CARS AND POLITICS

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The Car Museum Louwman in the Hague has amazing collections but what for me most fascinating was the exhibition about relationship between cars and political leaders, for example Volswagen Bettle, Hitler and the first designer of the car who turned out to be Jewish or Churchill with his Humber Pullman. 

About the VW Bettle, Hitler wanted to produce affordable and simple cars for Germany's road networks. In 1934 he asked Ferdinan Porsche to design the car. It should be a car that would be able to transport two adults and three children at the speed 100km/hour and use not more 7 litres of fuel per 100 km. Spare parts had to be easily replaced and acquired. Finally, in 1938 the first factory to build the People's Car (the meaning of VW) was opened in Fallersleben with a speech titled "Strength through Joy Car". 

There was a story about involvement of a Jewish car designer named Josef Ganz, but in history books his involvement was disputable. 


Hitler made a sketch about his dream car that later realized as the VW Beetle.







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