“The car is rather unattractive to the average car buyer, it's too ugly and too noisy... If you think about building cars in this place, you're a damn fool , young man." (Volkswagen, 2008, p. 1) This is what was once said about the Volkswagen company; as time passed no word could ever be so wrong. Nazi Germany founded Volkswagen thanks to the tenacity of Hitler in an attempt to create an affordable automobile for the German people, but over time, in the late 1930s, the people's car quickly evolved into a modern automotive enterprise. Before World War II Hitler had plans to create an automobile for the German masses, he envisioned an affordable vehicle capable of carrying three children, two adults and was capable of reaching speeds of 100 kilometers per hour. After failed attempts to create the ideal car , enlisted the help of Ferdinand Porsche. With Porsche's help they created Kraft durch Freude-Vagen, or Strength through Joy-Car. After the Kdf-Vagen a new design by Erwin Komenda emerged which turned out to be the legendary cockroach shape known throughout the world today. Komenda's design was tested for a million kilometers before it was deemed complete. On May 26, 1938, a factory for the production of these cars was built in the new town of KdF-Stadt. With the outbreak of war, production of the KdF -Vagen slowed down and the factory began producing military vehicles. During the war a new factory was built in Fallersleben on Lüneburg Heath to produce more military vehicles. This new factory, built by workers hired by Mussolini, was modeled after the Ford Manufacturing plant in Rouge River. Although the Germans saved for the new car, wartime forced factories to produce very few paper Beetles......they began to decline again in the 1980s with the rise of Japanese car manufacturers. Japanese automakers like Nissan and Toyota delivered cars at a price that Volkswagen couldn't compete with. A new revision of the Beetle once again proved to be the company's savior, reviving its sales and once again making it a leading automotive manufacturer. Now the company owns many other car companies such as Audi, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Seat, Skoda, Bentley, Scania, a part of Suzuki and Porsche. The Volkswagen company born out of the Third Reich and Hitler's demands turned out to be much more than a small German car from the 1930s, but rather a leading global automotive company. The company, born from the flames of war, has stood the test of time to become what it is today. “No company today is more a product of military might than Volkswagen.” (Lee, 2006, p.1)