An overlook of automotive industry in Germany

With the highest car production and sales in Europe, it isn’t surprising that Germany stands foremost in the global automotive industry. Cars like Audi, Porsche, BMW, Daimler-Benz all have their birthplace in Germany.

What’s more, Elon Musk was personally there to hand over the keys to Tesla’s first auto factory in Germany; clearly a testament to German expertise.

With miles of roads and millions of cars on the Autobahns, you can be sure of Kfz teile24 aktionscode and gutscheine to meet all your needs for auto spare parts, supplies and customer car care wherever you go in Germany.

 

The auto industry in Germany had a great start. With an inventive and brilliant mindset, Nicolaus Otto and Karl Benz invented the 4 stroke combustion engine in 1887, and by 1901, Germany was producing 900 cars annually.

The predecessors of BMW and others soon followed, and the Roaring 1920s saw at least 80 car companies in production. However, all this progress saw an unfortunate downturn in the Great Depression of the 1930’s, with only 12 companies surviving this debacle.

The survivors included among others were Opel, Daimler-Benz and a manufacturing facility managed by Ford in the city of Cologne. American manufacturers had meanwhile made inroads into the German automotive industry in the 1920s, in the slower days of the Weimar Republic.

In the 1940s, Germany planned and executed a revival of the auto industry. Using people friendly initiatives such as Motorisierung(motorization) coupled with a better road transport policy, it was hoped that the German auto industry would be reinvigorated.

Germany’s first Autobahn was constructed in1935. This was followed by a project to design and construct a robust yet affordable vehicle for the benefit of the common man. Ultimately the famed Volkswagen Beetle was created in 1937.

Beginning in 1945, a new city named Wolfsburg took shape in the environs of the Volkswagen factory- its main purpose being to accommodate the workforce involved. World War II however saw this Volkswagen facility switch to military output in 1940.

In the aftermath of World War II, Germany had to lift itself up from the ashes and rebuild its auto industry. The nation’s defeat meant that any financial help from abroad was tied to its export earnings.

A blessing in disguise, this nevertheless served to spearhead the German auto revival. Firms like Opel, BMW, Borgward and Porsche started up again, with mixed fortunes in production and profits. Maybach and Adler automobile were also resurrected, but they stopped producing passenger cars.

East Germany went under Soviet control and in the early years sent reusable machinery back to the auto industry. At a later stage, EMW and VEB also contributed to East Germany’s auto industry, right up to the 1990s when Germany was reunified.

The 1950s saw the Bubble car become popular. In this decade, the largest carmaker was BMW. Its flagship cars were the Isetta and 600. Micro-cars like the BMW 700 and the Lloyd 600 also saw a spurt of popularity in this era. The IFA FB and the Trabant were among East Germany’s top sellers during this time.

The late 1950s once again saw mixed fortunes for German auto manufacturers. BMW went into losses and its ownership was taken over by the Quandt family. BMW had acquired Glas in 1966. Borgward went out of business in 1961. Daimler purchased Auto Union in 1958, but this was later divested and sold in parts to Volkswagen AG. Meanwhile, Audi came into its own once again.

MeanwhileNSU Motorenwerke,  the creator of the Wankel engine, was bought out by Volkswagen AG in 1969.  In the beginning, NSU was merged with Auto Union. However, a slowdown in sales and reliability issues plagued NSU so much that production of its Ro80 rotary engine had to be halted. Finally, NSU had to close its doors in 1977.

The year 1967 saw Ford unify its operations in Germany and Britain. Its intention was to produce similar vehiclesthrough its factories in the two countries. Ford had also expanded in Belgium and Spain. A new Ford car, the Escortwas launched in 1967. It was the first vehicle to be produced with similar specifications in both countries.

1969 saw the launch of the Capri, a new sporting coupe that like the Escort was produced all through Europe. While 1970s Taunus borrowed from the same basic design as the British Cortina MK3, the styling of its exterior was clearly different.

These styling differences were minimized with the launch of the 1976 version of the car. Then in 1972, Ford's new flagship model, the Granadacommenced production simultaneously in three countries- Britain, Germany and Spain. However, the British version of the car was withdrawn after some time. The Scirocco coupe was also a success in Germany in 1974, its main competitors being the Ford Capri and Opel Mantra.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Volkswagen and Audi got some measure of success in overseas markets. Volkswagen had encountered some financial difficulties earlier, but this was somewhat dissipated with the success of the Passat, Golf and Polo. In the same period, General Motors integrated Germany’s brand Opel with Britain’s Vauxhall brand so that they had similar designs.

The end of the 1990s witnessed VW’s foray into the supercar and luxury spheres of the automobile market. It made this move by purchasing the Bentley brand from Britain and Bugatti and Lamborghini from Italy.

The Rover Group was acquired by BMW in 1994, but was discontinued in 2000. The were first Frank Weber, a former engineer at Opel, first invented and later developed the Chevrolet Volt and its GM Voltec powertrain Technology. The present changes in GM’s electric car manufacture and technology development continue to take place in Germany.

Tesla, the electric car manufacturer has started the process of constructing its first European car battery production facility in the area of Grünheide near Berlin. This was started in 2019 as stated by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. At the start, it is expected to employ in excess of 4,000 employees.

Also read: Galaxy M33 5G with 6000mAh battery launched in India

With such a rich history, it is evident that cars in Germany rank among the topmost industries. Whether you are a car enthusiast or not, Kfzeteile24 gutscheincode can help meet all your needs for spares, support and auto parts. Wherever you are in Germany, our network is there to assist you. 

  

Jonas Hoffman is a keen car enthusiast with an in-depth knowledge of Germany’s automobile sector. In his spare time, he is a freelance writer and loves to cook and look after his two German shepherds.