70 years of VW and me!

Volkswagen’s South African plant was first opened on 31 August 1951 in Uitenhage in the then Cape Province to satisfy the growing local car industry. Over the years, Volkswagen’s Uitenhage plant (today Kariega) has built Volkswagen Beetles, the Type 2 Kombi, the Golf (also the Citi Golf), the Polo range, and several Audis. Over the past seven decades, more than four million vehicles were driven off the floor at this plant, giving a 21,7% market share in South Africa. Drive & Camp says congratulations, Volkswagen South Africa!

The first self-propelled motorcar in South Africa was a Benz Velo, imported in 1896 by Johannesburg businessman John Percy Hess. The Velo was displayed in Berea Park to President Paul Kruger and the public. South Africa’s first mass-production car plant was opened in Port Elizabeth in 1924 by Ford.