VW History. Joseph Ganz

For an interesting slant on the very beginnings of the VW, read the article about Joseph Ganz, on page 126 of the January 2012 issue of Classic and Sports Car magazine.

In the late 1920s and early 1930's he designed a car with a tubular chassis spine and a rear/mid engine which he called the Maikaffer or May Bug.

He was forced by the Nazis to surrender the name Volkswagen to Porsche.

I'd heard about him over the years, but this is a very interesting article.

There is a reccommended book, The Extraordinary Life of Joseph Ganz, by Paul Schilperood, at the end. I'll see if I can get a copy.

I haven't heard of him... well maybe ???

but have heard of many others and i think the list is growing... lol

about people who may have helped design the Beetle...

and the engine... Just about everyone who helped Porsche or woked with Him over the years..

I think Many now say the engine was actually designed by someone else... and name Him... ??

LEE

Yes, here is an interesting recent article with quality pics from a UK newspaper:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2086663/Hitler-copied-idea-iconic-Volkswagen-Beetle-Jewish-engineer-historian-claims.html


Joseph (Josef) Ganz was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1898. After the war (WW11) he migrated from Switzerland, through France and Noumea to Australia and lived in Melbourne (St Kilda and Prahran) after initially landing in Sydney (1951). While living in Melbourne, he worked for Standard (Vanguards/Triumphs) and GMH.

He was invited to become an Aussie citizen and did so in 1962.

In 1965, the German government wanted to award him an engineering Order of Merit - it could be argued that this adds credibility to his claims regarding the base design of the 'peoples car' - at least from the German governments perspective?? The Australian government rejected the German governments request stating that he was last involved in engineering in Germany in 1934...and that awards must be made within 5 years of the achievement.

Joseph Ganz died in Melbourne in 1967.

Lee, the same guy designed the engine as designed the VW roundel - Franz Xaver Reimspiess

Interesting read...., thanks for sharing

I'm calling bullshit
Look at any cars designed in that era, they all had the same basic shapes, even the Skoda?
Just because Hitler was at a show that he had his car there , wow from that to saying he designed the beetle , one hell of a jump.
In my attempt to draw a car when I was 6 years old it came out looking like the new mini, should I see a lawyer and make a claim they copied my design!!!!!

I agree, there are some considerable stretches and unlikely conclusions drawn in this book.

Firstly Ganz' main profession was as a journalist; he was editor of Klein Motor Sport magazine, and later Motor-Kritik. He did study engineering and made some design sketches of small car designs in the 1920s and early 1930s, but had difficulty in gaining interest from existing companies. His Mai-Kafer featured a backbone chassis and swing-axle suspension, but the engine was mid-mounted and the body looked nothing like a VW.

He wrote a number of controversial articles in his motoring magazines, criticising makers like Mercedes and BMW for their large car designs, which resulted in ill-feeling and even lawsuits against Ganz.

The most significant thing is that Ganz was Jewish and found himself in an untenable position when the Nazis camne to power in 1933. He was arrested by the Gestapo for 'interference' with the motor industry but was released. He fled Germany in 1934 and moved to Switzerland where he spent the war trying (unsuccessfully) to start a Swiss small car industry. He moved to France in 1949, by which time he had no chance starting a new small car against the existing makers, and moved to Australia in 1951. He worked for GMH until his retirement and died here in obscurity in 1967.

Basically Ganz left Germany before Porsche even began work on his own 'people's car'. Ganz' early sketches bore little resemblence to the rear-engined VW. And Porsche already had years of small car experience deisgning for Zundapp, NSU and his own bureau.

This book is just a political attempt to rewrite history, trying to suggest a Jew might have been the inspiration for the evil 'Nazi' VW.