Community

Volkswagen fans create new traditions amid COVID-19

Many classic car enthusiasts have turned to restoration projects to stave off boredom during the COVID-19 lockdown. Mike Hanyi, a former automotive mechanic from Towson, Maryland, is one of them. But while he has enjoyed the quality time with Bonny, his yellow 1984 Vanagon Westfalia, he felt that something was missing: a sense of community. Hanyi has been a Volkswagen fan for decades but is relatively new to van culture. On a trip to Arizona in 2017, he borrowed a friend’s Volkswagen West

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Company

From stone wheels to EV, bringing progress to life in a new Volkswagen ID.4 EV ad

Volkswagen has a history of groundbreaking, memorable advertising, and the new all-electric ID.4 coming this spring has inspired its next chapter with a visually stunning demonstration of transportation’s progress from the wheel to the EV future. The ad, created by Johannes Leonardo, was the result of months of planning and imagination using different types of zoetropes – forerunners of motion pictures that were the first examples of animation. All zoetropes in the ad were real machines i

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Innovation

How Volkswagen Automotive Cloud will help shape the connected car of tomorrow

Seattle may not be known as a hotbed for the U.S. automotive industry, but that’s changing, thanks to the increasing importance of cloud computing for connected and autonomous vehicles. In recent years, Seattle’s nickname of “Cloud City” has not only referred to the weather, but for the industry built around some of the best cloud companies and experts in the world. That’s why Volkswagen Group chose the city to help shape the future of connected vehicles with the Volkswagen Automotive Cloud.

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Vehicles

Visit these five museums to see rare and vintage Volkswagens

Automotive museums across the U.S. have helped preserve some of the world’s rarest Volkswagens and feature everything — from a never-been-titled 1974 Karmann Ghia to a 1966 Volkswagen Type 2 Bus that is a piece of civil rights history. With expansive collections available to the public, anyone can admire these classic cars. Whether these five museums are pit stops or your destination, their collections of vintage Volkswagens are not to be missed. 1. LeMay – America’s Car Museum | Tacom

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Community

#TBT: The Volkswagen ‘Beach Bomb,’ the world’s most valuable Hot Wheel

Bruce Pascal was seven years old when Hot Wheels first hit stores in 1968. “It’s hard to explain the craze today, but Hot Wheels was huge. All of my friends were saving up to buy all the Hot Wheels they could,” he said. Hot Wheels soon became the number one toy for boys, and Pascal spent his childhood racing and collecting the die-cast cars. When he grew up, Pascal put his Hot Wheels in a cigar box at his mother’s house, where they collected dust for almost 30 years. His passion for classi

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Community

For #GivingTuesday, Volkswagen gives back through U.S. Soccer

This year, #GivingTuesday seems more needed than ever. Youth athletics have felt the impact of the pandemic, from cancelled leagues and seasons to uncertain paths for college hopefuls. For those reasons and many others, Volkswagen of America is the presenting partner of U.S. Soccer’s #GivingTuesday Campaign this year and directing $115,000 of its U.S. Soccer sponsorship towards scholarships and non-profits that develop and nurture female soccer players and coaches across the nation. “V

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Awards

#TBT: Volkswagen’s Guinness World Record-breaking history

It’s not easy to make it into the Guinness World Records book. With over 50,000 applications from aspiring record-breakers each year, it can be a competitive field — especially in transportation, where records can come down to a millisecond.   At Volkswagen, we know a thing or two about breaking records. To celebrate Guinness World Records Day, we are looking back at nine times Volkswagen and its fans have advanced the auto industry and earned a place in Guinness World Records history.

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Community

Volkswagen teams with Taos Ski Valley, Inc. for snow adventures

The name of the all-new Volkswagen Taos was chosen as a homage to the wild and beautiful land around Taos, N.M. To build that relationship beyond the name, Volkswagen has teamed with one of the state’s largest resorts and one of North America’s premier ski and snowboard destinations — the Taos Ski Valley ski resort. A short drive from Colorado Springs and Denver, the top-rated, ski-in/ski-out mountain hotel and resort features 14 lifts, 110 trails and 1,294 acres of varied terrain, includ

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Community

Shopping small leads to big impact

The holiday shopping season is officially underway, and an easy way to celebrate the start of the holiday gift-giving season is investing in your community and shopping locally. Since 2009, holiday shoppers nationwide have been encouraged to forgo shopping at big-box stores and area malls and support local independent retailers and mom-and-pop shops the weekend after Thanksgiving. The annual shopping event is an opportune time for neighborhood merchants to attract new customers and highli

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Community

Virtual events are driving enthusiasm in the automotive industry

This year, major automotive events — which typically hold thousands of attendees and carmakers from around the world in large, crowded indoor venues — could not continue as they did in years’ past while following social distancing guidelines. But rather than facing cancellation or postponement, many are adapting by creating new ways for fans to engage with automotive brands and one another online. Hot Wheels Senior Design Manager Brian Benedict was working with his team to plan the third

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Magazine

Celebrate Halloween with a creatively carved Volkswagen pumpkin

Halloween is right around the corner, and whether you’re planning to celebrate indoors or outside, an easy way to get into the holiday spirit is to take on a pumpkin-carving challenge. So get some pumpkins, and grab your carving tools to bring these Volkswagen-themed pumpkin designs to life. One decal features the instantly recognizable Volkswagen Bus, while the other carries the look of Volkswagen’s new ID.4 electric SUV. Invite others to join in on the spooky fun and consider hosting a virt

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Community

Former teacher transforms her Volkswagen Transporter into a mobile bookshop

Melanie Moore had always wanted to open her own bookstore. After retiring from 25 years of teaching, she decided it was time to pursue her dream and get books into the hands of kids who need them most. She was about to sign a lease on a physical storefront when she got cold feet and decided to proceed in a new direction. “I realized that if I had a brick and mortar bookstore, I wouldn’t be able to do the fun part of the business, which is talking [about] books and putting books in people’s

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Owners

#TBT: Volkswagens tie grandkids to their family legacies

Eric Shoemaker had no real interest in cars. As a designer and entrepreneur, he primarily took an interest in hobbies like woodworking, furniture restoration, and photography. Today, however, he not only owns a business with his wife Amanda that restores air-cooled German engine components, but his website (1967beetle.com) is a go-to resource for tech tips, classifieds, and Volkswagen stories from around the globe. And what he attributes as the catalyst for his newfound passion is a 1967 Bee

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Community

#TBT: One owner, 42 Volkswagen vehicles, endless memories

You always remember your first car. For Taylor Bryant, that first car – an old Beetle – drew the template of a life-long connection to Volkswagen that has grown to more than 40 vehicles over the years. “I’ve always liked European cars and had a soft spot for Volkswagens,” Bryant said. His affection for VW began as a kid in Charleston, South Carolina. Bryant would ride his bike to the local Volkswagen dealership and admire the latest models while chatting with technicians. Six years lat

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Community

How to give your vehicle the detailing TLC it needs at home

When shelter-in-place orders took effect in cities across the U.S. this spring, a hobby renaissance began. Images of people comfort baking, knitting and puzzling flooded social media, along with car enthusiasts showing off their new DIY car detailing projects. “Our business was doing some doomsday planning as most small businesses were at the start of the pandemic, waiting for the wall to close in and it just never did,” said Jared Toops, General Manager and Director of E-Commerce at Car

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Community

How “van-lifers” embrace authentic and adventurous lifestyles

Over the past decade, a growing movement of van dwellers have ditched their cubicles for the open road, living out of their vehicles and documenting their journeys as they travel the world. It has become a lifestyle, online aesthetic and career — one both Kristen Bor and Linda Romero have embraced. When they met, Bor and Romero were studying for their master’s degrees in Environmental Science and Management from the University of California at Santa Barbara. The now full-time bloggers wen

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Owners

How one VW Vanagon Westfalia helps thousands of Philadelphians get out the vote

Across the country, civic groups are looking for unique and creative ways to reach prospective voters amidst the pandemic, which has disrupted the traditional means of voter registration and election participation. “People don’t vote every day, they vote twice a year - if that - so it’s really important for us to help them understand the rules, their options and how they can make their votes count,” said David Thornburgh, president of the Philadelphia-based Committee of Seventy, a nonpartisan

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Community

How to help prepare for a road trip during the pandemic

After months of lockdown, everyone is itching to explore. As the weather warms up and states re-open, the American Automobile Association (AAA) predicts that 97% of summer travel in the United States will be done by car – totaling an estimated 683 million road trips from July to September. “Most people want to get away while trying to stay safe and distant from others. When you drive, you can travel at your own comfort level,” said Jeanette Casselano, Director of Public Relations at AAA. “You

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Community

#TBT: Formula Vee racing, a Volkswagen family tradition for five decades

Forty years after it was last sold new, the original Volkswagen Beetle can still be found on American roads, a testament to its popularity and engineering. The same holds true for American race tracks, where an important part of the Beetle legacy has only grown more popular over the years. Since its start in the early 1960s, Formula Vee racing has offered one of the most competitive and affordable forms of open-wheel racing anywhere in the world. Developed by a group of independent dealers, t

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Community

Hobbyists return to car restoration projects during the pandemic

  With time to spare and nowhere to go during lockdown, many classic-car owners have seized the opportunity to finally make progress on a restoration project – or two. Rob Dibble saw the overabundance of time at home as an opportunity to pursue his passion for car restoration. The corporate development entrepreneur has been working remotely in Charlotte, North Carolina, and his flexible schedule allowed him to focus on the restoration of his 1969 Volkswagen dune buggy. “I wante

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Community

Volkswagen and The Conservation Fund award $200,000 in grants to environmental organizations

In November, Volkswagen reinforced its corporate commitment to sustainability by establishing a $200,000 community grant program toward conservation efforts in eastern Tennessee in partnership with The Conservation Fund. After soliciting grant requests of up to $50,000 from local nonprofits, schools and public agencies, the company is pleased to announce the five charitable organizations that were selected for sponsorship. The funds will be used toward promoting environmental education fo

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Partnerships

Team Volkswagen kicks off Drive Bigger program to get charities back on the field

As the world works toward a new normal in the COVID-19 era, sports like soccer have had to adapt and try new approaches. With teams and players slowly returning to the field, the demands on soccer-related charities remain high, with programs delayed or cancelled and needs greater than ever. To help address those challenges, Volkswagen of America has worked with U.S. Soccer Men’s and Women’s National Team players who serve as brand ambassadors on Team Volkswagen. These ten ambassadors have cho

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Philanthropy

Volkswagen dealers across the nation participate in Community-Driven Atlas Initiative

Volkswagen and its network of dealerships are supporting local communities during COVID-19 through the Community-Driven Atlas Initiative, a program that allows dealerships the ability to re-purpose their service loaner vehicles for community service endeavors like delivering food, masks and other essential goods to individuals in need. “We have been involved with a number of organizations in our communities for years now,” said Kristen Walker, marketing director for Coastal Volkswagen. “But w

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A Florida father-son mechanic duo restores vintage Volkswagens

Gregg Ammerman has loved vintage Volkswagens ever since he purchased his very first car, a watermelon green Super Beetle, in 1982. His passion for the brand has grown over time, and now the former Army mechanic shares his love for car restoration with his youngest son, Dalton Ammerman. The father-and-son duo began restoring cars over five years ago, starting with a yellow 1978 Karmann Convertible Super Beetle in 2015. Together, the Ammermans worked on the car for months, with Gregg le

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Community

Let Tanner Foust share some proper donut-making technique on National Donut Day

Tanner Foust knows how to cook up a proper donut – at least of the automotive kind. The Volkswagen R brand ambassador has twice won championships for drifting, where cars go in precise circles while turning tires into smoke, and demonstrated his handling skills at the wheel of the Volkswagen 560-hp rallycross Volkswagen Beetles. (You may have also seen his skills in a few movies along the way.) For this year’s National Donut Day, Tanner took some time to demonstrate some of his donut-making t

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Community

Drive-in theaters experience a revival nationwide amid COVID

Drive-in movie theaters are one of the few businesses experiencing a renaissance amid the coronavirus pandemic. As one of the few entertainment destinations you can still visit outside of the home, they’ve experienced a boom in popularity and demand over the past couple months. “We’ve seen a resurgence in interest across the country. Our shows are selling out every night. It’s the best market I have ever seen in all my years in business,” says Jim Kopp, owner of The Family Drive-in Theatre i

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