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Text by Roger Dean

Gottfried Schultz was a perceptive businessman.
He knew a good thing when he saw it and he saw it in the VW Beetle. He was well off and comfortable even in those early postwar years. The Third Reich had come and gone but he weathered it well, not in the same fashion as most of Germany and the world. He was at a higher plateau than most and from this vantage point he could pear a little further to the future. What was the future to become? The rebuilding of Europe, the world and people’s lives would necessitate a return to the basics. As far as transportation was concerned few auto companies were more basic than Volkswagen. The Kdf, as the Beetle was known throughout the war, and the Kübelwagen military vehicle had both been tested under the most severe conditions and were valiant survivors. These tough workhorses had gained the respect of both friend and foe and in it’s refined form the Beetle was just what the world needed, a simple means of durable transportation.

Herr Schultz was determined to have a share in the recovery of Germany and to prosper from it as well.  He began negotiations with the officials at Volkswagen for a dealership in Essen, Germany close to his home.  Negotiations were going well until one day when Schultz arrived at the VW plant offices in Wolfsburg.  It wasn’t an exceptional entrance for him; he arrived in the usual manner, his chaffer driven limousine, a coachbuilt Maybach.  With a separate driver’s compartment and straight eight-cylinder engine under the long handcrafted hood the automobile appeared to be twice the length of the usual fare.  It was quite a showpiece and a bit too much for Herr Nordhoff , Volkswagens president.  Nordhoff was vocal enough about Schultz’ entrance that it trickled back to him.  Perhaps it was the intention of Nordhoff to send the signal, “This is not the image we are projecting here at Volkswagen”.  Whatever the intent of the message Gottfried Schultz heard it clearly.  His business savvy was well developed, he understood the play of the game and this was a potentially damaging move that he would not make again.

Months later in a private garage not far from Wolfsburg Volkswagenwerks a humble Beetle sedan awaited its owner.  It was only driven on occasion. This particular day would mark a very important occasion in the history of Volkswagen.  Herr Schultz’ limousine arrived in front of the garage comfortably ahead of an arranged meeting with officials from Volkswagen.  The chaffer opened the passenger’s doors and two men exited the limousine.  One of them, Gottfried Schultz, was very familiar with the planned routine.  He had made the switch numerous times from the spacious Maybach passenger’s compartment to the driver’s seat of the waiting Beetle.  It was not his style to make the 500 kilometer journey from Essen to Wolfsburg behind the steering wheel of the little car; he was simply not accustomed to that.  His traveling companion was very entertained by the process.  He would tell this story of the “automobile shell game” to his family and friends for years to come.  Paul Hebmüller was Schultz’ traveling companion and longtime family friend.  The meeting at Volkswagenwerks was the beginning of a business arrangement that would potentially produce the rarest, most unique production line versions of the most prolific automobile on the planet.

Paul was the envoy of much more than the company Karosserie Hebmüller. He represented his family.  He and his three brothers Joseph Jr., Erich and Emil had continued the family business that was established back in 1889 by their father Joseph Sr.  The company began by building carriages of the “one horse” power variety.  The year 1919 was a turning point for the brothers with the death of the senior Joseph.  That year represented their thirtieth anniversary and the beginning of a new era for the company.  The world would forever change with the conclusion of the Great War to a more mechanized society.  Horses were becoming the transportation of the past and the “horseless” carriage was considered the panacea of transportation.  The Hebmüller’s were, in a few years, fabricating special bodied vehicles for some of the most elite motorcar companies in Germany.  Eventually they developed a fine reputation with Ford, Hanomag, Hansa-Lloyd, Opel and others.   Cabriolets, coupés and other special, hand crafted saloons were their signature vehicles.

The depression years of the late 20’s and early 30’s were especially difficult in Germany.  The Country favored socialism to solve their economic plight.  During those austere times Hebmüller continued to build their reputation as a premier Karosserie with the larger auto companies. They also filled individual contracts for some of the most refined, custom appointed vehicles.

The war years of the early forties meant some reappraisal for the company.  Resplendent automobiles for the well-off were not so much the fashion during the war years as a certain austerity became the conscience of society.  The practical business of keeping a company alive and feeding the family was of more importance.  A number of government contracts allowed the Hebmüller company to stay financially afloat.  One of these involved the construction of “war bird” decoys.

These were plywood replicas of military bombers for the airfields of Germany.  The faux bombers were produced solely for the purpose of distracting the Allied forces and scuttling their appraisal of the Luftwaffe’s military air strength.  They were very convincing when painted camouflage colors and offset with insignia and regalia.  Strategically placed on the airfield they appeared ready for their crews and battle at a moment’s notice.  Another military contract was for construction of military vehicles including the Krupp multipurpose vehicle.  It was a job of necessity but it was not indicative of the stature or the potential of Karosserie Hebmüller.

Eventually the war ended and the British military came to occupied the location around Wuppertal, the home of the family factory.  Again Hebmüller was pressed into service but this time for another government.  The commission was for British Humber motorcars, 15 of them to be transformed into rather spartan cabrios.  Other German army surplus vehicles were brought to the company for repair and conversion into practical vehicles primarily for commercial use.

Paul Hebmüller was reflecting on the history of his family business as he was waiting for his introduction to Herr Heinz Nordhoff. He was looking for the opportunity break away from the military drab and onto a contract that would bring a diversion from fake airplanes that were built to be destroyed and military craft that had either faired no better or were used for peaceful drayage.  His meeting at Volkswagen was promising but the first contracted project was not elevated much above the military contracts of the past decade. The first order from Volkswagen was for police cars.  Green police cars.

These were chopped down versions of the beetle and there was really no intention on the part of Volkswagen to spend any more than the minimum for this rather basic conversion.  Paul could not consider anything but accepting another “bread and butter” contract for green, military style vehicles.  There really was no choice.

The contract was signed and Karosserie Hebmüller was on the way to producing an eventual 500 vehicles that were used on police forces throughout Europe.  These had no doors with only canvas sides and top to keep the elements out. They were the antithesis of the airtight Beetle that needed a breath of air from a slightly opened window to close a door and seal the occupants inside. Typically after a few months of winter rain the defogger refused to accomplish anything but circulate warm, wet air onto the windshield. The policemen would complain of stiff necks from the drafty conditions.  It’s almost impossible to imagine pursuit of anything with the 25 horsepower engine but they were durable machines.  They probably performed longer than many patrolmen anticipated.

In the larger scheme of things the contact for police cars had helped Hebmüller to achieve exactly what they had hoping for, a larger contract for a genuine coachbuilt version of the then very successful Volkswagen sedan.  Heinz Nordhoff, true to his dream summoned two coach companies to his headquarters in Wolfsburg to discuss his plan to produce not just one but two distinctly unique cabriolets.  The Karmann Company of Osnabrück was contracted to build the four-seater touring versions and the Hebmüller Company the two-seater roadster.  This time Paul returned to his family with the happy news that he had been awaiting so long. His brothers Joseph, Erich and Emil and the rest of the company at Karosserie Hebmüller joined in his enthusiasm for the project.  It was early in 1948 and times and prospects were looking much more positive. The architects were soon designing concept views of long lean Beetles.  This was quite an accomplishment considering the rather vertical arched design of the original car.

The concept of a roadster version of the Beetle had been tried already though not with the serious intent of producing a production version.  A couple of years earlier Col. Charles  Radclyffe of the British occupational forces had a two-seater built at Wolfsburg. It was a “barn job” in comparison to the Hebmüller version but it certainly portrayed the Beetle as a sort of slippery sports car. Radclyffe’s roadster used a front deck lid modified to cover the engine compartment and it gave the little car a much lower, leaner appearance. Volkswagen’s assignment to Hebmüller was to produce a two-seater similar to the Radclyffe car.

It was the desire of the production staff at Volkswagen for both cabrio versions to use as many of the production parts that were already available in the two respective designs. Clearly both companies needed to cooperate in order to produce the parts that were similar in design. Hebmüller went to work.  In conjunction with the concept views produced by Herr Schmelzer, the architect on the Hebmüller design team, three experimental prototypes were produced using older, used Beetles. Schmelzer continued to sketch as each VW was cut and sectioned with the variations coming off the velum and the engineers then interpreting it in metal.  Not only was a roadster perfected on paper but a coupé version was artfully developed as well. One final rendering before production showed a jade green roadster.  Ironically another green car…Perhaps it just felt right!  This time, however it was embellished with a second color below the aluminum body moulding and at the wheel centers. The two-tone paint scheme became a Hebmüller signature.

The project was under way at last.  In early 1949 production began with vehicle number four. Unveiled at the Geneva Auto-Show at the end of March of 1949 it was a two-toned special, likely black with lower body in red. Even though the previous designs had progressively improved, number four was modified slightly from the experimental prototypes. An assembly line soon began to serpentine through the production plant. This was Erich’s territory.  He lived on the corner of Bahnhof and Velberter Strasse only two blocks from the factory.  His role was key to the production of completed vehicles and he had worked closely with the design department to insure the final version would be produced within the budget amount set by Herr Nordhoff at Volkswagen.  It was very tight.  The production version was finely crafted in the tradition of German coachbuilts.  To say it was “labor-intense” was an understatement.  It was a lot of coachwork for the budget.

According to Hebmüller records Volkswagen provided Beetle sedans as a cut-off body.  This process was performed in Wolfsburg in the VW factory.  The completely operational chassis were provided for by Volkswagen as well but separate from the body sections.  A sequential body number was stamped into the body with the number 14- fixed ahead of it.  Once received the body was placed on a dolly that would mobilize it through each workstation.

A fixture was then bolted into the rear fender locations that guided the installation of the rear cowl that was a unique pressing for the roadster.  Steel gussets were then carefully welded into the sub-body to create a rigid torsion resistant vehicle.  Rails were welded under the doors that ran the length of the vehicle with the gussets welded and transferring the force into the rails. 

New steel pressings were used to modify the top of the doors that were also sectioned above the trim line to compliment the appearance of the cabrio.  Probably the most unique body part was the new rear deck lid.  It was stamped from steel complete with the integrated “revearsed” scoop and pair of sculpted insets that reflected the design of the Beetle’s nose.  Front hood hinges were utilized at the rear deck consistent with Volkswagens request to use parts already in production.  The reinforcing metal that supported the latching handle inside the rear deck lid was the same VW part that fit the sedan rear decklid.  The center stoplight above the rear license location was adapted from the “Popes nose” rear deck light that was also fitted on the sedans. The sedan windshield surround and front cowl had been left off by Volkswagen and the dash board stopped just above the defogger breathers on what were sedan doorposts. A reinforced steel stamping that included the cowl and cabriolet windshield surround was welded in.  It was similar to the one used by Karmann but was a unique pressing which accepted the Hebmüller mechanical top.  Except for the latching hardware the mechanical top assembly was exclusively Hebmüller.  The three prototypes helped to identify a problem area around the windshield that needed attention.  A steel stiffener was added that transferred resistance into the front quarter panels reducing the deflection when the top was locked into place.

Everything was as it should be. The German economy was beginning to rebound, contracts were coming in from other companies like DKW (later to become Audi) and independent orders for limousines were being filled.  These were becoming the best of times!  Against all of the odds Hebmüller had survived to flourish into another era.  Or so it seemed.

But this reality was not to be. On the Saturday afternoon of July 23,1949 a fire began in the paint department at the factory and soon swept through consuming the building and cars that were in it’s path.   Erich was one of the first at the scene.  With the help of workers and some of the townsfolk from Wülfrath he began moving vehicles from the rage of the consuming blaze as it steadily advanced and converted everything into thick black smoke and mangled heaps of steel and rubble. The pyre could be seen in Dusseldorf 30 kilometers away and soon all of the family and most of the company’s 600 employees were at the scene of the conflagration. There was little that could be done.  Most of the vehicles that were assembled to their rolling chassis were saved. Many of the roadster bodies that were at various stages of construction were not worth the risk of life.  Physically exhausted the day finally ended with the fire extinguished.  No one slept well that night; it was too hard a reality to accept.

The next day was a time to access the damage. It appeared so surreal and all too reminiscent of the type of destruction that was a part of the war that had ended only four years earlier. How could it all end this way, so suddenly and just as their future looked so good?  It was impossible! They would not allow it. This was Hebmüller! Clean up began immediately. Burned Volkswagens and other vehicles littered the rubble and were stacked like cordwood.  Some could be salvaged but most could never be used and sold as first quality vehicles. The lineage of the two-seater roadsters had been interrupted. But that was not the greatest concern.  How would they get back into production?  Miraculously the design team rallied and with the assistance of many of the workers from the factory built “Hall #4” in a field beside the burned out factory building in about two months.  This hall was specifically for the purpose of continuing the construction of the VW cabriolet.  It was not just utility buildings that were constructed.  The rebuilding of the old factory took about one year.  So noteworthy was this “Phoenix” that a prominent architectural journal reported on the amazing effort and the very sophisticated result.  Karosserie Hebmüller was once again in full operation of the Type 14 convertible.  As production continued another wave of destruction hammered the company. The construction of the factory had simply depleted company capital and cash flow became a persistant and deepening problem. Even though they had a promising future that future was based on paper contracts and what the company lacked was paper Deutsche Marks. It was not just the fire and the reconstruction of the factory.  That burden would have been enough to bring most companies to their knees.  It was also the cost of building four prototypes and the testing and the design work.  Just as they needed to build production to cover these costs and create cash flow they were having difficulty keeping the crew on payroll.

If that were not enough the economic conditions in the country were coming under immense stress once again.  Germany was changing politically, a change that was cast when she had been taken over by the Allied Forces. She was being torn into East and West with boundaries between the Russian sector and those of France, Britain and the US.  It was growing more difficult to get supplies for construction especially at the VW Wolfsburg plant.  Without needed supplies from the eastern sectors production was slowed and supplies exhausted.  As the pressures increased to meet production demands internal problems between Volkswagen and her subcontractors and suppliers were growing more intense.  There was a mounting concern on the part of Heinz Nordhoff that Hebmüller was not going to be able to fulfill their obligation to Volkswagen for the 675 cabriolets they were contracted for. To complicate matters there was the not-so-small matter of the 33 Type 14A cars that had been lost in the fire. Who was going to pay for these? The vehicles were the property of Volkswagen and regardless of how many 2-seaters were completed by Hebmüller they would always be short the number of vehicles lost to the destructive fire.

Once again Paul Hebmüller represented his family and company as he met with the representatives at Volkswagen.  This was a meeting that weighed heavily on him.  He assumed that Volkswagen would assist Hebmüller through this setback until they could get back on their feet.

There was also another matter that he could not ignore and it needed to be addressed immediately.  Timing was not good for the issue he was going to raise.  Based on the production figures from before the fire, Karosserie Hebmüller needed more money per car to produce the roadster.  These cabriolets he politely insisted were too costly to produce and the data he produced supported that.  He tactfully pointed out that, for the quality of the conversion that Volkswagen was getting, the budget was just too tight. This had the opposite effect that he had anticipated and instead of assistance Nordhoff took a hard line. “Finish the cars you have and we will talk about sending you more vehicles to convert” was Nordhoff’s attitude.

Neither man would bend from his position.  The business relationship between Volkswagen and Hebmüller only worsened as fewer cabrios were produced until production stopped altogether in 1950.  Volkswagen sent no more vehicles, bodies or chassis.  Without sedans to convert Karosserie Hebmüller was doomed.  Volkswagen also had a problem aside from the one with Hebmüller.  They had advertised a two-seater cabrio that was currently out of production and that they felt would not sell for more than their advertised price.  This was a true dilemma.  From their position a contractor had defaulted and supplies were becoming impossible to get because of greater political events that were rearranging the boundaries of Europe. For Volkswagen to help a subcontractor that was defaulting on a contract, in their opinion, was really beyond their ability at that time.

Was there an honorable way to resolve the issues?

(To be continued)