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Like many other far-sighted European manufacturers, Daimler Automobile Manufacturing of Germany focused on the concept of a “people’s car” or “Volkswagen'' during the years after World War I. After the 1926 Daimler-Benz merger these ideas influenced by Ferdinand Porsche and others were formalized. Designer Hans Nibel’s 130H was presented at the Berlin Auto Show of 1934 with a rear-mounted, water-cooled 1.3 liter engine. Though the engine was small, it created an “oversteer” condition. It was not a commercial success, but its ideas evolved into other cars, such as the VW Beetle, of which thirty prototypes were built in 1937.
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