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Volkswagen Beetle was a type of car, powered by an internal combustion engine, produced on Earth by the German automotive manufacturer Volkswagen in the 20th century for civilian purposes. This car was imported into the United States.

An example of this vehicle was in 1968 seen parked on East 68th Street, in New York City. (TOS: "Assignment: Earth")

Another Beetle was seen in 1986 seen making a left turn onto Columbus Avenue from Kearny Street, in San Francisco. This was a convertible with a personalized license plate. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

By 2268, the the Ekosians had an automobile that was identical to a Volkswagen Beetle, which was commonly seen on the streets of the planet Ekos, and it was shown in a publicly broadcast newsreel. (TOS: "Patterns of Force")

The Ekosian newsreel clipping was from an actual, historical German newsreel, apparently shot in the pre-, or very early stages of World War II in Germany itself. Conceived as a propaganda tool by the Nazi Party as the "Kraft durch Freude (KdF)-Wagen" (which translates as "strength by joy-car"), no Beetles were exported before the war. A number of the relatively few pre-war produced Beetles have actually been drafted into German military service during the war. [1] With production started in 1938, but suspended during the war, the as "Volkswagen Käfer, Typ 1 (Peoples car Beetle/Bug, type 1)" rechristened civilian Beetle went on after the war to become one of the most successful vehicles in automotive history.
The militarized World War II version of the Beetle, the Volkswagen Kübelwagen (for which the Beetle production was suspended), has, aside from "Patterns of Force", also been featured in the Star Trek: Enterprise fourth season episode "Storm Front".

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