Amphicar

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
logo
Amphicar 770
Side view
Amphicar with hood in the water

Amphicar was a German car brand.

Brand history

The designer Hans Trippel developed an amphibious vehicle in 1960 . From 1961 to 1968 he had it built mainly in Berlin-Wittenau at the Deutsche Waggon- und Maschinenfabrik (DWM) (formerly: Deutsche Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken AG ). The bodyshells were initially manufactured by Industrie-Werke Karlsruhe AG (IWK) in a former DWM armaments factory in Lübeck-Schlutup . In Germany, the vehicle was available from 1962 at a price of DM 10,500  (based on today's purchasing power and adjusted for inflation, 23,226 euros). The Amphicar Vertriebsgesellschaft from Wuppertal-Elberfeld sold the vehicles.

The idea for a civil amphibious vehicle came from the USA . It was hoped that there would be a market for anglers and sport hunters in the American lake landscape of 300,000 lakes. In fact, a significant part of the production was exported to the United States. Because of the high price, which at the time was roughly the value of two VW Beetles , not enough vehicles were sold. Sales were so sluggish that three years after the end of production, new cars could be bought that were on stockpile and offered with year of construction information in 1964 and 1965 at a reduced price of DM 8385. Because the few enthusiasts were able to stock up on spare parts cheaply at the time, maintenance was cheap. The American entrepreneur Hugh Gordon from Santa Fe Springs, California, took over large parts of the spare parts and production machines.

There are different statements about the number of units: allegedly 3000, about 3500, 3878 or about 4000. In 1964 388 vehicles were exported to the USA and in the following year 252.

model

The only model was an amphibious vehicle. The open body offered space for four people. A four-cylinder engine in the rear drove the rear wheels.

literature

  • Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Amphicar.
  • George Nick Georgano (Editor-in-Chief): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Volume 1: A – F. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , p. 56. (English)
  • Hasso Erb: floating car. Cars & trucks. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1988, ISBN 3-613-01165-4 .
  • Werner Oswald: German cars. Volume 4. 1945–1990. Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, and others. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-613-02131-5 , pp. 484-485.

Web links

Commons : Amphicar  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter Amphicar.
  2. ↑ George Nick Georgano (Editor-in-Chief): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , p. 56. (English)
  3. ^ A b Werner Oswald: German cars. Volume 4: 1945-1990. Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, and others. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-613-02131-5 , pp. 484-485.
  4. ↑ Amphicar - a buoyant roadster . In: Motor vehicle technology 07/1961, p. 295.
  5. ^ Christian Wüst: Pleasure in aquaplaning . In: Der Spiegel . No. 23 , 2007, p. 170 ( online ).
  6. ^ Hasso Erb: floating car. Pkw & Lkw. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1988, ISBN 3-613-01165-4 , pp. 117–118.
  7. ^ Hans Christoph von Seherr-Thoss : The German automobile industry. Documentation from 1886 until today . Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Stuttgart 1974, ISBN 3-421-02284-4 , p. 511 .