The development of motor vehicles was not simply linear. Manufacturers often had to react to customers’ specific needs. Take a look back at some vehicles which trailblazed technologies that would later be applied in mass-produced cars.

1905-1911: Laurin & Klement LW, three-wheelers for Czechs and Mexicans

In heavy urban traffic, light and agile motorised tricycles are ideal for delivery and postal services. This was already true 120 years ago. Between 1905 and 1911, three-wheelers were manufactured in Mladá Boleslav using parts from the company’s successful motorcycles. Seated at the back, the driver looked over the heads of two passengers or a covered space for up to 200 kg of cargo. The Laurin & Klement LW was particularly successful. Laurin & Klement sidecars and tricycles were used by postal workers to carry mail, first in Vienna, then in Budapest and Prague. In 1908, a small series headed to Mexico, as rare period photographs show. If you look closely, you can see that in addition to the tricycles, motorcycles from Mladá Boleslav were also used by the “Servicio postal”.

1908-1909: Nimble Laurin & Klement E “Montenegro” tram-buses

In 1907, the Principality of Montenegro held a tender to provide vehicles for the transport of mail and passengers on several bus routes. The tender was won by Laurin & Klement and the contract was signed in July 1908. On his visit to Montenegro, however, managing director Václav Klement discovered that the narrow roads with countless curves, often with a small radius, and the mountainous nature of the terrain required vehicles of a special design – they had to be shorter and have a narrower wheel base. Between June and November 1908, six five-seater “omnibuses”, as buses were called in those days, were built, as well as two panel vans and one E type roller given the designation “Černá Hora” (the Czechs name for Montenegro). The “summer variant” of the bus was fitted with two longitudinal benches for 5+5 seated passengers, so the total capacity of the barely four-metre long vehicle increased to 12 people.

1935: Ageless, elegant and streamlined Škoda 935 Dynamic

The prototype of the Škoda 935 Dynamic sedan (1935) was one of the most striking “streamlined” cars ever made, in Europe and the world as a whole. Its other technical features such as the liquid-cooled four-cylinder two-litre “boxer” engine – i.e. an engine with pistons situated opposite each other (like boxers) – were also remarkable. It delivered 55 hp (40 kW), giving a top speed of 130 km/h. It was long, too: its wheelbase measured 3,200 mm. Although the only two prototypes of the Škoda 935 Dynamic were ever made, the know-how was not wasted. In addition to a number of Škoda sports cars, aerodynamic bodies were soon used in series production. From 1939 to 1941, more than a hundred Rapid 1500 OHV “Motorway” cars were built, developed for the expressways that were just being built at the time.

1947-1948: Technological brainstorming - Škoda 950 “Taub”

Alex Taub, an American expert on modern automotive industry organisation, was invited to Mladá Boleslav after the Second World War. The upshot of his visit was a comprehensive report, dated 30 September 1947, containing a number of concrete proposals. One of Taub’s proposals was that a completely new car with a 1.2 litre four-cylinder engine should be produced instead of the Škoda 1101 “Tudor”; the new Škoda’s engine would be placed in front of the front driven axle and the car would have a frame supported on a central girder and independent suspension of all wheels. Taub proposed a weight limit of just 760 kg for the spacious four-seater. Two Škoda 950 prototypes with all-metal bodywork were built in Mladá Boleslav in this spirit. The pictures show the creators’ original idea for the model.

1952: Pioneer of 4x4 drive - Škoda 973 Babeta

The idea of four-wheel drive in Mladá Boleslav dates back to the second half of the 1930s. At that time, the Czech carmaker came up with the prototype of the military special 903, which was based on the luxury Škoda Superb passenger model. The special had a 6x4 configuration, with the two rear axles driven out of a total of three axles.

In 1952, Škoda took the next step in the form of the 973 model. This special military vehicle had a 4x4 configuration, terrain clearance was improved by a considerable approach angle of 55° front and rear, and the vehicle could climb a gradient of up to 85%. The vehicle remained stable even with a 47-58% lateral tilt, depending on the vehicle’s position relative to the slope and its load. Other notable features were its ability to drive through water up to a height of 600 mm and surmount obstacles a quarter of a metre high. Only about 30 units of the Škoda type 973 were built.