German Car Zone

Who are the major shareholders of Volkswagen AG?

Shareholder Structure based on Shareholder ID
as of December 31, 2007

In percent of subscribed capital:
22.5% Porsche Automobil Holding SE *
14.8% State of Lower Saxony **
6.2% German institutional investors
25.6% Foreign institutional investors
30.9% Private shareholders / others

In percent of voting rights:
30.60% Porsche Automobil Holding SE *
20.10% State of Lower Saxony **

* As at March 14, 2008 in accordance with a notification dated March 14, 2008.
** In accordance with a notification dated January 28, 2008.
(This information is based on a variety of sources and is to the best of our knowledge accurate.)

Did Hitler create Volkswagen ?
No, the concept of a "peoples car" was not Hitlers idea, Hitler did however speed the process of its development & financed the 1st prototypes in 1934.

The Volkswagen Company was financed by the "Reichsverband der Deutschen Automobilindustrie" RDA (Reich Association of German Auto Industry) a division of the DAF (German Labour Front) [whose money was from German workers] who wanted to manufacture a "people's car" for Germans.

Ferdinand Porsche was commisioned to develop the Type 1 (Beetle) in 1934.
Hitler did have this following criteria:
-the car had to have a top speed of 100 KPH / 62MPH.
-be able to climb hills and average 7 litres per 100km / 40 miles to the gallon.
-an aircooled engine for reliability in all climates and be cheap to repair.
-have to carry 2 adults and 3 children and their luggage.
-platform sharing aka Kubelwagen & Schwimmwagen etc.
-could only cost 990 Reichmarks.

Why didn't Volkswagen fall after WW2 ?
The British Government took control of the factory until a firm German Goverment was in place.

Under the stewardship of Colonel Charles Radclyffe, Colonel Michael McEvoy and Major Ivan Hirst Volkswagenwerk GmBH secured a 20,000 unit order that made the company viable to produce again.

What Automotive Companies does Volkswagen AG Own ?

Volkswagen - Europes biggest auto manufacturer maker of all vehicle varieties. Active

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles - formed in 1995 as a separate entity from Volkswagen, VWCV build vans & light trucks, its Truck & Bus subsidary builds trucks ranging from 5-44 tonnes & bus chassis' ranging from 5 -18 tonnes.Active

Audi - Auto Union an old German Auto Empire which comprises of Audi,DKW,Horch and Wanderer was bought in 1965, the only company still active is Audi.Active

NSU an old German Auto manufacturer was bought in 1969, its engineering highlight being the Rotary engine.Inactive

SEAT a Spanish Auto manufacturer was bought in 1986, it use to clone FIAT models for the Spanish market.Active

Skoda Auto a Czech Republic manufacturer was bought in 1990 it is one of the oldest carmakers in the world.Active

Bentley a British Auto manufacturer which built Luxury cars for Europes royals in the Early 20th Century it was bought in 1998 its signature is the Craftsmanship and Power.Active

Bugatti an old French Auto manufacturer which built luxury car for Europes royals in the Early 20th Century it was bought in 1998.Active

Lamborghini is a Italian Manufacturer which builds high performance supercars it was bought in 1998.Active

VW has Shares in following Truck Companies
29.9% in MAN AG a German Truck & Bus manufacturer.

20.3% share & 35.31% voting rights in Scania a Swedish Truck & Bus manufacturer.

Does Volkswagen AG own any other Companies ?
VWAG have there own Finance and Bank and a Marine company called Volkswagen Marine which builds engines for Marine vehicles.

Who designed Volkswagens Logo ?
The actual inventor of the VW emblem should however be viewed as Franz Xaver Reimspiess, whose original design had already been submitted in a trademark application from 1938. A more developed emblem which showed the letters in a so-called Strahlenkranz (radiant garland) was, according to Walter, displayed on wheel caps at the Berlin Auto Show in April 1939.

excerpt taken from TheSamba.com :: View topic - VW Logo: Original Designer

What is Volkswagens Strategy towards the Enviroment & Sustainability ?
This site has all the answers on VW's aims towards the future
Volkswagen Mobility and Sustainability

Whats the difference between Clean TDI, BlueTDI & BlueMotion ?

Clean TDI Volkswagen Announces 50-State BLUETEC Jetta TDI for 2008

This clean diesel Jetta meets the lowest emissions standards without the use of urea injection. Instead, a nitrogen oxide storage catalyst reduces NOx emissions by up to 90 percent. The engine management system in the Jetta changes operating modes periodically to treat the NOx that has been stored in the catalytic converter. A particulate filter in the exhaust system further reduces emissions.

BlueTDI Geneva 2007: Volkswagen Touareg BlueTDI

SCR is the usual international acronym for "Selective Catalytic Reduction". "Selective" refers to the fact that this catalytic converter has a very special task. Its purpose is to selectively convert the nitrogen oxide (NOx) exhaust components to nitrogen and water without generating any undesirable side products.

The nitrogen oxides are converted utilizing a synthetically produced, water-based urea solution, e.g. AdBlue, which is stored in an auxiliary tank on the Touareg BlueTDI. The substance, consisting of 32.5 percent urea, is continuously sprayed into the exhaust stream before the SCR catalytic converter. It is metered based on the mass flow of the exhaust. Engine management ensures precise regulation, based on information from a NOx sensor located after the SCR catalytic converter.

Atomized into a fine spray by a screen, the urea is transformed in the hot exhaust gas stream upstream of the catalytic converter. In the SCR catalytic converter this reacts with the nitrogen oxides and splits them, as described, into nitrogen and water. The water-based additive AdBlue is non-toxic, odorless and biodegradable.

AdBlue is consumed at an average rate of about 0.1 liter per 100 kilometers. Consumption and tank size are sized so that the AdBlue supply does not need to be replenished until the next scheduled service.

BlueMotion Geneva 2006: Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion

Engine:This new engine generally distinguishes itself through modifications in the areas charge changing (turbo charger with variable turbine geometry) and optimized exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) with an improved EGR cooler and electrically powered EGR valve.

The diesel particle filter (DPF) comes standard with the Polo BlueMotion and despite being considerably economic is very agile.

Transmission: The second technical column for saving fuel is through the power train. For its use in the Polo BlueMotion, the five gear transmission received longer translations with cruising gear characteristic that lower the rotation level. Especially the gears three to five have twelve and 24 percent longer translations. Effect: From now on, the three-cylinder TDI works in its most efficient rotation area more often and longer. These modifications in the drive train area are supported by 14” alloy wheels, especially created for the Polo BlueMotion. The wheels come standard with optimized roll resistant tires.

Links of Interest

Official Site

Volkswagen international brand portal

Volkswagen AG

Volkswagen Group - Homepage

VW History

Volkswagen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Volkswagen AutoMuseum

:: Volkswagen AutoMuseum :: Home (in German)

Volkswagen Auto Pavilion
Volkswagen South Africa – AutoPavilion

Autostadt
www.autostadt.de - Startseite

Volkswagen Investor Relations

Volkswagen Investor Relations

Volkswagen Books

VW Books - Volkswagen Books - Porsche Books - AUDI Books all from vwbooks.co.uk

Volkswagen Magazines

Aircooled Magazines

Welcome to VolksWorld
Ultra VW - Home
hotVWs.com
VW Trends Magazine Home Page
Performance VW Magazine from Unity Media


Watercooled Magazines

VWm: The original and best VW magazine
AutoMetrix Publications, publishers of Volkswagen Driver magazine
Performance VW Magazine from Unity Media
The Golf magazine


Regional Magazines

VW Magazine Australia Home Page Australia
vwmagazine.co.uk UK
Brock's VW Magazine Online - VWMAGAZINE.COM US
www.supervwmag.com/vwus/supervw

Camper & Commercial Vehicle Magazines

Volkswagen Camper & Commercial: Home is where you park it.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles

Volkswagen Nutzfahrzeuge (in German)

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (UK)

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Volkswagen Truck & Bus

Volkswagen Caminhões e Ônibus (in Portugese)

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Volkswagen Motorsport

www.volkswagen-motorsport.com/

VW Racing

Volkswagen Racing Cup

Volkswagen South Africa – Volkswagen Racing

VW Racing Polska

Home | Volkswagen Endurance Cup | Endurance racing op internationale circuits met de VW Golf TDI (in Dutch)

VWMotorsport.com

Volkswagen AG Brand Homepages

Audi Worldwide > Home

Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S

Bentley Motors: Bentley Motors Website

Automobili Lamborghini Holding Spa (in Italian)

SEAT (in Spanish)

Skoda Auto - Welcome to Skoda Auto Homepage

Sorry to leave a short message, but fantastic job Ben

Thanks I nicked it from the Vortex as it is mostly my material & added, edited it, to keep it upto date.

Isn't Porsche moving to own 29.9% of VAG shares?

http://germancarzone.com/showthread.php?t=7801

Thanks, there are many things I never knew before!

Great post!
I luv knowing who owns what!

Yep I'm waiting for VW's Investor site to make it Official

Fantastic job! Karma and thanks given!

We need FAQs for BMW, Porsche and MB too

Ahh make sense.

Im interested to hear what you think of a possible take over by Porsche?

Thanks for the FAQ buy the way

Well Porsche has made it clear no takoevers will happen as you know Porsche is aiming for 29.9%, 30% means takeover if I understand German law correctly, so I'm happy for the time being no takeovers from foreign companies will happen for now at least.