I believe the rear engine bug as we know the basic design..
was the first version of the concept that Ferdinand laid down........for a
People's Car.........
something that the Furuer sought design submissions for, in about 1938.

Barely any of those cars  were made I think, pre-war.
the Kublewagon and Schwimmienwaong were german army adaptations of the rear
engine, air-cooled 'bug' design, far as I know anyway.  .
After WWII............VW Bugs here manufactured.
it was the British who ran the company at first and got it going post-war.
Easy to study in any 'history of VW' book  or site.
I think that's the order in which things  happened.

----- Original Message -----
From: "neil N" <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, January 30, 2009 9:38 PM
Subject: Re: If Ted Kennedy Had Been Driving a VW........

> On Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 9:24 PM,  <syncro@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>> And if IIRC, the precursor to the VW bug, the Kublewagen, would float.
>> Some even had a prop on the back (No pics of prop)
>>
>>
>> That was not the Kubelwagen but rather the Schwimmenwagen. I think that's
>> how it's spelled.
>>
>> BenT
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
>>
>
>
>
> Yah yah!
>
> Mein badt.
>
> http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/pressphotos/20million/9a.jpg
>
> And......
>
> @   :40
>
> http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=87Sn7OqVD8w
>
> Neat!
>
> Neil.