1930s-1945 Economy car

brochure standard superior, 1934 – enough space 4 in quickest , cheapest



kdf propaganda – family playing river kdf-volkswagen , volks-radio receiver

the volkswagen beetle longest-lasting icon of 1930s era. adolf hitler admired ideals exemplified ford model t, (even though didn t drive himself), , sought of ferdinand porsche create peoples-car - literally volks-wagen, same ideals people of germany. car complement new autobahns built. had been planned under weimar republic, stole credit them. many of design ideas plagiarised work of hans ledwinka, tatra t97 , tatra v570 czechoslovakian tatra (car) company. suspiciously similar in many ways josef ganz–designed cars, looked similar mercedes-benz 120h prototype of 1931. nazi kraft durch freude (german strength through joy, abbreviated kdf) kdf-wagen or strength through joy - car project ground halt before serious production had started because of world war ii. kdf, nazi state organisation promote leisure activities of population, approved of, , monitored by, state. when german car industry unable meet hitler s demand volkswagen sold @ 1,000 reichsmarks or less, project taken on german labour front (deutsche arbeitsfront, daf). working daf, porsche built new volkswagen factory @ fallersleben, called stadt des kdf-wagens bei fallersleben (wolfsburg after 1945), @ huge cost partly met raiding daf s accumulated assets , misappropriating dues paid daf members. volkswagen sold german workers on installment plan buyers of car made payments , posted stamps in stamp-savings book, when full, redeemed car. due shift of wartime production, no consumer ever received kdf-wagen (although after war, volkswagen did give customers 200 dm discount stamp-books). entire project financially unsound, , corruption , lack of accountability of nazi regime made possible. beetle factory converted produce kübelwagen (the german equivalent of jeep). few beetles produced went diplomatic corps , military officials. after war, volkswagen company founded produce car in new democratic west germany, success.

1936 steyr 50 baby



fiat topolino

from 1936 1955, fiat in italy produced advanced , compact fr layout fiat 500 topolino or little mouse , precursor of 1950s fiat 500, designed dante giacosa. inline 4 cylinder 569 cc  13 ⁄2 hp engine placed right @ front of chassis radiator behind it. allowed sloping front , legroom when combined lowered seating. allowed fiat lower roofline. although nominally two-seater more squeezed in behind seats. had quarter elliptic leaf spring rear suspension, axle locating trailing arm, upgraded stronger semi-elliptic cope overloading customers. front suspension independent , used basis of suspension of first english cooper racing cars in 1940s became successful in 1950s. had 4 speed gearbox (when 3 common) , hydraulic brakes. similar size austin 7 more advanced. exported on world , produced @ nsu factory in germany, steyr-puch in austria , simca in france. facelifted american influenced full width styling of frontal panels after war, headlights integrated wings/fenders.

the fiat 1100 first introduced in 1937 updated version of 508 balilla (its real name 508c) similar 1936 fiat 500 topolino , larger 1500, typical late-thirties heart-shaped front grille, styling emerging designer, dante giacosa. powered 1,089 cc 4 cylinder overhead-valve engine. drive rear wheels through four-speed gearbox, , period, comfort, handling, , performance prodigious, making people s car driver s car .

the steyr 50 streamlined small car introduced in 1936 austrian manufacturer steyr-puch. car had water-cooled four-cylinder boxer engine driving rear wheels through four-speed transmission. had similar engine , radiator layout fiat topolino launched @ same time. save room , weight dynastarter used, doubled axle of radiator fan. regarded austrian peoples car , affectionately referred steyr baby . professor porsche had, despite rumors, not been involved in design or production of 50. moreover, little steyr offered better seating , luggage space porsche s volkswagen shorter overall length, large sheet metal sliding roof , available hydraulic brakes (instead of volkswagens cable-operated ones). in 1938, car revised. got more powerful engine , longer wheelbase. new model called steyr 55 , went on sale in 1940. total of 13,000 steyr babies sold. production of steyr cars discontinued during world war ii, after bombing of factory. after war, factory rebuilt , specialized in austrian versions of fiat 500 , fiat 1500. today steyr factory produces bmw x models europe.

morris 8 1936



ford 8 / ford model y 933cc 1937

the pre-war european car market not 1 market. trade barriers fragmented national markets, apart luxury cars cost of tariffs make cars more exclusive , desirable. way car maker enter national market of major european car making country, (and colonial markets of time), open factories there. example, citroen , renault opened factories in england in period. situation changed post-war growth of eec (european community) , efta. british rac (royal automobile club) horsepower taxation system had secondary function of excluding foreign vehicles. targeted @ ford model t, government feared wipe out fledgling indigenous motor industry. crippled car engine design in britain in inter-war period, causing british car makers produce under-square, low revving, long stroke engines. abolished after world war ii part of british export drive desperately needed, hard foreign currency, because made british cars uncompetitive internationally. technologically conservative 1930s morris eight, ford 8 (ford model y related german ford köln), , standard 8 (standard, later became triumph) named after rac horsepower car tax rating. ford model y had replaced model in europe in 1932 , ran until 1937. smaller , lighter car weighing third less, engine 2 thirds smaller in capacity model a. basic model y popular important milestone in british economy cars, being first steel-bodied four-seater saloon sell £100; four-wheeled car sell price had been two-seater tourer model of morris minor. model y reworked more streamlined ford 7y 1938-1939. restyled again 1939 launched ford anglia. initial sales in britain began in 1940. production suspended in 1942, , resumed in mid-1945. production ceased in 1948 after total of 55,807 had been built. anglia restyled again in 1948. including production, 108,878 built. when production anglia ceased in october 1953, continued extremely basic ford popular entry level car until 1959. ford prefect differently styled , more upmarket version of anglia launched in october 1938 , remained in production until 1941, returning market in 1945. car face lifted in 1953 original perpendicular or sit-up-and-beg style more modern three-box structure. sold until 1961. anglia, popular , prefect sold long time despite old fashioned technology using transverse leaf springs , beam axles front , rear suspension, side valve engines , partly synchromeshed 3 speed gearboxes. sold on price because of limited car supply on used car market due second world war, , new car market because of british government s post war policy of exporting cars. morris eight, introduced in 1935, deliberate close copy of ford , served lower cost, more profitable replacement 1928-vintage morris minor had not achieved hoped-for success. prices morris started @ £112 , offered more equipment ford , more modern design ageing austin seven, meant became uk s bestselling car 1939.

crosley, u.s. appliance manufacturer, 1939 (switching war production in 1942-45) 1952, produced small economy cars of european rather american scale. these featured variety of innovative in-house designed engines of less 1 litre capacity. popular in 1940s due high fuel economy during fuel rationing because of war. there wide variety of two-door body styles; sedan, convertible sedan, coupe, convertible coupe, covered wagon, , station wagon. also, there successful sports car, crosley hotshot. styling of 1951 crosley super sport similar 1958 frogeye/bugeye austin-healey sprite. production peaked @ 24,871 cars in 1948. sales began slip in 1949, post war american economy took off, , adding crosley hotshot , combination farm tractor-jeep-like vehicle called farm-o-road in 1950, not stop decline. in 1952, 1522 crosley vehicles sold. production shut down , plant sold general tire , rubber company.