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© History Oasis
Discontinued: 2019
The “people’s car,” designed by Ferdinand Porsche, became the world’s best-selling car, surpassing the Ford Model T in 1972. The rear-engine, air-cooled design produced over 21 million units worldwide and starred in Disney’s Herbie films.
Discontinued: 2013
Conceived by Dutch importer Ben Pon, this iconic Volkswagen van became synonymous with 1960s counterculture and the hippie movement. The split-windshield “Splittie” and “Bay Window” versions are some of the most sought-after collector items on the discontinued vintage car market.
Discontinued: 1974
Italian Ghia styling combined with Beetle mechanicals, hand-built by Karmann. Often called the “poor man’s Porsche,”over 445,000 units were produced. This car was named one of the world’s most beautifully designed products in 1969.
Discontinued: 1969
The “large” Karmann Ghia was based on Type 3 mechanicals, featuring modern angular styling and a luxury interior. Only available as a coupe, it was VW’s range-topper, but limited sales led to the car’s early discontinuation.
Discontinued: 1981
Designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro as the Karmann Ghia replacement. The car was named after the Mediterranean wind. The Scirocco was launched six months before the Golf to resolve production issues. The GTI version preceded the famous Golf GTI.
Discontinued: 1992
Featured in-house wedge-shaped design resembling the Audi Coupé. The second generation of the Scirocco was sold alongside the first-generation Corrado for three years before being discontinued in favor of the more advanced sports coupe.
Discontinued: 1995
This was an advanced sports coupe originally intended as Scirocco III, but became too sophisticated. Featured innovative G60 supercharger and the first production VR6 engine. 97,521 units were hand-built by Karmann over seven years.
Discontinued: 1974
The SP1 was a Brazilian sports coupe with a modest 65hp 1.6L engine. Only 88 units were built due to poor performance. The car featured a more Spartan interior than SP2 without luxury amenities, leather options, or advanced lighting systems.
Discontinued: 1976
The second generation of the Brazilian sports coupe had a distinctive “shark face” design that influenced later VW models. Nicknamed “Sem Potência” (Without Power) due to modest performance. Only 10,205 units were built. It’s one of the rarest collectible cars out there.
Discontinued: 2016
Ferdinand Piëch’s luxury flagship to compete with the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S-Class. Shared platform with Bentley Continental GT. But the Phaeton had poor sales due to high price and VW brand perception, especially in North America.
Discontinued: 2015
The Eos was a compact convertible with a five-section retractable hardtop and glass sunroof. Named after the Greek goddess of dawn. The complex roof mechanism proved expensive to manufacture, leading to poor sales and discontinuation.
Discontinued: 2017
The Scirocco was revived after a 16-year hiatus, based on the Golf V platform. It featured up to 276hp in the R variant but was never sold in the US market. Production ended to make way for the T-Roc SUV at the same Portuguese factory.
Discontinued: 2014
Rebadged Chrysler Town & Country minivan with 3.6L V6 engine and 280hp. This was VW’s only minivan offering in North America. But the car lacked VW engineering DNA and suffered poor sales before being replaced by the Atlas SUV.
Discontinued: 2017
VW’s first SUV, developed with Porsche (Cayenne) and Audi (Q7). It featured luxury appointments and off-road capability but was criticized for a lack of third-row seating and poor fuel economy. Production continues in other markets.
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