Friday 4th September 1914

Born on this day, Rudolf Leiding, the third postwar chairman of the Volkswagen automobile company, succeeding Kurt Lotz in 1971. Under Leiding’s leadership, the Volkswagen Golf was completed and went on sale in Europe in June 1974, introduced in North America as the Rabbit seven months later. The Golf was credited with saving VW from possible bankruptcy after the company had relied on the Beetle too long. Leiding left the company in 1975 and was replaced by Toni Schmücker. Leiding was the first director of the VW works in Kassel. He was also CEO of Audi NSU as well as Volkswagen do Brasil where he participated actively in the development of the sportscoupe SP2 to be launched in 1972, one year after he went back to Germany to assume as VW CEO. Leiding died in September 2003.