Offered for sale is this
EXTREMELY RARE ORIGINAL 1938 OFFICIAL KdF CAR BOOK
DEIN KDF – WAGEN
This unique 8-1/2 x 12 inch, soft cover book with 34 heavily illustrated pages is a must-have for anyone interested in the famous KdF-Wagen (KdF-Car or People’s Car or Volkswagen), invented by Ferdinand Porsche to fulfill Adolf Hitlers desire to mobilize the German people. The book was published in 1938 by the Volkswagenwerk and printed by the publishing house of the Deutsche Arbeitsfront. Hitler’s vision was a mass-produced vehicle that was affordable to the average German. Even though Hitler himself could not drive he was fascinated in cars and the idea appealed to him. At the 1934 Automobilaustellung (Car Show) in Berlin he stated that the National Socialist government would support the development of a “People’s Car” that should carry two adults and three children at a speed of 60mph with a price of not more than RM 1,000.00 which was not much more than the cost of a motorcycle at that time. Also introduced was a savings scheme where the individual could collect stamps that would eventually pay for the car. Three stamp books had to be filled to be eligible for an order number.
On May 26, 1938 Hitler laid the groundstone of the new factory and during the ceremony he declared that the model would be known as the “KdF-Wagen” and the surrounding town which was built to support the factory would be known as the “KdF Stadt” (KdF City). The planned start of production was in September of 1939 but this turned out to be the same month as the outbreak of World War Two. The KdF-Wagen was put on hold and the production changed to a military version. It was promised that the delivery of the civilian KdF cars will take place after the war was won and none of the thousands who had collected their stamps ever received their beetle. After the end of World War Two, KdF City, now located in the British sector, was rebuilt and renamed into Wolfsburg and from 1948 thru 1985 20 million Volkswagen beetle were made in Wolfsburg and the branch in Mexico!
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