Thinking Small (64 page)

There is something rather puzzling about VW’s constant voicing of such a desire; it strikes one as out of step with the overall VW approach from the past. On some level of course, every car company wants to be the top car company in the world. But if VW has to change its entire focus in order to do so, it’s doubtful it will find much satisfaction in such a victory, or
that such a victory will be long lived. If VW is able to continue
with its system of checks and balances, to make good products and treat its workers well, then one can only wish them luck. “We always need both freedom and order,”
⁴
to quote Schumacher once more. “We need the freedom of lots and lots of small, autonomous units, and, at the same time, the orderliness of large-scale, possibly global, unity and
coordination.” If Volkswagen can keep its ego at bay, it could be a terrific example of how big companies can step into the future without losing the vital ability to think small.

The story
of the Volkswagen is part of the human story, not just the story of any one country, time, family. In Germany, the Beetle was transformed from the pet of a dictator who unleashed extreme violence and destruction on his country and the world to an object that represented new economic and social potential. And that immigrant Bug that came to the United States only to be rejected eventually became a symbol of transformation and hope; it became
American
in a very real way. The Beetle is just a car, to be sure. But its story is not just a story, it’s
our
story, the story of coming from humble and diverse beginnings, of standing strong in the face of adversity, of having faith. And that’s where the magic is.

We are always trying to find what moves us, and to figure out the best way to move. And we’re always thinking about where we want to go, without forgetting where we’ve come from. While it’s clear we will find, and must find, new ways of mobility in the coming years, it’s hard to say what changes will come with the next decade, or what mode of transportation and energy will be the best one for our planet and our health. We have to develop a new perspective about energy, and our new leap
into the future requires a solid understanding of the details of our past. In that sense, it helps to know the story of how we have progressed so far, and to know that we
have
progressed. It took Lewis and Clark two and a half years to travel from one side of the United States to the other on their first cross-country journey. Later, with horse and carriage, it took a good six months to make the same trip. Trains cut that time down to just weeks. Then came cars, allowing for individual mobility from any point A to any point B.

At each one of these transitions in movement, there was a corresponding revolution in thought. The story of the Volkswagen exemplifies that sort of change. About a century ago, many people thought the idea of a “People’s Car” was impossible: It seemed irrational to propose that the majority of the population in America or Germany or so many other countries across the world would actually want, and be able, to own their own cars, to have such power of mobility within their immediate control. But if there’s one thing that the story of the Beetle shows us, it’s that we should be prepared to be amazed. If our experiences with the mobility change as much in the next century as they have in the previous one, where will we end up? In that regard, the Beetle’s story proves that anything is possible: The craziest ideas can be the ones that become the most valuable, and the best answers can be the ones we least expect.

The discussion today about the best way to move forward is urgent, but it is not new. Ferdinand Porsche created electric vehicles and hybrids over a hundred years ago. Today, very important innovations are being made as companies, scientists, and concerned citizens all over the planet explore new ways for us to power ourselves, experimenting with biofuels, biomass, wind and solar power, plug-in hybrids, electric vehicles, and hydrogen power. There are also strides being made toward developing new forms of public transportation and infrastructure, and more energy-efficient buildings and homes. And of course there is the exciting possibility of solutions we haven’t discovered yet. One thing that does look likely, however, is that our future will consist
of all of the above—that these new forms of mobility will coexist, and that it will not be any one new energy source that will save us, but rather a change in our mind-set and awareness, one that allows for numerous small solutions rather than one big fix. Because another thing the Beetle’s story proves is that we
can
hold contradictory notions in our minds at once, indeed, we
must,
in order to grow. In other words, we have to learn how to do
big
things by noticing the details, by being clear and present. By thinking small.

There’s a famous
old Volkswagen television commercial from the sixties that shows an original Beetle driving off into the distance while a voice in the background says “
diese Wagen läuft und läuft und läuft und läuft und läuft …,
”
¹
“this car goes and goes and goes and goes and goes …” No one knew how true that statement would become. Twenty years after it had ceased being sold in Germany and America, the Beetle came back to life. And now, it’s come to life
again.

And the world has changed in the meantime. In 1998, we were just getting used to the Internet and email, but today, as the 2012 Beetle arrives, we have practically created a whole new virtual world. And the economic, political, and social structures of that world reflect our new connection and scope. The real world is the same size, but we are much more aware of each other, and information, images, and trends get transported at the speed of light. The car is growing up with us: The first time many people heard of the 2012 Beetle, after all, was in a Super Bowl advertisement in February 2011 that millions of people viewed on YouTube. Soon after, the car was unveiled in three countries at once with live webcasts in New York City, Shanghai, and Berlin. Those three locations alone, and the fact that such a PR event was even possible or profitable, shows how the world has changed, and also what markets are most important to VW now.

But the 2012 Beetle is also a testament to the fact that there are some things that never change. For one thing, the market still revolves in large part around the ways and means by which we move and communicate. But there is another thing
too: When it came to creating the third generation of the Beetle, the designers went all the way back through history to Ferdinand and Ferry Porsche, and all the other engineers who worked on the first VW and the first Porsche in the Porsches’ workshops and garages. The designers of the 2012 Beetle kept an original model of the Beetle close at hand, and if you place the old and the new next to each other, you will see the family resemblance, especially in the back of the car (what is called the C-pillar, the part behind the rear doors). The front of the car has been lowered and stretched, and the windshield has more of a mischievous tilt. The back of the car has been stretched too; the rear fender is fatter and more masculine, and the wheelbase is also bigger so the car has a bigger stance. The whole car looks energized, still playful, but ready to pounce. The rear headlights are no longer big circles, but rather curvy U-shapes, and the wheels are big 10-spokes, about 19 inches in diameter. The overall effect of these changes is that the 2012 Beetle looks a heck of a lot like the Porsche 356, the first sports car sold by Porsche, and one that Ferry built using his father’s original Beetle design.

In designing the 2012, Volkswagen group design chief Walter de Silva and Volkswagen brand design chief Klaus Bischoff wanted to develop a car that returned to the VW roots. But the
2012 is no “small car”—it’s 71.2 inches wide, 58.5 inches tall, and 168.4 inches long, which means it is 3.3 inches wider, half an inch lower, and 6 inches longer than the New Beetle from 1998. But the 2012 Beetles also come with built-in spoilers; the inner painted carbon–look dashboards remind one of the original Beetle as well, although they removed the classic flower vase that has been around since before the car became the hippie car of choice. Ambient lighting is available in a choice of red, white, or blue. The car offers three engines: a 2.5L gasoline five cylinder, a 2.0L TDI Clean Diesel (the most fuel-efficient Beetle ever, VW says), and a 2.0L TSI turbocharged gasoline engine. Maybe one day there will be a hybrid Beetle too, especially since Porsche created the world’s first hybrid over 111 years ago. But for its size and comfort, the car gets good gas mileage, an average of 33 miles per gallon.

Themes recur. And just as it was for Nordhoff, Volkswagen’s current desire to be a success in America is part of the 2012 push. Germany is still trying to understand America, and to have a presence in its market. During the unveiling of the 2012 model, the CEO of Volkswagen of America, Jonathan Browning, told reporters that “The U.S. is the most important market for
the Beetle
²
, and it is a critical part of the new chapter we are trying to write for Volkswagen in the U.S. and worldwide.”
³
VW is spending tons of money in the States now—including $5 billion on a new car plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, its first American factory since the 1980s
⁴
.

But this plan will work only if Americans buy the cars, and it’s a much more complicated kind of world now, a fact that is reflected in the closer ties between branding and design that have come to exist. Today, because technology advances happen quite rapidly, and are available to the masses much more quickly, when it comes to selling a product, it’s not only a matter of being on the cutting edge of technology; it’s also a matter of having a recognizable brand with a comprehensive design (Apple is a very good example of this).

In a 2009 documentary about design called
Objectified,
⁵
German designer Dieter Rams names a few of the “rules” that go into making a good design. The ones that struck me as particularly relating to the classic design of the Beetle are the following: Design is a matter of clarity, of being clear; design is innovative; design makes a product understandable; good design is honest; design is long-lived; and finally, good design is “as little design as possible.” The design of the original encompassed all these rules, and perhaps the 2012 will prove to as well.

But brand is also a matter of story. As Allen Adamson wrote online for
Forbes
magazine on April 25, 2011, “While consumers do appreciate knowing
⁶
how fast a car can go, and whether they can fit two sets of golf clubs into the trunk … this isn’t what drives car-buying behavior. It never has been and never will be. Instead, it’s the whole brand story that steers people’s rides. That’s why smart auto companies, smart auto branders, make sure that they’ve got a genuinely distinctive and compelling story to tell about what makes their brand of car different in a way people care about. The best of the best know how to
weave the rational and emotional aspects of the story together in a way that really sets their brands apart.… ”