Ferdinand Porsche reached the rank of "SS-Oberführer". During the war, Porsche was further decorated with the SS-Ehrenring and awarded the War Merit Cross. As the war progressed his proposed solutions to new developments became more complex and Ferdinand Porsche gained a reputation in certain circles as a "mad scientist" especially with Albert Speer (mainly due to his new found affinity for "pointy" designs). A new city, "Stadt des KdF-Wagens" was founded near Fallersleben for the Volkswagen factory, but wartime production concentrated almost exclusively on the military Kübelwagen and Schwimmwagen variants. Mass production of the car, which later became known as the Beetle,
SS Brigade Westfalen consisted of three battalions: SS Panzer Reconnaissance Training and Replacement Battalion 1, SS Panzer Reconnaissance Training and Replacement Battalion 2, and an SS Panzer Reconnaissance NCO Training Battalion. Regiment "Holzer" was named after its commander Obersturmbannführer Friedrich Holzer and consisted of the SS Panzer Training and Replacement Regiment in Augustdorf, which consists of three battalions. The 507th Heavy Panzer Battalion was the brigade's main armor component. The brigade had about 60 Tiger and Panther tanks as of 30 March 1945 according to Charles B. MacDonald. However, according to Steven Zaloga, the brigade instead had 15 old training tanks such as