Editor's Note
When Did Volkswagen Jump the Shark?
The whole world runs in cycles, as things improve, deteriorate and improve again. This up and down motion of quality, popularity and/or opinion and taste can be found in most everything, from fashion to television shows to movie stars to cars. Because of the nature of this cyclical movement, there must be a crest, a high point that signifies a peak, a summit by which everything else beyond it is "all downhill". At the zenith of this crest is usually an event that changes, for the worse, the popular opinion or quality of a certain thing. This event can be called a climax, a pinnacle or even a denouement (in literary circles). Despite all of these wonderful adjectives, the best phrase for when something peaks out is, "jumping the shark".
Remember "Happy Days", that fun-loving, coming-of-age television show in the late '70s that springboard so many actors into stardom? In Episodes 89-91, which aired in August 1977, Richie, Fonzie and the gang make a trip to Hollywood where Fonzie is offered a screen test at a movie studio. During said trip, Fonzie meets up with the California Kid (is all of this coming back to you now?), and they challenge each other to a water-skiing stunt to jump over a shark in a tank. Sounds silly, right? Well, Fonzie does it and is, yet again, a hero to one and all.
But, according to www.jumptheshark.com, Fonzie's stunt was the sign of doom for the show. Ron Howard left. Potsie starts singing. Arnold's burns down. Chachi shows up. Mork from Ork debuts. The list of events that spiralled the show into eventual cancelation is endless, hence the motivation behind "jump the shark."
So, back to the question at hand: From an aircooled point of view, when did Volkswagen jump the shark? When did we first see the beginning of its aircooled decline? There are several possibilities, of which I have my opinions about each one, but instead of telling you what I think, I'll give you a few ideas and you can decide for yourself (or perhaps you think I'm wrong altogether). Email me and let me know what you think, either way.
Jump the Shark Number One: 1968 Beetle-Some people will tell you that Volkswagen stopped making cars in 1968. Many things changed in this model year that altered the overall character of the Beetle: higher, straight bumpers, high-back seats, padded dash, the three-speed auto-stick, larger taillights. The '68 remained the familiar rounded shape, but conscious consumers could tell that serious change was on horizon, as this current trend later developed into the Super Beetle and the mid-'70s standard Beetle. Volkswagen was losing its grip on the market and began changing what arguably didn't need changing.
Jump the Shark Number Two: 1968 Type 411/412-The Type IV was Heinz Nordhoff's last attempt to make a better, more popular, car than the Beetle. Since most of German's duty barriers were lifted in 1966, several foreign cars flooded Europe's market, edging out VW's hold. In attempt to regain lost ground, they reasoned the Type IV would attract potential owners away from other car makers. In fact, the car's design was too modern for current tastes, and too expensive for VW's customers. In six years (1968 to '74) they produced only 370,000, and the car, from a production point of view, was deemed a horrible failure. Was the rest downhill after that?
Jump the Shark Number Three: 1970 Volkswagen K70-The K70 began life as the NSU Ro80 (Ro stood for rotary), powered by a twin-rotor Wankel engine similar to the engine used in current RX7s. The rotary engine (with leaking oil seals, et al) was soon abandoned in place of a standard piston-driven engine, and the name of the car was changed to K70, where K stood for kolben, piston. The car was set to be released in 1969, but this was canceled when Volkswagen bought out NSU. The only change made to the car was the addition of the VW logo on the front grill (the only place it could be found). This was Volkswagen's first foray into the world of watercooled, front-wheel-drive, front-engine cars. It failed miserably and after only 211,127 cars produced, they canceled production in February 1975.
Jump the Shark Number Four: 1973 Passat-The Passat was introduced to Europe in May 1973, and was a Volkswagen version of an Audi 80, which had been in production for almost a year before Volkswagen acquired Audi. The only difference between the two was a slight change in body style and the rear suspension. However, its affect was astronomical. With the introduction of the Passat at the Wolfsburg plant, VW CEO Rudolf Leiding killed both the Type III in July 1973 and the Type IV the following year in an attempt to break with the past and enter into new markets. The Passat (followed by the Golf/Rabbit, Scirocco, Polo, etc.) was the first car in a new wave of watercooled vehicles which financially saved the company, and, at the same time, distanced itself from its aircooled roots. Volkswagen was a watercooled company from here on out.
Jump the Shark Number Five: 1979 Transporter-Six years after Volkswagen switched gears, getting their feet wet with new engines in the front of their line of cars, they had finally put the aircooled, rear-engine Beetle on the back burner and were headed toward larger markets with different cars. The third generation Transporter was designed for the 1979 market using pre-watercooled technology. Much to the disappointment of most consumers, the engine remained aircooled and it remain in the rear, regardless that VW had several engines that were suitable for the Transporter application. VW CEO Toni Schmucker decided that the Transporter had no direct competition, therefore, it didn't need the benefit of VW's advanced technology.
Has Volkswagen jumped back? Has it redeemed itself and returned to its former glory? Yes and no. After a chaotic stint near the bottom of the import market in the late '80s and early '90s (so far that they considered pulling out of the U.S. market), Volkswagen returned again with a streamlined production plan, various models on similar chassis and a strict marketing approach. These changes have served VWAG well, since it is again at the top of its game in the auto-world. For them, they've jumped back. But for us, the aircooled enthusiasts, the Volkswagen product was never again the same...watercooled came from the benefits of aircooled. People collect and restore aircooled cars. When was the last time you saw an impeccably restored '78 Passat?
Just something to think about.
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