MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — It's the end of an era.

Volkswagen rolled its last Beetle off of the assembly line in Puebla, Mexico on Wednesday. 

The car has evolved with the changing times and has managed to live on for eight decades. It's been dubbed the longest-running car in history. 

"They were an inexpensive car. No one expected them to last this long, no one ever thought people would restore them," said Kip Zimmerman, owner of Rare and Unique Restoration in Manatee County. 

The first Beetle dates back to 1938 in Nazi Germany. 

"Ferdinand Porsche designed the chassis of the car and Hitler designed the body," Zimmerman said. "The two came together and made the people's car, and that's what the Volkswagen is known as." 

The bug then went on to become an icon for hippie counterculture. Then they lost popularity, coming back twice after nearly falling off the map. 

Over the last few year, Volkswagen tried to revive the Beetle's popularity by releasing new versions, but they couldn't keep up with the current era of SUVs and hybrids. 

Zimmerman is confident that while they're no longer coming off the line, the Beetle will still be on the road for decades to come. 

"Now I see the young kids, age 18 even 16, getting into it," he said. "Which is keeping it alive, which is great because there's a lot of history behind the car."

Zimmerman says at Rare and Unique Restoration, they work on Beetle's from all around the country. They've even refurbished a car brought in from Guam. 

"The Beetle will always be here," he said.