Trabant

Trabant
Overview
Manufacturer	VEB Sachsenring
Production	1957–1990 (East Germany) 1990–1991 (Germany) 3.7 million produced
Body and chassis
Body style	2-door sedan 3-door station wagon (Universal) Doorless jeep (Kübelwagen)
Layout	Transverse front-engine, front-wheel-drive
Powertrain
Engine	499 cc two-stroke I2 (1957–1962) 594 cc two-stroke I2 (1962–1990) 1043 cc BM 820 four-stroke I4 (1990–1991)
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,020 mm (79.5 in)[1]
Length	3,360 mm (132.3 in)[1]
Width	1,500 mm (59.06 in)[2]

Trabant (German: [tʁaˈbant] ^ⓘ) is a series of small cars produced from 1957 until 1991 by former East German car manufacturer VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke Zwickau. Four models were made: the Trabant 500, Trabant 600, Trabant 601, and the Trabant 1.1. The first model, the 500, was a relatively modern car when it was introduced.

It featured a duroplast body on a steel chassis, front-wheel drive, a transverse two-stroke engine, and independent suspension. Because this 1950s design remained largely unchanged until the introduction of the last model, the Trabant 1.1 in 1990, the Trabant became symbolic of the former East Germany's stagnant economy and the collapse of the Eastern Bloc in general.^[3] Called "a spark plug with a roof", 3,096,999 Trabants were produced.^[4] Older models have been sought by collectors in the United States due to their low cost and fewer restrictions on the importation of antique cars. The Trabant also gained a following among car tuning and rallying enthusiasts.