Volkswagen's 75-Year Legacy: Celebrating the Journey from Beetle to ID. Buzz in America

Seventy-five years back, the first type 1 pair of Volkswagen cars rolled out in New York, warming up the wheels for the American adventure of the legendary Beetle. In order to immortalize the beginning, VW is showcasing a photographic time-travel from the classic 49 Beetle to the retro-futuristic 2024 VW ID.

The EV Buzz truck highlights the spectacular evolution of the auto industry. It is all part of VW's 75th anniversary campaign—a heartfelt “love letter” to America.

The anniversary campaign targeted to plant in each and every one the cultural impact VW had in America through its heart-touching owner stories and marking the brand's return to the Super Bowl LVIII after a break.

Albeit, no specific details were disclosed, it is almost certain that the electric VW ID 7 will be the attraction point since its launch in the USA is scheduled for the second half of 2024.

To provoke the advertising campaign, VW divulged a gallery spotlighting the classic Beetle adjoining the fully electric ID.Buzz and ID.4. While the photos capture amazingly the exterior style and contrasted dimensions of the cars, classic and modern, the interior shots are the ones that deliver the true technological evolution.

Volkswagen's journey in the United States started in 1949, when the Dutch businessman Ben Pon introduced two VW Beetles to New York. The following year, the Microbus touched American soil. Initially, car sales proved to be a tough challenge, but these quiet beginnings did not foreshadow the extraordinary path that lay ahead.

American Volkswagen was officially founded in 1955, but it was not until 1959 that the iconic advertising campaign Think Small reshaped Americans' perceptions of the Beetle. 

The Beetle (Type 1) and the Bus (Type 2) were followed by the conventional Squareback (Type 3) in the ‘60s. In the '70s, the VW lineup extended with Dasher (Passat), Rabbit (Golf), Jetta, and Scirocco.

In 1978, American production opened the Westmoreland factory in Pennsylvania, where Volkswagen assembled over 1.1 million Rabbit units, including the performance-targeted GTI, which had become an iconic model in the hit hatch department. Fast forward to 2008, Volkswagen inaugurated the Chattanooga Assembly plant in Tennessee, accentuating its devotion to localizing manufacturing in the United States.