In 1939, Peugeot introduced their first three-wheeled delivery motorcycle, the “Trimoteur.” It was advertised as “the more economic of the fast means of delivery.”
Brothers Gilles and Olivier Prévôt began PGO (Prévôt Gilles et Olivier) Automobiles in 1985, but production started in earnest in 2000, building Porsche 356-inspired sports cars.
In 1931, the Polish government signed an agreement with Fiat for license production of the 621 truck and the 508 Balilla small car. The cars were sold through the Fiat dealer network under the name Polski-Fiat.
This Vélocipède, made by Laurent Poncet, is an early pedaled-powered bicycle. With wooden wheels, iron “tires”, and lack of springs, this style bicycle earned the nickname “boneshaker.”
The 2014 50th Anniversary Edition 911 was built by Porsche to commemorate the 911’s birthday, 50 years after its production launch in 1964. In homage to 1963, the year the 911 debuted at the 1963 Frankfurt Motor Show, production was limited to 1,963 units; the one seen here is #1480.
Prior to WWII, Ferdinand Porsche was selected by Hitler to design “the people’s car”–the Volkswagen. During the war, Porsche fled to Austria. It was during this time that he designed the 356. In1950, he returned to Germany. Porsche’s first post-war model was the 356 (named as the 356th project off his design desk).
Volkswagen and Porsche have a shared history going back to the 1930s, beginning with Dr. Ferdinand Porsche and his design, the VW Beetle; it was the mechanical basis for the company’s first production sports car, the 356.
Dating back to 1907, Praga is one of the most important Czech makes. The first car to carry the Praga name appeared in 1910 with the slogan “cars which last for hundreds of thousands of kilometers.” In 1929, Praga produced 7,500 vehicles–more than all other Czech companies combined.
PTV was a line of cars produced by Automóviles Utilitarios S.A., a Spanish company based near Barcelona. While it was much closer to being a “real” car than the (French) Voisin-designed Biscuter, it always played second fiddle as far as sales were concerned.
From the 1930s to the 1970s, this was the way high-quality bikes were made: Lugs, which are cast steel sockets, were fitted to the corners of the frame. Next, metal tubes were fitted to the lugs and held in place by brazing or silver soldering.
The classic English roadster produced from the 1930s through the1960s, had a lugged steel frame, with an internal 3-speed hub, and upright riding position.
Reliant Engineering Ltd. was established in 1935 to make 3-wheeled delivery vans powered by Austin Seven engines. In 1953 they brought out their first passenger car--the Regal.