Trabant 601

The Trabant 601 (or Trabant P601 series) was a Trabant model produced by VEB Sachsenring in Zwickau, Saxony. It was the third generation of the model, built for the longest production time, from 1964 to 1990. As a result, it is the best-known Trabant model and often referred to simply as the "Trabant" or "Trabi". During this long production run, 2,818,547 Trabant 601 units were produced overall, and it was the most common vehicle in East Germany.
In hindsight, the Trabant 601 can be considered East Germany's answer to West Germany's "People's Car", the VW Beetle. Its purpose was to provide a cheap but still reliable car that was very affordable and also easy to repair and maintain. Still, it was at the time of its release rather modern in many ways, with front wheel drive combined with transversely mounted motor, a low maintenance engine, unitary construction, rack and pinion steering, composite bodywork and independent suspension all around. The car body was made of Duroplast. The main letdown was the engine, which was a two-stroke based on a pre-war DKW. It was competitive when launched, but from the late 1950s into the 1960s, small economy cars in Western countries that used two-stroke engines were replaced with cleaner and more efficient four-stroke engines, as employed from the start in the Volkswagen Beetle. Two-stroke engines of this sort, with crankcase scavenging and lubricating oil provided during fuel intake, burn their lubricating oil by design and produce smoky tailpipe emissions. However, two-stroke engines also powered cars such as the West German Auto Union 1000 that ended production in 1965, and the Swedish Saab 96 that changed to four-stroke in 1967. It was planned to replace the two-stroke-motor with a Wankel engine; however, East Germany failed to develop such a motor with satisfying parameters. Later, the lack of development funds in East Germany forced the continued use of a two-stroke engine in the Trabant, thus causing this vehicle to become outdated towards the end of the 1960s and obsolete by the 1980s.
The Trabant 601 was a modern automobile when introduced in 1963, with 150 pre-production examples. The body was modified from the previous P50/P60 variants of the Trabant, with a heavy emphasis on the front and roof area. The back of the car was also modified with different taillights and a higher trunk loading height as compared to previous models. Overall, the design was praised, particularly on the then-modern double trapezoid design. Originally, production was only planned to run from 1967 to 1971, but instead continued until 1990. The original P 60 engine was only 23 PS (16.9 kW). In 1969 the new P62 version was offered with a 26 PS (19.1 kW) engine. In 1974, a needle roller bearing was added to the connecting rod, allowing for a 50/1 lubricant to be used. Through the addition of a two-stage carburetor in 1984, the fuel consumption was brought down by 1/100 L/km. With these additions, the top speed was measured to be 107 km/h. Even with these improvements, the fuel consumption could still rise rapidly with extended acceleration or when towing a trailer. The P601 also had an overrunning clutch when running in fourth gear.
Over the course of decades, the design of the Trabant changed little. This caused the increasingly obsolete Trabant's reputation to worsen as time progressed. However, this had little effect on the sales figures — wait times of 10 years or longer for a new car were not uncommon. The price for a new Trabant in 1985 was 8,500 Mark for the 601 Standard, and 9,700 Mark for the most expensive model, the 601 Universal S de Luxe. Available options at this time included a shelf under the instrument panel and intermittent windshield wipers. With change to 12 V in 1984, options as hazard flashers and rear window heater became available.
New models were considered with the P602, P603, and P610 being planned in Zwickau. Among other improvements researched were larger motors and also wankel engines. All improvements however were blocked by the East German (DDR) government, which considered them unnecessary and feared the extra costs.
When a successor, the Trabant 1.1, was eventually developed, it received minimal external differences. The only exterior changes were a new radiator grille, bumpers, taillights, a more square bonnet, and the movement of the fuel cap to the rear right of the car. The interior was subject to many changes.
Many former DDR citizens have mixed emotions toward their "Trabi". It is very loud and uncomfortable, and still a symbol for the demised DDR, as it was a part of the system. However, the Trabant was a robust, functional and repair-friendly car, so many people developed a strong relationship to their Trabant. Further, the Trabant never was a symbol of Communist bureaucrats (who tended to own a Lada, Polski Fiat or Volga). Finally, the Trabant also is a symbol for breaking through the wall in 1989.
In recent years, the car has become collectors' items, with growing popularity. Green Trabants are especially popular, as they are rumoured to bring good luck to their owners. Many Trabant owners' clubs exist throughout Europe and 601s have their fans all over the world. Also, many Trabant 601s are still used as rally racing cars.
As a symbol of a bygone era, it has inspired movies such as Go Trabi Go which presented the Trabant as a kind of East German character and could make former DDR citizens laugh "not precisely at themselves, but at the absurdities of the system under which they lived until last year", symbolised by the three main aspects of the Trabant: slow, breaks down frequently and often ridiculed by Western society. It has also seduced people including the US actor David Hasselhoff to drive a Trabant, although he had trouble getting into it. Later he admitted he is a fan of the Trabant. Stephen Kinzer of The New York Times likens the Trabant as a symbol for the people who built it, who "survive[d] through difficult times and ultimately triumph[ed]." The car was also featured in the US film Everything Is Illuminated.
The Trabant 601 is the subject of Jalopy, a 2016 roadtrip video game. Set in June 1990 East Germany, during the early months of German reunification, the player is tasked to maintain a fictionalized version of the Trabant 601, the Laika 601, and use it to drive the player character's uncle to Istanbul, Turkey, via Eastern and Southeastern Europe.
The Trabant 601 makes an appearance in Half Life 2 as wreckage across City 17 and the surrounding area. The model is based on the Trabant 601 Universal. There are two game models, one where the vehicle is heavily damaged and one where the vehicle is abandoned.