The first VW Beetle arrived in the United States in January 1949. Since then, more than 5.5 million Beetle models have been sold in the U.S., in three distinctive designs
In January of 1949, a Volkswagen “Type 1,” or Beetle, was shipped to New York City by Ben Pon, Sr., a Dutch businessman and the world’s first official Volkswagen importer. That car—and another, subsequent Beetle— found buyers the same year, marking the first time that Volkswagen vehicles were sold in the United States.
A cultural touchstone for an entire generation and one of the most iconic cars in the world, the Beetle led to the establishment of the first Volkswagen of America headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., in October 1955.
By the mid-1950s, more than 35,000 Beetle models were on the road, and by 1960, nearly 300,000 had found buyers. Americans were not only drawn to the affordability and practicality of the early Beetle, but were so charmed by its unique design, its size, and its fuel economy that they’d forged an emotional bond with the cars.
From custom paint jobs to open-top Dune Buggy bodies, the Beetle fit perfectly into the counter-culture of the 1960s. By 1968, as many as 423,008 Beetle vehicles a year were being sold in the United States. In 1977, the last “Type 1” Beetle rolled off the production line in Wolfsburg, Germany.
