In the sixties Volkswagen entered a segment that in our time – 60 years later – is one of the most popular – the middle class. After the VW Beetle and VW Transporter, the “Type 3” genre was brought to life. First, the notchback variant 1500 was launched in 1961, and in the middle of the decade the vehicle family 1600, as an impetus for today’s popular mid-size sedans with different body styles. It is also the granddaddy of a bestseller that sold like hotcakes for decades – the VW Passat.

The VW 1600 was created at a time when performance was not all that important to the Wolfsburg-based carmaker: At the beginning, the notchback predecessor VW 1500 featured a 45 hp boxer engine with a displacement of 1.5 liters. Later, an optimized version of the air-cooled rear unit was introduced, with power boosted to 54 hp. A more powerful 1.6-liter heart was to power the entire model family, now called the VW 1600, starting in 1965, including the newly introduced TL hatchback.

The VW 1600 was almost a trendsetter in 1967: instead of a four-speed manual transmission, an automatic (consisting of a torque converter and an automatic three-speed planetary gearbox) was used. In addition, electronic fuel injection (VW 1600 LE) was used for the first time in a production vehicle for the purpose of fuel economy.

Initially, Volkswagen added the 1500, the first notchback sedan, to its lineup in 1961. Soon the model range was expanded to include an estate car – more pragmatic and with more storage space in the rear. In 1965, the concept of a sedan with a hatchback, which was still exotic in this country at the time, was implemented as the VW 1600 TL. It was the birth of the “hatchback” concept, but it was not well received: Originally planned as a replacement for the notchback sedan, a change of course soon followed. Because sales figures did not go according to plan, the notchback sedan continued to be produced – and contrary to original plans, even for a few more years, as the VW 1600 A. One criterion for the unpopular hatchback variant was presumably the lack of a tailgate, as offered, for example, by the much more popular model brother Variant: The three-door station wagon with this designation, which was used for the first time, was ultimately to contribute about half of the sales of the entire VW 1600 series.

This VW was shipped to Arizona in the USA and came back to Germany in 2012. It remains in original condition – only some parts have been painted. The last extensive maintenance took place in August 2013 and it has Matching Numbers.