John H found this DKW Schnellaster in Australia, reputedly the only one there. Of course you’re all experts on these, having read the piece we did on these cute little buses a little while back. Two stroke twin with somewhere between 20 and 30hp, driving the front wheels. And this one has been in the same owner’s hands since 1960. Now that’s worthy in its own right. The only problem is that name; they should have called it the Langsamlaster.
Thats quite a find well done.
excellent! why doesn’t tata just sell a clone of these in india instead of the nano based iris?
Tata Magic Iris (what a name!) is a *micro*-van. It is (much) smaller—only 5-seater, and that’s 5 midgets, less powerful—11bhp vs the DKW’s 20hp or so, top speed 55km/h vs DKW’s 70km/h, diesel single-cylinder agricultural engine based, without a full metal body, and last but not the least, much cheaper. To compare it to the Schnellaster is to compare the Schnell to a full-size ford V8 van.
This vehicle segment exists only in India as far as I can tell. In China and S.E. Asian countries, two wheelers (Honda Cub or clones) or modified two wheelers converted into 3 wheelers do the job. In India, however, there are purpose-built 3- or 4- wheeled micro trucks/vans with natural gas or diesel power. The segment really started with the imported HANSEAT 3-wheeler from Tempo, manufactured under licence by Bajaj and what is now Force Motors. Bajaj is now the major player in this segment with a cloned Piaggio 3-wheeler, followed by Scooters India Limited with a Lambretta-based 3-wheeler, Piaggio itself, Mahindra, and a host of regional/local manufacturers, and the Magic Iris is set to compete with them.
By the way, any chance of a CC on Tempo products? Especially the Matador FWD van or the Hanseat 3-wheeler?
So then are these considered smaller than the Japanese kei cars, or are they comparable?
The Kei car is a legislative creature. This is roughly the same size, but much less powerful, made for hauling stuff/people at low speed in dense urban areas rather than light loads at higher speeds. Such vehicles have grossly under-rated load capacities (for low tax), so overloading is the norm.
This is what it will compete against:
http://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/bajaj-re60-more-than-a-nano/11106/1
These vehicles are the result of market demand, not legislation.
Note that the Nano is a completely different ball game, and it is not in the same category despite superficial similarity.
There’s a special place reserved in hell for web designers who co-opt my speakers without asking permission…
Care to elaborate?
The website you linked started playing a video unprompted when I followed the link.
Ever since I started reading CC I was attracted by the blue and white one on the home page. I enjoyed that article and think this is a little van that seems to be copied everywhere but the US.
Wish I could buy one.
Lift the hood at night with the headlights on, and flash them into the upstairs windows.
“O Schnellaster, Schnellaster, wherefore art thou Schnellaster?”
“We know you’re up there, come out with your hands up!”
Sorry, couldn’t resist…
I’m not sure that the headlights are actually connected to the hood – by chance I took a more detailed photo of a headlight.
Na sorry . . . Schnallester can no do dat my friend ! Haha. Lights are mounted on pedestals behind lenses.
We have named our ( off white ) 1958 DKW Schnellaster “JUMBO” simply cause when the hood/bonnet is raised up to its resting place on the “bump” just above da windscreen, Its as if the “Big 3=6” White Elephant is just ready for a feed !!! ( Fuel tank is also under da hood) !!!
“…they should have called it the Langsamlaster.”
Ich habe kein Deutsch, Paul, but Google translate says “langsam laster” means slowly vicious. It asks did you mean Langsamaster (slowest)?
Anyway, what once was fast may now be slow.
I love this too. Today it would be a perfect city EV. Retro outside, progressive inside.
Actually, Schnellaster should’ve been Schnelllaster (note one additional `l’), meaning `wicked fast’, according to Google. Thusly we remove Schnell and add Langsam to get Langsamlaster—wicked slow!
N.B. I don’t know German at all, so I follow the excellent path set down by the great JFK (Ish bin ein Bear-liner) and use Google Translate. Most of my German vocab comes from Rammstein. 🙂
German is funny, especially with the almost endless ability to merge numerous words into one. I’m not up to all the rules anymore (I was seven when we left), but I do know in that situation you don’t want to end up with three l’s. That’s a nein-nein.
This tendency for few, long words is perhaps only common to Scandinavian languages and German. French is the antithesis, with numerous words of one or two letters that, when spoken, form one syllable. Oh well…
FWIW, it is standard in Sanskrit, which has very elaborate rules for combining words. 53-letter words existed in ancient times as well. Maybe there is some connection.
MikePDX: Actually, that would be “Langsamster” as in slowest. Which isn’t far off the mark either.
Laster (Lastwagen, or Lastkraftwagen officially abbreviated as LKW) means truck, and Langsam means slow; hence Langsamlaster. But since I (legitimately) created the word, google wouldn’t get it. Which applies to Schnellaster too, since that’s also a made-up word, by DKW.
Dankeschön!
I’ve just uploaded the other other photos I took of the bus, the wheelarches are shown on the inside by some chrome trim.
Overall dimensions at a guess would be approx 13-14′ long, 5′ wide and 6’4″ tall
“Well” “well” “well” said the 3 headed policeman ! Thats why the Schnellaster never ever went very fast.
I should know, ive driven my 800/3 seven seater mini bus/van at top speed of approx 50mph, some years ago !
Its now awaiting a full resto job, that im desperate to start !!! “a ring a ding ding a ding”
Attached is a early photo of the 1958 DKW BIG 3=6 F/800 3Door 7 seater bus / van