The scandals at VW seemingly never end, but this time its problems are from the more distant past. During Brazil's military dictatorship, the company apparently helped the regime persecute opponents.
The department in charge of factory security at the VW site in Sao Bernardo do Campo mutated into an intelligence service whose aim was to spy on the company's own workforce, according to the report in the "Süddeutsche Zeitung." Volkswagen employees also created "black lists" of oppositional supporters. Suspect employees were even arrested on the company premises, some were tortured.
VW is staying quiet
Volkswagen has not commented on the allegations. Instead it pointed to an expert assessment which the company commissioned historian Christopher Kopper to write on its role during the military dictatorship. The report which was initiated in fall 2016 should be finished by the end of this year.
Volkswagen's Beetle in BrazilImage: Volkswagen do Brasil
In advance of its release, Kopper himself has said that there was regular cooperation between VW's Brazilian factory security service and the police.
The German government was not in the dark
In 2015, activists and former Volkswagen employees in Brazil publicly accused the company of allowing persecution of regime opponents.
According to the German news organizations, Brazil's federal prosecutor is looking into Volkswagen's role to see if there were "violations of human rights within the factory premises at the time of the military dictatorship."
The report also claims that the VW board of directors was aware of the allegations as early as 1979. At that time, Brazilian employees traveled to the company headquarters in Wolfsburg to report the allegations to then CEO Toni Schmücker.
The German government was also informed. In 1976, a member of parliament asked the foreign ministry for an opinion on the alleged mass arrests, according to the newspaper. Furthermore, Chancellor Helmut Schmidt had been informed by the former trade union leader and later President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva about the conditions at VW during a visit in 1979.
Bye Bye Bulli
The final VW Kombi van rolled off its Brazilian line on December 20. After 56 years and 1.5 million vehicles, it achieved cult status, not just among Brazilians. Hardly any other vehicle has lasted longer.
Image: Volkswagen do Brasil
Final Edition
The VW bus is saying goodbye. On December 20, VW do Brasil put a halt to the production of the legendary T2 vehicle, known originally in Germany as the "Westfalia." It's the end of an era that began in 1957, when assembly equipment was first installed in São Paulo. Today, the "Kombi Last Edition" is the vehicle's wistful finale.
Image: Volkswagen do Brasil
Foreign-made first
In September 1957, Volkswagen opened its first factory outside Germany. The new production line was in São Paulo, Brazil. The first model? The Volkswagen Type 2, better known as the VW bus (or "Bulli" in Germany). To date, 1.5 million vehicles have been built in São Paulo.
Image: Volkswagen do Brasil
A 'Brazilian' automobile
For Brazilians, VW is a national brand. The Brazilian subsidiary in São Paulo developed numerous models on its own and also exported them. VW buses and beetles were among the very first motor vehicles to be produced almost entirely in Brazil. The design for the VW bus, however, originally sprang from the pen of a Dutchman named Ben Pon.
Image: Volkswagen do Brasil
Combination car
The German word "Kombinationsfahrzeug," or "combination motor vehicle," is a recognized class of vehicle under German tax law. But for Brazilians in the 50s, the word didn't translate. They reduced it to "Kombi," forever after referring to the vehicles as such - even as the shape of the vehicle gradually changed.
Image: VW Museum Wolfsburg
Versatility
The word "Kombi" was an appropriate one for a vehicle as versatile as the VW bus. In Brazil, it functioned as a family car, vacation vehicle, vegetable transporter, construction truck, portable juice bar or - here - as an ambulance
Image: cc/by/sa/Mr.choppers
World traveler
A Brazilian couple converted this VW bus into a mobile home - with an office. They plan to drive it across four continents, or 200,000 kilometers. That a VW bus is capable of such a trip has already been proven. In the 70s, Germans Juliana and Dieter Kreutzkamp drove theirs, dubbed "Methusalem," a half-million kilometers.
Image: cc/0/Franco Hoff
Business tool
For many Brazilian companies, a "Kombi" is part of their business model. Depending on the firm's needs, it comes in four basic varieties. With nine seats, it works great as a taxi. As a transport vehicle, it can function as an enclosed van, in a pick-up truck variety, and as a two-seater with loading space (pictured).
Image: cc/by/sa/Rafael Ruivo
Stop me if you can
Also adding to the vehicle's fame in Brazil was its dependability. Its relatively simple construction allowed any mechanic to fix a broken-down "Kombi" with a pair of pliers and wrench. For those living in Brazil's back country, that has proven of incalculable value.
Image: cc/by/sa/JasonVogel
Retirement plan
Nevertheless, the VW bus has not kept up with the times. A few extra horsepower here, water cooling, a catalyzer and a flex-fuel motor taking gasoline and ethanol were the exceptions. But when new legislation required motor vehicles in Brazil to come with anti-lock brakes and airbags by 2014, VW decided to retire the vehicle.
Image: Volkswagen do Brasil
'Skirt and blouse'
For its "Last Edition," VW went for the "Saia e blusa" look, or "skirt and blouse," a reference to the vehicle's traditional two-colored paint job and the fact that in Portuguese, "Kombi" is feminine. The price of 15,000-27,000 euros ($20,000-$36,000) includes MP3 radio and a USB port - and factors in its value as a collector's item. The final series was limited to 1,200 vehicles.
