13 August 1961 · Driving through · Bernauer Straße
A VW Beetle races through the barbed wire at Ackerstraße
On the day the border was sealed, a Beetle from East Berlin drove at full speed through the single roll of barbed wire across Ackerstraße.
On 13 August 1961 the barrier across Ackerstraße consisted only of a loosely laid roll of barbed wire.
A VW Beetle from East Berlin raced along Ackerstraße and drove through it at full throttle. The car became entangled in the wire but came to a stop on West Berlin territory, and the driver climbed out to safety.
The West Berlin fire brigade then freed the car from the barbed wire.
Sources
Whose account is this? Told from historical research only.
Historians and memorials
- Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer – Bereich B: Die Zerstörung der Stadt (Orientierungsplan und Ereignismarken), marker B 340Stiftung Berliner Mauer
- B 340 – Digital Guide, Berlin Wall MemorialStiftung Berliner Mauer
Facts checked against the sources: September 2026
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Cite this page
Berlin Experiences, “A VW Beetle races through the barbed wire at Ackerstraße”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/vw-beetle-ackerstrasse-1961/ (accessed [date]).
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