Akila Jayawardena
It’s been 70 years since the first Volkswagens were introduced to Sri Lanka.
The first consignment of the cars came to Sri Lanka in 1953, exported from Switzerland. Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, received the first official consignment of the Volkswagens with the appointment of Clarence Amerasingehe & Co., Ltd., who were the official agent for the vehicles. The company imported 3500 Volkswagens, lovingly referred to as ‘Beetle cars’, to the island between 1953 and 1960.
Eight of the first Volkswagen consignments were put on display on 13 May (Sunday) in Colombo to commemorate the 70th anniversary.
