Volkswagen Type 3

The Type 3 represents a milestone in the history of Volkswagen cars: With the launch of a third model series after the Beetle and the T2 Bus, the company dared to attempt to enter the mid-sized family car market in the early 1960s. The result was presented to the public for the first time at the 1961 Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (IAA) motor show in Frankfurt, and is therefore celebrating the 60th anniversary of its premier appearance this year. Reinhard Seiffert, the editor of das Auto, Motor und Sport magazine (renamed to auto motor und sport from edition 1/1963 onwards) and an enthusiastic observer of the latest automotive developments, called the Type 3 "as inconspicuous as Cinderella": "You look at this car, say to yourself: right, so that's it; and in future, when you see it on our roads in tens of thousands, you'll take note of its presence just as dispassionately."

The Type 3 "Variant", a three-door estate, was the first representative of a body design which, at the time, was completely new for Volkswagen. Initially presented as the VW 1500, the Type 3 was therefore the beginning of a success story that continues to this day: In the first production year, 1962, the Variant proportion of the entire Type 3 production still amounted to a mere eighteen percent. In 1967, the Variant already drew level with the two saloon versions, only to overtake them with a proportion of around 54 percent just a year later. However, throughout the time when the series was built, its design was continuously improved further. An optionally available extra was a Bosch electronic fuel injection system, which in those days above all ensured a clean fuel mixture and thereby a more efficient fuel combustion.