Cars GDR: review of models

The automobile industry occupied after the Second World War in Germany had good roots. The GDR, or the German Democratic Republic, was not a purely agrarian country. Here there were factories of such an industrial holding company as Auto Union, a branch of BMW and several smaller enterprises. German engineers before the separation studied in the same educational institutions, so the country's scientific and industrial base was at a high level. What, in the end, surprised us with the automotive industry of the GDR?

Park of cars GDR

The cars of the GDR were very diverse. The "Trabants", "Wartburgs", EMW, "Horch", "Zwickau" and DKV were produced here. The main distinguishing features of passenger cars of the Soviet part of Germany are the following:

• Front-wheel drive design;
• Two-stroke engine;
• Economical body made of duroplast (mostly);
• Simple and rough body shapes.

Many companies after the division of Germany were merged into one large automotive holding company called IFA ("Ifa"). Most often, IFA meant trucks. The most famous model among them - W50L - was very popular and had the popular name "Ellie".

Consider in more detail the cars of the GDR, modifications and the time during which they were issued.

DKW - German car

The history of this company began with a small motor for a bicycle. During the Second World War, the factory was set up military production. But the owner of the company knew how to look ahead and in advance took care of the development of a more powerful engine at a moderate cost. There was an idea to create a car that almost everyone could afford.

Before the war, the DKW-F1 was released. It was a two-cylinder air-cooled car. There was an independent suspension and hinges of equal angular speeds, or CV joints. "The car from the GDR" - so could call the model DKW-F8. In addition to her, there was a model F9, which was produced even in the body of the combi. For all these machines was characterized by front-wheel design and air-cooling power unit.

The factories on which the DQW was issued were located in Zwickau and Eisenach. The prefix to the machine brand for models F8 and F9 was IFA. This spoke of her belonging to the united automobile concern of the GDR.

"Zwickau AWZ P70"

The following for DKV development were "Zwickau". Instead of a plywood body, covered with imitation leather, plastic was used - duroplast. It is a composite composite made of phenolic resin with additives of cotton feathers suitable for punching. Due to the convenience of production, lightness and relative strength, the material quickly gained popularity among budget cars.

Like its predecessor, DKW-F8, Zwickau had a transverse engine layout. There was already water cooling and an onboard network of 12 volts. The transmission was three-speed. Of the design features, it should be noted the shift cable. It passes right through the cooling radiator. The cars of the GDR, whose technical features could surprise, make us admire them today.

The AWZ P70 car came off the assembly line in 1955 and had some flaws. In particular, in order to gain access to the luggage compartment, it was necessary to lower the rear seats. There were also no descending side windows. A year later there was a version of combi, which had a large trunk and light roof of insulated artificial leather. A year later a sports model was produced, which had a significantly redesigned body, but a standard engine for these machines.

Popular Trabant

Trabant in German means "Sputnik". The release of this cult machine was started in 1957, when the first Soviet satellite was launched into space. The total number of cars that appeared under the Trabant brand, including the predecessors of the P70, exceeded 3 million. This brand of the GDR car was a real symbol of the country. No matter how they scolded "Trabi", and thanks to this car a large number of the population could "get on wheels". So, what kind of car was it?

As well as its predecessor "Zwickau R70", "Trabant P50" (and also versions P60 and P601) had a thermoplastic body on a metal skeleton. The power unit was a two-stroke power of only 26 liters. from. And had 0.5 or 0.6 liters of volume. The engine cooling was air-cooled. Fuel in the carburetor came from the gasoline tank, located here, in the engine compartment. The running motor was subsequently a huge minus. Because of him, "Trabant" was the nickname - "four-seat motorcycle with a common helmet."

The front and rear suspension were independent. Structurally, this was done on the transverse springs. Precise steering was carried out thanks to a rack and pinion gear. Part of the car, intended for disabled people, had a semi-automatic gearbox. The gears were turned on by the driver manually, and the clutch was made automatically through a special electromechanical unit.

In 1988 "Trabant" was updated to model Р1.1. The main change is a new engine from WV Polo with a capacity of 41 liters. from. And with a working volume of 1.1 liters. In addition to the classic sedan, Trabant was produced in the body of the station wagon. There was still a model of open type tramp for military and hunters. Cars GDR, the history of the creation of which develops together with industry, become the closest to the population. "Traby" - one of these cars.

Wartburg from the GDR

The car brand of the GDR Wartburg is the second most famous after Trabant. These cars were assembled at the plant in Eisenach since 1956. The basis for the car was "Ifa F9" or DKV F9, which were produced earlier. The designation of the model was Wartburg 311. Unlike the "Trabant" and its predecessors, the "Wartburg" had more metal in the design. The body was bigger, due to what in the car was much more spacious.

The power unit at 311 Wartburg was a 3-cylinder two-stroke. A normal lubrication system has not yet been invented. Therefore, from the exhaust pipe was a specific smoke, and when the engine was working, characteristic motorcycle noise was heard. Also, unlike Trabant, "Wartburg" had water cooling. The advantages of the model include a rather modern look for those years.

In 1965, the "Wartburg" is undergoing modernization. The body was significantly redesigned. The round lines gradually change to straight lines. The modification received the number 353. The large capacious trunk was even more transformed in the models of the station wagon and pickup. The exterior view of the car was somewhat reminiscent of the Soviet VAZ-2101. The main minus of the model was the same 2-stroke engine. Small-scale production made the "Wartburg" more expensive, in contrast to the same "Traby". However, in general, its price was available, and the car was successfully exported to neighboring countries.

The last modernization of the "Wartburg" occurred in 1988. Then the car got the number 1.3 and got a normal motor from WV Polo with a volume of 1.3 liters. However, the overall technological gap was already strong, and in 1991 the plant was bought out by Opel. For today, Wartburg, like the other cars of the GDR, is a rarity.

Soviet BMW

It is known that in the territory of Soviet Germany (or GDR) there was one of the BMW plants. What kind of cars were produced at this enterprise, which was also nationalized? Immediately after the end of the war, the BMW 321 and BMW 327 were produced here. The last model was a classic sports car of the time. Behind enough attractive appearance of the car hid a 6-cylinder and almost 2-liter motor. Fuel was supplied to the engine from 2 carburettors. 327 model could accelerate to 125 km / h.

After the formation of the GDR, it was impossible to use the BMW brand . Therefore, it was invented its designation - EMW, which translated means "Eisenach Motors". And the first sample of the new enterprise in 1949 was the EMW 340. It was a redesigned BMW 326 and, in fact, the first own GDR car. Completely remade the body, leaving almost unchanged the power unit. Now in the car it was possible to drive five. The torque was increased to 4200 rpm. True, due to the greater weight, the maximum speed became less - 120 km / h.

There were 3 modifications of the EMW 340: sedan, station wagon or combi and van, which was made of wood. The car was actively used in public services, such as the police, in medical institutions and government agencies. Most of those cars today participate in retrovistavkah and lead a fairly active life. Many of EMW's technical solutions were used and then implemented in the "Wartburg 311". Real cars GDR, photos, a description of which can be found in this article, today - these rarities.

The car for the ring race - "Melkus RS1000"

This is a racing car from the GDR, which was assembled by a small workshop under the leadership of Heinz Melkus. This man was an avid ring rider. First he opened a driving school, and then the idea arose to collect racing cars on the basis of the "Wartburgs."

In 1959, the first sports version was released from Melkus. The name of the model was simple: "Melkus-Wartburg". In 1968, work began on the body in the form of a sports coupe made of fiberglass. In this model, gullwing-type doors were assumed. As a power unit, a 70- or 90-horsepower engine with a volume of 1-1.2 liters was used. Thanks to him, the racing car could reach speeds of up to 165 km / h (9 seconds to 100 km / h). This modification received the designation Melkus RS1000. A total of 100 copies were produced. Unfortunately, after the death of Heinz, it was not possible to continue the business of manufacturing sports cars.

All-Wheel Drive GDR

Cars GDR could not boast of cross-country, although there were real four-wheel-drive (4 x 4) cars, which did not apply. The very first was "Horch". Outwardly it was Horch 901, but the name had another - HK1. Here was installed V-shaped engine, which had 80 liters. from. At a volume of 3.6 liters.

The second all-wheel drive car was produced at the former BMW branch in Eisenach. The main name - P1, but there were other options: EMW 325/3, KFZ 3. The car had a 2-liter 6-cylinder power unit in 55 liters. from. Before the plant was completely reconstructed under the "Wartburg", managed to make about 160 pieces of P1.

The main all-wheel drive model of the GDR was considered P2. It was issued on the classified "Object 37" in the period from 1955 to 1958. During this time, about 1800 units were produced. Externally, the car was completely plain. Angular body planes were only cheap in production. But behind this appearance was hidden a powerful 6-cylinder engine in volume of 2.4 liters at 65 liters. from. And a short all-wheel drive base.

The final design of the GDR designers was the P3 model. The ground clearance became even more - 330 mm. The number of motor "horses" also increased to 75. Also became more presentable appearance of the body. There was a 4-speed manual gearbox and a 2-speed transfer case. You could lock the center differential.

Light truck "Barkas"

The cars of the GDR, whose brands had the designation IFA, actually included products from different enterprises. One of the well-known minibuses and light trucks was "Barkas". The two-stroke engine from the Wartburg, of course, is not the best solution. At the same time, "Barkas" had an independent suspension on the torsion bars for each wheel. Thanks to the front drive, the floor in the minibus cabin was maximally understated. This greatly added an internal space.

3-cylinder engine with a volume of 1 liter overclocked a minivan with a capacity of 8 people to 100 km / h. The first version of the "Barkas" had the designation V 901/2 and was already with a sliding side door. It was produced in 1951-1957.

After there were modifications of the car with the engine from IL: "Moskvich 412". This sample was named Barkas B1000. Later, in 1989, the "Barkas" began to install a diesel 4-stroke engine from WV. The model index changed to B1000-1.

The main base of the B1000 "Barkas" has received a large number of specializations. Here were:

• Actually minibuses;
• Auto for ambulance;
• Fire engines;
• Auto for resuscitation;
• Isothermal vans.

Cars GDR "Barkas" were in great demand. Almost 180,000 units were produced during their production.

Trucks "IFA"

For the phrase "truck" IFA "it is difficult to discern the ownership of a specific car to a certain concern." At one time there was a lot of confusion, but in the end, the W50L truck with the popular name "Elli" is considered to be the IFA truck .The letter W in the name indicates the city where it was designed This car is Verdau, and the letter L is the city where it was manufactured - Ludwigsfelde.The figure 50 indicates that the truck can transport 50 quintals, or 5 tons.

IFA W50L had a diesel power unit with 110 liters first. With., And after modification - with 125 liters. from. There were a lot of specifications of this truck. There necessarily were firemen, cranes, dump trucks, drilling rigs. In the photo of the GDR military truck, the W50L could also be depicted.

The truck "Elli" was in great demand and was very popular not only in the GDR, but also abroad. The USSR also actively used the modifications of the dumper and the onboard truck. Over the entire 25-year period, more than 570 thousand units have left the assembly line.

Truck "Robour"

"Robur" was a medium-tonnage truck, produced since 1961 in the town of Zittau. Model LO 2500 could carry up to 2.5 tons of payload. There was also a diesel version of the LD 2500 and a four-wheel-drive military version of the LO 1800A, which weighed 1,800 kg.

In 1973 there was a modification in the direction of increasing the load capacity. Now the diesel car raised 2.6 tons, and petrol - 3 and 2 tons. Power units have become more powerful. 75 "horses" began to have a gasoline "Robur" and 70 - diesel. The car cabin remained unchanged and also accommodated 3 people.

The car was not as popular as the IFA W50L, and by the mid-1970s it became morally obsolete. Virtually all GDR trucks, photos of which can be seen in this article, had simple angular shapes. But the main lag was, of course, technical.

Convenient multi-purpose station wagon

The cars of the GDR were a fleet of cars and trucks. But there were among them and such products as Multicar. These are light trucks for a variety of purposes. The company that produced multicars, and was called - Multicar. It existed already until 2005.

The first multicars of the GDR were intended for the transport of goods inside warehouse and factory premises. These are diesel engines DK2002 and DK2003. Later, the modified model DK2004 was named Multicar M21. This truck has also been constantly updated. If at first the driver could only stand, then he sat down, and in the end the cab of the multikar became a two-seater.

Buses GDR

In addition to the fleet of cars and trucks, there was a bus manufacturing company in the GDR. They were produced by a private company Fritz Fleischer. The bus brands S1 and S2 were designed based on the IFA H6B. In the 1970s, the first models were replaced by bodies and name: S4 and S5, respectively. Cars GDR brand S4, S5 until the late 80's provided a great service, because in addition to foreign "Ikarus" buses in the Union was no more.

Instead of concluding

Considering the models of GDR cars, you will learn a whole layer of history. Angular and unpretentious to look at the cars were full-fledged helpers of people of those times. And at the present time, GDR cars are just rarities.