We all know that Hitler commissioned the creation of the Beetle. Originally known as the Type 1, this car is Hitler’s vision of a five-passenger mode of transportation. Since then, as the cliché goes, everything was history. From creating VW parts for the Beetle, we now see Volkswagen stem out to provide other quality VW parts for other vehicles. But, little did we know, Volkswagen was a company rivaled in East Germany. Hence, the Beetle also has its “communist counterpart”, the Trabant or Trabi.

This little cutesy ride also rivaled the Beetle when it comes to being an icon. Even if its production halted in the year 1991, the Trabant is still successful in the many hearts that it won. Until today, Trabis are still used for transporting fun, and happy-go-lucky tourists in Germany. There are a lot of similarities between the Trabant and the Beetle. The Trabi just happens to be like the Beetle’s cheaper version, which was probably because it did not get funds from the government. Also, it received a connotation of being the “communist’s Beetle” because whereas the Beetle is employed by the Dictator Hitler, this car is not. It is a free-for-all entity.

So since there is not much tension between the Beetle and the Trabi (especially since this dictatiorship has long been over), let us congratulate and look back at Trabant’s glorious years. They have just reached their golden 50^th year. So, cheers to you, Beetle-bro!

Source: Reuters

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 14th, 2007 at 5:03 am and is filed under Beetle Facts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.