The Dkw Schnellaster Van 1949-1962

This pioneering vehicle was probably the very first mini-bus and people carrier of its kind.

Available in a wide range of body styles, there were 9 seater buses, vans, pick-ups and  
crew type vans. There were also many customised versions too, camper vans, fast
food wagons and Public Service vehicles etc.

Created in 1949, after Dkw left Zwickau for West Germany, these commercials were of
paramount importance in rebuilding Dkw's reputation and also their finances which took a
hammering during the War and forced the company to leave their factories in Soviet hands
with no reparation. It was this innovative and hugely practical vehicle combined with
Motorcycle and car sales that ensured the company prospered once again and ensured
their future in the very lean post-war years in Germany.

The Renault Espace advertised their vehicle was the first people carrier,
 from 1984 which it certainly wasn't as there were always a legion of Van based buses
  made by many manufacturers from at least the 1950's onwards.

 Renault championed this Front wheel drive box, with its transversely mounted
engine,  cube like body, a flat floor and versatile and flexible seating.
Although, they can hardly be compared as similar, the Schnellaster had all these
characteristics from 1949 and managed to do everything with a tiny two stroke
engine. The early ones had a twin cylinder, engine of just 700cc( this was copied
by the IFA for their F8 and would appear in modified form for the Zwickau P70 in
1958).

The Schnellaster shared it's engine, gear box and chassis to the F89 and thus the
F8.

The Engineers at Dkw must have had a sense of humour.
The word Schnellaster, when broken down into two words Schnell and Laster
translates as 'Fast Truck', of which it certainly was not.
It could also be a reference meaning ' Fast delivery' .

The 700cc engine put out just 20 Hp, which was good for just 70 kmh( 43 mph), but
as small freight vehicles mainly, they were set up to produce torque and pulling power.
Speed wasn't important, so their naming of the truck must have been 'tongue in cheek'
or it was named so to appear desirable and sexy.
The output was increased in 1952 to 22 hp and increased further to 32 Hp in 1955 when
it received the 3 cylinder, 900cc engine from the Dkw 3=6 car.
They were made up until 1962.
The load carrying capacity for these remarkable little vans was 3/4 of a Ton, which
is excellent considering the size of their engines and that some  small vans of
today  have powerful diesel  engines and they carry less.

The van derivative had access to the cargo area via a large back door, it had no side
doors. What set the Schnellaster apart from its rivals was it's unparalelled cargo area
for a small van. The van had 5 feet, 8 inches of standing height from floor to ceiling
and an overall cargo space equal to many larger vans.

The engine and transmission of the Schnellaster sat well forward of the front wheels
so it didn't cut into the passenger compartment and space was thus maximised.
I'm pretty certain that this van was the first mass produced, front wheel drive product
of its kind. When you consider most vans were still rear wheel drive in the 1990's this
was extremely ahead of its time.
It also had a clever and effective suspension set up that used rear trailing arms that
had springs built into the cross bar assembly. This was extremely advanced for a vehicle
of this kind when most cars didn't even have it.
They were like all Dkw's, Water-cooled.
These vans had wooden floors.
In addition being made in Germany, they were also made in Ireland and Spain from
1952 and 1954 respectively.
As with the Trabant and some others including Lloyd car's, the Schnellaster's fuel
tank was under the bonnet, next to the bulkhead.

Dkw's biggest rival in this market would turn out to be VW, who launched their 'Bulli'
Transporter, based on the Beetle in 1950.
The first versions had an 1100 c engine and produced 24 hp, so comparable in this
respect to the output of the Schnellaster.
The VW outsold the Dkw, but they were both a huge success.
In fairness to Dkw, they wouldn't have had the production capabilities at this time that
Vw did, so couldn't really compete if the demand was there anyway.
Also, the Vw was available in many more body type options and had a large contract to
provide Emergency Services vehicles for respective Police, Army, Ambulance and Fire
Brigade.
By comparision, the Vw was rear engined and rear wheel driven, with a 4-stroke engine,
and aircooled. The complete opposite to Dkw.
As far as space goes, the Schnellaster won hands down as the rear engine of the Vw
eliminated any chance of  a completely usuable flat floor cargo area.
Furthermore, the Schnellaster cargo area had a standing height of 5 feet 8 inches, and
a low loading height which made it unbeatable as far as space was concerned for its size.

There's very, very few of these vans left nowadays anywhere and when they are
available they're usually sold within DKW circles, through  clubs etc.
There's currently only one that's on the road, in all of the Uk and Ireland.
It's a 1958, 9 seater minibus, owned by Bill Ryan from Cork in Ireland.
It's been restored to a fantastic condition and the owner told me it was formerly
owned by the Rasmussen family, who created Dkw.

I did see one for sale on American Ebay a couple of months ago, a 1958 Van that
had been previously used as part of a tv repair business in the States for 12 years and
had been lying up since 1970. It needed extensive restoration, although it was a good
base for such. However, the engine wasn't turning freely.
 It made $9,300 ( £5700 sterling approx), so you can only guess what a
cracking example would cost if one became available.

There must be a few of these vans lying in fields or barns around the place, probably
rusted through and mostly unrestorable. There may even be a few not far from me
in Ireland lying in perpetual slumber.
What a pity!

Forget about buying one of these and buy a Barkas instead while you still can.