Volkswagen Type 4

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Image:Vw 411 v sst.jpg Image:412.jpg

The Volkswagen Type 4 was a mid-sized 2 or 4-door sedan or 2-door station wagon built by Volkswagen. It was produced between 1968 and 1974. It was larger than the Volkswagen Type 3 and had a more powerful engine. The Type 3 and Type 4 were the last of VW's air-cooled models and preceded the massively successful Golf/Rabbit.

The Type 4 introduced many firsts to the Volkswagen lineup. These firsts included: unibody construction, MacPherson strut front suspension, rear suspension with coil springs and trailing wishbones, hydraulic clutch (for models equipped with a manual transmission), and one of the first fully automatic transmission(the first was in the 1969 type 3 models) in a Volkswagen (previous cars used an automatic (vacuum-actuated) clutch, but still had to be shifted manually). It was also Volkswagen's first 4-door sedan. The MacPherson strut front suspension was later successfully used in the Super Beetle.

The Type 4 included the 411 (produced from 1968 to 1972) and the 412 (produced in 1973 and 1974). Each model included a sedan (fastback) and a station wagon version. Both models were fuel injected, one of the first mass production vehicles to include this feature after the Volkswagen Type 3 (which also received fuel injection in 1968).

The Type 4 was reputedly a favorite project of Volkswagen head Heinz Nordhoff, who felt that the larger vehicle would be attractive to families in North America.

While the Beetle's battery was located under the rear seat, the Type 4's battery was located under the driver's seat. In the rear of the car was located a gasoline operated heater that was fired by a glow plug accessible from a hidden rear window deck plate.

The design of the Type 4 was used when the Volkswagen Brasilia was produced for the Latin American market.

While the Type 4 was discontinued in 1974, the Type 4 engine became the power plant for Volkswagen Type 2s produced from 1972 to 1979, and continued in modified form in the Volkswagen Vanagon (air-cooled from 1980 through mid-1983, and water-cooled from late 1983 through 1991).

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