Unsere Geschichte - Als der Bulli in den Norden kam

A trusty companion, flower power bus or the “mule of the economic miracle” – many people in northern Germany have very personal memories of the VW van. In 2017, the zest for life on wheels, made in Lower Saxony, celebrated its 70th birthday.
“Our History” documents its development from the T1 to an unmistakable piece of contemporary German history.
“No car has travelled along as many roads around the world as the VW bus,” says the globetrotter Dieter Kreutzkamp. Together with his wife Juliana, he has done what many only ever dream of: since the early 1950s the two of them have been travelling around the world in VW buses belonging to everything from the T1 to the T5 generation. The van is not just a recreational vehicle, but also the symbol of Germany’s economic miracle. “It was an important companion of the budding Federal Republic,” says Thomas Schwark, head of Hannover’s Historical Museums. Whether builders or grocers, post-war Germany needed delivery vans and the astonishingly spacious VW van proved to be ideal.
The story of the VW bus begins in 1947, when the Dutch merchant Ben Pon spots a gap in the market and makes a sketch, which soon afterwards becomes the first VW van – a revolution. In 1956, the VW bus is given its own factory in Hannover-Stöcken and from here it sets out on its triumphal march around the world. The bottom line: six generations, twelve million vehicles sold, and millions of enthusiasts all over the world. The success of the bus continues to this day. 40,000 ardent VW bus drivers make the pilgrimage to the Midsummer Bulli Festival on the island of Fehmarn as a convoy. Today, the cult car stands for freedom, community and a zest for life.