Masinile Chisinaului / The Cars of Chisinau

Si Chisinaul avea o cultura auto interesanta in perioada interbelica. Astazi, foarte putine masini au supravietuit de dinainte de razboi - cunosc numai un Packard din 1938, alb, desi probabil sunt mai multe. Sursele sunt mai multe. O mare parte sunt de pe oldchisinau.com (link), aratand curse auto in 1928 si 1929 - o resursa extraordinara. Ca de obicei in Romania interbelica, vasta majoritate a masinilor erau de origine americana.

Chisinau had an interestuing automotive culture in the inter-war period. Today, very few cars from then have survived - I know only of a white 1938 Packard though there are probably a few more. The images here come from a number of sources. Quite a few are from oldchisinau.com (link), showing races held in 1928 and 1928. As was normal in interwar Romania, the vast majority of cars were of American origin.

59-Chs - Ford V8 carosat special de firma germana Glaser, Dubasarii Vechi

96-Chs - Chrysler in 1929

109-Chs - Ford T, anii 30, folosit de muncitori imigranti

212-Chs - probabil un tourer american, in 1928

239-Chs - Buick, in 1929

250-Chs - Buick in 1928

252-Chs - Studebaker, 1929

319-Chs - Auburn, Dubasarii Vechi

324-Chs - Ford, Dubasarii Vechi (familia Donici, cred)

400-Chs - Dodge, 1928

500-Chs - camion Chevrolet in 1940

  

Tourer din anii 20

Reprezentanta Ford in 1933

Inca un Buick, in 1929

Vedere de ansamblu, cursa auto, 1929

1926 Stutz in 1983

Intr-o serie de fotografii aratand cartierul Uranus inainte de demolarile din anii 80 apare aceasta antebelica. O aparitie rara penru 1983: desi inca existau masini antebelice pe strazile capitalei, majoritatea erau din anii 30 si in stare cel putin precara. Surpriza a venit totusi afland ce era masina: e vorba de un Stutz AA Vertical Eight Phaeton din 1926, o masina ultra-luxoasa si rara, fara discutie una din cele mai importante masini existente in Romania comunista, din pacate exportata dupa 1990. Ma intreb unde se afla acum.

Cu aceasta ocazie, prezint masina in mai multe ipostaze...

In a series of photos showing the Uranus quarter of Bucharest before demolition, I found this pre-war car. It's rare to see one as late as the 80s: although there were still a handful of pre-war cars on the streets, most were from the 30s and in a fairly precarious condition. The big surprise, though, was finding out what it was. It's a 1926 Stutz AA Vertical Eight Phaeton, a rare and highly luxurious car, without a doubt one of the most important cars in Communist Romania, one which was sadly exported in 1990. I wonder where it is now.

Here's the car in other images from the period...

Pe strada Lazureanu, 1983

 

In filmul "Frumoasele vacante", filmat in 1967

Eveniment, inceputul anilor 70 (se spune 1972, Raliul Batranetii) - fotografia a fost prezentata in revista Motor Clasic, nr 2

 

In filmul "Patima", 1975

 

Cu masina regala in Franta / To France, in the royal car!

O carte postala exceptionala, aratandu-l pe regele Ferdinand in statinuea franceza Bagnoles-de-l'Orne in anii 20. Langa el, se vede o masina regala, purtand numarul 6-B RM (Romania Mare). Greu de spus ce este masina dupa unghi. Cativa ani mai tarziu, in 1929 numarul se gasea pe un Ford, ceea ce sigur nu este. Posibil Lincoln, un model des folosit de casa regala in anii 20?

An exceptional postcard showing Kings Ferdinand in the French spa town of Bagnoles-de-l'Orne in the 1920s. Next to him is a royal car carrying the plate 6-B RM (Greater Romania). It's difficult to say what it is. By 1929 the plate would find itself on a Ford, which this certainly isn't; possibly it's a Lincoln, a model frequently used by the Romanian royals in the 1920s.

Produsele fabricii Astra, 1921 / Products of the Astra factory, 1921

In 1921, se tine Expoziția și Târgul de Mostre a Industriei Românești la București. Recent, a fost publicat o selectie minunata de imagini din acest eveniment. Ii avem pe generalul Averescu si regele Ferdinand in masini (foto 4, 5); dar, si mai important, avem imagini rarisime cu produsele fabricii Astra din Arad.

Am scris in 2010 un pic despre fabrica si produsele sale; copiez o reclama din 1925 (foto 6). Din pacate, informatiile raman slabe. Cert e ca dupa 1926, fabrica renunta la fabricatia produselor rutiere, axandu-se spre cele feroviare (foto 7). Anul 1930 era anul de glorie pentru circulatia autovehiculelor construite in Romania - 109 in total. Presupun ca marea majoritate erau cele fabricate la Arad.

In 1921 Bucharest held a fair showcasing Romanian industry; and recently, the Romanian national archives published a wonderful set of images from the event. We see General Averescu and King Ferdinand in their cars (photos 4, 5); and, more importantly, we see some very rare images of the products of the Astra factory in Arad.

I wrote in 2010 about Astra and its products; picture 6 shows an ad from 1925. Unfortunately, further details are scant. By the 1930s, automotive production had stopped, and the ad in picture 7 shows only railway produce being made. 1930 itself was the high point of Romanian-made vehicles on the road, with a grand total of 109 - I assume the vast majority of which were those made in Arad.

Renault-uri la manastirea Secu / Renaults at the Secu monastery

O marca cu o lunga istorie in Romania... August 1928, si un grup de tineri prosperi se duc la o calatorie la iarba verde in judetul Neamt, flancati de doua Renaulturi de la mijlocul anilor 20. Aceste masini, cu radiatorul in spatele motorului si un bot usor de recunoscut, au fost apreciate la vremea lor. In Romania, inca exista un Renault din anii 20 - un Monasix din 1928, in Craiova.

A marque with a long history in Romania. August 1928; a group of well-off young people travel into the countryside of Neamt, flanked by two Renaults from the mid 1920s. These cars, with the radiator behind the engine and an instantly recognisable front end, were popular at the time. In Romania, one 1920s model - a Monasix from 1928 - still exists, in Craiova.

Peste timp la Radauti... / Over time, in Radauti...

Opt poze aratand vehiculele din Radauti - din anii 30, din anii 40, din anii 50, din anii 60, si din anii 70. Si in provincie, erau chestii interesante pe strazi...

Eight photos with the vehicles of Radauti - from the 30s, the 40s, the 50s, the 60s and the 70s. In the provinces, too, you could see quite interesting things on the road...

1. In anii 30, un grup de familie langa un Whippet circa 1927. In 1933, existau numai 128 autovehiucle in judet (din care 52 erau taxiuri); Whippetul, o masina particulara, poarta numarul 74. / 1930s family photo next to a circa 1927 Whippet. In 1933, there were only 128 vehicles in the entire county, of which 52 were taxis; this, a private car, is number 74.

2. Anii 30 si un taximetru Ford '35 - posibil fabricat in Romania. / The 1930s again, and a 1935 Ford taxi - possibly one made in Romania

3. Parada muncitoreasca in 1948 / Workers' parade in 1948

4. 1959 - excursie muncitoreasca intr-un autobuz TV-1 / 1959 - workers' excursion in a TV-1 bus

5. 1965: doua TV-4 pick-up, fabricate intre 1958 si 1964 si astazi complet disparut / 1965: two TV-4 pick-ups, made between 1958 and 1964 and extinct today

6. 1965 si un spectaculos Citroen DS Safari - o apartie ca un OZN in Romania anilor 60. Cealata masina e un Peugeot 404 / 1965 and a spectacular Citroen DS safari - more like an UFO in 60s Romania. The other car is a Peugeot 404

7. 1975, un Volvo in centrul orasului, o aparitie destul de obisnuita in Bucuresti dar o raritate absoluta in provincie / 1975 and a Volvo in the town centre - a fairly common sight in Bucharest, and a complete rarity in the provinces

8. 1978 si, printre Dacii, o antebelica: un Opel Six / 1978 and, among the Dacias, a pre-war car: an Opel Six. 

Din Craiova interbelica / From inter-war Craiova

Ca un oras mare, Craiova avea o gramada de masini... Aceste poze, puse pe Facebook pe contul "Craiova de ieri", surprinde o parte din ele. In 1933 prefectura Craiovei avea 733 autovehicule inscrise (din care 83 taximetre) - la sfarsitul deveniului numarul ajunsese cert la peste o mie (autobuzul aeroportului Craiova purtand numarul 1234-Cv). Judecand dupa poze, majoritatea erau de origine americana, desi se vede si o representatnta FIAT.

As a large city, Craiova had a lot of cars... These photos, posted on Facebook on the "Craiova de ieri" (Craiova of yesterday) account, capture some of them. In 1933 there were 733 vehicles registered at the town hall, of which 83 were taxis. By the end of the decade that number had increased to at least a thousand, the Craiova airport bus being registered 1234-Cv. Judging by the photos, the vast majority of vehicles were American, although the FIAT dealership is also visible.