The 1965-1984 chapter in Audi's history was characterised by the most difficult period the world's automobile manufacturing industry experienced since the Second World War. The twin oil shocks of the 1970s resulted in major sales reversals and a repositioning of product lineups as the world's carmakers adjusted to the demands of a new, more environmentally demanding marketplace. It was during this period that the Audi brand had its modern-day baptism, and it was the strategic direction that was established during the late sixties that erased the memories of the struggling Auto Union days and secured the future of Audi as one of the world's premium car brands. By late 1964 Volkswagen had acquired 50.3% of the Auto Union shares, and was thus able to introduce its own management procedures at Ingolstadt. During the next two years the remaining shares were purchased and by the end of 1966 the four rings had become the symbol for a wholly-owned VW subsidiary. The development of models capable ofgenerating higher sales volumes couldn't come soon enough, as the two-stroke's reputation had never been so low. Work went ahead on completing the F103 - this was the existing F102 with a new high-compression four-stroke engine developed during the period of Daimler-Benz control. To help keep the production lines going in the short term, however, Volkswagen introduced the 'Beetle' to Ingolstadt, where between 300 and 500 were assembled each day for over four years from May 1965. It was an effective means of maintaining full employment when the outdated Auto Union models weren't selling.