1976 Volkswagen Beetle 1600 Sedan

Description

Designed by Dr. Ferdinand Porsche as mass transportation for Germany in the mid-1930s, the Volkswagen entered production in 1939 but it wasn't until 1945 that Beetles began rolling off the line at Wolfsburg in large numbers. By 1975, the Beetle had surpassed the Model T's incredible total of 15 million cars produced and ultimately remained in production until a few years ago - testimony to the qualities inherent in Dr. Porsche's original design. Development of the Beetle was continuous, the original 1100cc model giving way to 1300 and 1500 versions in the mid-1960s with the extra power matched by an all-synchro gearbox. Big news in 1970 was the radical - for Volkswagen at any rate - move away from the torsion bar front suspension found on earlier models to MacPherson struts, along with the standardisation of a double-jointed back axle. These 'Super Beetle' 1302/1302S models (with 44bhp 1300cc and 50bhp 1500cc engines respectively) had vastly improved handling whilst retaining the traditional Beetle virtues of reliability, excellent build quality and fuel economy. Front disc brakes became an option on the 1302 (they were standard on the 1302S) but the rest of the Beetle remained largely unchanged. Between 1968 and 1976 Volkswagen assembled imported CKD (Completely Knocked Down) Type 1 Beetles at Clayton (Melbourne) factory, which was the first car factory in Australia to use full immersion anti-corrosion dipping and four-layer baked enamel paint finishes. Local production of the Beetle finished in July 1976.