VOLKSWAGEN in the UK enjoyed a golden age with its iconic Beetle, but with the dawn of the 1970s times were changing and something had to be done to keep up with other manufacturers.
The company had stuck like glue to its rear-engine/rear-wheel drive configuration and some of the models it produced up to the early 70s were not in the same league as the Beetle. One in particular, the 'upmarket' 411/412 was just blobby and losing direction.
And so the K70 was born. This is one of those cars that time forgot, yet it nudged VW on course to be the world great that it is today.
The K70 was the first VW to have a front-mounted watercooled engine and the first to have front-wheel-drive.
At the time it was a complete sea change for the company and it was all down to the fact that VW had taken over Audi/NSU.
Designed by Claus Lute the K70 was originally developed by NSU as a smaller brother to the more famous Ro80, the main difference being that the K70 used a conventional piston engine instead of the Ro80's more complicated rotary engine.
The name K70 referred to the fact that the engine had a power output of 70PS , the K denoting the German word Kolben, meaning piston, in contrast to the Ro denoting the Ro80's rotary engine.
NSU had already scheduled the car's launch for March 1969, intending to unveil it at the Geneva Motor Show of that year.
However, just as the car was about to be launched, rumours spread concerning the then imminent take over of cash strapped Audi/NSU by Volkswagen.
Even before the take over had been made public, the K70's future was threatened by management concerns that it was too close in size and price to the recently launched Audi 100.
The K70 was temporarily shelved.
Time revealed that the rumours were correct and VW took over the company and the K70 presented the parent firm with an ideal opportunity to change tracks and market a more conventional car.
And so the NSU side of the firm fielded the Audi and VW had the K70 in the European saloon market launching it in the early 70s.
The K70 as launched featured a four-cylinder water cooled engine developed from the four cylinder engine mounted in the rear of the NSU 1200, its displacement increased to 1,605cc and despite its name it eventually turned out 75PS.
Although the styling of the car the was bang up to date the performance, especially on the entry level model was only adequate.
To add to the company's concerns the K70's indifferent fuel consumption became an increasingly pressing issue because the car's production run coincided with the 1973 oil crisis.
In the end it turned out that the rear engined VW 411/12 in manual transmission mode returned better fuel economy.
The K70 featured a boxy cabin which was unusually spacious and the luggage capacity was class leading.
The driver sat slightly higher than in competitors and the large window area conferred above average all-round visibility.
It also had a number of secondary safety features including a fuel tank mounted directly ahead of the rear axle and boot/trunk.
When the K70 arrived the VW dealership network had a challenge on their hands.
Although the car was priced below the Audi 100, there was an overlap in the market place with the Volkswagen 411.
Despite the different badging, some potential buyers may have tarred the K70 with the same brush as its unreliable NSU Ro80 sister car, leading to poor sales.
But it was not all bad news.
The K70 was not in itself a good car, but this cuckoo in the nest was the key to the next stage in the game, the first VW Passat which led the way to the exceptional model of that name the company now produces.