Tundra, produced in two American factories, one in Texas and one in Indiana. Motor Trend named the Tundra "Truck of the Year", and the 2007 Toyota Camry "Car of the Year" for 2007. It also began the construction of two new factories, one to build the RAV4 in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada, and the other to build the Toyota Prius in Blue Springs, Mississippi, USA. This plant was originally intended to build the Toyota Highlander, but Toyota decided to use the plant in Princeton, Indiana, USA, instead. The company has also found recent success with its smaller models—the Corolla and Yaris.

2010s

In 2011, Toyota, along with large parts of the Japanese automotive industry, suffered from a series of natural disasters. The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami led to a severe disruption of the supplier base and a drop in production and exports.[36][37] Severe flooding during the 2011 monsoon season in Thailand affected Japanese automakers that had chosen Thailand as a production base. Toyota is estimated to have lost production of 150,000 units to the tsunami and production of 240,000 units to the floods.

On February 10, 2014, it was announced that Toyota would cease manufacturing vehicles and engines in Australia by the end of 2017.[38][39] The decision was based on the unfavourable Australian dollar making exports not viable, the high cost of local manufacture and the high amount of competition in a relatively small local market.[39] The company plans to consolidate its corporate functions in Melbourne by the end of 2017. The head office will remain in Port Melbourne and the Altona plant will be retained for other functions. The workforce is expected to be reduced from 3,900 to 1,300.[40] Both Ford Motor Company and General Motors (Holden) followed suit, ending Australian production in 2016 and 2017 respectively.

The automaker narrowly topped global sales for the first half of 2014, selling 5.1 million vehicles in the six months ending June 30, 2014, an increase of 3.8% on the same period the previous year. Volkswagen AG, which recorded sales of 5.07 million vehicles, was close behind.

In August 2014, Toyota announced it would be cutting its spare-parts prices in China by up to 35%. The company admitted the move was in response to a probe foreshadowed earlier in the month by China's National Development and Reform Commission of Toyota's Lexus spare-parts policies, as part of an industry-wide investigation into what the Chinese regulator considers exorbitantly high prices being charged by automakers for spare parts and after-sales servicing.

In November 2015, the company announced that it would invest US$1 billion over the next 5 years into artificial intelligence and robotics research. In 2016, Toyota invested in Uber. The invested amount is not public information.

In March 2016, Toyota partnered with Yanmar to create a fibreglass pleasure boat using Yanmar outboard marine diesel engines or Toyota inboard engines.

On August 27, 2018, Toyota announced an investment of $500 Million in Uber's autonomous cars.

Recalls

Main article: 2009–11 Toyota vehicle recalls

From November 2009 through 2010, Toyota recalled more than 9 million cars and trucks worldwide in several recall campaigns, and briefly halted production and sales. After pressure from the NHTSA, Toyota issued the recalls, after reports that several vehicles experienced unintended acceleration.

In October 2012, Toyota announced a recall of 7.43 million vehicles worldwide to fix malfunctioning power window switches, the largest recall since that of Ford Motor Company in 1996. The move came after a series of recalls between 2009 and 2011 in which it pulled back around 10 million cars amidst claims of faulty mechanics.[49] In March 2014, Toyota agreed to pay a fine of US$1.2 billion for concealing information and misleading the public about the safety issues behind the recalls on Toyota and Lexus vehicles affected by unintended acceleration. Toyota never agreed to be at fault for the problem.

In early November 2014, Toyota USA enlisted a recall involving defective inflaters and propellant devices that may deploy improperly in the event of a crash, shooting metal fragments into vehicle occupants. More than 7 million vehicles are potentially affected in the United States. This recall only affects vehicles equipped with Takata airbags released after the year 2000 in North America. The airbags were manufactured by Takata automotive manufacturing. Toyota is offering a free repair to all affected vehicles worldwide.[50] The fault in the Takata air bags also affected other North American automobile manufacturers.

In December 2018, Toyota USA announced a recall of Toyota and Lexus vehicles with Takata airbags that had previously been replaced by the company. The recall affects specific Toyota Corollas, Sequoias, Tundras and Lexus vehicles made between 2002-2005. This recall was announced one year ahead of the initially scheduled recall in December 2019.[52]

Logo and branding

Employee at Toyota Museum explains development of Toyota name and brand

In 1936, Toyota entered the passenger car market with its Model AA and held a competition to establish a new logo emphasizing speed for its new product line. After receiving 27,000 entries, one was selected that additionally resulted in a change of its moniker to "Toyota" from the family name "Toyoda". The new name was believed to sound better, and its eight-stroke count in the Japanese language was associated with wealth and good fortune. The original logo is no longer found on its vehicles but remains the corporate emblem used in Japan.

Toyota wordmark, used as a main logo until 1989 and is currently used as a corporate logo

Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro still uses Toyota wordmark

Still, no guidelines existed for the use of the brand name, so "TOYOTA", which was used throughout most of the world, led to inconsistencies in its worldwide marketing campaigns.

To remedy this, Toyota introduced a new worldwide logo in October 1989 to commemorate the 50th year of the company, and to differentiate it from the newly released luxury Lexus brand. The logo made its debut on the 1989 Toyota Celsior and quickly gained worldwide recognition. The three ovals in the new logo combine to form the letter "T", which stands for Toyota. The overlapping of the two perpendicular ovals inside the larger oval represents the mutually beneficial relationship and trust between the customer and the company while the larger oval surrounding both of these inner ovals represents the "global expansion of Toyota's technology and unlimited potential for the future".

Hubcap of 1936 Toyota AA, with the old "Toyoda" name

The new logo started appearing on all printed material, advertisements, dealer signage, and most of the vehicles themselves in 1990.

In countries or regions using traditional Chinese characters, e.g. Hong Kong and Taiwan, Toyota is known as "豐田".[55] In countries using simplified Chinese characters (e.g. China, Singapore), Toyota is written as "丰田"[56] (pronounced as Fēngtián in Mandarin Chinese and Hɔng Tshan in Minnanese). These are the same characters as the founding family's name "Toyoda" in Japanese.

Japan

In Japan, Toyota currently maintains separate dealership sales channels. Toyota sought out to use a hierarchical marketing approach, similar to methods used in North America, but implemented it at all of its dealership chains, with some models being exclusive to particular locations.

The first sales channel established in 1946 is called "Toyota Store” Toyota Mise) and offers large luxury sedans such as the Toyota Century and the Toyota Crown. In more recent years, the Toyota Store's line was expanded to include hybrid and alternate fuel vehicles. In 1955, the "Toyopet Store" arrived, originally established to sell the Toyota Corona and the Toyopet ToyoAce truck, and currently features mid-range models. (Toyota's five channel dealerships in Japan chronology in Japanese.)

The "Toyota Publica Store" (Toyota Paburika-ten) was established in 1961 to sell the Toyota Publica. In 1966 it was renamed the "Toyota Corolla Store" (Toyota Karōra-ten) to sell the Toyota Corolla.[57] The dealership chain focuses on budget models.

The "Toyota Auto Store" (Toyota Ōto-ten) sales network was established in 1967 to sell the Corolla companion, the Toyota Sprinter, and was renamed "Netz Toyota Store" in 1998. The "Vista" name was used on a new Camry-clone, called the Toyota Vista. The Toyota Vista network was replaced with two networks; "Netz Toyota" (Nettsu-Toyota-ten) in August 1998, and Lexus in 2004. Some former Vista models were rebranded as Lexus (Rekusasu), such as the Altezza and the Aristo, while other products have been taken over by the "Netz Toyota", which was already selling the Toyota ist and the Toyota RAV4. "Netz" is an acronym for "Network of Energetic Teams for Zenith", and targets young buyers.

Toyota previously operated a commercial dealership called Toyota Diesel Shop (Toyota Dīzeru-ten) from 1957 until 1988 that sold various commercial platform trucks, buses, and forklifts, such as the Toyota Dyna and the Toyota Coaster. Hino products were sold at specific Hino locations and shared at Toyota Diesel Store locations after Toyota acquired the company in 1967. Starting in 1980, the Diesel Shop also sold the Starlet, Corolla, Corona, Vista, and Crown installed with diesel engines. When the Toyota Diesel Store was disbanded, commercial products were divided between Toyota Store and Toyopet Store locations.

In 2012, selected Japanese dealership locations were given a special designation called "Area 86" that resembled the North American Toyota network, called Scion, to sell the Toyota 86, building on the marketing approach started with WiLL branded products. As of 2017, the "Area 86" network was rebranded as "GR" for Gazoo Racing, sharing a similar approach to the performance division Toyota Racing Development or "TRD", providing various upgrades for the 86, Vitz, Prius, Mark X, Harrier, Noah and Voxy.[60]

In the female idol group, AKB48, Toyota and AKS, has worked together to create a subunit named 'Team 8'. Team 8 is created with the idea, 'Idols who come to meet you'. They have a total of 47 members, each representing a prefecture of Japan.

Vehicles sold at Toyota Store

The following is a list of all past and present models and where they were available at retail channels nationally. Most models were exclusive to particular retail chains, while some models, like the Prius, are available at all sales channels. Retail chains in Tokyo, Osaka and Okinawa are different.

Century, Crown Majesta, Crown, Master, SAI, Mirai, Prius, Aqua, Allion, Succeed, Blade, Avensis, Sienta, Corolla RunX, C-HR, Porte, Estima, Isis, Roomy, FJ Cruiser, Comfort, Land Cruiser, Hilux Surf, Land Cruiser Prado, Dyna, Stout, Esquire, Coaster, QuickDelivery, 2000GT, Carina, Carina ED, GT-86, Brevis, Gaia, Cavalier, Classic, MasterAce, Hilux, Mega Cruiser, Soarer, Origin, Caldina.

Mark X, SAI, Mirai, Premio, Prius, Aqua, Belta, Mark X ZiO, Succeed, Ractis, Auris, Blade, GT-86, Porte, Harrier, Vanguard, Esquire, Rush, C-HR, Avensis, Alphard, Comfort, HiAce, ToyoAce, Tank, Sienta, Pixis Space, Mark II-Mark II Qualis-Mark II Blit, Corona, Corona EXiV, Corona Coupe, Corsa, Opa, Avalon, Progrès, Cami, ist, Platz, Soarer, Hilux, Cynos, Regius, Celsior, Origin, Caldina, Ipsum.

SAI, Camry, Prius, Aqua, Corolla Axio, GT-86, Belta, Spade, Probox, Corolla Rumion, C-HR, Ractis, Passo, Corolla Verso, Sera, Vanguard, Roomy, Estima, Noah, Avensis, Sienta, TownAce, Pixis, Publica, Tercel, Windom, Scepter, Corolla Ceres, Origin, Nadia, WiLL, RAV4, Sports 800, Celica, Supra, Corolla Levin, Celica XX, Celica Camry.

Vitz, SAI, Prius, Aqua, ist, Auris, bB, Avensis, Raum, Spade, Wish, Voxy, RAV4, C-HR, Kluger, Vellfire, iQ, Allex, Tank, Pixis, Fun Cargo, Pronard, Altezza, Verossa, Curren, Aristo, MR-S, MR2, Starlet, Vista, Cresta, Sprinter, Voltz, Blizzard, Chaser, Sprinter Marino, Carib, Granvia, Sprinter Trueno, LiteAce, Ipsum, GT-86, WiLL (1999–2004).

Volkswagen was established in 1937 by the German Labour Front (Deutsche Arbeitsfront) in Berlin.[6] In the early 1930s cars were a luxury: most Germans could afford nothing more elaborate than a motorcycle. Only one German out of 50 owned a car. Seeking a potential new market, some car makers began independent "people's car" projects – the Mercedes 170H, Adler AutoBahn, Steyr 55, and Hanomag 1.3L, among others.

The trend was not new, as Béla Barényi is credited with having conceived the basic design in the mid-1920s. Josef Ganz developed the Standard Superior (going as far as advertising it as the "German Volkswagen"). In Germany, the company Hanomag mass-produced the 2/10 PS "Kommissbrot", a small, cheap rear-engined car, from 1925 to 1928. Also, in Czechoslovakia, the Hans Ledwinka's penned Tatra T77, a very popular car amongst the German elite, was becoming smaller and more affordable at each revision. Ferdinand Porsche, a well-known designer for high-end vehicles and race cars, had been trying for years to get a manufacturer interested in a small car suitable for a family. He built a car named the "Volksauto" from the ground up in 1933, using many popular ideas and several of his own, putting together a car with an air-cooled rear engine, torsion bar suspension, and a "beetle" shape, the front hood rounded for better aerodynamics (necessary as it had a small engine).

In 1934, with many of the above projects still in development or early stages of production, Adolf Hitler became involved, ordering the production of a basic vehicle capable of transporting two adults and three children at 100 km/h (62 mph). He wanted all German citizens to have access to cars.[8] The "People's Car" would be available to citizens of the Third Reich through a savings plan at 990 Reichsmarks (equivalent to €3,747 in 2009)—about the price of a small motorcycle (the average income being around 32 RM a week).

Despite heavy lobbying in favour of one of the existing projects,[which?] it soon became apparent that private industry could not turn out a car for only 990 RM. Thus, Hitler chose to sponsor an all-new, state-owned factory using Ferdinand Porsche's design (with some of Hitler's design constraints, including an air-cooled engine so nothing could freeze). The intention was that ordinary Germans would buy the car by means of a savings scheme ("Fünf Mark die Woche musst du sparen, willst du im eigenen Wagen fahren" – "Five marks a week you must put aside, if you want to drive your own car"), which around 336,000 people eventually paid into. However, the entire project was financially unsound, and only the Nazi party made it possible to provide funding.

Prototypes of the car called the "KdF-Wagen" (German: Kraft durch Freude – "Strength through Joy"), appeared from 1938 onwards (the first cars had been produced in Stuttgart). The car already had its distinctive round shape and air-cooled, flat-four, rear-mounted engine. The VW car was just one of many KdF programs, which included things such as tours and outings. The prefix Volks— ("People's") was not just applied to cars, but also to other products in Germany; the "Volksempfänger" radio receiver for instance. On 28 May 1937, Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mbH ("Company for the Preparation of the German Volkswagen Ltd."), or Gezuvor[14] for short, was established by the Deutsche Arbeitsfront in Berlin. More than a year later, on 16 September 1938, it was renamed to Volkswagenwerk GmbH.

VW Type 82E

Erwin Komenda, the longstanding Auto Union chief designer, part of Ferdinand Porsche's hand-picked team,[8] developed the car body of the prototype, which was recognizably the Beetle known today. It was one of the first cars designed with the aid of a wind tunnel—a method used for German aircraft design since the early 1920s. The car designs were put through rigorous tests, and achieved a record-breaking million miles of testing before being deemed finished.

The construction of the new factory started in May 1938 in the new town of "Stadt des KdF-Wagens" (modern-day Wolfsburg), which had been purpose-built for the factory workers.[15] This factory had only produced a handful of cars by the time war started in 1939. None were actually delivered to any holder of the completed saving stamp books, though one Type 1 Cabriolet was presented to Hitler on 20 April 1944 (his 55th birthday).

War changed production to military vehicles—the Type 82 Kübelwagen ("Bucket car") utility vehicle (VW's most common wartime model), and the amphibious Schwimmwagen—manufactured for German forces. As was common with much of the production in Nazi Germany during the war, slave labor was utilized in the Volkswagen plant, e.g. from Arbeitsdorf concentration camp. The company would admit in 1998 that it used 15,000 slaves during the war effort. German historians estimated that 80% of Volkswagen's wartime workforce was slave labor.[citation needed] Many of the slaves were reported to have been supplied from the concentration camps upon request from plant managers. A lawsuit was filed in 1998 by survivors for restitution for the forced labor. Volkswagen would set up a voluntary restitution fund.

Volkswagen factory

1945–1948: British Army intervention, unclear future

The company owes its post-war existence largely to one man, wartime British Army officer Major Ivan Hirst, REME. In April 1945, KdF-Stadt and its heavily bombed factory were captured by the Americans, and subsequently handed over to the British, within whose occupation zone the town and factory fell. The factories were placed under the control of Saddleworth-born Hirst, by then a civilian Military Governor with the occupying forces. At first, one plan was to use it for military vehicle maintenance, and possibly dismantle and ship it to Britain. Since it had been used for military production, (though not of KdF-Wagens) and had been in Hirst's words, a "political animal" rather than a commercial enterprise[citation needed] – technically making it liable for destruction under the terms of the Potsdam Agreement – the equipment could have been salvaged as war reparations.[citation needed] Allied dismantling policy changed in late 1946 to mid-1947, though heavy industry continued to be dismantled until 1951.

One of the factory's wartime 'KdF-Wagen' cars had been taken to the factory for repairs and abandoned there. Hirst had it repainted green and demonstrated it to British Army headquarters. Short of light transport, in September 1945 the British Army was persuaded to place a vital order for 20,000 cars. However, production facilities had been massively disrupted, there was a refugee crisis at and around the factory, and some parts (such as carburettors) were unavailable. With striking humanity and great engineering and management ingenuity, Hirst and his German assistant Heinrich Nordhoff (who went on to run the Wolfsburg facility after military government ended in 1949) helped to stabilize the acute social situation while simultaneously re-establishing production. Hirst, for example, used his fine engineering experience to arrange the manufacture of carburettors, the original producers being effectively 'lost' in the Russian zone.[19] The first few hundred cars went to personnel from the occupying forces, and to the German Post Office. Some British Service personnel were allowed to take their Beetles back to the United Kingdom when they were demobilized.

In 1986, Hirst explained how it was commonly misunderstood that he had run Wolfsburg as a British Army major. The defeated German staff, he said, were initially sullen and unresponsive, having been conditioned by many years of Nazism and they were sometimes unresponsive to orders. At Nordhoff's suggestion, he sent back to England for his officer's uniform and from then on, had no difficulty in having his instructions followed. Hirst can be seen photographed at Wolfsburg in his uniform, although he was not actually a soldier at the time but a civilian member of the military government. The title of 'Major' was sometimes used by someone who had left the Army as a courtesy, but Hirst chose not to use the title.

The post-war industrial plans for Germany set out rules that governed which industries Germany was allowed to retain. These rules set German car production at a maximum of 10% of 1936 car production. By 1946, the factory produced 1,000 cars a month—a remarkable feat considering it was still in disrepair. Owing to roof and window damage, production had to stop when it rained, and the company had to barter new vehicles for steel for production.

The car and its town changed their Second World War-era names to "Volkswagen" and "Wolfsburg" respectively, and production increased. It was still unclear what was to become of the factory. It was offered to representatives from the American, Australian, British, and French motor industries. Famously, all rejected it. After an inspection of the plant, Sir William Rootes, head of the British Rootes Group, told Hirst the project would fail within two years, and that the car "...is quite unattractive to the average motorcar buyer, is too ugly and too noisy ... If you think you're going to build cars in this place, you're a bloody fool, young man."[citation needed] The official report said "To build the car commercially would be a completely uneconomic enterprise." In an ironic twist of fate, Volkswagen manufactured a locally built version of Rootes's Hillman Avenger in Argentina in the 1980s, long after Rootes had gone bankrupt at the hands of Chrysler in 1978—the Beetle outliving the Avenger by over 30 years.

Ford representatives were equally critical. In March 1948, the British offered the Volkswagen company to Ford, free of charge. Henry Ford II, the son of Edsel Ford, traveled to West Germany for discussions. Heinz Nordhoff was also present, as well as Ernest Breech, chairman of the board for Ford. Henry Ford II looked to Breech for his opinion, and Breech said, "Mr. Ford, I don't think what we're being offered here is worth a dime!" Ford passed on the offer, leaving Volkswagen to rebuild itself under Nordhoff's leadership.[citation needed]

In the later 1960s, as worldwide appetite for the Beetle finally began to diminish, a variety of successor designs were proposed and, in most cases, rejected by management.

From 1948, Volkswagen became an important element, symbolically and economically, of West German regeneration.[according to whom?] Heinrich Nordhoff (1899–1968), a former senior manager at Opel who had overseen civilian and military vehicle production in the 1930s and 1940s, was recruited to run the factory in 1948. In 1949, Major Hirst left the company—now re-formed as a trust controlled by the West German government and government of the State of Lower Saxony. The "Beetle" sedan or "peoples' car" Volkswagen is the Type 1. Apart from the introduction of the Volkswagen Type 2 commercial vehicle (van, pick-up and camper), and the VW Karmann Ghia sports car, Nordhoff pursued the one-model policy until shortly before his death in 1968.

Volkswagens were first exhibited and sold in the United States in 1949, but sold only two units in America that first year. On entry to the U.S. market, the VW was briefly sold as a Victory Wagon. Volkswagen of America was formed in April 1955 to standardise sales and service in the United States. Production of the Type 1 Volkswagen Beetle increased dramatically over the years, the total reaching one million in 1955.

The UK's first official Volkswagen Importer, Colborne Garages of Ripley, Surrey, started with parts for the models brought home by soldiers returning from Germany.[20]

Canadian Motors, Limited brought in Canada's first shipment of Volkswagens on 10 July 1952 (shipping order 143075)[citation needed]. The order consisted of 12 vehicles, (3) model 11C, a black, green, and sandcolor (3) 11GS, a chestnut brown and two azure blue, (2) 24A-M51 in red, (1)21A in blue, (1) 23A in blue, (1) 22A beige color, and one ambulance[citation needed]. Volkswagens were seen in Canada for the first time at the Canadian National Exhibition in August 1952 and were accepted enthusiastically. (At least one Type 2 bus from this order still exists, and is currently in France undergoing restoration)[citation needed]. The first shipment for Volkswagen Canada reached Toronto in early December 1952. (At least one Type 1 from this first shipment still exists, and was driven on a nationwide tour for Volkswagen Canada's 60th year of business festivities in 2012)[citation needed].

By 1955, sales were on a basis that warranted the building of the Volkswagen plant on a 32-acre (13 ha) site on Scarboro's Golden Mile. To this, a 60,000-square-foot (5,600 m2) building with administration, showrooms, service, repairs and parts was built in 1957, with storage for $4,000,000 of parts.

In 1959, VW started production at a plant near São Paulo in Brazil. Volkswagen do Brasil was accused of spying on workers during the time of the military dictatorship in the 1970s and informing police on oppositional activities. In 1976, mass arrests occurred and some VW employees were tortured. In 1979, Brazilian VW workers traveled to Wolfsburg to inform the CEO in person. In 2015, activists and former VW employees in Brazil spoke out in public accused the company's silence about persecution of its workers. In fall 2016, VW commissioned an expert review of the situation due end of 2017.

On 22 August 1960, Volkswagenwerk GmbH was renamed to Volkswagenwerk AG.

Sales soared throughout the 1960s, peaking at the end of the decade thanks in part to the famous advertising campaigns by New York advertising agency Doyle, Dane Bernbach.[citation needed] Led by art director Helmut Krone, and copywriters Julian Koenig and Bob Levinson, Volkswagen advertisements became[when?] as popular as the car, using crisp layouts and witty copy to lure the younger, sophisticated consumers with whom the car became associated.[citation needed] Even though it was almost universally known as the Beetle (or the Bug), it was never officially labelled as such by the manufacturer, instead referred to as the Type 1.[citation needed]

Although the car was becoming outdated, during the 1960s and early 1970s, American exports, innovative advertising, and a growing reputation for reliability helped production figures surpass the levels of the previous record holder, the Ford Model T. On 17 February 1972 the 15,007,034th Beetle was sold. Volkswagen could now claim the world production record for the most-produced, single make of car in history. By 1973, total production was over 16 million.

To commemorate its passing the Ford Model T's record sales mark and its victories in the Baja 1000 Mexican races from 1967 to 1971, Volkswagen produced its first limited-edition Beetle. It was marketed as the "Baja Champion SE" in the United States and the "Marathon" Superbeetle in the rest of the world. It featured unique "Marathon Blau" metallic blue paint, steel-pressed 10-spoke 15-inch (38 cm) magnesium-alloy wheels, a commemorative metal plate mounted on the glovebox and a certificate of authenticity presented to the original purchaser. Dealer-installed options for this limited-edition Superbeetle included the following: white stripes running the length of the rocker-panel, a special shifter knob, bumper overriders, tapered exhaust tips, fake walnut inserts in the dashboard (behind the steering wheel and the glovebox cover) as well as Bosch fog lights mounted on the front bumper.[citation needed]

1961–1973: Beetle to Golf

A 1963 VW Type 3 Notchback

The 1961 Type 1 Beetle had a 36 hp 1200cc four cylinder air-cooled flat-four opposed OHV engine made of aluminum alloy block and heads. By 1966, the Type 1 came with a 1300 engine. By 1967 the Type 1 had a 1500 engine, and 1600 in 1970. The air-cooled engine lost favor in the United States market with the advent of non-leaded gasoline and smog controls. These air-cooled engines were commonly tuned to be fuel rich in order to control engine over-heating, and this led to excessive carbon monoxide emissions. VW Production equipment was eventually moved to Mexico where vehicle emissions were not regulated. Beetles were popular on the USA West Coast where the limited-capacity cabin heating was less inconvenient. Beetles were popularized on the USA West Coast as beach buggies and dune buggies.

VW expanded its product line in 1961 with the introduction of four Type 3 models (Karmann Ghia, Notchback, Fastback, and Variant) based on the new Type 3 mechanical underpinnings. The name 'Squareback' was used in the United States for the Variant.

In 1969 the larger Type 4 (411 and 412) models were introduced. These differed substantially from previous vehicles, with the notable introduction of monocoque/unibody construction, the option of a fully automatic transmission, electronic fuel injection, and a sturdier powerplant.

In 1964, Volkswagen acquired Auto Union, and in 1969, NSU Motorenwerke AG (NSU). The former company owned the historic Audi brand, which had disappeared after the Second World War. VW ultimately merged Auto Union and NSU to create the modern Audi company, and would go on to develop it as its luxury vehicle marque. The purchase of Auto Union and NSU was a pivotal point in Volkswagen's history, as both companies yielded the technological expertise that proved necessary for VW to survive when demand for its air-cooled models went into decline.

Volkswagen added a "Super Beetle" (the Type 131) to its lineup in 1971. The Type 131 differed from the standard Beetle in its use of a MacPherson strut front suspension instead of the usual torsion bars. The Super Beetle featured a new hooded, padded dash and curved windshield (from 1973 model year on up). Rack and pinion steering replaced recirculating ball steering gears in model year 1975 and up. The front of the car was stretched 2 inches (51 mm) to allow the spare tire to lie flat, and the combination of these two features increased the usable front luggage space.

In 1973, Volkswagen introduced the military-themed Type 181, or "Trekker" in Europe, "Thing" in America, recalling the wartime Type 82. The military version was produced for the NATO-era German Army during the Cold War years of 1970 to 1979. The U.S. Thing version only sold for two years, 1973 and 1974.

Volkswagen Type 4 assembly line in Wolfsburg as of 1973

1969 VW Squareback (Type III)

By late 1972, Volkswagen had decided to cancel the nearly finished typ 266, a project for a mid-engined car to replace the Beetle, and to focus on front-wheel-drive, water-cooled cars. Rudolf Leiding, recently made head of Volkswagen, cited noise, heat, and servicing problems with the mid-engine layout, as well as the difficulty of making it a station wagon.

Volkswagen Passat (1973–1977 model)

Volkswagen was in serious trouble by 1973.[28] The Type 3 and Type 4 models had sold in much smaller numbers than the Beetle and the NSU-based K70 also failed to sell. Beetle sales had started to decline rapidly in European and North American markets. The company knew that Beetle production had to end, but faced a conundrum of how to replace it. VW's ownership of Audi/Auto Union proved beneficial. Its expertise in front-wheel drive, and water-cooled engines would help Volkswagen produce a credible Beetle successor. Audi influences paved the way for this new generation of Volkswagens: the Passat, Scirocco, Golf, and Polo.

First in the series was the Volkswagen Passat (Dasher in the US), introduced in 1973, a fastback version of the Audi 80, using many identical body and mechanical parts. Estate/wagon versions were available in many markets. In Europe, the estate/wagon version dominated in market share for many years.

In spring 1974, the Scirocco followed. The coupe was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro. Based on the platform of the not yet released Golf, it was built at Karmann due to capacity constraints at Volkswagen.

The pivotal model emerged as the Volkswagen Golf in 1974, marketed in the United States and Canada as the Rabbit for the 1st generation (1975–1985) and 5th generation (2006–2009). Its angular styling was designed by the Italian Giorgetto Giugiaro. Its design followed trends for small family cars set by the 1959 Mini – the Golf had a transversely mounted, water-cooled engine in the front, driving the front wheels, and had a hatchback, a format that has dominated the market segment ever since. Beetle production at Wolfsburg ended upon the Golf's introduction. It continued in smaller numbers at other German factories (Hanover and Emden) until 1978, but mainstream production shifted to Brazil and Mexico.

In 1975, the Volkswagen Polo followed. It was a re-badged Audi 50, which was soon discontinued in 1978. The Polo became the base of the Volkswagen Derby, which was introduced 1977. The Derby was for all intents and purposes a three-box design of the Polo. After a second model generation, the Derby was discontinued in 1985, although the bodystyle lived on in the form of the polo classic/polo saloon until 1991.

Passat, Scirocco, Golf, and Polo shared many character defining features, as well as parts and engines. They built the basis for Volkswagen's turn-around.

1974–1990: Product line expansion

Volkswagen Polo (1975–1979 model)

While Volkswagen's range of cars soon became similar to that of other large European automakers, the Golf has been the mainstay of the Volkswagen lineup since its introduction,[when?] and the mechanical basis for several other cars of the company. There have been seven generations of the Volkswagen Golf, the first of which was produced from the summer of 1974 until the autumn of 1983 (sold as the Rabbit in the United States and Canada and as the Caribe in Latin America). Its chassis also spawned the Volkswagen Scirocco sport coupe, Volkswagen Jetta saloon/sedan, Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet convertible, and Volkswagen Caddy pick-up. North American production of the Rabbit commenced at the Volkswagen Westmoreland Assembly Plant near New Stanton, Pennsylvania in 1978. It would be produced in the United States as the Rabbit until the spring of 1984.[citation needed]The second-generation Golf hatchback/Jetta sedan ran from October 1983 until the autumn of 1991, and a North American version produced at Westmoreland Assembly went on sale at the start of the 1985 model year. The production numbers of the first-generation Golf has continued to grow annually in South Africa as the Citi Golf, with only minor modifications to the interior, engine and chassis, using tooling relocated from the New Stanton, Pennsylvania plant when that site began to build the Second Generation car.

In the 1980s, Volkswagen's sales in the United States and Canada fell dramatically, despite the success of models like the Golf elsewhere.Sales in the United States were 293,595 in 1980, but by 1984 they were down to 177,709. The introduction of the second-generation Golf, GTI and Jetta models helped Volkswagen briefly in North America. Motor Trend named the GTI its Car of the Year for 1985, and Volkswagen rose in the J.D. Power buyer satisfaction ratings to eighth place in 1985, up from 22nd a year earlier. VW's American sales broke 200,000 in 1985 and 1986 before resuming the downward trend from earlier in the decade. Chairman Carl Hahn decided to expand the company elsewhere (mostly in developing countries), and the New Stanton, Pennsylvania factory closed on 14 July 1988. Meanwhile, four years after signing a cooperation agreement with the Spanish car maker SEAT in 1982, Hahn expanded the company by purchasing a majority share of SEAT up to 75% by the end of 1986, which VW bought outright in 1990.[32] On 4 July 1985, Volkswagenwerk AG was renamed to Volkswagen AG.

Volkswagen entered the supermini market in 1975 with the Volkswagen Polo, a stylish and spacious three-door hatchback designed by Bertone. It was a strong seller in West Germany and most of the rest of Western Europe, being one of the first foreign small cars to prove popular in Britain. It had started out in 1974 as the Audi 50, which was only available in certain markets and was less popular. The Polo entered a market sector already being dominated by the Fiat 127 and Renault 5, and which before long would also include the Austin Metro and Ford Fiesta.[citation needed]

In 1981, the second-generation Polo launched and sold as a hatchback and "coupe" (with the hatchback resembling a small estate car and the coupe being similar to a conventional hatchback), was an even greater success for Volkswagen.[citation needed] Its practicality, despite the lack of a five-door version, helped ensure even stronger sales than its predecessor, and it continued to sell well after a makeover in 1990, finally being replaced by an all-new version in 1994.[citation needed] Also arriving in 1981 were the second generation of the larger Passat and a second generation of the Volkswagen Scirocco coupe. The original Scirocco had been launched in 1974 to compete with affordable four-seater coupes like the Ford Capri.

In 1983 the MK2 Golf was launched. At the beginning of 1988, the third generation Passat was the next major car launch and Volkswagen did not produce a hatchback version of this Passat, despite the rising popularity of the hatchback bodystyle throughout Europe.[citation needed] Just after launching the B3 Passat, Volkswagen launched the Corrado, replacement for the Scirocco, although the Scirocco remained in production until 1992.

1991–1999

Volkswagen Golf, in North American form

In 1991, Volkswagen launched the third-generation Golf, which was European Car of the Year for 1992. The Golf Mk3 and Jetta arrived in North America in 1993. The sedan version of the Golf was badged Vento in Europe, but remained Jetta in the United States. The Scirocco and the later Corrado were both Golf-based coupés.

The Volkswagen New Beetle

In 1994, Volkswagen unveiled the J Mays-designed Concept One, a "retro"-themed concept car with a resemblance to the original Beetle, based on the platform of the Polo. Due to a positive response to the concept, a production version was developed as the New Beetle, based on the Golf's larger platform.[33]

In 1995 the Sharan was launched in Europe, the result of a joint venture with Ford, which also resulted in the Ford Galaxy and SEAT Alhambra.[34]

The company's evolution of its model range was continued with the Golf Mk4, introduced at the end of 1997 (North America in 1999), its chassis spawned a host of other cars within the Volkswagen Group; the Volkswagen Bora (the sedan known as the Jetta in the United States), SEAT Toledo, SEAT León, Audi A3, Audi TT, and Škoda Octavia. Other main models during the decade include the Polo, a smaller car than the Golf, and the larger Passat for the segment above the Golf.

In 1998 the company launched the new Lupo city car. In 1999 they announced the first "3-litre" car, a lightweight version of the Lupo that could travel 100 km with only 3-litres of diesel—making it the world's most fuel efficient car at the time.

2000–present: Further expansion

The fifth generation Volkswagen Jetta

Volkswagen began introducing an array of new models after Bernd Pischetsrieder became Volkswagen Group CEO (responsible for all Group brands) in 2002. The sixth-generation VW Golf was launched in 2008, came runner-up to the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia in the 2009 European Car of the Year, and has spawned several cousins: VW Jetta, VW Scirocco, SEAT León, SEAT Toledo, Škoda Octavia and Audi A3 hatchback ranges, as well as a new mini-MPV, the SEAT Altea. The GTI, a "hot hatch" performance version of the Golf, boasts a 2.0 L Turbocharged Fuel Stratified Injection (FSI) direct injection engine. VW began marketing the Golf under the Rabbit name once again in the U.S. and Canada in 2006.

The sixth-generation Passat and the fifth-generation Jetta both debuted in 2005, and Volkswagen announced plans to expand its lineup further by bringing back the Scirocco by 2008. Other models in Wolfgang Bernhard's (Volkswagen brand CEO) "product offensive" include the Tiguan mid-sized SUV in 2008 and a Passat Coupé. In November 2006 Bernd Pischetsrieder announced his resignation as Volkswagen Group CEO, and was replaced by Audi worldwide CEO Martin Winterkorn at the beginning of 2007.

The third generation Volkswagen Scirocco

Volkswagen in 2005 maintained North American sales of 224,195. Momentum continued for fiscal 2006, as Volkswagen's North American sales for the year were 235,140 vehicles, a 4.9 percent increase over 2005, despite a slump in domestic North American manufacturer's sales. In conjunction with the introduction of new models, production location of Volkswagen vehicles also underwent great change. The 2007 Eos, a hardtop convertible, is produced in a new facility in Portugal. All Golfs/Rabbits and GTIs as of 2006 are manufactured in Wolfsburg, Germany, rather than Puebla, Mexico, where Golfs and GTIs for the North American market were produced from 1989 to 1998, and the Brazilian factory in Curitiba, where Golfs and GTIs were produced from 1999 to 2006 (the Jetta has been primarily manufactured in Mexico since 1989). Volkswagen is also in the process of reconfiguring an automotive assembly plant in Belgium. The new models and investments in manufacturing improvements were immediately noticed by automotive critics. Favorable reviews for Volkswagen's newest cars include the GTI being named by Consumer Reports as the top sporty car under $25,000, one of Car and Driver magazine's "10 Best" for 2007, Automobile Magazine's 2007 Car of the Year, as well as a 2008 Motor Trend comparison ranking the mid-size Passat first in its class.

The seventh generation Volkswagen Golf

Volkswagen partnered with Daimler AG and other companies to market the BlueTec clean diesel technology on cars and trucks from Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, and other companies and brands. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, four of the ten most fuel-efficient vehicles available for sale in the United States are powered by Volkswagen diesel engines. Volkswagen has offered a number of its vehicles with a TDI (Turbocharged Direct Injection) engine, which lends class-leading fuel economy to several models. They were a three-way tie for 8th (TDI Beetle, TDI Golf, TDI Jetta) and ninth, the TDI Jetta Wagon. In addition, all Volkswagen TDI diesel engines produced from 1996 to 2006 can be driven on 100% biodiesel fuel.[citation needed] For the 2007 model year, however, strict U.S. government emissions regulations have forced Volkswagen to drop most diesels from their U.S. engine lineup, but a new lineup of diesel engines (then thought) compatible to U.S. standards returned to the American market starting with Model Year 2009. These post-2009 Clean Diesel engines are limited to running on 5% (B5) biodiesel only to maintain Volkswagen's warranty. Volkswagen long resisted adding a SUV to its lineup, but relented with the introduction of the Touareg, made in partnership with Porsche, while they worked on the Porsche Cayenne and later the Audi Q7. Though acclaimed as a fine handling vehicle, the Touareg has been a modest seller at best, and it has been criticised by auto reviewers for its absence of a third-row seat, the relatively poor fuel economy, and the high vehicle mass. Volkswagen set plans to add a compact SUV with styling influences from the "Concept A" concept vehicle introduced at the 2006 Geneva Auto Show, and on 20 July 2006, Volkswagen announced that the new vehicle, called the Tiguan.

Since the discontinuance of the T4 in 2003 and decision not to export the T5 to the United States, Volkswagen, coincidentally, lacked a van for its North American lineup. To remedy this, Volkswagen launched the Volkswagen Routan, a badge-engineered Dodge Grand Caravan made for the American and Canadian markets, in 2008.

In September 2006, Volkswagen began offering the City Golf and City Jetta only for the Canadian market. Both models were originally the Mk4 Golf and Jetta but were later replaced with the Brazilian versions of the Golf Mk4 and Bora. Volkswagen's introduction of such models is seen as a test of the market for a subcompact and, if successful, may be the beginnings of a thriving subcompact market for Volkswagen.

The Volkswagen Passat (3C)

In May 2011, Volkswagen completed Chattanooga Assembly in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Chattanooga Assembly plant marked VW's first plant since the plant at New Stanton was closed down. The facility has produced Volkswagen cars and SUVs specifically designed for the North American markets, beginning with the Passat B7 in 2011. The company recently announced plans to expand further by investing $900 million to add floor space to the factory.

The VW XL1 began a limited production run in 2013. The XL1 is a lightweight and fuel efficient two-person vehicle (only 795 kg).

The Volkswagen Atlas (a large crossover SUV) began production in late 2016, and aimed to help end several years of losses for Volkswagen in the United States, the world's second-largest auto market.

On 14 September 2016, Volkswagen announced its partnership with three Israeli cybersecurity experts to create a new company, Cymotive, dedicated to automotive security.

Volkswagen calls their shift towards electric vehicles "Transform 2025+". As part of the strategy, Volkswagen aims to launch more than 30 electric vehicles until 2025, and is anticipating yearly sales of 2 to 3 million electric Volkswagen cars by 2025, which would make up 20 to 25 percent of their total yearly sales volume.[41] In September 2017, CEO Matthias Mueller announced plans to have electric version of all of VW's 300 automotive models by 2030. The company vows to spend 20 billion euros by 2030 to roll out the cars and designated another 50 billion euros to buy the batteries needed to power the vehicles.

In April 2018, Volkswagen unveiled its first all-electric race car, the I.D. R Pikes Peak, which has been built to conquer the road race of the same name. The I.D. R Pikes Peak was unveiled in Alès, France, and should be ready to roll in two short months. It will be powered by twin engines, though this time around they'll be strictly electric. With a lithium-ion battery system on board, the car generates 680 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque.

In September 2018, Volkswagen announced to end the production of its iconic compact car, Beetle, by 2019. Volkswagen hinted at taking a leap towards the future by bringing in electric cars.

In February 2019, Volkswagen announced that it would launch an entry-level Jetta sub-brand in China aimed at young buyers. It will have three models, a sedan and two SUVS, all three of which will be manufactured in China as a part of Volkswagen's joint-venture with FAW.

On 5 June 2019, Volkswagen changed their logo as 2D black-and-white variant. The new logo debuted in a TV commercial where Volkswagen acknowledges the 2015 emissions scandal and launches their entry into electric vehicles. They used the P.R. disaster as a pivot towards the dramatic change with the tagline In the darkness, we found the light. The new logo appears at the end of the spot. The new logo was implemented on Volkswagen's social media in the United States, and it will be rolled out globally in the coming months of that year.

Although this will prove to be temporary as in August that same year, Volkswagen revealed that during this year's Frankfurt Motor Show in September, a complete redesign of the VW logo will be revealed as part of their new branding image titled New Volkswagen, which will, according to VW, make the brand appear "significantly younger, more digital and more modern". The new branding will introduce a new corporate typeface and will keep the brand's signature blue colour but will also give it a new light blue shade to be used with white and dark blue as the brand colours. They also confirmed the new logo will be installed at the firm's headquarters in Wolfsburg and that the first car to use it will be the upcoming 2020 Gold Mk8. The ID.3 electric hatchback, also to be revealed officially in Frankfurt will have the old logo.

Operations

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Volkswagen is the founding and namesake member of the Volkswagen Group, a large international corporation in charge of multiple car and truck brands, including Audi, SEAT, Porsche, Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti, Scania, MAN, and Škoda. Volkswagen Group's global headquarters are located in Volkswagen's historic home of Wolfsburg, Germany.

Volkswagen Group, as a unit, is Europe's largest automaker. For a long time, Volkswagen has had a market share over 20 percent.

In 2010, Volkswagen posted record sales of 6.29 million vehicles, with its global market share at 11.4%. In 2008, Volkswagen became the third largest automaker in the world, and, as of 2016, Volkswagen was the second largest manufacturer worldwide.[53] With strong headwinds reported in 2018, predominantly from trade tariffs and new emission standards, Volkswagen Group have limped to the 2018 finish line and astonishingly ended the year with record deliveries of 10.8m vehicles. Volkswagen Group's core markets include Germany and China.

In July 2019, Volkswagen invested $2.6 billion in Argo AI, a startup focused on developing self-driving vehicles.

Worldwide presence

Volkswagen has factories in many parts of the world, manufacturing or assembling vehicles for local markets. In addition to plants in Germany, Volkswagen has manufacturing or assembly facilities in Mexico, the United States, Slovakia, China, India, Indonesia,[57] Russia, Malaysia, Brazil, Argentina, Portugal, Spain, Poland, the Czech Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kenya and South Africa. In 2011, Volkswagen was named in the top 25 largest companies in the world by the Forbes Global 2000.

Volkswagen is setting up a new factory in West Java, Indonesia, which started construction in mid-2013.[60] The investment into the new plant, which will produce large transporters and multivans, is valued at $140 million.

As of May 2014, Volkswagen is planning to start assembling certain engines in India to increase localisation from 70% to 90%.[61]

In January 2016, Volkswagen announced launching a new factory in Algeria during a summit between Angela Merkel and Algerian prime minister Abdelmalek Sellal.[62] This new factory was launched during in Relizane, producing Volkswagen Golf VII, Volkswagen Polo, Volkswagen Caddy, Seat Ibiza and Skoda Octavia cars.

Work–life balance

Volkswagen agreed in December 2011 to implement a rule passed by the company's works council aimed at improving work–life balance by restricting company email functionality on the firm's BlackBerry smartphones from 6:30 pm to 7:30 am. The change was a response to employees' complaints about high stress levels at work and the expectation that employees would immediately answer after-hours email from home. About 1,150 of Volkswagen's more than 190,000 employees are affected by the email restriction.

Relationship with Porsche and the Volkswagen Law

Volkswagen has always had a close relationship with Porsche, the Zuffenhausen-based sports car manufacturer founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche, the original Volkswagen designer and Volkswagen company co-founder, hired by Adolf Hitler for the project. The first Porsche car, the Porsche 64 of 1938, used many components from the Volkswagen Beetle. The 1948 Porsche 356 continued using many Volkswagen components, including a tuned engine, gearbox and suspension.

The two companies continued their collaboration in 1969 to make the VW-Porsche 914 and Porsche 914-6. (The 914-6 had a 6-cylinder Porsche engine, and the standard 914 had a Volkswagen engine.) Volkswagen and Porsche would collaborate again in 1976 on the Porsche 912-E (USA only) and the Porsche 924, which used many Audi components and was built at Audi's Neckarsulm facilities. The 924 was originally designated for AUDI. Most Porsche 944 models were built there, although they used far fewer VW components.

The Porsche Cayenne, introduced in 2002, shares its entire chassis with the Volkswagen Touareg and Audi Q7, and is built at the same Volkswagen factory in Bratislava that the other SUV's are built.

In September 2005, Porsche announced it would increase its 5% stake in Volkswagen to 20% at a cost of €3 billion, with the intention that the combined stakes of Porsche and the government of Lower Saxony would ensure that any hostile takeover by foreign investors would be impossible. Speculated suitors included DaimlerChrysler, BMW, and Renault. In July 2006, Porsche increased their ownership again to 25.1%.

On 4 March 2005, the European Commission brought an action against the Federal Republic of Germany before the European Court of Justice, claiming that the Volkswagen Law, which prevents any shareholder in Volkswagen from executing more than 20% of the total voting rights in the firm, was illegally restricting the flow of capital in Europe. On 13 February 2007, Advocate General Dámaso Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer submitted an opinion to the court in support of the action..This again opened the possibility of a hostile takeover of VW and so on 26 March of the same year Porsche took its holding of Volkswagen shares to 30.9%. Porsche formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen, but intended the move to avoid a competitor's taking a large stake and to stop hedge funds from dismantling VW.[68] As expected, on 22 October 2007, the European Court of Justice ruled in agreement with Ruiz-Jarabo and the law was struck down. In October 2007, the European Court of Justice ruled that the VW law was illegal because it was protectionist. At that time, Porsche held 31% of VW shares – although a smaller proportion of voting rights, due to the Volkswagen Law – and there had been speculation that Porsche would be interested in taking over VW if the law did not stand in its way. The court also prevented the government from appointing Volkswagen board members.] The German government then rewrote the Volkswagen law, only to be sued again. In October 2013, the EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled that the rewritten Volkswagen law "complied in full" with EU rules.

On 26 October 2008, Porsche revealed its plan to assume control of VW. As of that day, it held 42.6% of Volkswagen's ordinary shares and stock options on another 31.5%. Combined with the state of Lower Saxony's 20.1% stake, this left only 5.8% of shares on the market—mostly with index funds that could not legally sell.[77] Hedge funds desperate to cover their short positions forced Volkswagen stock above one thousand euros per share, briefly making it the world's largest company by market capitalisation on 28 October 2008.[78] By January 2009, Porsche had a 50.76% holding in Volkswagen AG, although the "Volkswagen Law" prevented it from taking control of the company.[

On 6 May 2009, the two companies decided to join together, in a merger.

On 13 August, Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft's Supervisory Board signed the agreement to create an integrated automotive group with Porsche led by Volkswagen. The initial decision was for Volkswagen to take a 42.0% stake in Porsche AG by the end of 2009, and it would also see the family shareholders selling the automobile trading business of Porsche Holding Salzburg to Volkswagen.[80] In October 2009 however, Volkswagen announced that its percentage in Porsche would be 49.9% for a cost of €3.9 billion (the 42.0% deal would have cost €3.3 billion).[81] On 1 March 2011, Volkswagen has finalized the purchase of Porsche Holding Salzburg (PHS), Austria's leading specialty automobile distributor, for €3.3 billion ($4.55 billion).