L41 BLACK
L11 PASTEL GREEN
USED 1949–53
L13 MEDIUM GREEN
USED 1949–52
L14 RESEDA GREEN
USED 1949–52
L19 ATLANTIC BLUE USED 1949–53
BEETLE PRODUCTION, 1949–79
BUILT IN LES 19 ET 45,782 SEDANS
1.25M
: 49
BE
USED ALL YEARS, 1949–79
99+1
1949 PAINT COLORS
1M
750K
364 CABRIOLETS
(0.78% OF 1949 PRODUCTION)
500K
500K
L21 PEARL GRAY USED 1949–53
250K
L23 SILVER GRAY USED 1949–52
L32 DARK BLUE
’49
’79
USED 1949–52
L351 CORAL RED
USED 1949–50
PRODUCTION FOR 1949
L51 BORDEAUX RED
USED 1949–50
L60 IVORY
USED 1949–52
L61 YELLOW
USED 1949–50
L70 MEDIUM BROWN
USED 1949–53
L71 BEIGE
USED 1949–53
TOTAL NUMBER BUILT: 46,146 0.2% of total Beetle production CABRIOLETS BUILT: 364 0.002% of total Beetle production .78% of ’49 Beetle production NUMBER BUILT IN GERMANY: 46,146 100% of ’49 Beetle production Sedans were built in Wolfsburg Cabriolets were built in Osnabrück
’49 BEETLE PRODUCTION TRIVIA: In 1947, Volkswagen exported its first vehicles: Five sedans went to The Netherlands. 1949 saw the first Beetle shipped to the United States. By 1950, the company exported one-third of its entire production to countries all over the world.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE SAMBA
ALSO IN 1949
APRIL 8, 1949: “GERMANS SEE PEOPLE’S CAR — AT LONG LAST: A dozen years ago, Adolf Hitler promised a shiny new Volkswagen to any German with the 1,000 marks to pay for it. The war intervened, and not a People’s Car reached the people. … The stubby, one-style jobs of the original design, with air-cooled rear engines, are finally rolling out for civilians at a rate of 40,000 a year. … The chiefs at Wolfsburg say they can get rid of every Volkswagen their 8,000 workers produce.”
1949 gave us the movies White Heat, All The King’s Men, and Adam’s Rib. The 45rpm record was introduced. The year in popular music began with “All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth” and ended with “Mule Train.” Big albums came from Bing Crosby, Doris Day, and Frankie Laine. World heavyweight boxing champ Joe Louis retired. A B-50 Superfortress bomber became the first airplane to complete a non-stop, around-the-world flight. The U.S. had Harry Truman in the White House and a population of about 149 million.
VW TRENDS • SUMMER ’23
9
