Cars of the GDR: overview of models

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

The automotive industry in post-World War II occupied Germany had good roots. The GDR, or German Democratic Republic, was not a purely agrarian country. The factories of such an industrial holding as Auto Union, a branch of BMW and several smaller enterprises remained here. Before the disengagement, German engineers studied at the same educational institutions, so the country's scientific and industrial base was at a high level. How did the automotive industry of the GDR surprise us in the end?

GDR car fleet

GDR cars had a good variety. Available and well-known to all "Trabants", "Wartburgs", EMW, "Horchs", "Zwickau" and DKV were produced here. The main distinguishing features of passenger cars of the Soviet part of Germany are as follows:

• front wheel drive design;
• two-stroke engine;
• Economical Duroplast body (mostly);
• simple and rough body shapes.

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

Let's take a closer look at the cars of the GDR, modifications and the time during which they were produced.

DKW - German car

The history of this company began with a small bicycle engine. During World War II, military production was established at the plant. But the owner of the company knew how to look ahead and took care in advance to develop a more powerful engine at a moderate cost. The idea was to create a car that almost everyone could afford.

Before the war, the DKW-F1 model was produced. It was a two-cylinder air-cooled car. There was an independent suspension and constant velocity joints, or CV joints. "A car from the GDR" - this was how the DKW-F8 model could be called. In addition to her, there was a model F9, which was produced even in a combi body. All of these machines were characterized by a front-wheel drive design and air-cooled powertrain.

The factories that produced DKV were located in Zwickau and Eisenach. The prefix to the brand of the car for the F8 and F9 models was IFA. This spoke of her belonging to the united automobile concern of the GDR.

Zwickau AWZ P70

The Zwickau was the next development after DKW. Instead of a plywood body covered with leatherette, plastic - duroplast - began to be used. It is an easy-to-stamp phenolic resin composite compound.with the addition of cotton lint. Due to its ease of production, lightness and relative strength, the material quickly gained popularity among budget cars.

Like its predecessor, the DKW-F8, the Zwickau had a transverse engine. There was already water cooling and an on-board network of 12 volts. The gearbox was three-speed. Of the design features, the gear shift cable should be noted. It goes straight through the radiator. Cars of the GDR, whose technical features could surprise, make them admire today.

The AWZ P70 came off the assembly line in 1955 and had some flaws. In particular, to gain access to the luggage compartment, it was necessary to lower the rear seats. There were also no drop-down side windows. A year later, a combi variant appeared, which had a large trunk and a light roof made of insulated artificial leather. A year later, a sports model was released, which had a significantly redesigned body, but the engine was standard for these cars.

Popular Trabant

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

Just like its predecessor, the Zwickau R70, the Trabant R50 (as well as the P60 and P601 versions) had a duroplast body on a metal frame. The power unit was a two-stroke with a capacity of only 26 hp. With. and had 0.5 or 0.6 liters of volume. Engine cooling was air. Fuel into the carburetor was supplied by gravity from the gas tank located here, in the engine compartment. The smoky motor subsequently became a huge minus. Because of him, the Trabant had a nickname - "a four-seater motorcycle with a common helmet."

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

In 1988, the Trabant was updated to the P1.1 model. The main change is the new 41 hp WV Polo engine. With. and with a working volume of 1.1 liters. In addition to the classic sedan, Trabant was produced in the station wagon. There was also an open-type trump model for the military and hunters. Passenger cars of the GDR, the history of which develops along with industry, are becoming the closest to the population. The Trabi is one of those cars.

"Wartburg" from the GDR

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

The power unit of the 311 Wartburg was a 3-cylinder two-stroke. A normal lubrication system has not yet been invented. Therefore, concrete smoke was coming out of the exhaust pipe, and when the engine was running, a characteristic motorcycle noise was heard. Also, unlike the Trabant, the Wartburg was water-cooled. The pluses of the model include a fairly modern look for those years.

In 1965, "Wartburg" is undergoing modernization. The body has been significantly redesigned. Round lines are gradually replaced by straight lines. The modification received the number 353. The large roomy trunk was even more transformed in the station wagon and pickup models. The appearance of the car was somewhat reminiscent of the Soviet VAZ-2101. The main disadvantage of the model was the same 2-stroke engine. Small-scale production made the Wartburg more expensive, in contrast to the same Trabi. However, in general, its price was affordable, and the car was successfully exported to neighboring countries.

The last modernization of the Wartburg took place in 1988. Then the car received the number 1.3 and got a normal engine from the WV Polo with a volume of 1.3 liters. However, the overall technological gap was already strong, and in 1991The plant is bought out by Opel. Today, the Wartburg, like the rest of the cars of the GDR, is a rarity.

Soviet BMWs

It is known that one of the BMW factories remained on the territory of Soviet Germany (or the GDR). What kind of cars were produced at this enterprise, which was also nationalized? Immediately after the end of the war, BMW 321 and BMW 327 were produced here. The last model was a classic sports car of those times. Behind the rather attractive appearance of the car was a 6-cylinder and almost 2-liter engine. Fuel entered the engine from 2 carburetors. 327 model could accelerate to 125 km/h.

After the formation of the GDR, it became impossible to use the BMW brand. Therefore, its own designation was coined - EMW, which in translation meant "Eisenach Motor Works". And the first model of the new enterprise in 1949 was the EMW 340. It was a redesigned BMW 326 and, in fact, the first own car of the GDR. The body was completely redone, leaving the power unit almost unchanged. Now five of us could ride in the car. Torque has been increased to 4200 rpm. True, due to the greater mass, the maximum speed has become less - 120 km / h.

There were 3 modifications of the EMW 340: a sedan, station wagon or combi and a van 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 retro exhibitions and lead quite an active life. ManyEMW's technical solutions were used and then implemented in the Wartburg 311. Real cars of the GDR, photos, the description of which can be found in this article, today are real rarities.

Car for circuit racing - "Melkus RS1000"

We are talking about a racing car from the GDR, which was assembled by a small workshop under the direction of Heinz Melkus. This man was an avid circuit racer. First, he opened a driving school, and then the idea arose to assemble racing cars on the basis of the Wartburgs.

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

4WD cars of the GDR

Cars of the GDR could not boast of cross-country ability, although there were real all-wheel drive (4 x 4) cars, which were not covered. The very first was "Horch". Outwardly, it was a Horch 901, but it had a different name - HK1. A V-shaped engine was installed here, which had 80 hp. With. with a volume of 3.6 liters.

Second all-wheel drive carproduced at the former BMW branch in Eisenach. The main name is P1, but there were other options: EMW 325/3, KFZ 3. The car had a 2-liter 6-cylinder power unit with 55 hp. With. Before the plant was completely rebuilt for Wartburgs, they managed to make about 160 pieces of P1.

The P2 was considered the main all-wheel drive model of the GDR. It was produced on the secret "Object 37" from 1955 to 1958. During this time, about 1800 units were produced. Externally, the car was quite unsightly. The angular planes of the body were only cheap to manufacture. But behind this appearance was hiding a powerful 6-cylinder engine with a volume of 2.4 liters at 65 hp. With. and a short four-wheel drive base.

The final development of the designers of the GDR was the P3 model. Ground clearance has become even greater - 330 mm. The number of motor "horses" also increased to 75. The appearance of the body also became more presentable. There was a 4-speed manual gearbox and a 2-speed transfer case. It was possible to block the center differential.

Light truck "Barkas"

Cars of the GDR, the brands of which had the IFA designation, actually included products from different enterprises. One of the famous minibuses and light trucks was "Barkas". A two-stroke engine from Wartburg, of course, is not the best solution. At the same time, "Barkas" had an independent suspension on torsion bars for each wheel. Thanks to the front-wheel drive, the floor in the passenger compartment of minibuses wasmaximally underestimated. This added a lot of interior space.

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

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

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

• minibuses proper;
• ambulance car;
• fire trucks;
• car for resuscitation;
• isothermal vans.

Cars of the GDR "Barkas" were in great demand. Over the entire period of their production, almost 180,000 units were produced.

IFA trucks

Behind the phrase "IFA truck" it is difficult to discern the belonging of a particular car to a particular concern. There was a lot of confusion at one time, but in the end, the W50L car with the popular name "Ellie" is considered to be an IFA truck. The letter W in the name stands for the city where this car was designed - Werdau, and the letter L - the city where it was produced - Ludwigsfelde, the number 50 indicates that the truck can carry 50 centners, or 5 tons.

IFA W50L haddiesel power unit first with 110 hp s., and after modification - from 125 liters. With. A huge number of specifications for this truck were produced. There were always firemen, cranes, dump trucks, drilling rigs. The photo of a GDR military truck could also show exactly the W50L.

The Elli truck was in great demand and was very popular not only in the GDR, but also abroad. The USSR also actively used modifications of the dump truck and flatbed truck. Over 570,000 units rolled off the assembly line over the entire 25-year period.

Robur trucks

"Robur" was a medium-duty truck produced since 1961 in the town of Zittau. The LO 2500 model could carry up to 2.5 tons of payload. There was also a diesel version of the LD 2500 and an all-wheel drive military version of the LO 1800A, which took a load of 1800 kg.

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

The car was not as popular as the IFA W50L, and by the mid-70s it became obsolete. Almost all trucks of the GDR, photos of which can be seen in this article, had simple angular shapes. But the main lag was, of course, technical.

Convenient station wagon multicar

Cars of the GDRcomprised a fleet of cars and trucks. But among them were products such as Multicar. These are light trucks for various purposes. The company that produced multicars was called Multicar. Existed right up to 2005.

The first multicars of the GDR were intended for the delivery of goods inside warehouses and factory premises. These are diesel vehicles DK2002 and DK2003. A later modified DK2004 was named the Multicar M21. This truck has also been constantly improved. If at first the driver could only stand, then he sat down, and in the end the cab of the multicar became a double one.

GDR buses

In addition to the fleet of cars and trucks, there was a bus manufacturing company in the GDR. They were produced by the private enterprise Fritz Fleischer. The bus brands S1 and S2 were based on the IFA H6B. In the 70s, the bodies and the name were replaced for the first models: S4 and S5, respectively. Cars of the GDR brand S4, S5 until the end of the 80s provided a great service, because apart from the foreign "Ikarus" there were no more buses in the Union.

Instead of a conclusion

When looking at models of GDR cars, you learn a whole layer of history. Angular and plain-looking cars were full-fledged assistants to people of those times. And at the present time, GDR cars are only rarities.