VW Polo celebrates 35 years: success story and challenges at the Zwickau plant!

VW Polo celebrates 35 years: success story and challenges at the Zwickau plant!

There is a celebration at the VW plant in Zwickau: 35 years ago, the first Polo rolled off the assembly line, ushering in a remarkable success story. On May 21, 1990, the time had come when the first Volkswagen Polo rolled off the assembly line in the Mosel district. The Polo, a hatchback model with a 1.3 liter engine and 55 hp in classic Alpine white, has now achieved museum piece status. Many employees take this as an opportunity to reminisce, as news38.de reports. At the Zwickau production site, which has produced both the Polo and Trabant models since the beginning, employees such as Jörn Kaiser and Udo Friedrich, both former mechanical engineers at VEB Sachsenring, have played a crucial role. These men experienced the transition phase from Trabi assembly to the production of the polo first hand.

A look back: The beginnings were anything but easy. In the first few years, the parts for the vehicles came from the West in wooden boxes, and the employees had to put together cars from these components with a lot of skill and creativity. A colleague describes the first 35 years as a fast but impressive journey that was characterized by hard work and happy but also challenging moments. Many remember that during the production period they also assembled Trabants in addition to the Polo, while some colleagues experienced the change of factory as a challenging step. Some quit due to harsh working conditions and short breaks. But the solidarity was strong, and one of the employees summed up a positive outlook on working on the night shift with: “Our hearts were in it.”

The change in automobile production

A lot has happened since the first hand-assembled models from VW Sachsen GmbH, which was founded in December 1990. This transformation affected all employees. Jörn and Udo, who have experienced the change from combustion engines to e-mobility, are convinced that the future of the automobile is secured with intuitive and innovative solutions. Vehicles such as ID.3, ID.4 and ID.5 as well as the Audi Q4 e-tron already show the direction in which the automotive future is heading at the Zwickau location. Both emphasize that the younger generation is open to new technologies, while older employees stick to traditional combustion vehicles. MDR documents this exciting phase in the region's automotive history.

But the automotive industry, which has been dominated by internal combustion engines for 125 years, is at a turning point. The growing needs for more environmentally friendly transport technologies require a major change. The car is viewed increasingly critically in urban areas, while it remains indispensable for commuters and residents of rural areas. These perspectives show how important automobile production remains for the German economy, as can also be read in an article from bpb.

The current uncertainty about the future of the plant in the VW crisis is noticeable, but employees are optimistic. Despite the challenges associated with retraining and new technologies, there are orders and a prospect for growth in e-mobility. Employees are ready to accept these changes and find their place in the new automotive reality. “It’s important that we keep up with the times,” says Udo, and that shows that the heart of the old Trabant and the new Polo are closely linked.