Volkswagen
Autostadt
October
2002
The Autostadt logo
Located in Wolfsburg,
Germany (about 4 hours north of Frankfurt), the Volkswagen Autostadt is a
collection of buildings and pavilions featuring the different manufacturers
owned by Volkswagen. These include
Volkswagen, Audi, SEAT (from Spain),
Skoda (Czech Republic), Lamborghini (Italy), Bentley and Bugatti (England). The
complex also features 6 restaurants, numerous gift shops, a delivery center for
those picking up their new VWs at the factory, and a 5-Star Ritz-Carlton
Hotel.
An aerial view of the
Autostadt complex shows the large KonzernForum in the foreground, with the
other pavilions behind it. A footbridge
connects everything to the city of Wolfsburg.
Web Link for the Autostadt: www.autostadt.de
Click on the small English
flag for the English language website.
The Konzernforum is the
starting point for the exploration of Autostadt. This large, glass-walled building houses the welcome area,
several restaurants, a children’s’ area, and the technical exhibit area.
The lobby of the
Conzernforum features a large suspended globe.
This is an overview of the
Autostadt complex. Visible are the Skoda
pavilion (in the foreground, looks like a pie divided into 8 slices), the Audi
pavilion (to the left behind Skoda)), the SEAT pavilion (to the right and
behind Skoda) and the 2 large round towers housing the new Volkswagens awaiting
their new owners. The smokestacks in the background are part of the actual
Volkswagen factory.
These two towers are the
most predominant features of the park.
Within each tower is parking for over 400 new Volkswagens awaiting their
owners to pick them up at the delivery center (to the right). Everything is automated. The cars are taken up and inserted into
their parking spots by automated elevators and conveyors, then automatically
delivered via underground tunnel to the delivery center when their owner
arrives.
The Kundencenter (Customer
Center) is where people can come to take delivery of their new Volkswagens.
Inside the Kundencenter,
there is a large showroom of all VW models.
Here, Spencer is using one of the interactive touch-screen computers to
learn more about Volkswagen. The screen
can display the information in German, English, or several other
languages. It was nice to be able to
look at the newest cars Volkswagen makes, even some not on the market for
months to come.
In the Kundencenter, new car owners are getting their orientations
to their new Volkswagens. On the
average, between 400-500 owners per day pick up their new cars here.
After looking through the
delivery center, we walked next door to the VW pavilion. Inside, a large globe housed a 360-degree
theatre. Spencer is waiting patiently for the door and walkway to open. Seated in reclining chairs, we were treated
to a surround-movie.
After the movie, we were
treated to a close-up and personal view of the new VW Touareg SUV. It won’t be on sale in Germany until
November 2002, and won’t be in the states until 2003. Engine choices (for Europe) include a powerful V-6 gasoline engine
and a Really-Powerful(!) V-10 Turbo Diesel.
How powerful? Think top speed in
the 150 mph range! How much? From
$35,000 up to about $60,000.
Next on our stop was the
SEAT (pronounced say-aht), a Spanish subsidiary of VW. They basically produce Volkswagens with a
Spanish flavor. They use the same
chassis and engines, but are designed slightly differently. As you walk up the walkway to the pavilion,
castanets automatically play on the speakers.
Like Spain, the pavilion is built on a peninsula.
When we were in Versailles,
France, we went through the Hall of Mirrors.
Well, the SEAT pavilion has a wall of mirrors outside the entrance
door. It is composed of 360 rearview
mirrors from SEAT cars.
The SEAT Ibeza, with the
wildest paint job we saw that day. Not
all SEATs are painted like this.
Most are pretty average looking (but still sporty!).
Here, Spencer checks out the
computer interaction for the SEAT Cupra.
It’s a nice, sporty sedan
with VW mechanical parts.
This SEAT concept car was in
a rotating glass cylinder (hence the glare).
It is a cool 2-seater sports
coupe which would be a hit in the USA.
Over at the Lamborghini
pavilion, the $275,000 car is part of a smoke and light show. When the car “disappears” during the show,
it appears briefly on the outside of the building. The large circular platform swings around in about 2-3 seconds to
make the car suddenly re-appear inside.
My favorite building was the
ZeitHaus, which is a museum and technology display.
This 4-story building houses
some very interesting and historical cars, as you will see. In the background you can see the first 3
levels of cars. The top floor houses
the oldest cars, and the newer cars are shown on lower floors. The VW Beetle to the right represents one of
the first Beetles being unloaded at the docks in America.
More of the Zeithaus museum.
This 1886 Benz was the
world’s first car (sorry, Henry Ford, Karl Benz beat you by several years). It
was powered by a one-cylinder engine and had a top speed of 16 Kilometers per
hour (about 10 mph).
Next to the 1886 Benz was
this interesting collection of old headlights, horns, tool kits, etc.
The 1927 Hanomag 2/10
PS “Kommissbrot”. It got its nickname because it resembled the
loaves of bread given to soldiers. Powered by a one-cylinder engine, it reached
a top speed of about 35 mph. It was
available as a sports car, station wagon (saloon), delivery van, or even as a
small truck.
This beautiful 1930 Cadillac
V-16 really caught my eye. The Germans
seemed to appreciate its beauty and mechanical features. It was Cadillac’s first 16-cylinder (7.4
liters or 452 cu. In.) which powered it to over 100 miles per hour.
The V-16 Cadillac also
featured a rumble seat for the kids.
This was a golfer’s convertible, with
a separate space for the golf clubs.
This is a replica of a 1936
VW Beetle V3 prototype. There were
three made, but all were destroyed because of fears other companies would steal
their design. This was just one of 3
designs considered by the original creator of the Beetle, Dr. Ferdinand
Porsche. The 3 original V3 prototypes
were driven over 6,000 miles through rough roads in the Black Forest to prove
their durability. With a 23 HP engine, it reached a top speed of 60 mph.
A view of the 1936 VW V3
Prototype from the rear.
I’m glad they eventually
decided to put in a rear window.
Also from 1936 was this Auto
Union Type C Grand Prix race car. Powered by a 520 HP, 6-Liter V-12 engine, it
won 9 of the 16 races it entered that year.
Top speed was about 210 mph.
Auto Union later became one of the 4 companies that joined to form Audi
(hence the 4 rings in the Audi logo).
The beautiful grille from
the Type C in the previous picture.
A beautiful late 30’s BMW
328 sedan. I like it better than the
new ones!
Here’s an interesting
cutaway view of an old VW Beetle.
It was built using less than
¼ the parts needed for a New Beetle.
Compare the cutaway New
Beetle to the original in the previous picture.
They’re not as simple, eh?
How’s this for original,
unrestored condition? This 1951 Lancia
Aurelia is displayed as it was found in a barn and is to remain unrestored for
posterity. The Lancia Aurelia was a
technological wonder: the first
production car in the world with a V-6
engine, semi-trailing arm rear suspension, and front engine car with the
transmission mounted at the rear (like the new Corvette). In the Mille Miglia (a 1000-mile cross
country race in Europe), the ’51 Aurelia coupe came in second, just behind a
Ferrari three times as powerful.
Here’s a piece of history –
The 1,000,000th Beetle! It’s
all decked out in glitter chrome and whitewalls. Here’s a Quiz – What year did this milestone occur? (see answer below
the next picture)
The 1959 Messerschmitt
KR200. Built by the same company that
built German fighter planes in WW II, this car definitely shows the company’s
airplane heritage. (Note the canopy roof).
The car was designed to motorize war invalids in 1948 by Fritz
Fend. It was called the “Flitzer”, or
dart). Weighing only 600 lbs., it was also nicknamed “Snow White’s
coffin”. Hmmmm. It was ½ the cost of a new VW Beetle.
**Answer to quiz on previous
picture: the 1,000,000th
Beetle was made in 1955.
The view from behind the
Messerschmitt KR200. It’s barely 36
inches wide.
The tandem seating
arrangement of the Messerschmitt KR200, just like a fighter plane.
Note the yoke-type
steering. Quite a difference from
American cars in 1959!
Here’s a scary picture. A VW Van Fire Truck. Anyone who has followed a VW Van struggling
to get up a small hill at 30 mph will understand – the fire would be out by the
time this one got there. Even on level
ground with a tailwind, these vans would be hard pressed to reach 75 mph.
The VW Beetle Model 1302
“World Champion”. How did it get that
name? Well, this actual Beetle was the
15,007,034th Beetle off the assembly line. Up to that point, the Ford Model T had sold the most cars
(15,007,033). This made the Beetle the
best-selling car of all time. The year
– 1972.
One of the most famous
Beetles in the world. This one belonged
to John Lennon and is pictured on the cover of the Beatle’s “Abbey Road” album.
The 1955 Citroen 2CV “Duck”. Produced in France until recently, there are
many of these all over Europe.
In a way, they borrowed the styling from the Beetle, but these
were front-engine and front-wheel-drive.
The hood ornament on the
Citroen Duck.
Even American cars are represented
with this 1959 Cadillac Eldorado.
Look at the tailfins on that
Eldorado!! I bet those two tail fins
alone weigh more than
one of the Messerschmitt
KR200s pictured earlier.
After the Zeithaus museum,
we walked over to the Bentley pavilion.
Bentleys are the cars people move up to when they grow out of their
Rolls-Royce. This particular sedan
sells for $275,000 and is usually locked, but the attendant let Spencer sit in
it because he was being so careful around the car. The steering wheel takes one person 6 hours to hand-stitch the
leather covering.
In the Skoda pavilion, art
from the Czech Republic (Bohemia) reflects the history, culture, and politics
of the region and the people. These events
are depicted with the author’s irony and exaggeration. This scene depicts the burning at the stake
of church reformer Jan Hus in 1415. He
was a rector and preacher at Prague University. Many think he anticipated Martin Luther’s doctrine by a full
century. If you look to the scene on
the left (to the left of the round tower), you will see Hus on the stake.
A depiction of Mozart’s “Don
Giovanni”. Seems like a rowdy audience.
A more abstract
interpretation of progress. I don’t
understand the significance of the Beetle car with
insect legs being tormented and beaten by the people.
The Skoda pavilion did not
really feature any of the cars, but rather emphasized the culture of the Czech
people. The company was founded in 1895
by Vaclav Laurin (a mechanic) and Vaclav Klement (a bookseller). They first
produced bicycles, and moved on to manufacture motorcycles in 1899. In 1905,
they produced their first automobile, which enjoyed great success. In the 1920s, they merged with the Skoda Plzen,
a strong industrial partner. The new Skoda group manufactured trucks, buses,
aircraft engines and agricultural machinery, in addition to automobiles. Production was interrupted in WWII, when the
Nazi regime took control of manufacturing.
However, after the war, Skoda once again began producing cars under
Communist control. Though the cars were of older design and quite simple, Skoda
had a reputation for very good quality.
After the fall of Communism in 1989, Skoda was absorbed by the
Volkswagen Group and began producing cars based on and sharing Volkswagen
technology.
You can learn more about
Skoda at: www.skoda-auto.com
If the page is not in
English, click on the small British flag.
Back in the Konzernforum,
Spencer tried his hand at some of the hands-on computer simulations. In this station, you are a simulated air
molecule traveling through one of 3 different engines. You have to identify the engine by comparing
the 3-D images with the actual cutaway engines on display.
Here, Spencer (in the gray
sweatshirt with his back to the camera) gets assistance from our tour guide on
designing a custom car on the computer simulator. After the design is finished, we got a nice printout.
Walking back to the
Volkswagen pavilion, we passed these Volkswagen Rabbits. Really!
At the retail store of the
VW pavilion, you could buy lots of cool VW stuff.
Check out these Volkswagen
sleds! Cost - $42.00-50.00 each.
The most economical Volkswagens
made. Yes, VW makes bicycles.
The mountain bike on the end
is $990.00.
Spencer got to try his hand
at loading and unloading the truck with the remote controls.
He did a great job!
After loading the truck,
Spencer decided to try out one of the massage chairs.
They utilize the same
mechanisms as in the Phaeton seats.
Before we left to go back to
the hotel, we had supper in one of the restaurants. Delicious!
You will never believe what
they sell at this restaurant. Check out
the next picture.
Would you have believed
me? VW Ketchup!!! Honest!!!
The next day, we came back
to do the VW factory tour. The only
tour with an English-speaking guide was not held until 1:30, which was a little
late in the day considering we still had a 6 hour drive ahead of us. So, we took the German tour at 9am. Beth understood a lot more than I did, but
we still enjoyed the tour. Sorry, but
no photos were allowed once we were on the tour bus.
When we went to the parking
lot to get our car, we found this classic Beetle parked next to us.
Europe-Only Volkswagens
The VW Lupo, the smallest
Volkswagen. The 3-Cylinder diesel model
was recently driven around the world in 80 days by German engineers who
averaged 98 miles per gallon for the entire trip. Not bad!!
The Lupo interior.
Just because it’s the
smallest model doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.
This is the sporty version
of the Lupo.
This is the view of the sport
Lupo most drivers will see as it accelerates past them.
The Sharon van is really
nice. This model was an All-Wheel-Drive
with the
Turbo-Diesel engine and
6-Speed manual transmission.
Top speed – about 125
mph. Mileage – about 25-30mpg city/ 35-40
mpg highway.
The Phaeton was featured
last month as my Car of the Month on Dad’s Page.
For sale now in Europe (next
summer in the USA), it features an optional V-10 Turbo-Diesel engine or a
gasoline V-12 engine, either of which will propel this car to more than 155
mph. A true competitor for the largest
Mercedes S-Class and BMW 7-Series sedans.
Prices range from $60,000 to
$120,000.
A view of the VW Phaeton
from the rear.
Hope
you enjoyed your tour of the Autostadt!