page_title: Messerschmitt Kabinenroller
section_title: Tg500 sports car
hierarchical_section_title: Messerschmitt Kabinenroller / Tg500 sports car
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Motor eines FMR Tg 500 beim AvD-Oldtimer-Grand-Prix im Fahrerlager des Nürburgrings
context_page_description: The Messerschmitt Kabinenroller was a series of microcars made by Messerschmitt from 1953 to 1956 and by Fahrzeug- und Maschinenbau GmbH, Regensburg from 1956 to 1964. All the Messerschmitt and FMR production cars used the Kabinenroller's monocoque structure, featuring tandem seating and usually a bubble canopy.
  The Kabinenroller platform was used for four microcars, the three-wheeled Messerschmitt KR175, Messerschmitt KR200 and Messerschmitt KR201, and the four-wheeled FMR Tg500. The platform and all four cars using it were designed by Fritz Fend.
context_section_description: The performance of the record car convinced Fend to design a sports car based on the Kabinenroller platform. The FMR Tg500 was introduced in 1958, two years after Fahrzeug- und Maschinenbau Gmbh, Regensburg (FMR) took over production of the Kabinenroller from Messerschmitt. The Tg500 used the Kabinenroller's unit body, front bodywork, front suspension, and steering system, but the rear subframe and bodywork were completely different.
  The Tg500's most noticeable difference from other Kabinenrollern is its pair of rear wheels. These were driven by halfshafts with universal joints at both ends and a sliding spline allowing the length of the shaft to vary, accommodating changes in camber angle. The wheels were suspended by control arms and coil springs with concentric hydraulic shock absorbers. The rear track was 1,044 mm (41.1 in)
  The tubular subframe to which the rear suspension was attached also held the drivetrain, which consisted of a transversely-mounted FMR 500 L straight-twin two-stroke engine and an unsynchronized four-speed transaxle with a reverse gear.
  The Tg500 had a front track of 1,110 mm (43.7 in), up from the KR200's 1,080 mm (42.5 in). It also used larger tires, 4.40 x 10 to the KR200's 4.40 x 8, and four-wheel hydraulic brakes.
caption: Rear subassembly of a Tg500 showing the engine and parts of the suspension, including an upper spring mount on the subframe
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