History of Czech Republic Motor Car / Automobile Manufacturers

8.4 Czech Republic

• 8.4.1. Laurin & Klement

• From 1905 until 1925, when the company was acquired by Skoda, Laurin & Klement produced over three dozen different models.
  
  

• The most popular being the MK/400 which was produced from 1913 to 1924.

• Note: The company was, until the borders were changed after the end of World War 1 in 1918, located in what was then Austria-Hungary.

• 8.4.2. Skoda

• In 1923 the Skoda company started to manufacture Hispano Suiza cars under licence.

• In 1925 they acquired the Laurin & Klement company and the cars Skoda produced prior to the start of World War 2 in 1939 were based mainly upon L & K designs (the 633, Popular and Rapid models).

• The 1,089 cc Skoda 1101 was the first car produced after World War 2. It was an improved version of the Popular and over 80,000 were made from 1945 to 1952.

• The 1100 was replaced by the 1200 model (1952-70) and the Octavia, of which over 220,000 were made from 1959 to 1964.
  
  

• Between 1964 and 1977 Skoda produced the 1000MB model, selling over 1.2 million.

• From 1945 to 2000 Skoda produced over 20 different models.

• Post 1990 models include: Praktik, Roomster, Superb, Favorit, Felicia, Octavia Mk 2 and Fabia.

• 8.4.3. Tatra

• In about 1923 the “Nesselsdorfer Wagenbau-Fabriksgesellschaft” company started  to call their car range “Tatra”.

• The company had produced their first car in 1897. See Part 1, The Early History, Section 7.3.

• In 1921 the company started work on the 1056 cc Tatra 11 and started selling the model in 1923.

• In 1926 it was replaced by the T 12, a car that had four wheel brakes, and shortly afterwards by the T17, a car with full independent suspension.

• In 1927 the company was renamed “Tatra a.s”.

• Production resumed after World War 2 in 1945 with the two-door 1,256 cc T57B model that was designed in 1939 and the larger T87.

• In 1947, two years after the company was nationalised, the Tatra T600 model went into production.

• This was  followed by the popular Tatra T603, which was produced for 20 years, from 1955 to 1975, with over 20,000 being sold.

• In 1996 Tatra started production of the T700. Three years later, in 1999, the company ceased manufacturing cars.

• Other cars produced by Tatra include models: T17, 57, 75, T77, 87, 97, 107 and 613.