Arnold GmbH & Co KG was founded in 1906 by Karl Arnold in Nürnberg, Germany. They did quite well and by 1940, they had 4 Company locations. Only the location in Mühlhausen (near Kraichgau in Baden-Württemberg, Germany) survived the war and from November 1945, production slowly was resumed from this location. Later the other locations were rebuilt. In 1952, Arnold was the first in Germany to produce hard plastic bodies for their toy cars. This was the start of a very prosperous era for plastic toys and the beginning of the end for tin plate toys. As from 1960, Arnold concentrated themselves mainly on production of trains (N-size) and accessories for trains.
Economy version of the ARNOLD Split VW made with a soft plastic body with cut out windows and sold until the late 1960s. Body details of front and rear hoods, door seams, taillights, license plate light, VW emblem and round horn grilles. No Interior and the crude tin chassis in the shape of a cross attached to the body in four places. Key-wound clockwork or friction motor with either front or rear wheel drive, rubber tires on steel rims and no bumpers.
There is a "fir tree" symbol stamped into the side of the clockwerk motor and this stamping indicates that ARNOLD acquired the motor and wheels from the well-known German mechanical specialist company, Gebrüder Bühler.
