Volkswagen Kübel – Kfz1

The Kübel became famous during World War Two as the German answer to the Jeep, in 1933 Hitler ordered the development of a “peoples car” (Volkswagen) with Dr Porsche (Auto-Union) and Werlin (Mercedes-Benz) to each submit one vehicle proposal. By 1934 Dr Porsche’s design was well established as the Volkswagen typ 62, but when the Wehrmacht decided to standardize on the vehicle design changes were required and this resulted in the Volkswagen Typ 82. It was not until 1940 that the end product was put into manufacture; the vehicle was cheep to manufacture with a simple structure and layout. The vehicle had power to two road wheels but was considered a 4x4, and in this role it performed well. This was complemented by the 998-cc Volkswagen Typ 1 4-cylinder HIAR air-cooled engine which was extremely reliable – coupled with the simple design, field maintenance was easy to carry out. The touring body of the vehicle was made of sheet metal with four doors, side screens and a canvas-folding roof.

Deutsches Kamel: The tropenfest (tropical) model was a Volkswagen Kübel modified for the desert, the most recognizable feature was the use of large rounded sand tyre.